Titans

« Transformers: Cybertron ep 37 » Galaxy Force ep 38
When there's trouble you know who to call.
"Titans" 激突! 砕け散る野望 () (Gekitotsu! Kudakechi no Yabō) "Clash! The Crushed Ambition"
Production company	TV Aichi, We've, Tōkyū Agency
Airdate	September 24, 2005 (Japanese) September 11, 2006 (English)
Writer	Gyō Yamatoya
Director	Megumi Sakai
Animation studio	GONZO, Office Take Off
Continuity	Unicron Trilogy cartoon continuity

The Autobots' attempt to reactivate Primus leads to a literal war of the worlds!

Synopsis

The moral of this story is that it's okay to deface public property.

Somewhere in space, aboard the Atlantis starship, Starscream is feeling very pleased with himself for gaining so much ground in the race for the fourth Cyber Planet Key. However, Sideways warns that they shouldn't let their guard down, but neither he nor Starscream is aware of how right he is to be so cautious. Unbeknownst to them, elsewhere in the massive ship, the stranded Bud, Jolt and Reverb are doing their part to help the other Autobots track them down. Unable to use his communicator since Starscream would detect the transmission, Bud uses a welding torch to sear the Autobot insignia into chunks of metal, which the Mini-Cons then jettison through the trash chute, leaving a proverbial trail of breadcrumbs in the Atlantis's wake.

Meanwhile, the Autobots on Cybertron are working on a plan of their own, as they try to figure out a way to combine Optimus Prime's Matrix with the three Cyber Planet Keys they have acquired to stabilize the black hole before they depart for Gigantion. But, of course, they have to find Gigantion first, and Vector Prime is hard at work studying the Planet Map, trying to pinpoint the gateway that will lead them to the alternate universe in which the planet lies.

Ellis, I think we have just discovered the Cheeseburger Apocalypse!

Jetfire and Wing Saber have been assigned to search space for the Atlantis and are soon lucky enough to stumble across Bud's marked garbage. Unfortunately for the two Autobots, Thunderblast spies on them as they follow Bud's trail back to the Atlantis, and she soon leads Megatron and the other Decepticons after them. As the two heroes try to deal with both the firepower of the Atlantis and the threat of Megatron's Decepticons, Sideways powers up the ship's warp drive and teleports the Atlantis away before Jetfire can get Bud and the Mini-Cons off it. Unfortunately, the same can't be said of the ship's other unwilling passengers; Decepticon stowaways Crumplezone and Ransack disembark and rejoin Megatron's forces before the ship vanishes. However, Megatron randomly blasts Ransack in anger over losing the Atlantis. Wing Saber and Jetfire quickly depart to restart their search, and as such, they are not around to witness the sudden arrival of an enigmatic new robot, who introduces himself as Soundwave and informs the Decepticons that he can lead them to Gigantion...

Back on Cybertron, Optimus Prime receives Jetfire's disappointing report with sadness, but Override announcing that they've completed setting up the equipment forces him to put such thoughts from his mind. Using the Matrix to activate the Omega Lock, Optimus can re-energize Primus, who silently focuses the entirety of his power into a beam that he shoots directly into the heart of the black hole. With the beam holding steady, things are looking good... until the Atlantis suddenly warps into view above the beam. Having sensed Primus's reactivation from across the galaxy, Starscream has arrived to finish the job he started on Earth. The treacherous Decepticon dives headlong into Primus's beam of energy and begins absorbing the power of his spark. As the horrified Autobots watch, Primus's power transforms Starscream into a cosmic titan the size of a planet!

Primus Guns, fire!

When Coby sees the Atlantis floating past, he immediately runs to leave the room, knowing his brother is on the ship. Optimus Prime stops him and talks some sense into him; after all, what can he do with a planet-sized Starscream in the way? With Coby reined in, the Autobots rush into action, quickly erecting an energy shield to protect Primus's immobile body from the attacks that the gargantuan Starscream immediately begins unleashing upon their creator. Dragging cables and equipment with them as they run from sector to sector, the Autobots are forced to redistribute the flow of power throughout Primus's body, shutting down the black hole-stabilizing beam in an attempt to restore the god's mobility. At the last second, just after Starscream shatters the shield and unleashes a blast from his Cyber Key-powered cannon, the final connection is made, and Primus springs into life, deflecting Starscream's shot with a wave of his open palm.

EPIC FLAIL!

Primus calls upon a Cyber Key of his own, activating giant cannons in his forearms, but Starscream can detonate his blasts with a swipe of his arm and remains undeterred. Nobody is ready for Primus's next impressive move, however: projecting beams of energy from his hands, Primus lassos his own moons, transforming the two satellites into planetary-scale flails which he uses to pummel Starscream mercilessly. A series of irresistible blows from these moon-flails sends Starscream slamming into a nearby rocky planetary body, which actually explodes from the impact. The cosmic explosion consumes Starscream, and his energy drained, shrinks back down to his prior height. As his charred body floats amidst the remains of the planet, and he weakly vows to continue reaching for power, Sideways steers the Atlantis nearby and activates its warp system, teleporting Starscream away alongside it.

On Primus's surface, Coby collapses in tears at the sight of the Atlantis disappearing, taking Bud with it. The Autobots are silent as the boy cries when suddenly, Vector Prime bursts into the room with the news that will change everything: he has located the gate to Gigantion!

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Quotes

"The power! So much power! With all this power flowing through me, I fear nothing! Not even Primus!"

—Starscream, after growing to planet-size.

"Yeah, Primus! Moon that loser!"

—Coby made a pun!

"MOMMAAAA!!!"

— Starscream, about to get owned by Primus.

"This... is... not the end of me... even if I have to bear the unbearable... I'll keep reaching... and soon... I will hold the universe in my hands..."

—Starscream, after taking a beating from Primus.

Notes

Differences with Galaxy Force

• Galaxy Force includes a "previously on" segment summarizing the events of "Family."
• In Cybertron, Optimus worries about Coby and Lori, considering how hard they're working and wishing he could do more to help them. In Galaxy Force, he is regretful that he can only spare Jetfire and Wing Saber to go out and search for the Atlantis and Bud and is concerned with Wing Saber and Jetfire's ability to work together in their search.
• Wing Saber tells Jetfire he doesn't want to go sneaking around in the Atlantis looking for Bud because he is more of a smash and bash fighter in Cybertron. In Galaxy Force, he scoffs at the idea of doing such "petty work" like searching for a kid. What a snob!
• Galaxy Force consistently refers to "The spark of Primus" when talking about his energy, with such odd turns of phrases as "focusing his spark into his chest" and "restoring the flow of the spark." Since that's, well, not really what a spark is, Cybertron simplifies the dialogue only to talk about his energy.
• In Galaxy Force, the battle between Primus and Starscream isn't accompanied by music, and no sound leaves Primus's mouth.
• Cybertron doesn't mention where Coby and Lori's new clothes originate; however, Lori's mother mentioned packing them in the previous episode of Galaxy Force. It's the same case when Bud gets his new clothes in "City."

Animation or technical glitches

• As he and Crumplezone recline in the Atlantis, Ransack is missing the black "mask" that normally surrounds his eyes.
• When Megatron attacks Atlantis, Wing Saber says that he'll take care of Megatron's minions and points at Jetfire, then points at himself and tells Jetfire to rescue Bud.
• When Lori says, "They're enormous," referring to Primus's moon flails, her mouth is oddly on the side of her face, leaving her lips from the side view intact. Of course, this is a classic anime visual, but it still looks odd.

Continuity notes

• Coby and Lori both start wearing new clothes in this episode, which they will wear for the rest of the series.
• Speaking of Coby and Lori, they sure do a lot of snuggling in this episode, as he catches her when she falls and then doesn't let her go for, like, five minutes. It's one of the first actual hints (Lori's nervous laughter at the notion of their getting married in the previous episode being another) of the romance that will eventually bloom between the two characters.

Continuity errors

• When the Atlantis warps away, Wing Saber suggests to Jetfire that they hurry and keep searching for the ship, coming across as ridiculous since we've seen the Atlantis easily warp across the entire galaxy, so how can randomly flying around have any chance of locating it again? Galaxy Force makes more sense here by having Wing Saber include an explanation that it was an "express warp" (not sure what about it led him to that realization), meaning the ship couldn't have traveled very far. Thus, if they hurry, they could comb the surrounding area and re-find it.
• So, how exactly does blasting a black hole with energy work? Wouldn't it, you know, make it bigger?
• If ALL of Primus's energy was focused into the beam generator on his chest, where did the massive amount of energy needed to raise powerful shields over a whole stinkin' planet come from?
• Upon Starscream's defeat, Cybertron has Sideways comment, "Guess I'm in business for myself!" which is nonsense because he picks up Starscream; plus, they're still working together in the next episode. Galaxy Force only has him say it's time for a retreat.

Real-world references

• Upon witnessing Starscream and Primus's battle, Scattorshot exclaims, "Talk about when worlds collide!", referring to the 1932 science fiction novel of the same name.

Trivia

• Galaxy Force introduces its fifth and final opening sequence with this episode.
• When Starscream becomes planet-sized, he and Primus are in toy scale; both toys were released in Supreme class size, and Starscream came complete with a giant crown!

Home video releases

DVD

2006 — Transformers: Galaxy Force — Vol. 10 (Victor Entertainment) — Japanese audio only.
2008 — Transformers: Cybertron — The Ultimate Collection (Paramount)
2014 — Transformers: Cybertron — The Complete Series (Shout! Factory)