A city is rocked by a series of explosions. At a dock, some workers decide to flee from the cargo they were moving, and as they do, a guy called Dutch sends his men into to start searching.

The Autobots come to the city and Springer saves a few people from a burning building. Back at the dock, one of the thugs finds what they were after: a canister of neutronium.

Dutch tells everyone to get out of here, but then sees a couple of Autobots heading towards them and hides. Rodimus Prime and Ultra Magnus run towards the other thugs, who shoot at them with handguns. Rodimus says they're armed and dangerous.

The thugs ask what the Autobots want, and Rodimus tells one of them to hand over the canister. As Rodimus examines it, Dutch shoots the canister, causing it to explode in Rodimus Prime's face.

This sends him crashing into Ultra Magnus, and the two of them fall into the sea. Dutch lands in a small vehicle nearby and the other thugs pile into it. One of them thanks Dutch as he thought they were goners, but Dutch tells him he still might be once he tells Mr. Drath about this.

Rodimus wonders when is he going to learn to be more careful? Magnus tells him hopefully at the next opportunity. Later on, they watch Chief Turan being interviewed. The reporter asks if the bombings were engineered as a distraction, to cover up the attempted theft of the neutronium. Turan says he has no comment at this time, as they're just beginning their investigation. He does thank the Autobots for their assistance, as without their help the loss of life might have been catastrophic. The report is being watched by Drath and his underlings.

Drath says his client won't be pleased about the loss of the neutronium. Dutch tries to explain about the Autobots, but Drath says they'll deal with them the way they'd deal with any other impediment to business. He's going to ice the robots! Later on, he and Dutch go and see an informant.

The informant tells them that Snake is pacing up and down at the next block. Drath tells Dutch to pay the man, which he does by punching him in the face. Drath finds Snake, and tells him he has another project for him.

Snake hopes it's for something worthy of his services, and not another one of his vendettas. Drath says Snake once spoke of a technology his organization once used, known as synthoids. He believes it could transfer minds from their original living forms to synthetic bodies. Snake says it could, easily. Drath asks if this technology still exists, and if it does, is it for sale? Snake tells him that this is the world -everything is for sale. Later on, Snake's men arrive at Drath's mansion with the technology.

As everything gets set up, Drath says it's only missing one thing: victims!

Weeks later, Turan contacts the Autobots. He's had an anonymous tip, and Rodimus doesn't want to ignore it. Turn warns it may be a trap, but Springer says no matter how tough this Victor Drath is, he's still only human. The Autobots head to Drath's mansion, and as they get there the gates automatically open for them. They head inside the mansion itself.

Rodimus sets off an alarm, causing laser beams to cut through the room. He leads the Autobots into another room, where they enter a large chamber.

The chamber shuts and the Autobots are restrained, before the synthoid process begins. Drath appears and says he takes it they received his invitation. He introduces them to Michelle, who is here to watch them die. He doesn't want to keep her waiting.

Snake tells the Autobots to bid farewell to those big, strong bodies, as they're all going down the tubes.

Drath tells his men to get rid of the synthoids, and then says to have the Autobot bodies melted down for scrap. But Snake says his lack of imagination appalls him, as how could he think of getting rid of four of the most powerful weapons on the face of the Earth!

Drath tells his men to make absolutely certain the material is destroyed. They take it to a dump and have it crushed.

But just before this happens, four synthoids jump out. One of them says they should get out of the open, and another one charges down a door.

They find some clothes and, to their surprise, find out that they're Rodimus, Ultra Magnus, Springer and Arcee -they've become synthoids!

As they try to get their heads around this concept, Rodimus says at least they know who's responsible. They wonder why Drath did this to them, but then hear noises outside. Magnus says this wasn't the plan -they weren't meant to survive. Outside, Drath's men are searching for them.

Magnus suggests splitting up -he and Arcee will try and contact Autobot City. Rodimus wants to find out how Drath pulled this off, and Springer wants to know if it's reversible. The two of them sneak onto one of Drath's vehicles, which heads back to the mansion.

At the mansion, one of the thugs explains to Drath that his trash got up and took a hike before he could squash it. Drath tells him to go the house, and activate all the security systems. He also has some men search the estate just in case, and asks Snake about the robots. Snake says to come and see what he's done himself. Meanwhile Rodimus and Springer jump off and see the place they were at last night, but then they get seen by some of Drath's men. Rodimus tells Springer to try and hook up with Ultra Magnus and Arcee, whilst he'll try to lead Drath's men back to the house.

Elsewhere, Snake shows Drath that he's had the Autobot's bodies converted into piloted mecha. Snake says whilst they may lack in grace, they make up for it in power. Meanwhile, Rodimus is still on the run when he gets hit on the shoulder.

He tumbles down a cliff and sees the house ahead, but then also sees Michelle. She says they don't often get prowlers around here, let alone good-looking ones. She has him hide inside the house, and when Drath's men ask her if she's seen a guy come this way, she shakes her head.

She goes back inside and Rodimus says his circuits are shorted... he needs the Matrix! Springer is looking for the others, when some guy comes up and tells him he can give him the path to true humanity for only $4.95 tax deductible. Springer pushes him aside and tells him he's a robot at heart.

He then also sees that he already needs a shave. As he looks at his reflection, he sees the original bodies for Magnus and Arcee appear behind him. They transform and head off, so he follows them just in time to see them join up with Rodimus and his own real body. Drath's men are piloting them, and are taking them on a test drive. But one of them decided to get themselves a little bonus.

They get Rodimus and Springer to shoot down the doors to a jewelry store. They descend from the Autobots via rope ladders, and start to rob the place.

The bad guys decide they've got enough, and head back to the Autobots. They're able to get Rodimus to transform, but have trouble getting Springer to move. Synth Springer then appears and says if they need a hand, as he operates heavy equipment.

One of the thugs lets him help, and makes sure there is room by kicking his buddy out. Springer is able to get his real body to transform, and they head off. Meanwhile, Magnus tries to call Chief Turan, but is kept on hold until his three minutes are up.

He and Arcee then come across a warehouse belonging to Drath, and decide to find out what it is he imports. They move a container over and are able to use it to reach an open window. They head inside, but trip a silent alarm on the floor.

They have a look at what's around, and find bombs and photon grenades. Before they can dwell any further on the matter, their real bodies smash down the door.

Synth Magnus grabs a photon grenade and tells Arcee to get to Autobot City, whilst he deals with their other selves. She tries to stop him but he demands she does as he says. She heads outside, and sees a few of Drath's men waiting nearby.

She's able to get one of the guy's bikes, and kicks him away before he can stop her. As she rides off, synth Magnus gets the Autobots to back off to the outside, and tells them to stand very still. But before he can leave, Dutch shoots at him from above.

Back at Drath's place, Michelle brings Rodimus some breakfast. He tries the coffee, and finds that it smells better than it tastes. Michelle says they've met before, as she recognizes the look in his eyes. He's the Autobot leader!

Rodimus jumps up, and she tells him to take it easy. He asks if Drath knows he's here, but she says he has been totally occupied with his business. When Rodimus asks if she can help him get him into his house, she says she'll help any way she can. Meanwhile, Arcee makes it to Autobot City. She asks to see Kup at once, but one of the EDC guys tells her the station is on full alert, and all visitors are being screened. They take her inside, and she tries to explain everything that happened -and says that she is Arcee.

The guys are more than a bit dubious about her story, but she then sees Kup driving by. She calls out to him, but he doesn't hear her and drives on through. One of the security guys tells her to take it easy, as they have a nice doctor who'll be stopping by a little later.

Michelle takes Rodimus to Drath's study, but as soon as he goes in, he gets grabbed. Drath opens up the curtains.

Michelle has double-crossed Rodimus, as Drath says that Snake pointed out a problem to him with eliminating only the four of them. Namely an entire city of Autobots who might be tempted to vengeance. He turns on a monitor and reveals that Ultra Magnus has been captured.

Drath says he believes in solutions, not problems, so Rodimus can watch the destruction of Metroplex before he dies. Meanwhile, the Autobots roll up for their next mission, and arrive at the warehouse. Springer asks what their assignment is, and is told they've got a pick-up and delivery to make. One of the guys at the warehouse asks who Springer is.

Another thug vouches for him, saying his name is Jake, and he's good at handling these robots. They are given their instructions: drive a bunch of crates into Autobot City, and then unload them. Then they need to set the detonator in each crate, and get out of there before the big bang. And they are also to tie this guy to one of the crates.

Springer punches out his new buddy, and tells Magnus to get inside. Magnus does this as Springer gets his body to take off, but Rodimus shoots at him.

As Springer leaves, he gets hit and heads down. Drath watches as Springer goes out of sight behind some mountains, and contacts his men, telling them to send the remaining Autobots to their destination at once. He also says to forget about the rest of the crates, as there is enough onboard the Autobots now to blast Metroplex to atoms. Rodimus notices the guys with him aren't paying attention...

...so he knocks them out by banging their heads together. He then kicks Drath in the face, and as Snake watches, he decides to quickly leave.

Rodimus is about to resume his attack, but Drath tells him to go ahead -it won't save Autobot City! At the city, Blaster reports to everyone that Ultra Magnus, Arcee and Rodimus are coming home. Arcee hears this and shouts for anyone to listen to her, as this is a trick!

At the mountain, Springer makes repairs on himself and Magnus asks if it'll work. Springer isn't sure -he's never tried to repair himself before! He's able to do it and regroups with the other Autobots. He wonders what they should do, as if they try and attack the Autobots, they'll be overpowered. And by the time they get inside to warn anyone, it'll be too late. Magnus says they only have one option: to attack the city itself, and make it transform to battle station mode.

Springer fires on the city, and Blaster says it can't be the real thing. Metroplex transforms to battle station mode.

This prevents Drath's men from driving into the city. The guns then start firing, and Springer is hit.

Springer crashes, but he and Magnus get out just in time to see the Autobots drive off. Before they can get away, they are struck from more of Autobot City's lasers, causing Magnus and Rodimus to blow up, whilst Arcee gets blocked off.

The synthoid Autobots, along with their original bodies, are taken back to Drath's place. Perceptor gets things set up to reverse the process, and the machines are turned back on.

The Autobots are back to normal, and head out just in time to see Drath, Michelle and the rest of the bad guys being arrested. Rodimus says they can go home, and tells the Autobots to transform.

Later on Snake sees Drath being taken away, and says he wasn't smart enough... they simply don't make terrorists like they used to. As he walks off, he shouts out a familiar battle cry... "COBRA!"

NOTES

-The neutronium canister has it spelt "newtronium", but this it most likely an error -the episode's dialogue script consistently spells it as neutronium.

-Snake, or Old Snake as he's also sometimes called, is Cobra Commander, one of the bad guys from G.I. Joe. You can occasionally see that he has scaly fingers, which seems to be a reference to what happened to him in the G.I. Joe movie. Although the G.I. Joe movie was actually released after this episode was broadcast.

-Synthoids were originally featured in the The Synthoid Conspiracy, a two part episode from the G.I. Joe series which first aired in 1985.

-This episode doesn't feature any of the new music used in many of the third season episodes. It instead only uses music from the first two seasons. There are a couple of scenes early on which feature no music at all, which is a real rarity for this series.