Raf picks up a signal from Scotland and Ground-Bridges Wheeljack back to the Autobot base. Arcee asks why he's returned alone, and Wheeljack disdainfully notes that the mission was a failure and that the rest of his team will be returning via Ultra Magnus's ship. Fowler emerges from his office with reports of Decepticon activity in New Mexico. With Optimus Prime's team still in Texas and the rest of the Wreckers still en route, that leaves Arcee and Wheeljack to continue the hunt for Predacon remains. They bridge to Fowler's coordinates and end upright in the middle of a squadron of Vehicons. The two Autobots take them out quickly, impressing one another with their skills.
June arrives at the Autobot base to pick up medical supplies being donated by Fowler, who asks her to call him "William". Raf announces that he's discovered a Predacon talon in a museum, kept in storage because scientists didn't know how to classify it. Fowler volunteers to retrieve the fossil, and invites June to accompany him. She's reluctant at first, but is angered by the hypocrisy in Jack forbidding her from endangering herself, and agrees to go.
On the outer hull of the Nemesis, Megatron praises his new pet for successfully retrieving the fossil from Scotland. Knock Out reports the discovery of another Predacon energy signature, and Megatron orders him to acquire it. Starscream arrives to mock Knock Out, but Megatron halts their bickering by telling Starscream to take Knock Out's place on monitor duty. As Megatron and Knock Out return inside the ship, a frustrated Starscream kicks the Predacon's tail. The beast responds with a vicious tail swipe that narrowly misses Starscream and wrecks the ship's communications array.
In a cave in New Mexico, Arcee inquires as to Wheeljack's foul mood. Wheeljack tries to brush off her questions, but Arcee persists, claiming that she knows Wheeljack only pretends to prefer working solo.
Fowler and June emerge from the museum with the Predacon talon in tow, joking about the experience and comparing past relationships. Their bonding is interrupted by the arrival of Knock Out, who renders them unconscious with a beam of light. They awake in the Decepticon's trunk moments before he speeds off into the desert, leaving June's cell phone crushed on the ground. Knock Out attempts to request a Ground Bridge, but is unable to make contact with the base.
On the Nemesis, Starscream rants about the Predacon disabling their communications network while a couple of Vehicons attempt to repair it. Starscream enters an override code into a nearby computer console to reboot the system, but this only produces a shower of sparks.
Jack is worried about how long his mother is taking when he receives a call from Miko. She says that Bulkhead is worried about Wheeljack, and Jack explains that he's on a mission with Arcee. Miko is annoyed that Wheeljack would replace Bulkhead so quickly, but also admits that she expected the two lone wolves to hook up.
June and Fowler bicker within Knock Out's trunk until the Decepticon tells them to stifle themselves. He continues to attempt communication with the Nemesis, and June and Fowler begin devising an escape plan.
While digging in the cave walls, Wheeljack reveals to Arcee that Bulkhead, not Ultra Magnus, is the source of his current frustration. He feels his onetime partner has gone soft. Arcee tells him that people change and he has to either adapt or rust. She knows from experience the pain of losing a partner.
Fowler emerges from Knock Out's trunk and into his vehicle interior, forcing the startled Decepticon to stop at a railroad yard by twisting his steering wheel and slamming on the break. June races from the car with the Predacon talon and Fowler flees in the opposite direction. Knock Out transforms and quickly finds Fowler hiding amongst the freight cars. He grabs Fowler and threatens to kill him if June doesn't reveal herself and the talon.
Jack tries calling his mother and Fowler, but both of their phones go straight to voicemail. Raf innocently suggests they went to a movie.
As he lugs a Predacon spine out of the cave, Wheeljack admits that he was wrong to abandon Bulkhead like he did. Arcee receives a distress call from Jack, who is now in the museum parking lot holding his mother's crushed phone and watching a set of tire tracks lead into the desert.
At the train yard, Knock Out notices a railcar pull away, revealing a defiant June. She tells Knock Out that she hid the fossil in one of the cars, and will only tell him which after he's let Fowler go. Knock Out realizes the fossil is most likely on the departing train car, grabs June, and heads after it.
On the Nemesis, a furious Megatron discovers that communications have been down for hours. No sooner does Soundwave get the network back online than Knock Out calls again, reporting that he has the Predacon bone in his sights and Wheeljack and Arcee on his tail.
A squad of Insecticons are Ground Bridged to Knock Out's location and open fire on the pursuing Autobots. Wheeljack and Arcee fight back but continue to move forward. Knock Out reaches the freight car where the bone is hidden and launches himself into the air, transforming to robot mode as he does and letting June and Fowler drop. Below, Wheeljack transforms into robot mode, catches them, and transforms back into vehicle mode with the humans inside. Knock Out snatches the fossil and makes it through the Decepticon Ground Bridge before Arcee can catch him.
At the Autobot base, Jack is relieved to see his mother, but less excited that she's taken to calling Fowler "Bill". Miko teases that Jack has also lost his Autobot partner to Wheeljack. But Wheeljack and Bulkhead quickly makeup, much to Miko and Jack's delight.
Back at the Nemesis, Megatron congratulates Knock Out and chastises Starscream. While Starscream again blames the Predacon's bestial stupidity, the so-called beast is busy entering Starscream's access code into the computer console from earlier, calling up the ship's information on Predacons.
Tropes
- 10-Minute Retirement: By the end, Arcee seems to have talked Wheeljack out of going solo.
- Back-to-Back Badasses: Arcee and Wheeljack against a group of Vehicons.
- The Bad Guy Wins: While Arcee and Wheeljack got one Predacon fossil, they are unable to get the other since they needed to save June and Fowler, further increasing the 'Cons' chances of creating a Predacon army.
- Batman Gambit: Knock Out counted on Arcee and/or Wheeljack prioritizing the humans over the fossil, so he tosses June and Fowler out for Wheeljack to catch them, granting him enough time and distance to get the fossil and return to the warship via Ground Bridge.
- Beware the Silly Ones: For all of his jokes and flamboyance, Knockout is hardly the most threatening Decepticon...at first glance. But in this episode, he not only completed his mission, but abducted Agent Fowler and Nurse Darby and threatened their lives several times. It was only because of malfunctioning communications (and the timely interference of Arcee and Wheeljack) that the humans got out okay.
- Brain Bleach: Knock Out's views on human relationships."Frankly, I find it repulsive. The whole idea of you fleshies... interfacing." (shudders)
- Breather Episode: After the more drama-heavy "Chain of Command" and before the grisly "Thirst", we have a flirty, Ship Tease heavy episode revolving around June and Fowler and Wheeljack and Arcee. It also has Arcee helping Wheeljack with his own drama with Bulkhead.
- Double Meaning: The episode refers to June tagging along with Fowler to get one Predacon fossil, while two lone wolves, Arcee and Wheeljack, reluctantly team up to secure another. Both were intended to be solo missions beforehand.
- First-Name Basis: Jack is shocked that June is referring to Agent Fowler as "Bill", though it's a nickname for "William".
- Eye Scream: Knock Out takes some pepper spray in the eyes.
- Giant Robot Hands Save Lives: When Knockout ejects Fowler and June in mid-air, Wheeljack catches them. For once, this is done semi-realistically, as he catches them, then dives into a roll (which would likely decrease their momentum).
- Hypocrite:
- Jack believes his mother shouldn't join Fowler on a "milk run" because it's usually to dangerous to deal with any Decepticons that are after their target (more of an excuse to prevent any potential "chemistry" between the adults). June calls her son out on it.
June: Is my teenage son seriously going to tell that it's fine for him to travel all the way to Cybertron, but his mother can't be trusted to go on a... on a...
Fowler: Milk run.- The first thing Wheeljack does after quitting last episode is to return to base, but he still considers himself a loner that "likes to ride alone." Arcee calls him on it.
- I Warned You: While in Knock Out's trunk:June: I told you we should've waited for Optimus!
Fowler: There it is: the "I told you so." - It Can Think: As Starscream tries to explain to Megatron how "devoid of intelligence" the Predacon is, we see Predaking flawlessly using the communication console. He also knows Starscream's access code after seeing him enter it once. Doubles as Foreshadowing.
- Like an Old Married Couple: Knock Out says this word-for-word about June and Fowler.
- My Mother Is Off Limits: Jack has this attitude, though doesn't outright say it when June is standing right there.
- Misplaced Retribution: Played for Laughs against Starscream. Right after Predaking sabotages the communications dish with his savage might, Megatron goes on to blame Starscream for the dish being broken. Debatably Zig-Zagged, as Predaking breaking the dish was directly caused by Starscream bullying and incompetently provoking him.
- Mythology Gag: "Beast Machine super-soldiers."
- Nice Job Fixing It, Villain: Had Predaking not damaged the communications array after Starscream yelled at him, Knock Out would've made it back with the bone a lot sooner, as well as with Fowler and June.
- Noodle Incident: The details between Fowler and June's divorces are left unclear, only that June's is considered a "saga" compared to Fowler's "story".
- Oh, Crap!: Starscream after Predaking damages the communications array. Happens again after the Vehicons are unable to fix it without Soundwave.
- Parental Hypocrisy: Inverted - Jack doesn't like the idea of his mom going on what should have been a simple mission, even after everything he's been through. June is unamused.
- Platonic Life-Partners: Miko to Jack."Glad to be your bro, Bro."
- Properly Paranoid: Although he wrongly believes Predaking to be mindless, Starscream begs Megatron to reconsider Project Predacon because of how destructive and controllable they are. Later episodes show how right he is.
- Pun: After their talk, Wheeljack believes that taking his 'Ultra Magnus-related' frustrations on Bulkhead was considered "spineless". Arcee responds that he now has "plenty of backbone" to air things out, which also referring to the fossil resembling as such.
- Punctuated! For! Emphasis!: Megatron's reaction to damaged communication systems."Communications have been down for HOW LONG?!"
- Right for the Wrong Reasons: Jack warns his mother that it's too dangerous to go with Fowler to get the next fossil since the 'Cons are after it, but he just wants to make sure the adults aren't going as far as dating. While he doesn't know they were in trouble at the time, the fact that neither of them responded to his calls, and soon finding her phone on the ground, means that his excuse was true after all.
- She Is Not My Girlfriend: Both Fowler and June have to make such assertions in response to Knock Out.
- Ship Tease: Fowler and June. Miko is also pretty certain about Arcee and Wheeljack.
- Simultaneous Arcs: Takes place roughly during Optimus leading troops in Project Predacon, and they hadn't returned yet. Though is after Chain of Command as it picks up right after Wheeljack left them.
- Spanner in the Works: Predaking ends up destroying the Nemesis's communications relay, preventing Knock Out from easily making off with the fossil and the humans. However, it's implied that he might know what he was doing.
- Villainous Demotivator: Megatron praises Knock Out for his success, while berating Starscream for his failures.
- Will They or Won't They?: Miko says she's been asking this about Arcee and Wheeljack.
- Written-In Absence: Optimus, Bumblebee and Smokescreen are "still in oil country." Shockwave is briefly mentioned working on the cloning experiments in his lab.
