Tropes:
- Asshole Victim: The last time we see Starscream, he's sniveling before Predaking, Darksteel and Skylynx. It's not hard to imagine what happened to him next.
- Asskicking Leads to Leadership: Predaking truly lives up to his name when Darksteel and Skylynx question his authority.
- Asteroid Thicket: The AllSpark is hidden in one.
- Back for the Finale: Unicron, whom we last saw in the "One Shall Rise" three-parter, returns for the finale special.
- Back from the Dead: Thanks to Unicron, Megatron lives again after being killed off in the Season 3 finale. Too bad he doesn't get to enjoy it.
- Barred from the Afterlife: Unicron explains to Megatron that the latter had not become one with the AllSpark due to Dark Energon tainting his Spark, which instead drew him to Unicron's Anti-Spark. The way it's explained seems to imply this is permanent. Whether Unicron's imprisonment changed that is left up in the air.
- Being Tortured Makes You Evil: Surprisingly, being tortured by Unicron appears to have made Megatron have a Heel Realization and abandon his goals.
- Be Careful What You Wish For: Megatron originally wanted to be Demoted to Dragon for Unicron...
- Big Bad: Unicron, after serving as the Greater-Scope Villain for the entire series. He even cows Megatron.
- Big Bad Wannabe: Shockwave and Starscream are the last active Decepticons, and have been trying to restart "Project Predacon" and clone a new army, despite Screamer's earlier warnings. They even seem to get along pretty well. However, they pale in comparison to Unicron and are genuinely terrified at his actions. Shockwave even encourages the Predacons to join the Autobots against Unicron, whilst Starscream is more than happy to get the hell out of there.
- Once Megatron dissolves the Decepticons, Starscream immediately makes plans to create a new faction, but Predaking and his brothers arrive to "settle old scores".
- Big Bad Wannabe: Shockwave and Starscream are the last active Decepticons, and have been trying to restart "Project Predacon" and clone a new army, despite Screamer's earlier warnings. They even seem to get along pretty well. However, they pale in comparison to Unicron and are genuinely terrified at his actions. Shockwave even encourages the Predacons to join the Autobots against Unicron, whilst Starscream is more than happy to get the hell out of there.
- Big Bad Duumvirate: What Starscream and Shockwave are trying to become. It doesn't exactly go according to plan.
- Bittersweet Ending: Unicron is defeated and Cybertron is saved once again. However, Optimus must become one with the Allspark and cannot pass the Matrix of Leadership onto another, due to complications arising from the aforementioned merger. Not that it stopped him from coming back in the next series. The big silver lining is that Cybertron is finally in the process of restoration after a lifetime of constant war.
- Big Damn Heroes: The Predacons arrive in time to help the Autobots against Unicron's Terrorcon-Predacon army.
- Break the Haughty: His enslavement and torture by Unicron essentially broke Megatron by subjecting him to exactly what he'd done to others, leaving him with a Heel Realization and no drive or desire to ever oppress anyone ever again.
- Breath Weapon: Just like Predaking, Darksteel and Skylynx can breath fire.
- Brought Down to Badass: Though nowhere near as powerful as he once was, Unicron, whilst in possession of Megatron's body, is still a force to be reckoned with, easily defeating Sky Lynx, Darksteel and Optimus himself.
- Borrowed Catchphrase: When Knock Out accidentally breaks the Immobilizer on Starscream, which was intended to use on Unicron.Bumblebee: Knock Out! We needed that!
- But Now I Must Go: Optimus says this almost word for word near the end, as he prepares to plunge into Cybertron's Core to return the AllSpark and the Matrix there and enable a new generation of Cybertronians to be born.
- Call-Back:
- Unicron summons a legion of Terrorcons from countless remains on Cybertron, just as Megatron did in the "Darkness Rising" five-parter. Almost a case of Book Ends.
- The Autobots mistaking the possessed Megatron flying toward Darkmount for Predaking and Starscream is similar to the time Megatron himself mistook Optimus flying to his (identical looking) citadel on Earth for Predaking.
- Smokescreen being stuck in the wall of the Nemesis, no doubt a little payback from Knock Out after "Inside Job". Even the pose is identical.
- Predaking takes Megatron's advice to face him "as a beast".
- The Corruption: Unicron's endgame is to infect Cybertron with his Dark Energon and destroy it, and by extension Primus. He comes literally, dangerously close to succeeding.
- Demonic Possession: Unicron's back, now controlling Megatron's dead body.
- Deus Exit Machina: Ultra Magnus is kept out of action for most of the film after his fight with the Predacons, understandable considering what just one was capable of doing to him.
- Optimus is gone most of the film chasing the Allspark.
- Did You Just Scam Cthulhu?: See Did You Just Flip Off Cthulhu?.
- Did You Just Flip Off Cthulhu?: Megatron does this to Unicron, admitting that he set up his meeting with Predaking, claiming that even if his body were to be damaged beyond repair, it would be preferable to being Unicron's slave.
- Dracolich: Unicron's army is comprised of undead Predacons.
- Dragged Off to Hell: More or less what happened to Megatron when he was killed: due to tainting his spark with Dark Energon, he's now bound to Unicron's Anti-Spark and spends the entire film in an Ironic Hell because of it.
- Due to the Dead: Predaking had been guarding over a massive amount of Predacon fossils, and he was livid when Unicron reanimated them as Terrorcons, and wished to reclaim the bones if possible (even if only so they could be returned to their resting place).
- Easily Forgiven: When Bumblebee attempts a truce with Predaking, he provides a reason why he's not interested.
- After Megatron's Heel Realization about the nature of oppression and disbanding the Decepticons, the Autobots seem content to let Megatron fly off into self-imposed exile. None of them outright says they forgive him though.
- End of an Era: Optimus states that he can't separate the Allspark from the Matrix after absorbing the former, meaning that the latter can no longer pass down to another candidate. With him merging with Cybertron's core, the Age of the Primes is now over.
- Enemy Mine: After seeing their ancestors gravesite empty. The Predacons join forces with the Autobots in order to stop Unicron and his Terrorcons... after Predaking proves his might against the two new clones. Shockwave arrives after the fight to secure this "logical choice".
- Exit, Pursued by a Bear: Starscream is last seen being cornered by three angry Predacons intending to settle old scores. The sequel series reveals he escaped them out of sheer luck.
- Fate Worse than Death:
- Bumblebee describes the Immobilizer as this to Predaking, specifically calling it "a living death".
- This is how Megatron sees his Sharing a Body-type Demonic Possession by Unicron, see Did You Just Flip Off Cthulhu?.
- Finale Movie: This movie serves as the conclusion to the Transformers: Prime series.
- Flaw Exploitation: Megatron uses Unicron's arrogance to lure the Chaos Bringer into a confrontation with Predaking, hoping Predaking will be able to beat Unicron out of him.
- Optimus uses Unicron's obsession with destroying the AllSpark to trap him in its vessel.
- Foreshadowing: Boy, does Bumblebee make a good leader in Optimus’ absence.
- Heel–Face Turn: Many of the Vehicon's appear under Bulkhead's command during a construction project.
- Knockout appears to have made a genuine effort to change for the better.
- Megatron of all bots. See Heel Realization below.
- In the final act, the three Predacons are willing to work with the Autobots to defeat Unicron.
- Heel Realization: After being subjugated and tortured by Unicron, Megatron claims he wishes to never inflict such oppression upon anyone else ever again.
- History Repeats: The constant of Optimus Prime, like many of his incarnations, sacrificing himself for the greater good remains here. In this case, he does so to bring the Allspark to Cybertron, since his own spark cannot be separated from it now. If there is one solace, it's that his end is a lot more peaceful compared to previous ones.
- Hoist by His Own Petard: Unicron's attempt to destroy the Allspark ended with him trapped in its case instead.
- Hope Spot:
- Megatron hoped that Predaking would be powerful enough to destroy his new body so Unicron can leave him. Sadly, the Chaos Bringer proves why he's a "god" compared to a clone dragon.
- Starscream and Shockwave finds the gravesite littered with Predacon bones. They seem to have more than enough for a clone army... Until Unicron rouses them for his own undead army.
- Shockwave suggests having the Immobilizer with their arsenal against Unicron's army... Until Knock Out breaks it to stop Starscream.
- Hope Springs Eternal: After Optimus unites with the Well of All Sparks. What appears to be his spark briefly appears before the other Autobots, possibly to show that he will return to them someday.
- "I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight: Optimus appeals to Megatron to help him save the world from Unicron again.
- Internal Reveal: Smokescreen finally confesses that Optimus had considered passing the Matrix of Leadership to him on his proverbial deathbed and become the next Prime. However, he now knows Bumblebee has more than earned that title.
- Ironic Echo: The term "One with the Allspark" has always meant to go to the afterlife. To protect it from falling into the clutches of Unicron, Optimus absorbs it into his Matrix of Leadership, and Ratchet and the rest of Team Prime figures out later what it means when they still need to finish reviving Cybertron. It doesn't get anymore ironic or literal than that.
- Ironic Hell: Megatron spends the entire film in one: Megatron is a tyrant who took over and oppressed his own people, and wanted to bring it on others, he spends the film being oppressed himself by Unicron and being used as his host body. Megatron is very aware of the irony. Given Megatron actually did die, Unicron is basically the Transformer version of Satan, and it was Megatron's evil deeds directly lead to this fate, it was probably a literal case.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Predaking may not serve the Decepticons anymore, after learning Megatron orchestrated his clone brethren's destruction, but that doesn't make Team Prime any less guilty since they were trying to stop them anyway. He refuses to help them until Unicron hijacked the bones of his ancestors.
- Knight of Cerebus: Unicron returns and nearly brings about the end of life on Cybertron and the destruction of Primus, and the only somewhat humorous scene with him is when he realizes Megatron lied to him about Predaking.
- Lampshade Hanging: Arcee questions just how Megatron can be back from the dead. note Ratchet simply notes that Megatron's returned from the dead before.
- Laser-Guided Karma: Megatron spent his life killing, torturing, and enslaving others, and was killed, tortured, and enslaved by Unicron as a direct result of his own misdeeds (namely by abusing Dark Energon) condemning his Spark to Unicron's Anti-Spark rather than Primus's All Spark. Megatron is completely aware of this fact to the point any desire to inflict that on anyone else is broken.
- Last Episode, New Character: Skylynx and Darksteel.
- Leaning on the Fourth Wall: Optimus' final speech, as it can be interpreted to mean that while Prime has ended, the Transformers franchise will live on in a new incarnation.
- Mind Rape: Unicron isn't afraid to dish this out to Megatron.
- Mr. Exposition: Unicron explains a lot to Megatron about how the dead Con ended up possessed and more.
- Mythology Gag:
- Megatron's resurrection from the ocean depths is similar to the live action movies.
- Optimus plunging into the Well of All Sparks to merge with Primus's spark is reminiscent of the Beast Machines finale. His ending line about the end being a new beginning and "simply put, another transformation" mirrors Optimus Primal's statement of "the great transformation".
- A resurrected Megatron being mentally tortured by Unicron for his defiance. Does that sound familiar?
- Hell, Megatron's mere revival and upgrade courtesy of Unicron as well. He's is pretty much a Galvatron analogue in all but name.
- Unicron's consistent use of the Arc Words "Instrument of Destruction".
- Giving all the Predacons flame breath turned them into a homage to the Firecons from G1. One's even a bird type just like Flamefeather!
- Near-Villain Victory: Unicron comes within literal inches of his goal before Team Prime finally stops him.
- Necromancy: Unicron, courtesy of his Dark Energon (see Raising the Steaks).
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Knock Out proves his Heel–Face Turn by KO'ing Starscream... with the Immobilizer, making their fight against Unicron a bit more difficult. Of course, Bumblebee tried to trick Screamer into thinking he was holding a fake, so Knock Out thought so, too
- No Ontological Inertia: As soon as Unicron is sealed, his Predacon zombies explode into dust.
- O.O.C. Is Serious Business:
- Though he mostly manages to retain his composure, Shockwave is clearly terrified of Unicron. Seeing Megatron alive and witnessing the rise of new Terrorcons do work well for his sense of logic.
- Literally no one ever expected Megatron to dissolve the Decepticons. Since he is clearly exhausted after being used by Unicron for too long, he decides it's no longer worth the war effort.
- Our Zombies Are Different: The army of Terracons Unicron creates more walking skeletons than zombies.
- Out-of-Character Moment: See Opt Out
- Opt Out: Once Megatron is freed from Unicron, Starscream wishes to start the war all over again with Megatron as leader once more. Only, Megatron has no interest in fighting anymore, dissolves the Decepticons, and promptly leaves Cybertron to parts unknown.
- Playing with Fire: See Breath Weapon.
- Put on a Bus: Jack, Miko, Raf and the rest of the human cast do not appear at all.
- Raising the Steaks: An army of skeletal Predacon zombies raised by Unicron.
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: After Unicron raises an army of undead Predacons, Starscream attempts to hijack the Nemesis and get as far away from Cybertron as possible.
- Sealed Evil in a Can: The AllSpark reliquary is used to trap Unicron's Anti-Spark.
- Sharing a Body: Unicron and Megatron share the latter's body, but Unicron is firmly in control and Megatron only gets it back once Unicron has been removed from him.
- Ship Tease: This bit between Arcee and Bumblebee could be interpreted by that:Arcee: Bee, in case I never get another chance to say this, you've really proved your mettle.Bumblebee: I'd like to think my actions spoke louder than my words, Arcee. But it didn't hurt to watch and learn from the best.Arcee: Would be nice if Optimus showed up about now.Bumblebee: I was referring to a powerful little two-wheeler I know.
- Shoo Out the Clowns: Agent Fowler and the human kids aren't involved in the plot this time. Considering the dangers and what's at stake (assuming Cybertron's environment is not yet suitable for humans), it likely a good thing.
- Shout-Out: Unicron!Megatron fights with purple constructs.
- Spotlight-Stealing Squad: Bumblebee appears to take centerstage while the likes of Optimus, Arcee and Smokescreen all take a backseat.
- Took a Level in Kindness: Magnus amicably refers to Smokescreen as "kid".
- Shockwave and Starscream seem to be on better terms, even if Starscream has to get in his mandatory insults.
- Those Two Guys: Skylynx and Darksteel.
- Unexplained Recovery: Shockwave's survival means he managed to fight off (or at least escape) the Terrorcon horde, albeit not without some damage. He is still standing, at least, despite being seemingly torn apart.
- Villain Has a Point: Starscream warns Shockwave's newest Predacon clones that they were supposed to stay out of sight from the Autobots. Sure, they sent Ultra Magnus and Smokescreen running, but now Team Prime knows they exist and Shockwave is restarting "Project Predacon".
- Wham Line: "ENOUGH! The Decepticons are no more. And that is final."
- What Happened to the Mouse?: Shockwave disappears from the plot after suggesting that the Predacons should fight Unicron.
- Despite being transported to one of Cybertron's moons by Soundwave, Airachnid is curiously absent. Though given she was infected with vampirism in "Thirst", it's possible she perished from a lack of Energon since she had to consume her own Insecticon army to survive.
- The human characters are absent from the film entirely, and though that one is justified by the fact they wouldn't be of much help on Cybertron's toxic atmosphere they don't even receive a cameo when Ratchet is brought back to Cybertron.
- The Vehicons helping Bulkhead disappear after their first scene, only the one's in the brig reappear.
- The Worf Effect: Predaking of all characters ends up this way with Unicron handing him his only real defeat.
- You Shall Not Pass!: Predaking, Skylynx, and Darksteel face down the Terrorcon horde to try and keep them from the Well of All Sparks.
- Zerg Rush: The Terrorcon Predacons' main tactic (considering the number of them, and the power they have, it's pretty effective).
Optimus Prime: Above all, do not lament my absence. For in my spark, I know that this is not the end, but merely a new beginning. Simply put: another transformation.
