Shadowzone

Shadowzone is the tenth episode of the first season of Transformers: Prime. It is the fifteenth episode of the series overall.

Plot
When two Ground Bridges appear at once, it causes a malfunction that leaves Jack, Miko and Rafael in a parallel dimension, along with the revived and zombified body of Skyquake.

Synopsis
Starscream lies in the Nemesis's lab, having taken a severe pounding from Megatron. His leader pays a visit, mostly to gloat over how their positions have changed. Once he leaves, Starscream rips himself free of the cables feeding him. Knock Out is shocked to see Starscream up and about, but Starscream claims angrily that he feels fine and limps away. Starscream retrieves a shard of Dark Energon—the one he originally ripped from Megatron's body—from its hiding place and promises that his and Megatron's positions will be reversed.

At the Autobot base, Ratchet reports that he's detected a weak but rapidly moving Dark Energon signal, which the Autobots assume is Megatron. Bulkhead wonders if he plans to use it raise a new army of Terrorcons (Miko seems thrilled at the prospect of zombie-cons) and Optimus Prime notes that it's possible, given the Dark Energon signal is moving to a familiar site.

Starscream arrives at the site of Skyquake's grave, announcing that this time the fallen warrior will be his servant. Breaking off a chunk of the Dark Energon and throwing it into the cairn, Starscream plunges the rest of it into himself and feels the power flowing through him.

Optimus Prime readies the Autobots to move out, though Ratchet's surprised that he's on the team. As Miko yells words of encouragement to Bulkhead, Jack and Raf observe that she's obviously up to something, since she's acting disinterested in coming along. Indeed, as the Autobots head through the Ground Bridge, Miko foolishly makes a break for the opening, and Jack and Raf give chase. Jack manages to grab her on the threshold, but she shakes loose and runs through, though her cell phone is knocked from her belt. The three kids arrive on site just behind the Autobots and scramble up a nearby outcropping to watch the anticipated battle. The Autobots are surprised to find Starscream instead of Megatron, and he takes advantage by shooting at them and proclaiming his invulnerability. Optimus responds by shooting one of Starscream's arms off. As the Autobots close in, Starscream takes cover and shouts at Skyquake to hurry up and rise before panicking and requesting an emergency Ground Bridge. The Autobots finally spot the kids when Miko shouts at Jack for making her lose her phone, just in time for Arcee to call from base asking where the kids are. Optimus orders her to send a Ground Bridge. Ratchet is surprised when two Ground Bridge portals open, but orders the kids to go in. They do so, and Starscream likewise dives through the 'Con Ground Bridge, but moments later, green energy begins swirling around everywhere. Bulkhead runs to save the kids, but is knocked back from the Ground Bridge portal, which then explodes.

Starscream arrives back on the Nemesis and tells the Vehicon operator to keep his mouth shut. After leaving the Ground Bridge room, he removes the chunk of Dark Energon from his chest. The kids pick themselves up, as do the Autobots, but the kids quickly discover that the Autobots can't see them, and to Miko's alarm, Bulkhead steps right through her. Unaware, the Autobots speculate on what happened to the kids. Raf works out that he, Jack and Miko are in a sort of alternate dimension he calls a shadowzone. Optimus observes that

Skyquake's grave is empty and requests a Ground Bridge from Arcee. The kids spot Skyquake—now a Dark Energon zombie—heading towards the Autobots. Their cries of warning go unheard, but Skyquake's strike passes right through Bulkhead. The kids rapidly realize that Skyquake is in the same dimension as they are, and they run for it. Raf trips and is carried to safety by Jack, but has lost his glasses. Miko makes an ill-advised recovery of the spectacles, and they continue their flight. Fortunately Skyquake is slow as a Dark Energon zombie or Terrorcon. The Autobots are at a loss to locate the kids until Bumblebee suggests calling them. Bulkhead rings Miko, only to discover her lost cellphone sitting on the floor in the Autobot base. Arcee rings Jack, and in the shadowzone, his phone rings, but there's too much interference for him and Arcee to communicate. The kids hit on the idea of sending a text message to Miko's phone but are forced to run as Skyquake finds them. Miko is just realizing that they've gone in a circle when they literally run into Starscream's lost arm.

Knock Out examines Starscream, who covers for his lost arm by saying it just fell off. The medic tries unsuccessfully to interest him in a replacement upgrade arm, as Starscream wanted his old arm back.

Meanwhile, the kids use Starscream's arm to fire a missile at Skyquake. They manage to blast Skyquake's arm off, but it promptly animates and starts charging towards them at high speed. The kids start running once again.

At base, Bulkhead notices that Miko's phone is flashing, and the Autobots finally get the kids' message. Ratchet sets about trying to locate where they are.

Starscream's piece of Dark Energon starts pulsing, which he takes to mean that Skyquake has risen. He tells Knock Out, returning with a new arm, that he's going to go and retrieve his old arm.

Ratchet pinpoints the kids to the location of Skyquake's grave and starts working on a way to return them to the normal dimension.

The kids find themselves back at Starscream's arm and are confronted by Starscream himself, come to find Skyquake. Luckily, he can't see them, but they're forced to run toward him when Skyquake's arm appears. A Ground Bridge portal opens in front of them, and they run through at the last moment. Starscream is startled by the three humans running past, but then Skyquake's arm follows them through the portal and grabs Starscream's head. He has barely shaken the thing loose when Optimus, Bulkhead and Arcee arrive, and he has to request another emergency Ground Bridge.

Back at base, Miko takes responsibility for the whole venture, much to Jack's surprise, but the Autobots decide she's been through enough punishment. Bulkhead regrets that Miko didn't get to take any pictures, but Miko asserts that the mental image of zombie Skyquake will be enough for her brain.

Knock Out performs more repairs on Starscream and inquires whether he retrieved his arm. Back in the shadowzone, Skyquake briefly tries Starscream's arm on for size before tossing it away.

Autobots

 * Ratchet
 * Optimus Prime
 * Bumblebee
 * Arcee
 * Bulkhead

Decepticons

 * Starscream
 * Megatron
 * Knock Out
 * Vehicons
 * Skyquake

Humans

 * Miko Nakadai
 * Jack Darby
 * Raf Esquivel

Cast

 * Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime
 * Frank Welker as Megatron
 * Sumalee Montano as Arcee
 * Kevin Michael Richardson as Bulkhead
 * Jeffrey Combs as Ratchet
 * Steve Blum as Starscream
 * Daran Norris as Knock Out
 * Josh Keaton as Jackson Darby
 * Tania Gunadi as Miko Nakadai
 * Andy Pessoa as Rafael Esquivel

Quotes
Megatron: ''Resting comfortably, Starscream? Despite the extent of your injuries, my medical staff assures me that you shall make a rapid recovery''

Starscream: Hopefully every bit as rapid as your wrath is swift.

Megatron: ''And how swiftly things change. To think that a short time ago it was you who was standing here while I was lying there. Right after your failed attempt to terminate me. But know this dear Starscream. Our postions shall never again be reversed.''

- Megatron and Starscream

Starscream: You cannot harm me while Dark Energon flows through my veins!

— Starscream, seconds before Optimus blows off his arm.

Raf: I can't see without my glasses! Miko: What are you, ninety? Jack: ''Not. Helping!''

- Raf, Miko, and Jack.

Miko: How can a zombie arm move faster than the actual zombie?

- Miko on zombie parts.

Optimus: Ratchet, can we triangulate the geographical position of the cell phone signal?

Ratchet: ''In a parallel dimensional plane?! ... Let's find out.''

- Optimus Prime and Ratchet

Miko: Look, if you're going to blame anybody, blame me.

Jack: I'm sorry, could you repeat that...a couple dozen times?

- Miko owns up, while Jack makes it clear he's still ticked off.

Errors

 * In the final scene with Skyquake in the alternate dimension, it first shows Starscream's missing arm. However, Starscream is missing his right arm whereas this arm is a left. In the next cut, where Skyquake tries to attach the arm to himself, it becomes the proper missing right arm.


 * Skyquake's arm continues to function even after being blasted off. When Ratchet severs a zombie's arm in "Darkness Rising, Part 4", the arm is shown deactivating moments later. It is possible that this is due to Skyquake being infused with an actual Dark Energon crystal, the same way Cliffjumper was still functional in "Darkness Rising, Part 2" despite being cut in half. It is also possible that it is because the missile was a mere blast, while Ratchet severs the zombie's arm in "Darkness Rising Part 4", he used his blades and Optimus's blasters could not kill off the zombies either.


 * Jack previously discovered that the Autobot base was shielded from cell-phone reception. This may have something to do with the "cell phone comlink patch" Raf mentions in "Convoy".

Trivia

 * The voice cast performed a script reading of the episode at BotCon 2011. Sean Long stood in for Frank Welker, while Ernie Hudson filled in for Daran Norris and Markie Post stepped in for Sumalee Montano. A "deleted scene" where Fowler contacts June Darby (and pretends to be something called a "Ghostbuster") was injected into the proceedings.
 * Despite Megatron being pretty ticked off at Starscream in the previous episode, Starscream is still alive (albeit heavily injured).
 * This episode shows that Transformers need to make a special gesture with their hands in order to activate their weapons systems.


 * Even though Arcee failed to notice the kids making a run for the Ground Bridge, it seems puzzling that neither Jack nor Raf hollered for Miko to stop or for Arcee to close the Ground Bridge before she could make it through.


 * This is the only episode of the series that the Nemesis is referred to by its proper name. In every other episode, the entire cast refers to it as "the Decepticon warship".


 * First appearance of the shadowzone.

Gallery
Main Article: Shadowzone Gallery