Can You Dig It? TFP

Can You Dig It? is the tenth episode of Transformers: Robots in Disguise.

Premise
The Bee Team welcomes a visiting Autobot veteran just in time to fend off a Decepticon fugitive bent on monopolizing one of the Bots' most precious commodities.

Synopsis
At a construction site in Crown City, a worker using an excavator digs up an energon cube. When he goes to inspect this strange object, the ground suddenly gives way. Though he manages to scramble out of the sinkhole, the energon cube is spirited away by a robotic claw, and the worker's excavator tumbles into the hole.

That night at the scrapyard, Russell and the Bee Team are watching a television show about a motorcycle gang. Sideswipe tries to explain how their identical jackets indicate non-conformism to Fixit and ends up leaving in frustration. Wandering through the scrapyard, he spots another Bot lurking in the darkness and attempts to ambush them only to be knocked on his can. The others arrive and Bumblebee recognizes the newcomer as Jazz, who turns out to have been sent from Cybertron to investigate the distress call sent from the Alchemor. By the next morning, explanations have been given and Jazz offers to take them all back to Cybertron in his ship, however Bumblebee points out that there are still a lot of Decepticons to round up on Earth. Their discussion is interrupted when a hole opens up in the ground and a Decepticon pops out.

As the Decepticon tries to go for their energon stash, Fixit identifies their new foe as Ped, a petty thief who can dig underground. He's halfway through the description when Sideswipe springs into action and attacks Ped, only to be zapped by the stinging mandibles that Fixit hadn't finished telling them about. Ped dives back into the ground, and another hole opens behind the two humans. As Russell falls in, Bumblebee dives in after him and with the help of the other Autobots, manages to fish Russell out. Unfortunately Ped has made off with some of their energon, leaving Grimlock and the humans behind, and the other Autobots dive into the hole to hunt for the Decepticon. They split up, with Sideswipe insisting on going with Jazz and Strongarm paired with Bumblebee. As they drive through the tunnels, Sideswipe starts complaining to Jazz about the others holding him back and Jazz suggests he pace himself. Bumblebee and Strongarm spot Ped and start chasing him as he digs through the ground, only to realize that his tunnels are undermining Crown City, and a section is about to collapse.

Bumblebee begins propping up the roof while Strongarm reinforces it with rocks, however Ped attacks Bumblebee. Strongarm is unable to go to his aid, as she now has to hold the ceiling up. As Ped holds Bumblebee in his claw, a comm message comes in from Jazz revealing that he and Sideswipe have found Ped's energon stash. The alarmed Decepticon drops Bumblebee and hurries away to secure his energon. Forewarned by Bumblebee over the comm, Sideswipe attempts to tackle Ped himself, only to be again zapped. Jazz plays along with the Decepticon, suggesting he'd make a good second-in-command, and Ped reveals he's building up a stash of energon to use as currency with the other Decepticons. Having learned enough, Jazz blasts Ped with a bit of sound and light, but it has the side effect of making the roof cave in. By the time Jazz and Sideswipe dig themselves out, Ped has left and taken the energon with him. The pair return to the scrapyard, where the others have rigged up a trap for Ped — an open stasis pod hidden in a pile of energon cubes and boxes painted to look like same.

As night falls, the team observes the pile of cubes from elevated positions, and sure enough the ground begins to quake, however the Autobots soon find that Ped is wise to them and the train car they're standing on falls into a pit. Menaced by Ped, Russell and Denny point him to the energon cubes and he starts moving towards the loot, only to decide at the last moment to deal with the humans first. His hesitation has given Denny enough time to fetch a construction vehicle and hit him with it. In the pit, the Autobots stand on each other's shoulders, and though they're unable to reach the edge of the pit, Sideswipe's able to jump between them and the sides of the pit and escape. He begins keeping Ped occupied while Denny fishes the Autobots out with the electromagnet, though Grimlock and Strongarm are left in the hole after the combined weight is too much for the machine to handle. Jazz is grabbed and zapped by Ped, however Sideswipe has come up with a plan. Taunting Ped, he manages to get the Decepticon to attack him, and they both tumble into the stasis pod. Though Sideswipe tells Bumblebee to activate the pod, Jazz jumps in to lend a hand, enabling the pair to extricate themselves from the pod. Denny crowns the emerging Ped with the electromagnet before Bumblebee activates the pod.

Morning comes and Denny fishes Strongarm out of the hole, though the cable breaks in the process, leaving Grimlock still stranded down there while Denny goes for more cable. Jazz promises to smooth things over with the council once he gets back to Cybertron, and promises he'll be back. Strongarm teases Sideswipe in finding Jazz as a role model and Grimlock is left in the hole awaiting for Denny to return.

Autobots

 * Will Friedle as Bumblebee
 * Constance Zimmer as Strongarm
 * Darren Criss as Sideswipe
 * Khary Payton as Grimlock
 * Mitchell Whitfield as Fixit
 * Arif S. Kinchen as Jazz

Decepticons

 * Eddie Deezen as Ped

Humans

 * Ted McGinley as Denny Clay
 * Stuart Allen as Russell Clay

Quotes
"Okaaay, I get that they're fast and make lots of noise, but when are they gonna transform?"

"Those are just plain old motorcycles, Grimlock. One mode only."

"Woooah, that is tragic!"
 * —Grimlock and Russell

"Why are they smashing their mouths together?"
 * —Strongarm on kissing.

"Is it time for my solo?"
 * —Jazz

"What do you call that takedown anyway?"

"Don't know, didn't really plan it. It just kind of flowed."
 * —Sideswipe, meet Jazz.

"Alright then. Autobots, lets bug out!"

[dog barks in the distance]

"Cause y'know, we're kinda chasing a bug."

"That's your rallying cry?"

"I'm working on it."
 * — Bumblebee tries a new motto on Jazz. He's not diggin' it.

"You Autobots, you think you're so much better than everyone else. Let me tell you something, there's a new boss bot around here, and no one's ever gonna laugh at me again!"
 * —Ped

"Maybe we should have tried that the other way around."

"You think?!"
 * —Grimlock and Fixit

"Helloooo! Anybody up there? Dinobot in a hole!"
 * —Grimlock

Continuity notes

 * The distress signal Fixit sent during "Pilot (Part 1)" is revealed to have indeed reached Cybertron, which is confirmed to be governed by a new High Council.
 * Bumblebee reveals to Jazz that he and Strongarm were patrolling in Kaon City in "Pilot (Part 1)". Up until this episode, it was never revealed where they were.

Prisoner manifest

 * In stasis: Hammerstrike, Bisk, 4/5ths of Chop Shop, Terrashock, Filch, Minitron, Springload, Ped
 * Known at large: Steeljaw, 1/5th of Chop Shop (possibly unknown to Bee), Thunderhoof, Underbite
 * Released: Grimlock
 * Countless others all missing, presumed at large

Transformers references

 * Though unnamed, Jazz possesses the same sound and light show Jazz had in the Transformers G1 cartoon. He also possesses a retractable visor like his live-action counterpart.

Real-world references

 * Ped's paralyzing bite and digging capabilities are similar to the fabled Mongolian death worm.

Trivia

 * The first thirteen episodes of the series, this included, first premiered in Mandarin on Chinese streaming video site M1905.

Gallery

 * Can You Dig It? Gallery