This one trains you to love a formula. Terrorcons swarm an Energon deposit, the alarm goes up, Optimus splits into drones and Powerlinks with whoever is closest, and the same transformation cut plays for the four hundredth time. You either bounce off that loop in three episodes or you settle into it like a weekly ritual, and the people who settle in are the ones who still argue about the Unicron Trilogy. The cel-shaded bots slapped over painted backgrounds have not aged into anything resembling good, but Alpha Q's rotating faces and Scorponok's Terrorcon raids give the mining premise real stakes, and Megatron clawing his way back as Galvatron is the payoff the first stretch keeps promising. Kicker Jones sensing Energon in his gut is the closest thing to a soul here. Watch it because Armada left you unfinished.

Ten years after the decisive battle against Unicron, many of the Decepticons who fought in it have joined the Autobots to mine Energon, a rare and powerful alternative energy source the two sides have fought over for ages. But a new threat appears in Alpha Q, who wants to revive both Megatron and Unicron. Backed by Scorponok and the Terrorcons, he sets out to take the Energon from the Autobots and reignite the old war. Standing against this danger is an elite team of Autobots who draw strength from the Spark of Combination, fighting to keep Earth from ruin in this science fiction mecha adventure.