The first episode not to feature human characters.
This episode is dedicated in memory of Captain H.L. Larry Cullen (Peter Cullen's older brother who helped inspire Optimus Prime's voice) who died on March 25, 2011 at age 70.
The Immobilizer weapon is naturally a reference to the episode with the same title and the original Immobilizer from The Transformers (1984).
Bulkhead makes a reference to the Fallen, an ancient evil from Transformer history. This is the first time the character is mentioned in the cartoon show.
The shot of Starscream trying to gain the Autobots' allegiance on his knees has a much stronger motion-blur effect than usual.