Prime Season 2 Finale Review

Right, well, let's get into it...

As some of you might recall, I was rather disappointed with the Season 2 premier, as I felt not enough was done to flesh out the potential of where the characters found themselves after accessing Vector Sigma. It was my belief that the writers attempted to cram far too much into one half-hour premier then would be considered conducive to a well balanced narrative. To put it simply, I thought the writing and pacing in the premier was sloppy. Something even a lack-luster writer such as myself could see, let alone a fan.

Now, I had consoled myself with the belief that the rest of the season would do much to redeem what I saw as a somewhat poor start. However, over the course of Season 2, I feel we spent far too much time with weak plot threads (*Starscream's schemes constantly backfiring and Bulkhead's "depression" to name a few) and not enough time dedicated to deeper character development and establishing stronger relationships between them.

This sense of wasting time was exacerbated by the later half of the season adopting a "relic of the week" story approach, most of which did little except to provide both 'bots and 'cons with sometimes bewildering Technological scapegoats that would not seem out of place in the original '80s series, but do in the slightly more complex Prime. Last, but not least, a Bathroom joke in the middle of what had been a rather tense episode. (*Sigh*) To say I was loosing my enthusiasm for Prime was, I think, an understatement. I had all but begun to give up hope. That is until the last two episodes.

Last week's "Regeneration" saw the long expected betrayal, and shocking demise(?), of Dreadwing who, after long suffering the intolerable dishonor and corruption of what he had seen to be a Noble cause in the Decepticon mission, sought vengeance against Starscream for the desecration of his brother's corpse. In a surprising twist, Megatron chose the questionable loyalty of his former (then reinstated) second in command over the skill and honor of someone who's loyalty had, previously, been as unshakable as Soundwave's, executing the warrior in the process. Not before, of course, Dreadwing had handed the Autobots yet another advantage, namely the Forge of Solus Prime, which, in turn, allowed them to race the Decepticons to Cybertron, Omega Keys in hand, in order to restore their dead world.

Fast forward to the climax of that episode and we see the Autobots in a loosing battle, their one true weakness used against them; namely the capture and ransom of their Human companions. Now, to be fair, I found the sudden kidnapping of the teens to be more then a little convenient. We know that since their encounter with the Cyborg Silas, Raf's location having been tracked by Soundwave in the process of the teen hacker using an uplink to stop Silas's Orbital Laser, the Decepticons had confirmed that the teens were in Jasper Nevada, likely in close proximity to the Autobot HQ. Soundwave and Starscream engage in some old fashioned deductive reasoning and are able to figure out that Human Teens likely go to a Human High School and, as there's only one in Jasper, it should not be hard to find them. Now, one has to wonder how the Decepticons -and especially their Spy Master- were unable to figure all this out beforehand based on the numerous encounters they've had with the Teen and the Autobots in and around Jasper...But, I digress.

And so we find ourselves on Cybertron, Omega Lock -which I had hoped would have something to do with Omega Supreme. Alas.- activated and guns, figuratively and literally, pointed at the Teen's heads. We know what our heroes are going to do. That is never in question (at least it was not for me) They *will* sacrifice control of the Omega lock and keys for the lives of those they care for. Optimus declares that he will not sacrifice Human lives for their cause, something he has championed since the start. The 'bots make the the trade and, it seems, the Decepticons now have it all won.

-Side Note- Can I just take a fanboy moment here? Did anyone else *love* yet another display of Jack's courage in the face of the enemy? We have seen small indications of it but I felt that most of this season, save the premier, was sorely lacking in it. Jack flat out tells the Decepticons that he'll lay down his life for the Autobots given how often they have put their lives in peril for him. Namely Arcee. It reminds us why -as Megatron points out- Jack was worthy of being entrusted with the Key to Vector Sigma.

The other moment here that plastered a big stupid nerd grin on my face; when Arcee at last has Jack's containment canister in hand, we can see, for a few moments, her reflection in the glass as she and Jack lock eyes, his silent apology for getting captured countered by a, dare I say, loving smile and a wink, reminding him that, firstly, he's safe, and second, he had nothing to apologize for. He'd do the same for her. I might be looking too much into that, but, well, I'm happy with my observations. Anyway, moving on...

So, Megatron has gained control of the Omega Lock and, after some gloating, triggers what I can only assume is a test fire of what is, essentially, Prime's version of the Genesis Device (For those nerds who get that reference, I salute you). We see a formally demolished Tower in the Sea of Rust restored to it's pristine pre-war state. All the Cybertronians, 'bot and 'con alike, are clearly in awe. It seems Cybertron will truly be restored. However, enter the power hungry despot. Megatron, not content with ruling their Homeworld, decides to rule *Two* planets. Using the Decepticon Space Bridge Megatron fires the Genesis Device beam through the vortex where it touches down on Earth. We, of course, don't immediately see the end result.

Prime knows all too well what the consequences will be. Earth will be Cyber-Formed, a process which will render the planet uninhabitable to organic life. As I mentioned, Optimus was never willing to sacrifice one planet for his. As such, here we see something we really haven't gotten a lot of in this series. One Pissed Off Prime. Space Sword in hand Optimus barrels through a few 'cons, laying down a proverbial Bitch Slap on both Knock Out and Starscream, but not before severing Megatron's Franken-Limb as he Shinobi's his way through the bad-guys. Then, with a well placed slice, Prime destroys what appears to be the last means of ever restoring Cybertron.

The 'bots, anguished at the sacrifice, return through the Space Bridge. It seems Megatron's plans have been stopped, however we quickly learn that's only half true. Cut to the Autobot HQ and one frazzled Ratchet, who's quickly brought up to speed. Another fantastic moment in this finale really is the Medic's emotional breakdown. For the first time this season we really see to the emotional core of a character, see the toll the conflict has taken on him. All the Autobots have endured much; as Ratchet proclaims, they have shed Energon (blood) and made painful sacrifices, all in the hopes of seeing their world restored, their people united in peace once more. Now, it seems as if all of that was worthless. It seems as if Team Prime could not be lower. But, the finale isn't done with it's emotional scars.

Cut to Agent Fowler, alerting the 'bots that the United States is at Def-Con 1 (for those who don't understand what that entails, it's the Highest Level of Military Alert the U.S. has. For 9-11, the United States went to Def-Con 2, just to give an example. DC-1 effectively means the President has his finger on "The Button," and, if needed, will use any and all means to combat a threat. Yes folks, that means Nukes. Why such a reaction? Well, remember that Genesis Beam? Cut to the 'bots heading to the top of the Silo (leaving the Teens behind -something which bothered me considering it was their world/country in Danger- ) and finding one massive hulking Metal Tower smack dab atop Jasper Nevada. That's right, the little down in the middle of no-where has become Fortress Decepticon.

Insult to injury? Que the arrival of The Nemesis, the ship heading straight for the Silo. Yes, after over a year in the show's Chronology, the Decepticons have located Autobot HQ and their geared for a final showdown. Starscream is back in his element (Remember, he was Cybertron's former Air-Commander), leading an entire Wing of 'con Aero-drones, complete with shiny new paint-jobs, on a full assault run at the HQ. Team Prime does what it can to defend the base, but it's clear to everyone this is not a fight they can win. Fowler, in a rather Ballsy display that had me liking the character all over again -even after the Bathroom joke- jumps in his 'copter to buy the Autobots time to figure out a plan. I will admit that one Helicopter vs. Starscream's drones is a bit of a stretch, but just go with it. As it stands the battle is balanced somewhat by the return of Wheeljack, back after his strange sabbatical, in his Gun-Ship.

Down in the Silo, things are, to say the least, bleak. There is no way to defend the base, and Prime knows it will only be a matter of time before Megatron makes his killing stroke. Knowing the responsibility of any leader, he puts the survival of his people first. Optimus orders Team Prime to Evac through the ground-bridge, instructing them to scatter. One 'bot with their Human, the rest to find other places to go to ground until they can find each other again. The reaction is somber and palpable. It seems as if it's all really over, the future uncertain. Bee and Raf go through, followed by Bulkhead and Miko.

We have a small moment here where Miko presses against the passenger window looking out at Jack, her expression indicating that there are things she wants to say, yet doesn't have the time to. Sullen, she presses her hand to the glass before Bulk rolls out. I'll admit, while poignant, the scene confirms my belief that the writers have every intention of making Jack and Miko a romantic couple, something they've played with since "Convoy" in Season 1, there-by shattering any hopes many fans have of seeing Arcee and Jack form their own romance.

Given the moment they shared earlier in the episode this was not something I wanted to see, especially given rumors that a leaked treatment of a Season 3 episode has Jack and Arcee exchanging a kiss of some kind. I took those rumors with a grain of salt and now it seems that was prudent of me. I'm disappointed in you, Steven Melching. I know for a *fact* folks who work on the show are well aware of what the fans want between Jack and Arcee (and are even in support of it), and it galls me that, due to Hasbro's concerns of "upsetting family values" or some such nonsense we're likely never to see that relationship. Instead it will be Jack shoe-horned into a romance with Miko.

So, we come to the climax. Team Prime has parted to the four winds. The last to go being Ratchet, the Autobot Medic looking completely defeated and without hope. This is made all the more painful by Optimus's choice to remain behind in-order to keep any Decepticons from accessing the ground bridge records to track where the Team Members have gone. Prime cuts the Main Hub just as The Nemesis pulls an "Independence Day" and blows the Silo to rubble. One has to point out that, by Destroying the base completely it made Optimus's "sacrifice" pointless as the Hub would have been decimated in the explosion, rendering it's hard drives and system memory useless. Regardless, it appears everyone who escaped will have a fresh start somewhere else. However that leaves the Decepticons who have, seemingly, won. Without Team Prime, Humanity is about to engage in an open War with Megatron to decide the fate of the planet. This is all capped off by an, of course, fantastic one-liner by Starscream and we're left with an ominous parting shot of Prime's mangled arm in the rubble of the Silo. And so ends one hell of a Season Finale.

So, to summarize, was it perfect? No, not really. As with the Premier I do feel they tried to put way to much into one episode. The reasonable choice would have been to make the Finale a Two part Affair, i.e. "Darkest Hour" Part's 1 and 2. Instead we go from one sacrifice to the next at breakneck speed, giving the audience little to no time to completely process everything which has happened. Intentional? Perhaps. But beating someone over the head with tragedy and defeat does not make for good story telling, especially if you don't have time to let it all sink in.

The events at the Silo happen over the course of a few minutes and there's no time for retrospection. Our Heroes lose and are made to run. While I can appreciate how this reflects how an event like this might transpire in real life, for television, and especially animated shows, things can't quite work like that. Doing so just makes it feel rushed. Twenty Three minutes was simply was not enough to convey the full weight of what occurs in Darkest Hour. None the less, it happened and we're left with a bucket full of questions.

Was Optimus killed? (Unlikely) What does the Decepticon Citadel mean for Humanity? What happens to June and Fowler? (no, I didn't miss that) Where will the other teams end up? And these are just a few. Biggest question? What is Transformers Prime: Beast Hunter? For those not aware, Hasbro licensed this name a few months ago and the rumor mill indicates it will be either the title of Season 3 or a mini-series which will bridge the gap between Season's 2 and 3. The new Season, or Mini-Series, will have something to do with the Teams seeking out a new Decepticon Beast, supposedly the result of experiments made by Shockwave, who is also slated to return. Nothing is set in stone. All we know is Season 3 is slated for 2013. Which is, of course, good news. We get another season, as well as the Transformers Universe MMO which, from what we know, ties into Prime and is based off of the Series as well as the War for and Fall of Cybertron games.

Now before I go I must give the Prime Team praise for just how *fantastic* this episode looked. We had, easily, the largest set piece in the entire series yet. The Citadel, the Assault, and the destruction of the Silo was done with outstanding visuals. Since the start the show has gotten better on a visual level, expanding to more unique settings. While the world of Prime still feels somewhat life-less at times, that is something which we know will be addressed in Season 3 as it was somewhat addressed in a few episodes this season. But, that said, "Darkest Hour" was not lacking in eye-candy. In that I was more then satisfied.

And, so, that wraps up my Season Finale review. I had a few inquiries as to what I thought and I'm sure this answers that question and then some. I look forward to writing another "rant" come 2013 after the Season 3 premier. Unless the Mayans were right, in which case it's been fun folks! Transform and Roll Out!