S.O.S. Dinobots



Generation One >  Season 1

The Autobots create the Dinobots, but can barely control these new powerful warriors.

Detailed synopsis
Act One: A series of tremors turn the attentions of the Autobots into the ancient stone surrounding their volcano headquarters. Deep sensor scans reveal dinosaur fossils, which pique the curiosity of Optimus Prime. Spike explains that dinosaurs were very powerful reptiles that lived on Earth millions of years ago. He takes Hound on a tour of a natural history museum to further illustrate his paleontological crash-course. Hound snaps a few holograms of dinosaur bone displays, inspiring Wheeljack and Ratchet to construct robotic versions of dinosaurs.

Elsewhere, the Decepticons stake out the Great Falls hydroelectric power facility. Reflector and Soundwave return with the data they gathered, and Megatron orders a strike.

Wheeljack unveils the three new additions to their ranks: the Dinobots Grimlock, Slag and Sludge. The demonstration of their power turns sour as they run amuck, their primitive brains unable to control their raw strength. The Dinobots begin attacking their fellow Autobots, even destroying Teletraan-1.

Act Two: The Autobots finally reign in the rampaging Dinobots thanks to Wheejack’s magnetic inducer. Prime declares the terrible trio as too dangerous. Despite Wheeljack’s desperate entreaties, Prime pulls the plug on the project, and orders the Dinobots holed up in a cavern in the Ark, never to be activated again.

The Decepticons arrive at the Great Falls, and the humans try to reach the Autobots via Teletraan-1. Their distress signal goes unheard, as Teletraan-1 is currently offline thanks to the Dinobot rampage.

With Teletraan-1 out of commission, it’s up to individual Autobots scouts like Hound to be on the lookout for Decepticon activity. Hound’s sensors detect the ransacking of the Great Falls plant, and he and Spike go to investigate. Hound radios in his findings to the Ark, and Optimus Prime leaves with a strike force, leaving Bumblebee behind to guard the base.

The Autobots arrive at the Great Falls, but the Decepticons are ready for them. A battle erupts, and Megatron fires his fusion cannon directly powered by the Great Falls output. He blasts the cliff-face where the Autobots stand, sending them falling into the raging waters below.

Act Three: Disobeying orders, Bumblebee arrives at the Great Falls and picks up Spike. They return to the Ark, informing Wheeljack and Ratchet of the Autobots’ failure at the Great Falls. Wheeljack decides to reactivate the Dinobots. He has secretly developed a series of memory components that would upgrade the Dinobots’ brains. The Dinobots awaken. Still relatively simple-minded, they are now much more intelligent than the mindless monsters that first appeared. Sludge, Slag and Grimlock carry out Wheeljack’s orders and fly to the Great Falls.

The Decepticons pull the soggy Autobots from the drink and truss them up with Energon chains. Just as the Decepticons are about the execute the captives, the Dinobots arrive and make short work of the Decepticons who retreat as Wheeljack frees the Autobot captives. Wheeljack and Bumblebee brace themselves for reprimands for disobeying Prime’s direct orders, but Prime concedes he was wrong. He accepts the Dinobots as the newest members of the Autobot forces.

Stats
Original airdate: October 27, 1984

Production number: #700-05

Written by: Donald F. Glut

Featured Characters
(''Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Notable Quotes
"Well I’ll be a Cybertronic bolt-bat!"
 * -- Sideswipe

"Wow, man. That’s what I call heavy metal!"
 * -– Unidentified museum-going punk, upon seeing Hound

"That one’s a walking fang-factory."
 * – Hound, seeing the T-rex skeleton

"It’ll never work. Big waste of time."
 * -– Huffer, cheerleading the Dinobot project

"Will you get to the point!"
 * -– Windcharger, cutting through Wheeljack’s introduction of the Dinobots

"C’mon Grimlock! Try stepping on a bug!"
 * -– Bumblebee

"Hey, not the face, okay? I just had it chromed."
 * -– Sunstreaker

"Maybe Hound’s got glitch-mice in his databanks again!"
 * -– Bluestreak, taunting Hound's accuracy

"You’re too slow, rusty-pants!"
 * -- Starscream trashtalking Ironhide

"Nice shooting, if you were aiming for the sky!"
 * -– Rumble goading Bluestreak

"Which ones friends?" "Ones with face like this, I think." "That good enough for Slag."
 * -- Sludge and Slag determining friend from foe by using faction symbols

"If on Decepticon turf you happen to tumble, look out robot, because here comes Rumble."
 * -- Rumble's clever combat banter

"Heat-seeking missles, seek heat!"
 * -- Skywarp's not-so-clever combat banter

Animation and/or technical glitches

 * The exposition-spouting tourist visiting the Great Falls hydroelectric power plant has hair that turns from red to black from one shot to the next.


 * Spike identifies a brontosaurus during his tour of the museum’s dinosaur exhibit, though there does not appear to be a brontosaurus on display. Though, to be fair, it may just be Spike’s error, or the brontosaurus skeleton might be out of the camera’s view. (Also, the Brontosaurus does not technically exist, but that's just picking nits.)


 * Wheeljack’s line of dialogue, “Autobots, meet Dinobots” is delivered by Ratchet.


 * As Wheeljack introduces the Dinobots, the foreground characters slide magically against the background scenery due to an error in animation.


 * The varied Autobot reactions upon seeing the Dinobots: “Look at the size of those things,” “Great Cybertron,” “Holy hetradyne” all come out of Bluestreak’s mouth.


 * Optimus Prime’s line, “Interesting, but what else can they do?” is delivered by Cliffjumper.


 * The Rhino DVD version of this episode uses a faulty take for the shot where the Dinobots demonstrate their power by clearing rubble. In the DVD, the blasts from the Dinobots’ mouths is missing, and the rubble does not vanish. The broadcast version, though, has both effects. (See illustration).  [[Image:dvd broadcast.jpg|right|thumb|Can you see the difference?]]


 * After Ratchet rights a tipped over Bumblebee in the thick of the Dinobot rampage, the section of Ratchet obscured by a foreground Bumblebee is still missing.


 * When the Decepticons arrive at the Great Falls plant, a foreground Decepticon seeker’s leg is colored a deep yellow… an error, but as close as Sunstorm ever came to appearing on Earth in a G1 cartoon.


 * When the Autobots arrive at the Great Falls, they transform from vehicle mode to robot mode. The shot of Bluestreak is reversed, and he is shown transforming from robot to car. This is only in the Rhino DVD version of the episode. The broadcast version used the correct take.


 * Bluestreak is shown knocked over by Gears, and then immediately standing in the next shot.


 * Quite a few coloring mix-ups in the battle at the Great Falls, including Sunstreaker painted as Sideswipe, Bluestreak as Trailbreaker, Brawn as Hound, Optimus Prime as Sideswipe, Trailbreaker as Gears, and Mirage as Bluestreak. There are also two very noticeable shots of Prime painted blue.


 * While the Autobots are trapped in Energon Chains, Optimus is colored entirely blue.


 * When the Decepticons retreat at the end of the episode, Skywarp is painted in Starscream colors.

Continuity errors

 * Though the holographic dinosaurs illustrated in the episodes matched some of the concepts of the early ‘80s, their depiction is outdated by today’s standards. The dinosaurs in the show are the sluggish, tail-dragging cold-blooded variety not in keeping with more modern theories.


 * The data gathered by Reflector and Soundwave leads Megatron to conclude with relish that the Great Falls contain enough energy exists to vanquish the Autobots and control the universe… but that’s really nothing new. The Decepticons have targeted hydroelectric power sources before.


 * Though it’s possible the editorial pace of the show plays with time and space, but taken at face value, the Autobots build three Dinobots in the span of time it takes the Decepticons to decide to attack the Great Falls.

Transformers References

 * The Autobots' ability to fly, seen in More Than Meets The Eye and Roll For It, is shown again in this episode, when Gears attacks the Decepticons at the power plant. Wheeljack and the Dinobots are also capable of flight.

Real-World References

 * Reference

Miscellaneous trivia

 * Ironhide is equipped with a sonadar sensor array that extends form his forearm, capable of penetrating solid rock. The findings of the sensor are displayed in the windshield in his chest.


 * Sideswipe is equipped with piston arms, that allow him to punch through stone walls.


 * Slag’s triceratops frill can reflect Optimus Prime’s laser rifle.


 * Not so much a goof, but the Rhino DVD version of this episode has a rainbow visible at the Great Falls when Megatron lands. This is not in the broadcast version.


 * Another difference in the broadcast version and the Rhino DVD version is when Hound contacts the Ark with a recon report. The glowing light on his chest and forehead are blue in the broadcast version, but red in the DVD version.


 * Laserbeak does not appear but is mentioned in this episode, as Megatron credits him for gathering intelligence at the Great Falls.


 * The chapter stops for this episode on the Rhino DVD are: Opening / Old Bones / "Dinobots Must Die" / Fusion Power / Permanent Dysfunction / Dinobots Will Stay