Act I
An Enforcer commando (Rob Paulsen) on guard duty at the Megakat City Defense Center thinks he sees something, but because he's a rookie, his concerns are dismissed by his sergeant (Charlie Adler), who assures him no one can break into the facility with them on guard duty. But it turns out that who the rookie saw as techno-criminal Hard Drive (Rob Paulsen), who uses a special "Surge Coat" that gives him electrical power, including the ability to transform himself into a living electrical current. He travels in through the wires and by the time the overconfident sergeant realizes what is happening, Hard Drive has already copied and deleted all of the Enforcers' top secret files and escaped.
Meanwhile, the SWAT Kats are out flying around, testing some upgrades to the Turbokat's engines when they intercept the humiliated Enforcer sergeant's apologetic call to Commander Feral. Using a "surge detector," they locate Hard Drive traveling through some powerlines and trap him using a Wire Clipper Missile to snip the lines, giving Hard Drive nowhere to go but into the missile which is insulated to prevent him from escaping. They then turn him over to Feral. Although he is angry because they've cut the power to the city again, he agrees not to pursue the matter because they "helped" capture the fugitive.
At Enforcer Headquarters, however, Creeplings break Hard Drive out of the holding cells and bring him to Dark Kat's lair in the sewer. Dark Kat, very much alive despite last seen being inside his crashing Fear Ship, frees Hard Drive from the Wire Clipper Missile and says he wants his help to steal the Turbokat. He believes that it is the secret to the SWAT Kats' success, and that without it, they're "just two jerks in flight suits." Hard Drive agrees to help him.
The next day, as Chance and Jake are preparing to tow a little old lady (Candi Milo) whose car broke down, they get a call from Callie saying Hard Drive is on the loose again and causing mayhem. Driving off in such a hurry that they abandon the very angry old lady on the side of the road, they suit up, hop in the Turbokat, and use the surge detector to track Hard Drive to the Megakat Litter Inc. warehouse, where they're promptly captured by the Creeplings.
Act II
Dark Kat puts the SWAT Kats on a conveyor belt which will carry them through the litter factory's crushing machine. Hard Drive thinks this is unwise, but Dark Kat tells him not to worry, as he's rigged the crusher to explode if anyone tries to switch it off. They depart, leaving two Creeplings to guard the vigilantes. Getting in the Turbokat, Hard Drive uses an electronic voice modification device built using the stolen defense secrets to pose as T-Bone, randomly destroying buildings and shooting the Enforcers down when they attempt to intervene. In T-Bone's voice, he contacts Commander Feral over the radio to demand all the money in the city treasury.
Callie, riding in the Kat's Eye News chopper, wants to get closer to the Turbokat to see if it really is T-Bone who's speaking, but Al (Tony Pope, replacing Frank Welker from last time) refuses "after what those SWAT Kats did to the Enforcers." In the end, she reluctantly admits that it probably is the SWAT Kats having turned bad.
Mayor Manx agrees to "T-Bone's" demands, giving "every penny" of the city's money to who thinks are the SWAT Kats having gone rogue. Feral's attempt to track the Turbokat by putting a homing device in the money bags is foiled when Hard Drive finds it and throws it out. Back at Megakat Litter Inc., T-Bone and Razor manage to trick their Creepling guards and get free. One of the Creeplings tries to kill them by triggering the booby-trapped crushing machine, but they escape the exploding building. The explosion brings the Enforcers running, and, still believing they're the ones who blew up all the buildings, shot down his helicopters and stole the city's money, Feral prepares to arrest and unmask them.
Act III
Before Feral can unmask them, Callie talks T-Bone into taking her hostage, as she believes they're innocent (or is at least giving them "the benefit of the doubt"). Pretending to threaten her if the Enforcers don't back off, T-Bone and Razor get Callie into her car and speed off. The Enforcers pursue, but T-Bone outperforms them; they either crash, or, in Feral's case, get stuck attempting to follow them through a narrow alley - Feral's cruiser gets wedged between the walls.
After clearing things up with Callie about who used their jet to attack the city, Razor uses a handheld device to track down the Turbokat, which is hidden in an abandoned warehouse. Underneath it is the entrance to Dark Kat's sewer lair. Dark Kat and Hard Drive gloat over their success, only for the SWAT Kats to crash through the ceiling. They defeat the Creeplings, and then T-Bone fights Hard Drive, who tries to escape by transforming into an electrical current and going into a computer. However, Razor shoots the computer with a bazooka, blowing it to bits, when the smoke clears, Hard Drive is there, returned to normal, the explosion having ruined the Surge Coat, rendering him powerless. As T-Bone moves to apprehend him, Dark Kat surprises Razor from behind and takes the bazooka. He shoots at the SWAT Kats but misses, hitting Hard Drive instead, who somehow survives. Callie grabs one of the stolen money bags and throws it at Dark Kat. Struck, he fires upward, causing part of the ceiling to collapse down onto him. The SWAT Kats then punch him and knock him out.
They return the money to City Hall, as well as a tied up Dark Kat and Hard Drive. Callie chides Feral for having misjudged the SWAT Kats again, and Feral admits that while he was wrong, he'd still like to see them without their masks. Wagging a finger at him, T-Bone reminds him that "curiosity killed the kat," and then he and Razor fly away.
Later that night, Chance and Jake return to where they left the old lady, who is still waiting by the side of the road, and bring her a pizza as an apology. Driving home, Chance earns Jake's ire by taking a bumpy shortcut he'd used earlier.
Tropes:
- Big "NO!": Happens just before Callie hits Dark Kat with the moneybag.Dark Kat: End of the line, SWAT Kats!
Callie: No!
(Wham!) - Bond Villain Stupidity: Dark Kat puts the SWAT Kats on a Conveyor Belt o' Doom that would send them to be crushed into kitty litter. He expects them to escape while he and Hard Drive frame them for chaos across Megakat City with the Turbokat. A good yet complex plan, but Hard Drive prefers to just fry them.
- Chekhov's Gun:
- The military files Hard Drive steals include plans for a voice modulator which, along with the Turbokat, proves useful in making people believe the SWAT Kats have turned bad.
- The moneybags Hard Drive and Dark Kat steal prove to be their undoing, allowing Callie to toss one and distract Dark Kat long enough for the SWAT Kats to take him down.
- Does This Remind You of Anything?: During the opening scene where Hard Drive is draining information from a computer terminal, he makes a face that makes it seem like he's enjoying the process a little too much.
- Dramatic Unmask: Feral attempts this when catching the SWAT Kats after Hard Drive frames them, but Callie intervenes by faking her own hostage situation, allowing them all to escape.
- Frame-Up: After capturing the SWAT Kats, Dark Kat has Hard Drive pilot their Turbokat and wreak havoc across Megakat City, all to ruin their reputation. It ultimately works, with Feral attempting to arrest them, but Callie has the "benefit of the doubt" on her side, helping them escape and clear their names.
- Improvised Weapon: The moneybag that Callie uses to hit Dark Kat at a crucial time.
- Logical Weakness: The SWAT Kats may kick as much tail on the ground, but they are still pilots, given their background as former Enforcers. As such, they are more effective in the air with the Turbokat. When Hard Drive points this out, Dark Kat has him steal it to ground them and for his next phase.
- Tailor-Made Prison: Razor stores Hard Drive in one of his specially-made missiles after chasing him all over town, since he can escape easier with his powers in a normal prison. The Kats tell Feral to keep him in there because of that.Razor: Keep him in that insulated missile, Commander.
T-Bone: Yeah, this guy gets a real charge outta zippin’ through wires.
Feral: What do you think I am? Stupid!?
T-Bone and Razor: Bingo. - Villain Has a Point: Dark Kat's Frame-Up on the SWAT Kats is a good plan, but falls through when Callie helps them escape and go after him. Hard Drive wanting to kill them at their most vulnerable is considered a quicker, more effective one, and laments later that he should have went through with it before he is beaten again.
- Villain Team-Up: Dark Kat has his Creeplings break Hard Drive out to help him take down the SWAT Kats.
- Wait Here: The SWAT Kats tell Callie to stay in the car while they confront Dark Kat and Hard Drive. She is upset about this and soon joins them, playing a part in the criminals' arrest.
