Episode
Summary
Written
by J. Cole Weston
Hiro
experiences a series of nightmares leading him to question
his capability to be a Zone Rider. Even more terrifying, Tonka's
budget is stretched to the maximum getting you to believe
this isn't a clips episode.
Episode
Notes
Written
by J. Cole Weston
In
depth: Hiro in his quarters plays with a 3D battle simulator
(the very one from "Holographic Zone Battle" - guess
he didn't learn his lesson). Suddenly we dissolve to a battle
in the Zone. A number of UN planes are escorting Eagle to
evacuate people from somewhere (Puerto Rico perhaps?). Intruder
appears and fires on Eagle. Suddenly, Hiro wakes from what
was a dream (a ha!). Ned Tucker has come by for some hand
to hand combat with Hiro. Ned throws Hiro easily and Hiro
excuses himself, not feeling well. He then goes to his quarters
to sleep. His dreams go back to when Tank was zoned onboard
a train in "Zone Train". Hiro's fevered brain switches
then to a mission with Ben when Duchess Dire ambushes them
and then he awakens startled once more.
Max and Ned discuss Hiro's normal proficiency in hand to hand
combat, and they remember a training session of the past.
They go to talk to Dirk about the situation as Hiro's dreams
continue. Now he has been zoned by Overlord, then he remembers
a battle in Central Park between the Zone Riders and Black
Widows. In Hiro's quarters, Hiro doesn't answer the door,
so Kat and Dirk enter his room. Hiro believes the strain of
combat has become too much and wishes to be relieved of duty,
as he does not believe himself fit to be a Zone Rider.
Apparently he then goes back to sleep during the commercial.
He remembers a massive Zoner assault with Bandit and Razorback.
The, inexplicably we shift to "Zone of Darkness"
to where the Zone Riders are asleep in camp. Suddenly Hiro
is asleep in bed again. Kat reports that Hiro is fine physically
but he needs to recover mentally. Courage believes he needs
someone to talk to. During another dream, a massive assault
is under way in the Zone in which they recall the loss of
the extant Neutron-90.
The scene shifts to Dirk and Ben talking in which Ben wants
to help Hiro without letting him know. Hiro is again dreaming,
and recalls Max being shot near a castle as they run under
a bridge from their Central Park battle. He recalls another
battle later when he had to penetrate M.C.C. in "Small
Packages". He recalls being hurt in combat with Ben,
and surrounded. Ben goes to Hiro's quarters and wakes him
from his 45th dream. Ben says he needs Hiro's help to work
on an energy transmission detector. It's detecting a low neural
transmitter that was in Hiro's helmet. Overlord developed
it from peaceful uses and evidently had plans to exhaust the
Zone Riders with it.
Items
Noticed: At 4:36. we see our first glimpse of a Zone Rider's
quarters at M.C.C. - Hiro's.
The
low power neural transmitter was apparently invented years
ago for use in mental patients, but in normal people, causes
nightmares.
Notes:
Cheapest episode EVER. Not even a flashback sequence, but
a "dream episode". For a better use of this technique,
see the Robotech the Macross Saga Episode "Phantasm".
What
do we learn? Hiro likes Japanese calligraphy, as he has some
on his wall. We also learn Tonka's budget was about shot by
this point.
Goof
ups: Hard to pinpoint in this chop shop episode.
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