“I am the new leader of the Decepticons!”
Starscream proclaims that he is the new Decepticon leader in the opening of this episode, and leads Soundwave and the Seekers in an attack on a powerplant in an attempt to show his proficiency, but predictably, they are thwarted by Optimus Prime and the Autobots. The Decepticons retreat, but Prime sends Prowl and Bluestreak in pursuit as the scene shifts to Cybertron, where we see that Megatron is alive and well and wants to get back to Earth. Megatron reveals his plan to attack a laboratory to steal an anti-matter formula, and tells Starscream and co to repair themselves before rendezvousing with him.
“Well, I’ve never met an autoboot before”
Bumblebee escorts Spike and Chip to the lab, where Reflector is spying and picks up the code for the security doors as they enter. We see that Chip’s efforts are integral to the development of the anti-matter formula. We soon learn that Chip was probably the first person to start the working from home trend, as he’s given a floppy disk which allows his home computer to communicate with the one from the lab. As Bumblebee takes Chip home, with Spike on board too, Laserbeak launches an attack, presumably to try to steal the disk that Chip has been given. Bumblebee is able to evade Laserbeak, so Megatron decides to attack the lab sooner than planned before Bumblebee can warn Optimus.
“They’re munchin’ jets for lunch!”
Prowl and Bluestreak track down Starscream and his team to an aircraft hangar where they’re stealing jet parts for repairs, but they are outnumbered and quickly become overwhelmed.
Chip is rapidly trying to warm Doctor Alcazar at the lab that Megatron is on his way to attack, but the message gets there at the same time as Megatron! Doctor Alcazar uploads the formula to Chip’s computer to keep it out of Megatron’s hands. In the meantime, battle damaged Prowl links up with Chip’s computer so that Chip can help him fight off the Decepticons at the hangar.
“Ravage, eject, operation retreival”
Fleeing from the hangar, Starscream is contacted by Megatron, who has learned that the anti-matter formula was sent to Chip, and sends he and his team to intercept. Chip memorises the formula and gets rid of the floppy disc, but is kidnapped by Ravage, who Soundwave has sent in to retrieve him.
Starscream arrives at the lab with Chip at the same time as Optimus and his team. Soundwave uses his skills to extract the anti-matter formula from Chip as Prime sends Mirage, Hound, and bumblebee to infiltrate the lab. Once inside, their distraction techniques allow them to rescue Chip and escape. As Prime and co storm the lab, Megatron fights back by using the anti-matter energon cubes as grenade like explosives, forcing the Autobots to head home for repairs.
Chip laments Megatron getting the anti-matter formula from him, but Wheeljack involves him and Spike in a plan he’s come up with.
“I am about to transform the Autobots into atomic particles!”
The Decepticons attack the Autobots base, using Megatron’s alt-mode as a way to blast the Autobots with the power of the anti-matter energon cubes. As Skywarp has Megatron in hand and is ready to fire, Spike distracts him and Chip rolls in on his wheelchair unseen to plant a device on him. The device allows Teletraan 1-the Autobots computer, to take control of his reflexes and turn his firepower back against the Decepticons. Defeated, the Decepticons retreat, and Chip’s bravery is celebrated.
Key Scenes, Plot Points and Characters:
Its good to see Prowl and Bluestreak getting some good screen time and action in the early parts of this episode, as well as seeing Sunstreaker and Sideswipe working together on some “Jet Judo” as they battle the Decepticons. Chip is introduced to us and we see that his intelligence is his main attribute. Starscream’s quest for power continues, and on the other side of things Optimus continues to establish his character as a brave and inspirational leader. Good use is made of the Autobots skills and abilities in this episode, such as Hound’s holograms, Mirage’s invisibility and Wheeljack’s inventing.
The Verdict:
A good episode with plenty of action and a good underlying moral. There are better animated episodes, but lots of characters get screen-time. I score this episode 7 energon cubes out of 10.
Afterthoughts:
This isn’t one of my go-to episodes if I want to watch a classic Transformers episode, but watching it for this review made me realise it’s a better episode than I’d previously thought. The writers do a great job of squeezing lots of action and characters into a short space of time without it feeling like it has been rushed. Chip’s redemption from his guilt at allowing Megatron to get the formula, to his celebration as the hero of the story leaves you with a bit of a “feel good” factor after watching it, which is always nice!
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