"It's just that... even if we are Transformers, we don't feel like part of their story. Or fight."
"Yeah. We can be warriors later. Right now, I wanna learn about this place!"
— Twitch and Thrash
On an Earth that has long left the Transformers War behind, Robby Malto and his younger sister Mo happen upon a mysterious cave. When they touch the strange artifact within it, they witness the creation of the Terrans - a completely new type of Transformer, native to Earth. Meanwhile, their mother Dot is recruited by Optimus Prime, Elita-1 and a reformed Megatron in their mission to track down rogue Decepticons.
Tropes
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In General
- Appropriated Appellation: Mandroid coins the term "Cybertronis Terran" for the newly made Twitch and Thrash, after finding out they were created from Earth-materials. The main cast later adopts the name "Terrans" for this all-new species of Transformers.
- As You Know: The series takes place years after the conflict between the Autobots and the Decepticons (which on Earth is known as the 'Transformers War') ended. Dot Malto herself was a soldier fighting on the Autobots' side and sometime during it befriended (and is implied to have sparked the Heel–Face Turn of) Megatron.
- Clingy Macguffin: Mo and Robby's cybersleeves are permanently grafted onto their arms and cannot be removed by any means. The two of them don't mind much, as the sleeves are what's enabling their Psychic Link with Twitch and Thrash.
- How Do I Shot Web?: Due to being literally born only a day ago, the Terrans don't have a full grasp on their powers yet and at first can't even transform, since they don't have altmodes.
- Spiders Are Scary: The arachnamechs elicit reactions of fear and revulsion from everybody who isn't Mandroid. Upon seeing one in Mandroid's lair, Twitch immediately aims her arm cannon at it.
- Strapped to an Operating Table: Happens to several Transformers who end up in Meridian's grasp.
- Hardtop is tied down and has his arm removed.
- Twitch and Thrash are tied to operating chairs so Mandroid can dissect them to learn more about their origins.
Part 1
- An Arm and a Leg: Hardtop's arm gets amputated by Mandroid's arachnamechs.
- Armor-Piercing Question: When Robby claims there's nothing holding him in Witwicky, Mo asks him if he wouldn't even stay for her. Robby can't find it in himself to answer and instead starts to yell out of frustration.
- Blood Knight: Elita-1 admits that she was hoping Swindle and Hardtop wouldn't surrender willingly, since it makes bringing them in more "fun".
- Born as an Adult: Zig-zagged. Since they're robots, Twitch and Thrash come into the world already fully grown, able to speak and understand language and with full bodily functions. That said, they for the most part have the mentality of very young children, acting scared of Robby and Mo at first and being excited and awed by just about everything.
- Contrived Coincidence: Robby just so happened to run away on the same night that Hardtop was arrested. Him and Mo also conveniently take the exact street out of Witwicky that the G.H.O.S.T. prisoners' transport and Mandroid's arachnamechs clash on. After diving off-road to avoid getting caught in-between, they just so happen to fall in close proximity to the cave that contains the Emberstone.
- Curb-Stomp Battle: Elita wipes the floor with Hardtop and Swindle once she catches up to them.
- Everyone Has Standards: Hardtop remarks there's an Autobot-code against torture while being dismembered by Dr. Meridian.
- Mythology Gag: The animation accompanying Alex' retelling of the Transformers War is done in the G1-style.
- Siblings in Crime: Swindle and Hardtop are petty thieves, whose very first scene has them trying to empty an Autobot energon-cache. Too bad the anonymous tip they received was actually a trap.
- Starting a New Life: The Malto family moved from Philly to Witwicky for this purpose. Dot wanted to retire for good from her days as a soldier and follow her passion for nature. Unfortunately, G.H.O.S.T. had other plans.
- Stylistic Suck: The 80s styled animation for Alex’s flashback goes as far as recreating the many off-model and Limited Animation instances inherent to the original cartoon.
- Vocal Dissonance: The ‘bots in the flashbacks re voiced by Alex and Robby, resulting in this to an extent.
- War Is Glorious: The way Alex tells it, the Transformers War was an exciting spectacle with no casualties.
- Wham Shot: At the end of the episode, an incoming tiltrotor interrupts Dot's and Optimus' talk. The tiltrotor transforms and reveals itself to be Megatron.
Part 2
- Bait-and-Switch: Continuing off the Wham Shot from the previous episode, Megatron approaches and picks up Dot while giving a menacing scowl. Then Dot warmly teases him about his dramatic entrance, he starts to laugh, puts her down and the two exchange a Catchphrase, revealing that this Megatron is a good guy and friends with Dot.
- Badass Transplant: Mandroid has the arm he stole from Hardtop grafted onto his body.
- Don't Split Us Up: Mo and Robby aren't all that happy when Dot and Optimus insist on letting Twitch and Thrash get picked up by G.H.O.S.T.. Neither are Twitch and Thrash.
- Five-Second Foreshadowing: Optimus releases a few cybertronian surveillance drones for recon. One of said drones ends up being found by Twitch, who accidentally scans it and makes it her altmode.
- Embarrassing Nickname: Thrash dubs Dr. Meridian "Mandroid", a combination of "man" and "android". Meridian does not like it.Dr.Meridian/"Mandroid": 'Mandroid' is a gross oversimplification of-! [takes deep breath] ...Tell me more about this 'creepy cave'.
- Interspecies Adoption: At the end of the episode, Dot admits she was hasty in trying to just hand the Terrans over to G.H.O.S.T. and officially adopts them into the Malto family.
- Not My Driver: The G.H.O.S.T. truck picking up Twitch and Thrash turns out to be a fake, driven by Mandroid.
- Shackle Seat Trap: The chairs Mandroid bids Thrash and Twitch to sit on turn out to be this, immediately tying the young Terrans down once they follow Mandroid's invitation.
