Deadlock (episode)

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Take that to the secondary cargo hold. We need to make room for the Stargate.
"Deadlock"
Season	3
No. in season	13
Production company	Hasbro Studios
Airdate	July 26, 2013
Written by	Steven Melching
Directed by	Shaunt Nigoghossian
Animation studio	Polygon Pictures
Watch this episode on YouTube

The Autobots face the Decepticons for a final showdown.

Synopsis

Momo, time for you to go.

The Autobots storm the Nemesis via the outer hull, while Ratchet lets them know he's heading for the Omega Lock's control station. As he approaches the ship, Optimus orders the Stealth Team to join Ratchet while Ultra Magnus and the Wreckers take the bridge. Arcee asks if they should destroy the lock, but Optimus does not intend to pass up a second chance to restore Cybertron. Smokescreen has to be prompted to follow the others when he's momentarily distracted by the sight of Megatron arriving on the upper deck with the Dark Star Saber. The Decepticon leader uses the sword to damage Optimus's jet pack. Optimus manages to land on one of the lower spires and starts climbing up.

Telling them he has something he needs to do, Smokescreen leaves Arcee and Bumblebee, much to Arcee's annoyance. Meanwhile, Ratchet reaches the control station and begins facing off, rather badly, against Shockwave. Arcee and Bumblebee approach the control station as well, but they're cut off by Starscream and a bunch of Seekers who open fire on them. Elsewhere, Knock Out packs for a journey he might have to make. Smokescreen arrives at the warship's storage chamber and retrieves the Star Saber.

Ultra Magnus and his team storm the bridge; however, their attempt is cut short by Soundwave, who GroundBridges them to the brig, where they're quickly surrounded. Ultra Magnus notifies everyone that his team has been delayed, which gives Jack an idea. He asks Raf to bridge him onto the Nemesis bridge as he's come up with a plan.

On the Nemesis, Shockwave finishes pummeling Ratchet and is about to finish the Autobot off, but is interrupted by the Omega Lock signaling that it's ready to fire. As he opens the huge portal to ready the firing sequence, he spots Optimus hanging onto the Omega Lock's structure and is forced to take cover as Optimus opens fire. Megatron soon arrives to engage Optimus directly and orders Shockwave to begin the firing sequence.

Knock Out, wandering the corridors, finds himself cut off by the fighting. The bridge, meanwhile, is invaded by Jack and an Apex Armor-clad Miko. She quickly finishes off the Vehicons onsite, but Soundwave advances on her with an open GroundBridge. Jack tells Raf to open a GroundBridge right behind Soundwave, and the conflicting bridge energies promptly transwarp Soundwave into the shadowzone. As Jack and Miko head to the controls, the Omega Lock begins powering up. On its rim, Optimus and Megatron continue to battle, with Optimus knocking the Dark Star Saber from Megatron's grip and decking him. Megatron orders Shockwave to prepare to fire, but is interrupted by the ship lurching while under Jack's control.

There can be no triumph without loss. No victory without suffering. No freedom without sacrifice.

Down below, Smokescreen passes Arcee and Bumblebee, carrying the Star Saber into the Omega Lock control room. He attempts to throw the sword down to Optimus, only to be blasted by Shockwave. Arcee, Bumblebee, Starscream and Shockwave all run for the weapon. Arcee is forced to take out Starscream, and Bumblebee reaches the Star Saber first. He throws it up in the air, decking Shockwave and cracking his optic before grabbing the sword midair. Ratchet warns Optimus that he must use the Star Saber to destroy the Omega Lock; however, as Bumblebee jumps to pass the weapon to Optimus, he's blasted repeatedly by Megatron. As other Autobots and Decepticons watch in horror and glee, respectively, Bumblebee's optics flicker out, and he dies. He plunges lifelessly into the Omega Lock's energy field.

Megatron: I did it for me. I liked it. I was good at it. And I was really... I was alive.

Outraged, Optimus smashes Megatron backward in a series of powerful blows, only to be knocked off the Omega Lock when Megatron recovers the Dark Star Saber and uses its wave attack to blast Optimus. As Prime clings to the side, Megatron prepares to finish the Autobot off, only to turn around in response to someone calling his name. Bumblebee runs him through with the Star Saber, and as everyone looks on in shock, Megatron dies and his body falls from the Omega Lock and plunges Earthward, burning as it enters the atmosphere. Bumblebee helps Optimus climb up as the remaining Decepticons scramble to escape. As the Autobots reunite, they marvel at the fact that Bumblebee has his voice back, and Optimus passes on the news to Magnus's team and Hangar E that Megatron has perished. With the ship now under Autobot control, Optimus orders Magnus to set course for Cybertron. Bumblebee radios Raf to let him know to come up so he can be there for the restoration of Cybertron.

Peace.

As the ship passes through the space bridge, Starscream and Shockwave reach the escape pods to find there's only one left. They cram into it and eject, though Starscream complains about the cramped conditions. Ratchet explains that he does not have the complete formula to synthesize cyber-matter (never having learned Shockwave's portion of it) and the current amount was intended to cyberform Earth, not the much larger Cybertron. Optimus directs the ship to the Well of All Sparks, so they can revitalize Cybertron's core. The beam of energy strikes Cybertron's core, and the planet is soon restored and glowing a healthy blue. On the bridge, Knock Out admires the planet's new luster, and claims to be "joining the winning team", only to be decked by Miko. Predaking, still clinging to the hull, looks out over Cybertron before transforming and flying off.

Back on Earth, Optimus gives a speech about how they're going to miss Earth. Fowler says the three kids will be members of Unit:E, June modifying it by mentioning that they'll be in a consulting capacity only until they're of age, and Ratchet takes the opportunity to announce he's staying on Earth. Bumblebee, Bulkhead and Arcee give a tearful farewell to their respective partners, while Fowler, Magnus, Wheeljack and Smokescreen share a mutual salute. As the Autobots head through the space bridge, Optimus gives Ratchet a last goodbye, and with a final lingering look at his human companions, strides through after his team.

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Quotes

"Shut it down, Shockwave. I cannot allow you to harm Earth!"
"The planet will not be harmed. Only its indigenous lifeforms."
"Over my sparkless husk!"

—Ratchet prepares to duel Shockwave for the planet he's learned to love.

"Pack light. Pack light! [Finds his rotary buffer] Oh! Pack smart!"

—Knock Out

"Prepare to join your scout... in the Allspark!"

—Megatron's final words

"You took my voice. You will never rob anyone, of anything, ever again."

—Bumblebee

"I will avenge you, Master!"
[Shockwave grabs him]
"Starscream, do not be a fool!"
[They flee as Starscream resists]
"Curse you and your logic!"

—Starscream and Shockwave

"Bumblebee..."
"Your voice..."
"My voice? What're you g-... My voice!"
[grabs Ratchet in a great big hug]
"Ratchet! I have my pipes back!"
"Errhmm, y-yes! Yes we noticed!"

—Ratchet, Arcee, and Bumblebee

"Rrrgh, your elbow articulator is digging into my lateral flexor!"
"Do you intend to whine for the duration of the voyage?"

—Starscream and Shockwave

"Ah, such luster."
[Autobots stare in disbelief]
"What? I'm joining the winning team."

—Knock Out

"Raf..."
"I know Bee. You don't have to say anything."
"I never did."

—Bumblebee and Raf share their last exchange.

"Until we meet again, old friend..."

—Optimus Prime says goodbye to Ratchet, and in a way, to us.

Notes

Continuity notes

• Ultra Magnus refers to Soundwave's combat GroundBridging as a "relocation trick", which he had used on Arcee in "Orion Pax, Part 1", a Predacon bone fragment in "Project Predacon", and Airachnid and her Insecticons in "Thirst".
• Miko previously used the Apex Armor in "Chain of Command".
• Jack, Miko, and Raf experienced the effects of crossed GroundBridges firsthand in "Shadowzone".
• The Immobilizer is seen in a stasis field in the vault, thus accounting for all the weapons left on Cybertron last season.
• The Star Saber was previously seen in the Decepticon vault in "Prey". Despite not making a note of it then, that fact did not escape Smokescreen's notice.
• Bumblebee's formerly-destroyed voicebox was the result of a run-in with Megatron at Tyger Pax, as explained in "Operation Bumblebee, Part 1" and the novel, Transformers: Exodus.
• The Autobots fire the Omega Lock into the Well of All Sparks, last seen in flashback in "One Shall Rise, Part 1".
• This is the second time Knock Out has mentioned being on the "winning team".
• Wheeljack takes the lobbing ball with him to Cybertron. It was last seen in "Project Predacon".
• Bumblebee managed to crack Shockwave's eye, making it the second time it has been damaged.
• Hangar E retains the paint modification it received in Persuasion to make it look like Hangar F, while the real Hangar F remains destroyed.
• Ratchet once again displays his immense development in character, from a bot not too fond of organics to a relentless protector of humankind.

Real-world references

• Raf refers to opening conflicting Space Bridge portals as "crossing the streams", a term from Ghostbusters for literally touching the energy streams created by the franchise's signature energy backpacks; a reprise of the same reference from the first time this happened in "Shadowzone".

Errors

• Ultra Magnus goes into the battle using his built-in blasters, but in the next scene is lugging around the same handheld cannon he used in "Rebellion".
• During the Autobots' attack, Bumblebee deploys his shield to charge forward but Arcee decides to run directly in front of him. Surely she should hide behind his shield if they are charging a Decepticon warship?
• Even though the ship is orbiting Earth, Transformers and objects fall at a rate consistent with Earth-normal gravity outside of the ship.
• When Jack arrives on the Nemesis, Laserbeak (on Soundwave's chest) is missing its left wing.
• When Smokescreen takes a hit from Shockwave before he is able to pass the Star Saber to his leader, he falls backward onto one of the tanks while the Star Saber flies to his left side at a slight angle. After the scene cuts to him against the tanks, the sword has somehow moved a considerable distance further, enough that Smokescreen would have had to purposefully throw it in that direction to get it that far.
• As Bumblebee is blasted by Megatron, the Star Saber falls with him at the same angle, apparently towards the cybermatter pool. Yet when Bumblebee falls in, the Saber clangs to the surface of the Omega Lock rather than in the pool, as its trajectory would suggest.
• Though it makes sense that Megatron and Optimus failed to notice Bumblebee's revival, certainly the assembled Autobots and Decepticons should have, considering Bumblebee would have had to climb out of the cybermatter pool, grab the sword, then walk over to Megatron to stab him with it.
• Knock Out more or less appears out of nowhere when he comments on a restored Cybertron's beauty. He certainly wasn't on the bridge when the Wreckers finally secured it, and they should have noticed if he entered the room.
• Wheeljack picks up the lobbing ball before he enters the GroundBridge, but it disappears after he salutes Agent Fowler and walks through the portal.

Trivia

• Between solicitations for upcoming issues of the Beast Hunters comic (which revealed that Cybertron would be restored), the press release for the Predacons Rising movie (which revealed that Megatron was going to die) and a clip shown at the Prime panel at the San Diego Comic Con and later released online (which revealed that Bumblebee would regain his voice), a well-informed Transfan had pretty much every surprise of this episode spoiled by official sources well in advance of its airing. Boo.
• Just before Megatron retrieves the Dark Star Saber from the Omega Lock to use its wave attack to push Optimus off the side, it emits a sound very similar to the original Star Saber sword whenever it was activated.
• While the limited cybermatter created to cyberform Earth was enough to restore Cybertron's core, the surface is still in ruins. Ratchet predicted this much would happen in the previous season, even though he was technically wrong at the time. The original Omega Lock could have restored both the surface and the core.
• Bumblebee was wearing a battle mask over his mouth for the whole series, which is revealed when he retracts it upon discovering he can speak again.
• Despite being exposed to space at various points along the hull, certain areas of the Nemesis appear to be airtight, specifically the bridge.
• The Omega Lock's cyber-matter was able to fully heal Bumblebee's wounds and restore his voice box. Perhaps Ultra Magnus should have dipped his hand in before they used it to restore Cybertron.
• An extended version of Megatron's death scene is included as a bonus feature on Shout! Factory's release of the third season. It features no extra dialogue, but includes several extra shots of Bumblebee stabbing the Star Saber deeper into Megatron as the Decepticon leader fights against the blade and tries to right himself before eventually succumbing.
• The episode's title "Deadlock" refers to a scenario where a conflict never ends due to the opposing parties waiting for the other to make a move... which doesn't really apply here, as the Autobots win the war, rendering the title pretty unfitting for this episode. (However, it does feature both a death and a lock.)
• The episode was heavily censored for its original broadcast on Cartoon Network's Central and Eastern European division. Several seconds were cut from Megatron's death scene, mainly shots that showed the Star Saber stuck in his chest. Thus, after Bumblebee stabbed him and delivered his first spoken line, the scene abruptly cut to Megatron's body falling to Earth. As reported by the now-defunct Hungarian youth entertainment blog Rajzfilmövezet, the network took an even harder stance on the side of censorship on February 12, 2017, issuing a ban affecting sixty episodes from various cartoon series that had been airing at the time. This was the only episode of Transformers: Prime to be subjected to this ban, and it was subsequently removed from Cartoon Network's programming.

Foreign localization

Brazilian Portuguese

• Title: "Impasse" ("Deadlock")
• Original airdate: 7 December 2013

French

• Title: "La reconstruction" ("Reconstruction")
• Original airdate: ?

German

• Title: "Stillstand" ("Deadlock")
• Original airdate: 16 October 2013

Hungarian

• Title: "Végjáték" ("Endgame")
• Original airdate: 18 September 2013

• As mentioned under the Trivia section, Cartoon Network Central and Eastern Europe originally aired the episode by truncating Megatron's demise. Syndicated reruns on the TV station RTL Klub and their online platform restored the full scene.
• Despite said censorship, the episode dub contained an example of blatant cussing. Starscream's line "Curse you and your logic!" was translated as "Cseszd meg a logikádat!", roughly meaning "F-ing screw your logic!"

Italian

• Title: "Stallo" ("Deadlock")
• Original airdate: 6 September 2013

Spanish (Spain)

• Title: "Punto muerto" ("Deadlock")
• Original airdate: 3 November 2013

Home video releases

DVD

2013 — Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters — Season Three (Shout! Factory)
2014 — Transformers Prime — Ultimate Bumblebee (Shout! Factory)
2014 — Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters — Season 3 Volume 3: Omega Lock (Madman Entertainment)
2015 — Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters — Season 3 Volume 2: Race for Salvation (Primal Screen)
2015 — Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters — Season Three Collection (Madman Entertainment)
2015 — Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters — Saison 3 Volume 2: L'ultime affrontement (Primal Screen)
2015 — Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters — Staffel 3 Teil 2: Auf zur Rettung (Primal Screen) — English, German, Dutch and French audio.
2015 — Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters — Intégrale Saison 3 (Primal Screen)
2015 — Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters — The Complete Season 3 (Primal Screen)
2015 — Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters — Die komplette Staffel 3 (Primal Screen) — English, German, Dutch and French audio.
2015 — Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters — The Complete Season 3 (Primal Screen) — English, Italian, Swedish, Finnish, Danish and Norwegian audio.

Blu-ray

2013 — Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters — Season Three (Shout! Factory)
2016 — Transformers Prime: Beast Hunters — Season Three Collection (Madman Entertainment)