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I'M A WHAT!?
"Legacy"
Season	2
No. in season	20
Production company	Hasbro Studios
Airdate	September 21, 2012
Written by	Marsha Griffin
Directed by	Shaunt Nigoghossian
Animation studio	Polygon Pictures
Watch this episode on YouTube

Jack is assigned to help Smokescreen adapt to life on Earth while Megatron tries to secure the Star Saber without letting the Autobots know of its existence.

Synopsis

No pictures, NO PICTURES!!!

Smokescreen and Bumblebee race down a Nevada road in search of an energon signal. Though Bumblebee tries to encourage Smokescreen to slow down, the rookie breaks the speed limit and almost runs into another vehicle. The driver jumps out to threaten Smokescreen, who promptly transforms and threatens him back. Bumblebee transforms to stop Smokescreen and the truck driver takes the opportunity to snap a picture of the pair. Back at base, Jack locates the picture on the Internet and says Raf can deal with it later. The other Autobots lecture Smokescreen about the concept of secrecy and Optimus Prime says they need to help Smokescreen acclimate to Earth through learning about human society. Jack is duly assigned to help Smokescreen and the pair head out, though Arcee complains that she thinks Jack will be at risk because Smokescreen has the most obvious alternate mode ever.

Driving through Jasper, Jack tries to educate Smokescreen on traffic lights, though Smokescreen is unable to stop joking around. When Vince hauls up beside them, Jack attempts to be inconspicuous, but Vince notices anyway and throws a burger at them. Smokescreen soon talks Jack into some retribution, and when they arrive back at base laughing, Jack has a photo of Vince's burger-covered car. Arcee isn't impressed with their progress so far.

Though many tried for the sword with all their strength, none could move the sword, nor stir it.

On the Nemesis, Soundwave has finished decoding another set of coordinates from the Iacon database. Megatron gets a decoy ready. Thus when Optimus is also almost finished decoding the same coordinates, the base sensors pick up an Iacon locator beacon in China. Optimus takes Arcee, Bumblebee and Bulkhead to investigate. Meanwhile, Megatron has Insecticons and Vehicons busy excavating the real relic. Hoping it is of Decepticon origin, Megatron is shocked to see it is the Star Saber. Desperate to keep it from Optimus, Megatron tries to pull it free, but his efforts are to no avail and it remains firmly entrenched in the rock. Even trying to destroy the rock fails, as the sword's energy is rendering it invulnerable. Realizing that it will only respond to a Prime, Megatron intends to uproot the entire mountain if necessary.

Ratchet picks up the signal from the Saber, but is unable to contact Prime. Prime's team is trying to track the first signal, unaware that it's the decoy being carried around by Soundwave. Smokescreen and Jack arrive back at base having pulled a prank on Jack's boss. When Ratchet reports the situation, Smokescreen volunteers to check out the second signal, and takes Jack along with him in secret. They find the Decepticons trying break the mountain down to a smaller size, and Smokescreen recognizes the Star Saber. Despite Jack's concerns, knowing that something is up if Megatron hasn't pulled the sword out, Smokescreen charges in as the Decepticons are preparing to lift the remaining rock with the Nemesis. The Autobot proves as successful in extracting the sword as Megatron was, and is promptly captured by the Decepticons. While Jack tries to notify Ratchet, he is soon found and pursued by Insecticons. Ratchet gets enough from Jack's message to know what they've found and they're in serious trouble, and GroundBridges to Optimus's location just as the team there are realizing they were being led on a wild goose chase.

It's an elegant weapon for a more civilized age.

As the Nemesis starts lifting the massive rock holding the Star Saber, Megatron begins interrogating Smokescreen with little effect. Prime's team suddenly arrives and starts laying into the Decepticons troops. Megatron looks around for Optimus himself, and spots the Autobot leader rapidly scaling the mountain in pursuit of the Star Saber, so he and some jet Vehicons take off to try to intercept. The other Autobots finish off the rest of the Decepticon troopers and Arcee rescues Jack from the Insecticons. Despite the best efforts of Megatron and his troops, Optimus manages to grab hold of the Star Saber which activates and pulls free of the rock. Megatron orders the rock dropped on him, but even as the other Autobots shout warnings, Prime merely uses the Star Saber to slice the whole thing in half. In shock, Megatron helplessly looks on as Prime follows up by taking a swing, unleashing a wave of energy at the Nemesis, destroying part of its engine array and nearly causing the ship to crash into the mountainside. The Decepticons hastily retreat as their leader laments over his failure and believes it is now their darkest hour.

The Autobots return to base, where Arcee is very unhappy with Smokescreen and Jack. She has Ratchet send the latter home and Optimus makes plain to the former that endangering humans is forbidden. As he reminds them of the importance of protecting humans, the sword begins to glow on its own, and Optimus goes into a trance-like state. Stating that he's receiving a message, Prime identifies the caller: Alpha Trion.

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Quotes

"...I just pulled a Miko."

—Jack

"All this leg-work is giving me itchy fists!"

—Bulkhead is back on form.

"We Decepticons... now face our darkest hour."

—Megatron

"We must never lose sight of the fact that upon this earth we are titans, and such power must be used wisely."

—Optimus Prime

Notes

Continuity notes

• Yet another picture of the Autobots ends up on the internet, and again Bumblebee is in it, as in "One Shall Fall" and "New Recruit".
• Arcee mentions that Agent Fowler is in the process of relocating Raf and his family since the Decepticons learned where he lives in the previous episode.
• Bulkhead has now fully recovered from the injuries he received in "Toxicity".
• Jack asks Arcee if she still remembers Vince since her first encounter in "Speed Metal".
• Ratchet is reluctant to send Smokescreen by himself to investigate the second relic, but concedes since he has no other choice. Although Wheeljack is still on-world, Ratchet previously expressed that the stunt Wheeljack pulled with Miko in "Hurt" made him untrustworthy.
• Another relic of Solus Prime is uncovered; the first was the Forge of Solus Prime found in "Operation Bumblebee, Part 2", and the second was the Apex Armor found in "Triangulation".
• Bulkhead returns the favor to Smokescreen from the previous episode.
• Optimus receives a message from Alpha Trion, who was first mentioned by Smokescreen in "New Recruit".
• This is the first time we hear Megatron refer to Optimus as just "Prime" when he flies off to intercept him.

Transformers references

• Jack mentions "robots in disguise".
• This episode marks yet another use of the phrase "darkest hour", only this time it's the Decepticons who get to use it.
• The first "Star Saber" sword was the combined form of the Air Defense Mini-Con Team in Transformers: Armada, while the Thirteen-affiliated iteration was first mentioned in "The Coming Storm: Part 1". Technically, the name originated from Star Saber, the Autobot Supreme Commander from Transformers: Victory.
• The Star Saber had previously been mentioned in the Aligned continuity family by way of the novel Transformers: Exiles. There, Optimus Prime traveled to a wide variety of Transformer-inhabited worlds searching for what he believed would lead him to the Star Saber.

Real-world references

• The Star Saber's location and its inability to be removed except by a Prime is a reference to Excalibur.
• The truck driver referred to Smokescreen's alternate mode as from the Indy 500, a motor racing competition. Even though Smokescreen's altmode is nothing like an open-wheel Indy car.
• Smokescreen broadly references the American Humane Association's familiar disclaimer "No animals were harmed in the making of this Motion Picture".

Errors

• When Optimus is explaining why it was all their fault the incident had occurred in the beginning of this episode, you can see the side parts of his back pass through his arms on both sides.
• Smokescreen has the same license plate as Agent Fowler and June.
• As the Autobots prepare to enter the Groundbridge, Optimus' battle mask slowly and silently deploys as he orders his team to roll out.
• During the excavation of the Star Saber, one of the Insecticons transporting rocks suddenly loses a leg.
• Megatron notes that the Star Saber is making the rock it is embedded in "impermeable", he probably means "impenetrable" or "invulnerable".
• Arcee's right arm silently changes into a blaster as the Decepticons begin firing at the Autobots at the pod site.
• When Smokescreen is brought to Megatron, as he asks "Who wants to know?", a red part of Smokescreen's mandible clips through the gray part.

Trivia

• Bumblebee warns Smokescreen about the speed limit, but apparently didn't think it was important to warn him that he's driving into oncoming traffic.
• Vince's behavior hasn't changed since the events of "Speed Metal". Some people just don't learn their lessons.
• The fact that Team Prime seems reliant on Raf for their data manipulation is a bit weird, given Fowler's presumed government contacts. Makes you wonder what they did before the kids turned up.
• Optimus, looking up at Megatron watching from the Nemesis, gives him a wink.

Foreign localization

French

• Title: "Héritage" ("Legacy")
• Original airdate: ?

German

• Title: "Megatrons dunkelste Stunde" ("Megatron's darkest Hour")
• Original airdate: 19 February 2013

Japanese

• Title: "Senkō Henkei! Tokihanate! Densetsu no Ken" (閃光変形!とき放て!伝説の剣, "Flash Transformation! Unleashed! The Legendary Sword")
• Original airdate: 16 February 2013
• The Star Saber is renamed the Matrix Saber, and this episode's Arms Micron Theater and Cybertron Satellite segments explain this new weapon is in fact the same as the one included with the Arms Master Optimus toy. This doesn't make a whole lot of sense seeing as how the toy Matrix Saber is a combination of the Matrix, which has always been within Optimus, and R.A., who was brought to life on Earth in recent times.

Brazilian Portuguese

• Title: "O Legado" ("The Legacy")
• Original airdate: 28 June 2013

Italian

• Title: "Eredità" ("Inheritance"), "L'Eredità" (2017 airing, "The Inheritance")
• Original airdate: 12 February 2013

Home video releases

DVD

2012 — Transformers Prime — Season Two (Shout! Factory)
2013 — Transformers Prime — Vol. 23 (Avex Trax) — Japanese audio only.
2013 — Transformers Prime — Folge 11: Die Omega-Schlüssel (EDEL:kids) — English and German audio.
2014 — Transformers Prime — Ultimate Autobots (Shout! Factory)
2014 — Transformers Prime — Volume 4: Unclear Objectives (Madman Entertainment)
2014 — Transformers Prime — Season Two Collection (Madman Entertainment)
2014 — Transformers Prime — Season 2 Vol. 3: Toxicity (Primal Screen)
2014 — Transformers Prime — Saison 2 Vol. 3: La course aux reliques (Primal Screen)
2015 — Transformers Prime — Stagione 2 Vol. 3: Il Tox-En (Primal Screen) — English, Italian, Swedish, Finnish, Danish and Norwegian audio.
2015 — Transformers Prime — Intégrale Saison 2 (Primal Screen)
2015 — Transformers Prime — The Complete Season 2 (Primal Screen)
2015 — Transformers Prime — La Seconda Stagione Completa (Primal Screen) — English, Italian, Swedish, Finnish, Danish and Norwegian audio.

Blu-ray

2012 — Transformers Prime — Season Two (Shout! Factory)
2015 — Transformers Prime — Season Two Collection (Madman Entertainment)