Transformers Prime Season 3: Beast Hunters – Episode 1 “Darkmount, NV”

This is the dawning of a new age, my liege, the Age of Megatron! — Starscream

Transformers Prime is back on the air after what felt like a long between-season break with Beast Hunters — the third and final season of the popular show. “Darkmount, NV,” the first episode of the season, aired on the Hub last Friday and it kicked off with a bang. It’s great to have new episodes of this series rolling out again and I can’t wait to see where the creators take us. Based on what we’ve seen of the toys, which have been hitting the market en masse, there’s a lot in store for this season.

In this episode, the Autobots are in bad shape. The Decepticons have discovered the location of the Autobot base and have decimated it. As a result, and for their own safety, the Autobots and their human companions have scattered to the four winds, not one knowing where the others are. Bumblebee, Bulkhead, and Arcee are each effectively on their own, while the Decepticons have never looked stronger and more organized. Megatron is on a mission to round up whatever Autobot survivors he can, but becomes frustrated when he finds nothing, not even a trace, in the Autobots’ former base. Wheeljack, the former Wrecker, is eventually captured and is interrogated by Starscream, but he holds up admirably well — thanks to his time in the Wreckers, no doubt – against Starscream’s methods of “persuasion.” Megatron and his Decepticons continue to hunt for the others and are able to locate Jack and Arcee, thanks to a momentary lapse in judgement on Jack’s part, and the ‘Cons make an attempt to capture them as well.

Optimus Prime is in rough shape, to say the least. He’s barely operational and is being cared for by Smokescreen. We can’t help but feel like this is the end for Prime, especially when he mentions passing the Matrix on to a successor who may or may not be Smokescreen — at this point we don’t really know if Smokescreen will actually be the next Prime, but that is certainly being alluded to. I’d hate to think it really is that obvious, so hopefully it isn’t as simple as that. I also don’t like the idea of Smokescreen effectively being this show’s “Hot Rod,” but that’s what it’s feeling like.

The episode ends with the introduction of Shockwave as he enters the Decepticon headquarters via a space bridge. We don’t know Shockwave’s story yet, but Starscream’s frightened reaction to his appearance was very telling. I bet there’s a juicy history there that we’ll hopefully learn about very soon.

The Decepticons are looking powerful as can be in this episode, particularly with their having established Darkmount, their giant fortress of evil in the desert. It seems like nothing can possibly equal their power right now, especially not Optimus Prime who is effectively out of commission. So it’s a bit ironic that with all this power behind them, all they have to worry about are a few derelict Autobots who couldn’t possibly pose any real threat to them as they currently are. It seems as though we’re being set up for a “David and Goliath” type of conflict, but we’ll see how it unfolds. This is just the beginning, so we haven’t seen anything yet, I’m sure.

 Discuss on the Fwoosh forums!

Print Friendly

About canonball

Canonball enjoys complaining about Portland, drinking fake egg nog, checking books out from the library and not reading them, and taking part in various types of online nerdery like contributing to The Fwoosh and The Short Box.