Megatron Is My Hero

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"Him say you enemy!" "Him lie like rug."
"Megatron Is My Hero"
Season	1
No. in season	6
Production company	Allspark Animation
Airdate	September 30, 2018 (Canada) October 5, 2018 (CN app/website) October 6, 2018 (USA)
Writer	Peter Di Cicco
Director	Jean Texier
Animation studio	Boulder Media Studio
Watch this episode on YouTube

Windblade tries to make Bee understand who Megatron is.

Synopsis

Long ago, on the planet Cybertron, gladiator champion Megatron finishes off his latest opponent, basking in the adulation of the crowd—a crowd that includes Bumblebee, who gleefully high-fives fellow spectator Shockwave as Megatron shouts a bombastic speech to his fans.

In the present day, Bumblebee is momentarily enamored by his memories of Megatron's bravado, declares that Megatron is his hero, a proclamation that shocks Windblade. The Autobot flier desperately tries to make Bumblebee remember the many atrocities Megatron would go on to commit since his early days, and invites Bumblebee to look at another memory so that he can remember how it all went down.

Hello, citizens. It good to be back. World am safe. Me see no trouble.

Having moved past the gladiatorial arenas, Megatron has assembled a group of like-minded Transformers, including both future Autobots and Decepticons, and holds another rally, vowing that, under his leadership, all Cybertronians will stand together; a statement that the young Bumblebee, watching from a speaker, can agree with, even as Megatron unveils the sigil his followers will rally to.

Indeed, Bumblebee wonders if this charismatic Megatron really was a 'bot capable of bringing Cybertron together, but Windblade sadly dissuades him of this notion: it wasn't long before Megatron's true ambitions began to show through, and notes that even Optimus was eventually forced to confront the monster that his old friend became.

Optimus and Bumblebee travel to Megatron's current headquarters, and though Optimus is resolute that he can make Megatron see sense, Bumblebee isn't so sure. Indeed, when the Seeker guards bar their way, Optimus is forced to power his way through them, and things only get worse from there: Bumblebee runs afoul of the villainous Shadowstriker, and witnesses an increasingly depraved Shockwave assembling a mutant lifeform. Finally, Optimus reaches Megatron, but despite Prime's idealism, Megatron refuses to rejoin Prime's faction, and swears that, if they don't join him, then they're against him. Optimus refuses, and Megatron finally declares war on Prime and his followers. When Megatron asks if Bumblebee will join him, Bumblebee vows to stand by Optimus.

Back in his mind, Bumblebee asserts that he's not scared of Megatron anymore. Windblade wonders why, even after Megatron did...something, that she tries to brush off, but Bee's curiosity about her attempts at deflecting the subject prompts him to access yet another memory...

"We did it!"
"What do you mean 'We'?"

War has gripped Cybertron, and deep beneath the planet's surface, Bumblebee spies on Shockwave's lab as the scientist interfaces with Vector Sigma. 'Bee overhears a transmission between Shockwave and Megatron, vowing that he'll soon have the AllSpark, but the scout makes the wrong move and alerts the security drones to his presence. Bumblebee escapes with Starscream and the Seekers hot on his tail, and though he throws them off by darting into a narrow tunnel, he's pursued and apprehended by Shadowstriker and Soundwave, who deliver him to Megatron.

Brought before the Decepticon leader, Bumblebee demands to know why Megatron has taken things as far as he has, and the villain informs him of his plan: by using Vector Sigma to reprogram the AllSpark, he'll be able to create a new generation of Decepticons, finally fulfilling his vision of a future where "all are one." So that Bumblebee will never be able to warn Optimus of this plan, Megatron attacks and crucially damages the Autobot's voice box...

Though shaken by this last memory, Bumblebee's natural optimism reasserts itself, as he points out that he can still talk in his mind; however he wonders how he ever called Megatron a hero.

Featured characters

Characters in italic text appear only in flashbacks.
(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Quotes

"Friends! Fellow Cybertronians! Hear me! I used to fight in front of you, now I fight for you! It is time we take control of our destiny. I see a future Cybertron for all Cybertronians! This is the beginning of a new era! From this day forward we stand together, 'till all are one!"

—Megatron is twirling, twirling, twirling toward freedom.

"You understand what is at stake, and what it will cost? We want the same thing!"
"No, we do not. What you want is power."
"Think carefully, old friend. If I must, I will do this without you. And if you do not join us...you are against us."

—Megatron and Optimus set the tone for the next few million years.

"Starscream, apprehend the Autobot."
"Why do I always have to clean up your mess?"

—Shockwave dispatches a less-than-enthusiastic Starscream.

"You show no fear. You would have made a good Decepticon."
"I made my choice a long time ago to stand with Optimus."

—Megatron and Bumblebee echo another time, another place.

"Optimus had his chance. And this war cannot continue."
"Then end it."
"I will. The AllSpark, which gave life to both Autobots and Decepticons, will bring new life to Cybertron."
"What?"
"I will use Vector Sigma to reprogram the AllSpark, and create a civilization of Decepticons. Finally, all will be one."
"Optimus will never let that happen!"
"Optimus will never know. Because you will never tell anyone what you've seen."

—Megatron tells Bumblebee his plan, then shuts him up.

Notes

Continuity notes

• Bumblebee was established to have first lost his voice on Cybertron during the events of "Memory".
• This episode clarifies why the Decepticons seek the AllSpark, as first mentioned back in "Fractured".

Transformers references

• The episode is, of course, another take on the now-standard history between Optimus Prime and Megatron that was explored in both the "Aligned" and IDW Generation 1 continuities: the former a peaceful 'bot advocating for nonviolent social change, the latter an ambitious gladiator dedicated to changing Cybertron by any means necessary, who start as colleagues and friends but are driven apart by their differing ideologies. Exactly what kind of social change the pair are advocating here has yet to be explored, though in the aforementioned continuities the two Transformers were fighting to tear down Cybertron's stagnant social system: the caste system and functionism, respectively.
• Starscream mockingly refers to Optimus Prime as "the file clerk". Optimus was first shown to have worked in this profession prior to becoming Prime in Dreamwave Productions The War Within comic book; it would later be most famously featured as part of the backstory of the "Aligned" version of the character, seen in various pieces of media, including the Transformers: Prime animated series.
• Megatron's cry of "'Til all are one!" is a frequent rallying cry throughout the Transformers mythos.
• Shockwave makes his first appearance in the series; this version of the character seems more closely based on his counterpart from the Aligned continuity, who was fond of creating strange new lifeforms and mutating other Transformers into monstrous creatures.
• Vector Sigma also makes a return to television — the miraculous computer first appeared in the 1985 cartoon series, made a cameo in Beast Machines, and returned to the small screen several decades later in the Transformers: Prime cartoon. This iteration hews closer to the classic interpretation, a glowing yellow sphere of energy.
• Megatron's live-action counterpart had a similar plan to use the AllSpark to give life to a new generation of Decepticons in the 2007 Transformers film. Similarly, his history with Bumblebee — being the 'bot responsible for tearing out his voice box — was first established in ancillary movie media and subsequently incorporated into the Aligned universe.
• Some of the otherwise-generic Seekers guarding Megatron's hideout appear to have color schemes referencing various G1 Decepticon fliers, the most recognizable being one painted like Sunstorm.
• "Scrud" shows up as a Transformer swear, first appearing in the 2015 Robots in Disguise cartoon. It's joined by the even tamer (to human sensibilities, at least...) curse word "rust".

Real-world references

• TBD

Trivia

"No, wait! This is C8 rated! You can't-"

• The gladiator that Megatron defeats in this episode is a tweak of Grimlock's character model.
• It isn't stated explicitly in the episode, so we're not calling them as such, but if one assumes the Transformers standing behind Megatron as he unveils the Decepticon movement are doing so in solidarity with him as part of his inner-circle-at-the-time, that would imply that Ratchet, Arcee, and Optimus Prime are among this continuity's founding members of the Decepticons!
• Also during the rally, Soundwave's shoulder amplifiers can be seen fluctuating, suggesting he is either acting as Megatron's microphone or the scene's dramatic background music is actually being provided by him, as would prove to be a trait of his in later seasons.
• A clip from this episode was previewed at San Diego Comic-Con 2018.

Animation and technical errors

Did my insignia get a buzz cut or something?

• Though credited onscreen as being by Eugene Son, it was later clarified that Peter Di Cicco was the writer of the episode.^[1] The credit was corrected for later screenings.
• One of the generic 'bots amongst the crowd in the opening scene sports an Autobot insignia, despite the scene happening long before the Autobot and Decepticon factions had formed–even Bumblebee and Megatron have their respective faction symbols removed from their animation models for the scene.
• Starting with the scene that leads to Megatron destroying Bumblebee's voice, Bee's Autobot insignia is missing the white shape inside the top section. This error would persist for many, many scenes throughout the rest of the show.

Foreign localization

French

• Title: "Mégatron est mon héros" ("Megatron is my hero")
• Original airdate: October 21, 2018

German

• Title: "Mein Held Megatron" ("My Hero Megatron")
• Original airdate: November 24, 2018

Hungarian

• Title: "Megatron, a hős" ("Megatron, the Hero")
• Original airdate: November 17, 2018

Italian

• Title: "Megatron è il mio Eroe" ("Megatron is my Hero")
• Original airdate: November 3, 2018

Japanese

• Title: "Megatron no Keikaku" (メガトロンの計画, "Megatron's Plan")
• Original airdate: May 11, 2019

Portuguese

• Title: "Megatron é Meu Herói" ("Megatron is My Hero")
• Original airdate: November 13, 2018

Home video releases

DVD

2019 — Transformers Cyberverse — The Journey (Beyond Home Entertainment)
2019 — Transformers Cyberverse — Intégrale Saison 1 (ESC Éditions) — French audio only