Recap / Transformers Prime S 2 E 11 Flying Mind

Maybe this episode should've been called "The Nemesis Within"?

As the Decepticons assess the damage to the crashed Nemesis, Soundwave discovers that Bulkhead was responsible. Knowing that Optimus is unlikely to pass up an opportunity to strike while they're vulnerable, Megatron commissions the use of Dark Energon to get the ship up and running, against Knock Out's protests. Sure enough, Optimus has decided to end the war today by unleashing the Spark Extractor to wipe out all Decepticons in range. Believing this to be the final battle, Fowler is able to convince Optimus to allow him to join the mission to observe Megatron's demise.

The Nemesis is already off the ground by the time Team Prime arrives, and quickly engages the Autobots. However the Nemesis deploys a stasis beam, one Megatron's command staff themselves was unaware of, which begins freezing the Autobots in place one-by-one. Optimus' desperation to end it bears no fruit, as he is frozen as well. Megatron orders the Nemesis to move closer to retrieve the Spark Extractor, but the ship moves on its' own and away from the WMD. Fowler notices this, and radios Ratchet for assistance. Megatron furiously demands that the ship be brought back under control, but the Vehicon piloting the ship is suddenly killed. Knock Out posits that the Nemesis now has a mind of its' own, and he's proven correct when a huge, booming voice warns the Decepticons that he is now in command of the vessel and that they should not interfere in its' mission. Knock Out observes that the Nemesis is decoding the Iacon database with better skill than they were, but Megatron roars for the ship to be brought back under control. Soundwave's attempt to do so results in him being zapped into stasis lock. After being jolted by the rebelling Nemesis entity, Megatron orders every member of his forces to bring the ship to heel, only for everyone to get knocked into stasis lock, including Megatron.

At Omega-1, Ratchet deduces he can't free the Autobots from stasis lock, and then notices he can actually track the Nemesis, meaning their electromagnetic shield is down. With little other options, Ratchet simply calls Megatron to ask what's going on, only for the Nemesis to respond. The ship informs them that it has taken command over Megatron and shows how it's stasis-locked the Decepticons, before cryptically hanging up when asked why it's gathering the relics. Fowler mentions how the ship ignored him earlier, and Ratchet is persuaded into letting him and the kids bridge aboard the Nemesis to download the Iacon database for the Autobots.

Aboard the ship, the humans find a port to plug in a jump drive to download the database, and notice the Nemesis is heading for Manhattan for the first relic it decoded, and will likely destroy whatever part of the city is in the way. While trying to change the ship's course, Fowler is electrocuted by the Nemesis, who's still unable to actually find the humans since it's looking for Transformers, not organics. Jack hits on the idea of reversing the Energon flow of the ship to purge the Dark Energon from its' systems. The kids head for the power core and find the stasis-locked Megatron, realizing they are on the right track since he was frozen attempting the same thing. The ship finally finds the kids and sends a manipulator arm after them, but Jack tricks the ship into hitting Megatron, sending his body toppling and reversing the Energon flow. The stasis-locked Autobots come to as the Nemesis entity shuts down, though to the kids' horror, this means the Decepticons are waking up as well. They race back to the Iacon database console to find their jump drive has only downloaded four decoded entries, and while Miko and Raf get the delirious Fowler to Ratchet's groundbridge, Jack tries to retrieve the drive. Knock Out comes to and menaces him for a moment, but Ratchet arrives and delivers a whopping punch to his Evil Counterpart before departing with the kids and the entry. Megatron is not amused; even less so after seeing that the humans now have some of their data.

At the base, the Autobots realize they must go for the relics quickly, since the now lifeless Nemesis, back under Megatron's control, is now bearing down on Manhattan...

To be continued...

Tropes:

• Adults Are Useless: Fowler invokes this as he is electrocuted almost as soon as he boards the Nemesis and the kids have to do the dangerous work on their own.
• A.I. Is a Crapshoot: Once the Nemesis gains sentience, it continues the Decepticons' current mission to find lost Cybertronian weapons on earth and proves to be vastly more competent at the job than the Decepticons themselves, to the point where it disables them all for getting in the way.
  • It's your call whether the crapshoot is Nemesis or the Decepticons.
• Alas, Poor Villain: Trypticon's actions can't be excused, but it's hard not to feel bad for him, knowing that he's spent countless years at this point unable to do anything while the Decepticons used him as a flagship.
• All There in the Manual: The ship is never named in the episode (nor is it explained why the Nemesis is able to gain sentience in the first place). However, those who know of the video games set before the events of Prime know that the Nemesis is a Decepticon soldier named Trypticon who, after coming back from a mission empty-handed and heavily damaged, Megatron had Soundwave take away Trypticon's ability to transform, turning him into a mindless vessel. Knowing this, it's not hard to imagine why he'd want revenge on Megatron.
• All Up to You: Jack, Miko, Raf and Fowler have to save the day since the Nemesis doesn't recognize human lifeforms and disables any Cybertronian walking its hallways.
• Back from the Dead: More so from stasis lock, but Trypticon's mind is brought back online by the Dark Energon after having it deactivated by his conversion into the Nemesis. His transformation ability is still gone, though.
• Big Damn Heroes: Ratchet gets another of his few chances to shine at the end of the episode.
  • Complete with a Pre Ass Kicking One Liner:
    Knock Out: (pulls out his drill) Say ahhh...
    Ratchet: I'm here to offer a second opinion. (Megaton Punch)
• Big Good: Ratchet takes up the role, seeing as he's the last Autobot standing.
• Call-Back:
  • Megatron anticipates an Autobot attack on the downed Nemesis, saying Optimus is more ruthless these days.
  • While no one brings it up, this isn't the first time that the kids have had to escape from the Nemesis.
• Continuity Nod: Though continuity is at best in Broad Strokes in the Aligned continuity, Trypticon became the Nemesis in virtually every tale told thus far. It's safe to assume the intelligence awoken is Trypticon, who's still not pleased about being rebuilt against his will.
• Didn't See That Coming: Knock Out over the ship being equipped a stasis beam.
• The End... Or Is It?: Both sides have four sets of coordinates to a powerful relic. As Optimus tells the Autobots to get moving, the Nemesis looms over New York City.
• "Eureka!" Moment: Bulkhead describes smashing the Nemesis power core in these terms, saying being so close to it gave him an idea.
• Failed a Spot Check: Since the kids and Fowler are carbon-based life-forms, the Nemesis can't find them.
  • At least at first. When it does...
• Five-Man Band: With the majority of the Autobots in stasis lock, we have this one:
  • The Hero: Jack
  • The Lancer: Fowler
  • TheBigGirl: Miko
  • The Smart Guy: Raf
  • Big Good: Ratchet
• Forgotten Superweapon: Make that QUICKLY Forgotten Superweapon. No one thinks to use the Spark Extractor after the initial attempt. Despite the fact they have plenty of opportunity at the end of the episode after the living ship problem is resolved.
• From Bad to Worse: After barely fending off a self-aware ship, the kids find themselves surrounded by Decepticons in the process of reactivating.
• Godzilla Threshold:
  • As the group discusses their options, Optimus proposes using the spark extractor. Ratchet is taken aback to hear this, but Optimus (while disliking using a Decepticon weapon of mass destruction) sees it was the only chance to end the war.
  • Megatron fully anticipates Optimus doing something that ruthless, which is why he embarks on using Dark Energon on the Nemesis. Despite Knock Out's warnings, Megatron sees it as the perfect means to quickly repair the ship and kill Optimus.
• Gone Horribly Right:
  • Yes, putting Dark Energon into the ship did bring it back online...it also brought it to life and allowed it to settle its grudge match against the Autobots and Decepticons by essentially turning them into statues.
  • Dumping the Dark Energon did allow the kids to escape the Nemesis's AI...it also woke up all of the Decepticons (who all have a valid reason for wanting the kids captured or dead) while they're still on board.
• I Am the Noun: The Nemesis after gaining sentience announces to Ratchet who asks if he has taken control of the vessel, "I AM THE VESSEL!!"
• Idiot Ball: Megatron might've been able to pull the lever in the nick of time, if not for making a one-liner about ending this mutiny.
• Internal Reveal: The Decepticons only just learned that not only was Bulkhead on their ship without anyone knowing, but he's also the one who caused the damage that led to the crash.
• Jerkass Ball: Optimus, usually one to invoke Thou Shalt Not Kill, decides to use the Spark Extractor as a Final Solution against Decepticons and nobody disagrees. It’s a moot point, since the motion is unsuccessful and never brought up ever again.
• Living Ship / Sapient Ship: What happens to the Nemesis after being infused with Dark Energon by Megatron in order to quickly repair the previous episode's damage. It doesn't turn out for the best.
• The Load: Fowler is electrocuted almost as soon as he boards the Nemesis and the kids have to do the dangerous work on their own. And at the end, he literally becomes one as the kids must move him to the base.
• Loophole Abuse: Fowler and the kids are able to infiltrate the Nemesis because the ship's A.I. cannot scan carbon-based lifeforms (i.e. humans). This doesn't last after the ship's scan broaden.
• Missing Steps Plan: The Nemesis continues to track the Decepticon tech after paralyzing every Decepticon aboard. When Ratchet asks what it attends to do with them, assuming it acts like a Decepticon itself, it hangs up.
• Mistreatment-Induced Betrayal: One of the very few pieces of invokedContinuity Lock-Out in Prime requiring the viewer to at least have a passing knowledge of the events of the Cybertron Duology, The Nemesis' AI is very clearly Trypticon. His betrayal of Megatron the second he's brought back online by Dark Energon is due to fury over Megatron forcibly having him converted into a non-transforming space ship while leaving him offline.
• Mundane Solution: Ratchet is trying to figure out why the Decepticons not only left the Autobots and Fowler alive after paralyzing them, but why they've dropped their cloak. The kids suggest just giving Megatron the Cybertronian equivalent of a phone call. He actually admits that this was the easiest solution.
• Mythology Gag: The phrase "I am the vehicle!" has been used before ^note  Specifically in the episode "The Thrill Of The Hunt", used by Lockdown .
• Non Sequitur, *Thud*: Agent Fowler, after being electrocuted, gives this gem:
  Miko: On your feet, soldier!
  Fowler: And beavers and ducks and walnuts and Grandma! (Hits the floor again)
• Oh, Crap!:
  • The Autobots when the stasis beam is used on them one by one.
  • Megatron and the Decepticon officers when they learn that their ship has gained consciousness and starts putting them all in stasis lock.
  • The humans when they learn that the ship wants to destroy Manhattan.
  • Jack when Megatron's stasis lock ends, realizing that every Decepticon on board is waking up.
• Papa Wolf: Ratchet's no Optimus Prime, but no one messes with his humans (as Knockout learns the hard way).
• The Paralyzer: The Nemesis uses a version of this to send every Cybertronian on board (and the Autobots early on using a cannon version of this system) into instant stasis.
• Revenge Before Reason: In the Aligned continuity, Trypticon was a Transformer allied with the Decepticons. He was injured during a mission and failed to do what Megatron asked. As punishment, Megatron had Soundwave make his alt mode his permanent mode, leaving him essentially a mindless machine. When the Dark Energon in this episode wakes him up, he finally gets his chance to get revenge on the Decepticons and finish his mission (or, at least, the first mission he saw available).
• Running Gag: Fowler is once again electrocuted into unconsciousness and spouts a Non Sequitur upon waking.
• Save the Villain: Zig-zagged. At first, Ratchet and the humans have no intention of freeing the Decepticons from their stasis lock. However, once they realize that the Nemesis will kill them once it adjusts its scanners to find them, they dump the Dark Energon powering it, freeing the Decepticons and Autobots. The Decepticons (whether they knew what the kids did or not) are more than ready to kill the kids the second they can move again (luckily Ratchet steps in).
• Shout-Out: This episode is a reimagining of 2001: A Space Odyssey. The claw that the sentient Nemesis used to detain Jack even has a red flashing eye reminiscent of HAL-9000.
• Status Quo Is God: Not only is the Nemesis quickly repaired after crashing at the end of the previous episode, but the entity is quickly put out of commission in the same episode it's introduced in.
• Stunned Silence: Ratchet after hearing what he thought was a crazy idea from Jack.
  Ratchet: Yeap yap! Are you suggesting we should just call Megatron and ask him what's happening up there!? (Beat as the humans just shrug, Ratchet realizes they were serious about it)
• This Is Gonna Suck: After the energon flow is cut off, the Nemesis reverts to normal and the effects of the stasis beam start wearing off. The kids have this reaction when they hear Megatron starting to wake up.
  Jack: Run!
• This Looks Like a Job for Aquaman: Like with scraplets, Cybertronians are completely helpless against the Nemesis and it's up to the humans to stop it.
• Ungrateful Bastard: Despite the fact that the kids were clearly the ones to free the Decepticons, the Decepticons are ready the second they wake up to kill the humans. It's only because of Ratchet that Jack left the ship alive.
• Who Are You?: Ratchet has a bit of this going on during the communication with the self-aware ship.
  Trypticon: Megatron has been relieved of his command.
  Ratchet: Who is this?
  Trypticon: Who is this?
• The Worf Effect: Actually used very well here. The past season-and-a-half has shown that all of the show's Autobots and Decepticons are capable warriors. Thus, it's more jarring when the Nemesis manages to take down all of the Autobots (including Prime) with ease, and then does the exact same thing to Megatron and all of his forces. To be fair, the ship gaining consciousness is something that none of them predicted.
• Your Soul Is Mine!: Optimus attempts to use the spark extractor on the Decepticons in their moment of vulnerability. Optimus justifies it as doing what must be done as it's their best chance to end the war.