Transformers Prime S2 Episode 12: Tunnel Vision

[Cyberwing]

In two parts....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWhCHpVO6g8


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qETUq...feature=relmfu

Thoughts:
Odd how the worker looks very similar to Fowler.
Apparently the Insecticon is as powerful as when it first appeared, which made me think that they grow?

With Knock-out in this episode, indefinitely there were be one-liners and possibly a car joke and as always I would at least have a chuckle at it.

[GoktimusPrime]

Knock Out remains my favourite Decepticon in this series. I just love him because he's so original and not just a recycle caricature spat out at us from previous TF series... here's this incredibly vain Decepticon medic (how often do we see Decepticon medics!!) with a wonderfully dry sardonic wit! And we've seen this kind of vanity from Autobot cars before (Sunstreaker, Tracks), but not from a Decepticon.

The track worker doesn't look like Fowler to me at all... totally different face (jaw line's much wider - he could be in Animated!), and of course, he's tank (whereas Fowler's awfully pudgy for a special agent ). I did like how they gave him a yellow hard hat - nice subtle G1 reference there. I also do like how they are trying to make Miko more of a useful character (a welcome change from her role in Season 1). The way they keep trying to make up excuses to involve the kids on missions still bugs me though... yeah, you'll need drivers to match your disguise in New York, so bring us along! Or... they could just use holograms (as Arcee has done on many occasions) - or in the case of going to places that the Autobots can't... again, why can't the US Govt send more personnel to help them? Why does Fowler keep working on his own?? Can't they even have their own equivalent of I.I.I./R.A.A.T., Sector 7 etc.??? Oh no, we'll leave the fate of Earth in the hands of children... again.

But overall an enjoyable ep. Interesting to see the Insecticon they fought was another toughie like on Cybertron (and unlike that swarm we saw in "Armada"). I guess that must be another "soldier class" Insecticon and not the "worker class" Insecticons we saw in Armada. Besides, they had the worker class Vehicons working on the drill (they've been established as such in that ep when Ratchet went berko), so no need to have another worker drone; and Megatron did say the Insecticon was there to replace Breakdown as the primary field combatant, so it would make more sense to have a warrior class. </fansplanation> Also good to see the Autobots win the artifact for once... interesting to see how the Autobots will use the phase shifter.

[Cyberwing]

I'm not sure anymore

Although the next episode seems promising, it's a robot in a mech how can it get better than that.

[liegeprime]

What Vogel said and then had a glance at his "train".... hmmmmmm Astrotrain? , but then we need more bots than cons. The bots are already too outnumbered. We haven't seen Wheeljack of late. There should be an episode of him using the Jackhammer to help out locating and retrieving one of the relics

[GoktimusPrime]

Astrotrain as that little maintenance train? As for Wheeljack... he's not exactly a team player.

Anyone else notice the irony that there's a man who's name is Vogel - German/Dutch for "bird," yet he works in subterranean tunnels? Also he's a big dude... big bird.

[liegeprime]

Astrotrain as that little maintenance train? As for Wheeljack... he's not exactly a team player.

Anyone else notice the irony that there's a man who's name is Vogel - German/Dutch for "bird," yet he works in subterranean tunnels? Also he's a big dude... big bird.

Well you know... canary's are/were used by miner's in tunnels so it's not so ironic really Gok

Well. Prime can send Wheeljack on his own mission, he can just call for clean up after hehehehe

[Ode to a Grasshopper]

Poor Knock Out.

[Tallestblue]

Knockout's bad day? two parts? WTF? I've actually started to rely on youtube for TF Prime as the downloads that seemed to be available now take a few days.

it's SO #Firstworldproblems but i'm still annoyed.

[griffin]

Doesn't it suck when they have a "once only indestructible opponent" plot-device. Two episodes ago, the Insecticons were easy to destroy, but in this one, two Autobots pummeled it with their guns to no affect.

[GoktimusPrime]

At least that weird plot-device is usually used to promote/sell toys. There's no TFPrime Insecticon toy in current existence... unless it's "proactive toy promotion" (i.e. hoping that it'll promote a toy that they'll make later. The potential problem with this could be:
1: by time the toy comes out, the Insecticons have already been shown to be weak ("Armada")
2: the character may not be fresh in the minds of kids; we've seen this happen before w/ some other toys that shelfwarm despite being good toys because they came out so long after the canon has ceased being current (e.g. ROTF Legends Devastator, DOTM Quejack etc.)
3: the toy never gets released at all, meaning that screentime was wasted on that character (e.g. Animated Constructicons, Animated Omega Supreme, DOTM Mirage etc.).

...hence why I prefer Transformers to be conceived as toys first - canonical characters second. A good toy will sell well even without canonical appearance (e.g. G1 1984; grossed US$1.4 million in toy sales before most kids had ever seen the cartoon) .