Race
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 Insert Speed Racer reference here. | |||||||||
| "Race" (Bud to Hop no Tokairyokō) "Bud and Hop's Trip to the City" | |||||||||
| Production company | TV Aichi, We've, Tōkyū Agency | ||||||||
| Airdate | April 16, 2005 (Japanese) September 17, 2005 | ||||||||
| Writer | Kazuhisa Sakaguchi | ||||||||
| Director | Masashi Nagao | ||||||||
| Animation studio | GONZO | ||||||||
| Continuity | Unicron Trilogy cartoon continuity | ||||||||
While the great race kicks into high gear on Velocitron, Bud and Lori go undercover on Earth, and Starscream recruits a new Decepticon.
Synopsis
On Velocitron, the great race for the Planet Cup has finally begun! Hot Shot, Override and Dirt Boss battle it out for the lead, while the other Autobots keep an eye on Crumplezone and Ransack. Optimus Prime blocks the two goons' path, while Red Alert and Landmine watch them from behind. The two trouble-makers allow the Autobots to pass...but only so they can fire on them from behind! The explosions catch Hot Shot's attention, but Prime encourages him to leave things to the other Autobots and for him to focus on winning.
Video of the race is transmitted to the Autobots Earth, where it proves to be the only entertainment available for Bud, who is caught in a traffic jam in the city, having been sent there on a mission with Lori and the Recon Mini-Con Team by Vector Prime. Bud is not happy to be in the noisy, cramped city, but Lori is thrilled to be back in her element. Once they get out of the traffic jam, Jolt leads the team to a university campus to search for a strange gear-shaped artifact, but when they try to sneak inside, a security guard chases after them.
Back with the race, Ransack transforms to robot mode and leaps on top of Crumplezone, using his new position to launch a spring that hooks onto Optimus Prime's rear end. The spring catapults Ransack ahead of the Autobots, where he unleashes a smokescreen that allows Crumplezone to sneak up to join him. The pair then switch positions, with Crumplezone riding on top of Ransack! They draw up level with Hot Shot and Dirt Boss, and are able to cause the two racers to crash into each other, allowing them to pull ahead. Hot Shot recovers from his spin first, and gives chase.
Also watching the race from Earth are Starscream and Thundercracker, who are soon contacted by Megatron. When Megatron instructs Starscream to go to Velocitron and aid Crumplezone and Ransack, Starscream refuses point-blank and Megatron silently terminates their communication links. Thundercracker is shocked at his actions, but Starscream intimates that it is time for them to start making some decision for themselves, and their first one is to approach the civilian Autobot, Mudflap. A fight immediately breaks out between Thundercracker and Mudflap, but Starscream steps in to stop the brawl and offers Mudflap membership in the Decepticons. Unable to fathom humans and discontented with life on Earth in general, Mudflap is swayed by Starscream's honeyed words and agrees. Switching his symbol to a Decepticon insignia, Mudflap hops aboard Thundercracker and is taken back to the fire dimension, leaving Starscream to cackle to himself at the beginning of the "fall of Megatron".
Meanwhile, Bud and Lori manage to evade the campus security guard by ducking into a room. No sooner do they have time to observe that the room is a mess before someone else enters, and the pair quickly dive into a supply closet. Their hiding place is immediately discovered when the female professor who has just entered spills a cup of orange juice and opens the closet in search of cleaning supplies. Surprisingly enough, she takes this quite well, introduces herself as Professor Lucy Suzuki, and even shows the kids her collection of strange archaeological artefacts, which she believes to be alien in origin. One of the pieces turns out to be the object Bud and Lori are looking for, so the kids quickly excuse themselves and depart. Lucy is poised to go after them before she gets a phone call from the front desk to inform her that someone from the government is here to see her urgently...
Back on Velocitron, Crumplezone and Ransack use their lead to blast out a bridge, leaving Dirt Boss and all the Autobots behind them unable to proceed. Optimus helps Hot Shot clear the gap by driving off the edge into mid-air and using his cannons as a ramp for Hot Shot to vault off of, making it safely to the other side. Dirt Boss, meanwhile, goes off road, and quickly closes the gap on Crumplezone and Ransack, crashing down on top of them from above and flattening them down into the asphalt. While all this excitement goes on, Override crosses the finish line in first place, and Hot Shot then uses his Cyber Key Power to take second, securing his position in the next heat of the race.
Across the galaxy on Jungle Planet , Backstop entreats Scourge to listen to Overhaul's pleas. Unfortunately, Overhaul's gruff, confrontational manner means that the "discussion" doesn't go very well, almost immediately degenerating into a face-off between the two...
Featured characters
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)
| Autobots | Decepticons | Humans | Others |
|---|---|---|---|
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Quotes
"My theory... is that the item... is in a room."
- —Elementary, my dear Bud!
"Has Crumplezone overheated and mistaken Ransack for his little red wagon?"
- —Race announcer after Crumplezone jumps upon Ransack
"You rode on my back!"
- —Crumplezone, on why he is riding Ransack
"What's weeth zeez humans, anyway? Zey are one bunch of deesorderly cats, eh?"
- —Zut alors! Mudflap is French! Why? Dang if we know!
"Ask yourself, friend, why is Optimus Prime so concerned with humans? Shouldn't the focus be on us? Do you enjoy a life suffering humans?"
"No. I don't."
"Just join with me, and you will no longer have to worry about trivial human problems!"
"But... you are evil. So is Megatron."
"That, Mudflap, is an unfortunate misunderstanding! The Decepticons and the Autobots want the same thing! We all live in the same universe. We're just trying to save it with a more direct method."
"Hmmm..."
"You know I'm right."
"...we should come first! Forget the humans! I'll join!"
- —Starscream wins over Mudflap
Notes
Differences with Galaxy Force
This episode features no notable changes from the Galaxy Force version, beyond the usual modifications and extensions made to dialogue and music.
Transformers references
- The Galaxy Force version of "Ship" had Vector Prime inform the kids he had something for them to do while he was on Velocitron. While it's not directly stated, evidently, this mission was the task in question.
- Thundercracker says of Mudflap, "This guy's about as neighborly as a hungry Tigatron!"
- The mysterious government operative previously appeared in "Hidden" and "Collapse.
Real-world references
- Bud dubs Jolt "Double-Oh-Zero", a variation of famous spy James Bond's codename, Double-Oh-Seven (the joke is also in Galaxy Force, though the term used is "0099"). Bud later does his best impression of Bond-as-played-by-Sean Connery, referring to a "Miss Pennymoney" (a reference to Bond's eternally unrequited love interest, Miss Moneypenny).
- Hotshot says "I've got a long way to go and a short time to get there"; a clear reference to the popular Jerry Reed song 'Eastbound And Down" which was featured in the equally as popular action film 'Smokey and the Bandit' starring Burt Reynolds.
Trivia
- "Race" was the last episode of Cybertron to premiere on Cartoon Network in 2005; following its broadcast, the series moved to Kids' WB and switched to a daily broadcast, beginning with the debut of the first two episodes of the series, "Fallen" and "Haven", which Cartoon Network had originally skipped.
- The unknown actor who replaced Ryan Hirakida as Bud in "Hero" continues to voice the character in this episode.
- Ransack is somehow able to bear Crumplezone's weight without appreciably slowing down. What is in that guy's Energon?
- The green filter that tinges Megatron's brief communication with Starscream indicate that he's still in his unexplained regeneration bubble-thingy, as seen in the previous episode. This is the last we see of this little oddity; at the start of the next episode, he rolls up in vehicle mode and no mention is made of it again. It does seem a bit similar to his means of regeneration in a later episode...(A possible explanation is that Megatron's power is constantly increasing throughout the series, so when he is injured in later episodes, he can recover without the regenerative bubble.)
Home video releases
- DVD
2005 — Transformers: Galaxy Force — Vol. 04 (Victor Entertainment) — Japanese audio only.
2008 — Transformers: Cybertron — The Ultimate Collection (Paramount)
