Transformers:Prime (Spoilers Within)

[Beastbot]

Actually, the way it's been done I think they're just much more effective as close-quarters brutes. Whereas as in insect mode flying, they're sorta clumsy and can be knocked out of the sky easily (by shooting their relatively delicate wings). Note the lack of close-quarters combat with them in "Armada" and thus how easily they were dispatched.

[Alak]

Oh hey, Starscream is actually a force to be reckoned with again. Dreadwing teaming up with Optimus Prime was awesome. Actually, I really enjoyed all their fights in this episode. Maybe it's because in this show Dreadwing is my favorite Decepticon and Prime is my favorite Autobot that I really loved this episode. While I would like to see Dreadwing switch sides, it's probably not going to happen any time soon.

Starscream: "Fools! Not only am I intelligent, I AM INVINCIBLE!!!"
Optimus Prime: "Yet, you cannot fly."
Starscream: "Nobody's perfect..."

^ best lines in the episode

[Wicked Woman]

Great news guys (if you haven't heard already):

Transformers Prime will be airing new episodes again starting friday August 24th.

August 24: Hurt
http://tvlistings.zap2it.com/tv/transfo ... 3408350044

August 31: Out of the Past
http://tvlistings.zap2it.com/tv/transfo ... 3408350045

Enjoy!


WW

[Wicked Woman]

Anyone seen the recent episode o TF: Prime? Anyone recognize the recently introduced character?


WW

[Beastbot]

Yeah, David Shockwa-- I mean, Sobolov. I have to say, he does a great Depth Charge, but his voice is a bit too... emotional and deep for Shockwave. Just doesn't feel right.

[DarkSpark]

Yeah, David Shockwa-- I mean, Sobolov. I have to say, he does a great Depth Charge, but his voice is a bit too... emotional and deep for Shockwave. Just doesn't feel right.

Yeah, he has a good villains voice, but it just doesn't sound sophisticated enough to be Shockwave. He also sounds bit too angry & emotional.


BTW...Is anyone else having trouble taking the cons seriously these days? I mean, Megatron welcomes Starscream back into the fold (without really giving a proper explanation as to why), Dreadwing betrays them, Megatron kills Dreadwing in favor of a once again cowardly Starscream (who never once tried to fly away or FIGHT BACK against Dreadwing...Seriously, how did Screamer EVER earn the title of second in command when he seems to have NO admirable traits or skills that would warrant such a rank?), & Knockout & Screamer discovered how the Omega Keys work thanks to petty bickering and sheer dumb luck...I mean really, how are these clowns still alive? Megatron and Soundwave seem to be the only ones who can do anything right, & even they've made some rather uncharacteristic blunders lately.

They have an entire army at their command yet only a handful of them are really any match for Prime and his troops, more named Con characters keep dropping like flies or getting removed from play while the Autobots have only lost two members, Cliffjumper at the beginning of the series & Tailgate (who we never saw & who died Megacycles ago before the main events of the series). Its like all the odds are in the Cons favor but the Autobots Mary Sue their way through everything...They're the good guys of course so they need to win in the end, but its never done very convincingly or the cons come across as being shockingly inept.

To be fair, I actually liked the idea of Screamer rejoining the ranks, simply because his time spent as a free agent was a complete waste of time & destroyed all his credibility as a villain...His theft of the Omega Keys I hoped meant a return to the cunning, competent, menacing Starscream we met at the beginning of the series and departure to his comical, almost Waspinator level of uselessness...But no, he immediately goes back to being pitiful, & Megatron never fully & properly explains why he spares Screamer...All the reasons he lists for taking him back seem more like reasons he should kill him on the spot than anything else (and it cost him one of his stronger, more intelligent soldiers).

Sorry for the rant guys, just needed to get all of this off my chest, and I'd like to hear if anyone else shares my feelings on recent developments with the cons.

P.S. I'm aware they DID manage to capture the Autobot kids finally...Took them long enough right?

[Beastbot]

Yeah, I thought the excuse for Starscream being accepted back was lame, but I love Prime Starscream's character. I like all the whimpering and pleading he does as soon as anything hits the fan.

That said, Starscream, Megatron, Prime, and Bumblebee are the four core TF characters. Unless it's the end of a series, don't expect ANY of them to EVER die for good, it's basically a rule of thumb now.

As for the kids, well, I don't normally like this comic but I found this pretty funny:

[DarkSpark]

Yeah, I thought the excuse for Starscream being accepted back was lame, but I love Prime Starscream's character. I like all the whimpering and pleading he does as soon as anything hits the fan.

That said, Starscream, Megatron, Prime, and Bumblebee are the four core TF characters. Unless it's the end of a series, don't expect ANY of them to EVER die for good, it's basically a rule of thumb now.

As for the kids, well, I don't normally like this comic but I found this pretty funny:

"facepalms" Oh my god...As absolutely hilarious as this comic is , it also makes a very valid point that blows a gigantic hole in the plot of Transformers Prime...Megatron could have forced the Autobots to their knees YEARS ago if he had just kidnapped a handful of humans and forced them to surrender...hell, they could have destroyed entire cities full of people until Prime and his followers agreed to give themselves up (even Starscream should have been able to figure this out, even if he IS the most inept version of Screamer yet). Yet another reason why humans shouldn't appear in Transformers, it draws attention to the fact that Megatron and the cons should have been able to back the Bots into a corner years ago . Thanks for sharing it though


Yeah, I guess you're right about the four of them making up the "core" transformers team (I don't think Soundwave is going anywhere either, thank goodness), though honestly I don't know why anyone would raise a fuss over "Bumblebee Prime" since he's barely a character at all these days.

If any Autobots die next episode, who do you they they'll be? Personally, I think its gonna be Smokescreen, Bulkhead missed his chance to die honorably after he recovered from exposure to ToxN AND being shot in the back by Hardshell (that would have been a perfect window of opportunity for Wheeljack to takeover his spot on the team).

[Beastbot]

"facepalms" Oh my god...As absolutely hilarious as this comic is , it also makes a very valid point that blows a gigantic hole in the plot of Transformers Prime...Megatron could have forced the Autobots to their knees YEARS ago if he had just kidnapped a handful of humans and forced them to surrender...hell, they could have destroyed entire cities full of people until Prime and his followers agreed to give themselves up (even Starscream should have been able to figure this out, even if he IS the most inept version of Screamer yet). Yet another reason why humans shouldn't appear in Transformers, it draws attention to the fact that Megatron and the cons should have been able to back the Bots into a corner years ago . Thanks for sharing it though

Well... honestly that depends on your viewpoint. I hated the whole "random hostage" thing back in G1 and Beast Wars, and I don't hate it any less now. I mean, I realize they won't actually kill the kids given the Y7 rating, but looking at it from a realistic perspective... there's a really ridiculous over-emphasis on the emotional for those kinda of decisions. I mean, lessee, save 3 kids-- kids you KNOW, but still just 3 kids-- or revitalize your entire planet with you at the helm? Sorry kids, but Imma side with a WHOLE PLANET in this case. Same with the whole "Hey Maximals, I'm gonna kill these two tigers if you don't let me corrupt that sentient, self-aware being for my army!" like in Tigatron's debut episode. Fine, kill the two tigers, on your head be it. Better than you getting another sentient TF on your side and possibly winning the Beast Wars.

Though I would honestly argue G1 Sunbow Starscream is more inept than Prime Starscream. There's no way G1 Starscream would've put together the plan to steal those Omega Keys. I mean, at least with Prime Starscream there's a conscious attempt by the writers to play up the comedic quality of his physical weakness.

If any Autobots die next episode, who do you they they'll be? Personally, I think its gonna be Smokescreen, Bulkhead missed his chance to die honorably after he recovered from exposure to ToxN AND being shot in the back by Hardshell (that would have been a perfect window of opportunity for Wheeljack to takeover his spot on the team).

I honestly think the possibility of any of the Autobots dying next episode is so remote it's not even worth really hypothesizing about it. If Bulkhead didn't die after "Toxicity"... yeah, they're all gonna be OK. I imagine the episode will end with Megatron revitalizing the planet (and likely leading to the reawakening of the Predacons, given the "Beast Hunters" Season 3 subtitle).

[DarkSpark]

"facepalms" Oh my god...As absolutely hilarious as this comic is , it also makes a very valid point that blows a gigantic hole in the plot of Transformers Prime...Megatron could have forced the Autobots to their knees YEARS ago if he had just kidnapped a handful of humans and forced them to surrender...hell, they could have destroyed entire cities full of people until Prime and his followers agreed to give themselves up (even Starscream should have been able to figure this out, even if he IS the most inept version of Screamer yet). Yet another reason why humans shouldn't appear in Transformers, it draws attention to the fact that Megatron and the cons should have been able to back the Bots into a corner years ago . Thanks for sharing it though

Well... honestly that depends on your viewpoint. I hated the whole "random hostage" thing back in G1 and Beast Wars, and I don't hate it any less now. I mean, I realize they won't actually kill the kids given the Y7 rating, but looking at it from a realistic perspective... there's a really ridiculous over-emphasis on the emotional for those kinda of decisions. I mean, lessee, save 3 kids-- kids you KNOW, but still just 3 kids-- or revitalize your entire planet with you at the helm? Sorry kids, but Imma side with a WHOLE PLANET in this case. Same with the whole "Hey Maximals, I'm gonna kill these two tigers if you don't let me corrupt that sentient, self-aware being for my army!" like in Tigatron's debut episode. Fine, kill the two tigers, on your head be it. Better than you getting another sentient TF on your side and possibly winning the Beast Wars.

Though I would honestly argue G1 Sunbow Starscream is more inept than Prime Starscream. There's no way G1 Starscream would've put together the plan to steal those Omega Keys. I mean, at least with Prime Starscream there's a conscious attempt by the writers to play up the comedic quality of his physical weakness.

If any Autobots die next episode, who do you they they'll be? Personally, I think its gonna be Smokescreen, Bulkhead missed his chance to die honorably after he recovered from exposure to ToxN AND being shot in the back by Hardshell (that would have been a perfect window of opportunity for Wheeljack to takeover his spot on the team).

I honestly think the possibility of any of the Autobots dying next episode is so remote it's not even worth really hypothesizing about it. If Bulkhead didn't die after "Toxicity"... yeah, they're all gonna be OK. I imagine the episode will end with Megatron revitalizing the planet (and likely leading to the reawakening of the Predacons, given the "Beast Hunters" Season 3 subtitle).

Yeah, the hostage angle has been pretty played out, I mean, it could be made more interesting if the show had an older viewer rating, but it doesn't, so the probability of anything bad befalling the hostages is zero (and the cons could have done this ANYTIME before now lol)...Probably would have been more dramatic if an actual Autobot was caught, someone the cons would be allowed to kill on screen. And you make a good point about how risking the future of an entire planet, possibly the universe at large given Megatron's lust for power, over a few hostages is a tad bit questionable (I HATE to say it, but its true...Its easier to say since Miko is one of the potential casualties ).

I've been REALLY annoyed by how many Cons have died over the course of this series and how the autobots have been able to live through everything and keep increasing their numbers (good always wins in the end of course, but they usually suffer losses of their own over time). I mean, Megatron may have a whole ship full of troops, but we all know they're just nameless cannon fodder, they're virtually useless against the autobots even when they aren't equipped with those magical super weapons they used last episode, only the named cons pose any challenge, and the show keeps going through them rather quickly. I still think G1 Starscream is more competent that Prime Starscream though, G1 Screamer led the combaticons to victory over Megatron and his forces, only losing at the last second because the stunticons came out of nowhere. G1 Screamer also helped kill Ironhide's autobot crew during the G1 transformers movie, & played the Maximals and Predacons against eachother during Beast Wars...He's no Megatron, but at the same time, he's no wuss either. The new Screamer can't seem to overpower anyone except Knockout, it REALLy makes you wonder how he became 2nd in command when he doesn't seem to have any of the traits that Megatron would look for in a right hand con (the original screamer at least never begged Autobots for mercy & was a dangerous combatant). I guess I wouldn't mind Screamer's portrayal these days if he was just another con on the ship, but as Megatron's former sub-commander it doesn't add up, especially given the more serious nature of the show. I'll admit new Screamer is at least more subtle than G1 Screamer even if he's not as tough, usurping Megatron's throne is easier when ya don't announce your intentions every chance ya get lol. To each their own though, sorry for rambling, its cool discussing stuff like this with other TF fans.

If no Autobots die, then I hope Megatron's inner circle gets more new recruits besides Shockwave next season, at least enough to even things out between his team and Prime's. Despite my critiques so far, I must admit I AM interested in seeing the Predacons again, especially this ominous Predaking character I've been hearing about

[Alak]

As long as Miko's capsule is the first to be opened, I'll be a happy camper

[DarkSpark]

As long as Miko's capsule is the first to be opened, I'll be a happy camper

You said it brother

[DarkSpark]

Any thoughts on latest developments in TF Prime?

So far my thoughts are...

Positives: (1) Megatron & company FINALLY destroyed the Autobot base & have apparently established a seat of power on earth, coming out into the open with a far larger army than we had previously realized judging by all the drones we saw

(2) Starscream was taken seriously throughout the episode & was genuinely menacing and competent for once...We'll see how long that lasts lol...I did love his line "United we stand, divided they fall," very quotable

(3) We saw lots and lots of awesome combat scenes between the bots and the cons, as well as a cool new look for the decepticon jets


Negatives: (1) None of the good guys died, not even that annoying newbie Smokescreen (strange considering ALL of the Decepticons new characters were killed off this season). It really steals from the decepticons thunder that they didn't manage to kill even one Autobot...Wheeljack doesn't count since he vanished offscreen, no way he's really dead, same goes for Optimus

(2) Optimus Prime DOOMED Cybertron...Seriously?! I know the earth was in danger because Megatron was trying to cyberform it while restoring Cybertron as well, but it just seemed like a bad situation to put either of them in, a situation the writers could have easily avoided. Megatron looks foolish for not simply reviving Cybertron first, establishing himself as its undisputed "savior" before turning his attention to earth again, and Optimus will forever be known as the bot who destroyed any hope of reviving their home planet, even Ratchet was appalled by what he'd done regardless of his reasons for doing so. How many scattered Cybertronians out in space are gonna forgive or overlook him damning Cybertron in favor of a world most of them probably have never heard of? I know it seems like the ultimate noble sacrifice, but to me it seemed like too controversial a move to put these characters in. Optimus Prime KILLED Cybertron, not Megatron, Optimus...Its not a good sign when you find yourself sympathizing with Starscream's & his own moral outrage over what's become of his home planet over Optimus' actions XD

(3) The story continues to take place on earth...Just like the last two seasons. I mean, I know the bots are scattered and the cons seem to be in a position to start conquering earth and all that, but wouldn't it have been ALOT more interesting to see Megatron rule over a restored Cybertron, spreading lies amongst the ranks of returning Cybertronians, demonizing the autobots even while Optimus and his team start a revolution to free Cybertron and expose Megatron's deceptions once and for all? Heck, with a space bridge at their command, the Autobots COULD have remained stationed on earth while the cons focused on building their empire on cybertron and preparing an armada to invade earth with, so we could still have the best of both worlds, literally, earth and cybertron antics. Heck, we could have even had the Autobots leave earth and their partners behind (finally) and return home to start a rebellion against Megatron's tyranny. So much story potential that could have been had.

[Beastbot]

I must admit although it had some good moments, the season finale felt like the concept of DotM done worse. At least DotM gave a reason (however good or bad you may find it) for why Megatron didn't invade Earth earlier-- this episode really... doesn't. So what, Megatron has a tower now? That means he can now take over the world? What? I always assumed they didn't have the forces for that, hence the whole "in disguise" motif.

This episode has some GREAT moments for Ratchet, though. Man, Jeffrey Combs can act the hell out of characters.

[DarkSpark]

I must admit although it had some good moments, the season finale felt like the concept of DotM done worse. At least DotM gave a reason (however good or bad you may find it) for why Megatron didn't invade Earth earlier-- this episode really... doesn't. So what, Megatron has a tower now? That means he can now take over the world? What? I always assumed they didn't have the forces for that, hence the whole "in disguise" motif.

This episode has some GREAT moments for Ratchet, though. Man, Jeffrey Combs can act the hell out of characters.

agreed, Combs did a fine job with Ratchet's reaction to what happened on Cybertron and his farewell to Prime.

And yeah, you raise a VERY good point about why Megatron couldn't attack planet earth openly before now. I doubt earth tech could destroy the Nemesis, he could have been invading countries around the world long before now (especially with SO MANY SOLDIERS at his disposal), he didn't need to wait until he had a tower before making his move. Not to mention, having a fancy tower is a far cry from ruling Cybertron.

I also gotta wonder what became of Airachnid...Was she evacuated as a prisoner? Did they leave her to die? Did she (hopefully) get blown to bits along with the base or is she roaming freely again?