Investigating a mysterious race car, Bumblebee gets involved with an illegal underground street racing circuit, which also captures the attention of the Decepticons.
Tropes:
- Aborted Arc: Having a tool that can control a Cybertronian could be a powerful weapon in the hands of Autobots or Decepticons. Yet the AllSpark remote is never seen again.
- An Aesop: Bending the rules might make things easier in the short term, but actions always have consequences:Sari: See? This makes bending the rules really easy!(Bumblebee goes over a bump and Sari drops the remote controlling Blitzwing)Fanzone: Well, that's the trouble with bending the rules. They usually snap right back in your face.
- Anti-Role Model: Bulkhead is concerned that Sari is learning bad habits from Bumblebee and that they should set a good example for her. In the end, Bumblebee realizes he's right.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Bulkhead is his usual goofy, lovable self for the first few minutes of the episode, but does a complete 180 once he learns that Sari and 'Bee have been lying to him about the legitimacy of Master Disaster's races. For the rest of the episode he's dead serious whenever he's talking to them, and makes it clear that he's very upset.
- Big Brother Instinct: Bumblebee learns in this episode that he has to set a good role model for Sari (especially now that the Autobots are her primary caretakers), and is willing to leave street racing behind forever if it means she's safer for it. Bulkhead is this for both of them, going to the race to make sure they're safe, and calling them out for their irresponsibility when he learns that what they're doing is wrong.
- Call-Back: Bumblebee uses turbo boosters again. This time, he has far better control over them and remembers to focus more on the mission than his pride.
- Chronically Crashed Car: Once again, Fanzone's car explodes.
- Disappointed in You: Bulkhead to Sari and Bumblebee when he learns that not only did they continue to watch/involve themselves in street racing after he told them not to, but that they lied to him about it.
- Double Aesop: Bumblebee learns that he should set a good example for Sari. Meanwhile, Sari learns not to pirate illegal broadcasts.
- Dudley Do-Right Stops to Help: While out looking for an AllSpark fragment signal, the Autobots see the Street Demons. They are nearby when the blue car (controlled by Master Disaster) knocks two racers off of the road, injuring one of them. Bumblebee goes after the blue car while Prime, Prowl, Ratchet, and Bulkhead get the racers out of danger.
- Evil Is Easy: Downplayed and played with. Sari isn't doing something evil so much as she's doing something illegal. She's taken to pirating illegal TV broadcasts in order to make her new life more pleasant.
- Foreshadowing: The blue racer never shows their face, possesses driving skills and speed that surpass even the best human drivers, and has the bravery to help Bumblebee when he is staring down a Decepticon. A Bridge Too Close reveals that they are no ordinary racer...
- Harmless Freezing: Before Bulkhead can help Bee and Sari, he's frozen in ice by Blitzwing. He's a Cybertronian, though, so this doesn't hurt him.
- Heel Realization: Bumblebee realizes that his recklessness and disregard for rules are a bad influence on Sari, and starts trying to set a better example.
- I Have This Friend: When Bulkhead pulls an injured racer out of his car, the Autobot asks for an autograph, and quickly adds that it's "for [his] human friend, Sari." He doesn't get said autograph because the racer has a head injury and needs to go to the hospital.
- Lampshade Hanging: As he's subjected to People Puppets, Blitzwing asks why he can't control himself and then acknowledges he never really could to start with, anyway.
- Literal-Minded: Happens with the Autobots a few times in this episode, the first time being when Fanzone had to explain that "underground racing" means "illegal racing", and not racing that takes place underground. Later, when Sari says that tracking the illegal broadcasts will be a piece of cake, Bumblebee asks why the broadcasts would be coming from a piece of cake.
- Little Miss Snarker: After Fanzone's car explodes.Fanzone: [to Bumblebee] How come your interior's so much cleaner than mine?
Sari: Hmm, maybe 'cause it's not on fire? - Oblivious to Their Own Description: After Blitzwing flies off, Bumblebee berates Sari for getting involved when he explicitly told her to stay out of the way.Bumbleebee: [to Sari] Where do you get the idea that you can do whatever you want?
Bulkhead: I can't imagine. - People Puppets: The AllSpark fragment inside Master Disaster's remote has the ability to control vehicles, including Cybertronians. Master Disaster uses his remote to control Blurr. Sari later gets her hands on it and briefly uses it to control Blitzwing.
- Police Are Useless: Averted here. Fanzone is fairly competent at quickly arresting the captured street racers, interrogating one of them to figure out where Master Disaster was, and arrived at the right place at the right time without asking help from the Autobots. He only needed help when Blitzwing showed up and almost killed him by blowing up his car. At the end, he arrests Master Disaster and successfully puts him away (as we never see him again).
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: When the blue racer jumps off a highway to collide with Blitzwing, Blitzwing initially tries to stay put, but chickens out and careens off into the direction of a building.
- Shout-Out: When Blitzwing is about to collide with the blue race car, he quotes the famous lines from Galaxy Quest.Hothead Blitzwing: Never give up!
Icy Blitzwing: Never surrender!
Random Blitzwing: Never mind! [flies up and crashes into a building] - Stealth Insult: After Sari convinces/blackmails Bumblebee into taking her to the race.Sari: What? You don't trust me?Bumblebee: Yeah, like I trust myself.
- Villain of the Week: Master Disaster exists to set up the episode's conflict, being the guy in charge of the illegal street racing broadcast. He is arrested by Fanzone and never shows up again after this episode. Blitzwing is the one who actually poses a threat.
- What the Hell, Hero?: Bulkhead doesn't take it well when he learns that street-racing is illegal, and Bumblebee and Sari withheld information that this was wrong.
