Make Way!

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“Make Way!”
Ōban Star-Racers episode
Episode no.	Season 1 Episode 13
Guest stars	None
Written by	Savin Yeatman-Eiffel
Directed by	Thomas Romain Savin Yeatman-Eiffel
Production no.	113
Original airdate	August 28, 2006
Episode chronology
← Previous	Next →
"The Will to Win"	"Welcome to Ōban!"
Episode chronology

"Make Way!" is an episode of the series Ōban Star-Racers.

It's do-or-die time for The Earth Team. To reach Ōban they must win their last race, a rematch against Toros. Piloting a rebuilt Arrow with a new, untested hyperdrive, can Molly summon the courage to face the vile Crog and pull out a win...

[edit] Plot

Rick stares at his reflection in the mirror trying to focus himself for the final race. As he's leaving his room he reaches into his pocket and feeling something pulls it out; it's Kanaleto's talisman. He stares at it for a moment but comments that he has no idea what it is. He places it on the dresser by the door and leaves; the talisman begins to glow and radiate a black aura.

The hangar is buzzing with activity. Stan is directing the crew of Skrub mechanics that came with them from the junkyard. Koji is running diagnostic checks on important systems. Even Molly and Jordan are helping with the installation of parts. Rick walks in and starts to chip in himself. Don Wei enters the hangar and looks over all the activities. He turns to Stan and Koji and comments to them that they are not 'repairing' the Arrow, they are building a new one. Stan tells Don they came up with the upgrades for the new racer back on Earth, but forgot about them. Koji says that if they had known about the Skrub mechanics back when they arrived on Alwas they would have been able to make the changes earlier. Don turns away hoping they can finish before their race in a few hours.

As Don Wei is leaving he spots Satis at the hangar entrance fooling around with engine parts and tools. Don confronts him and asks him if there's anything he needs to say. Satis isn't quite sure, but suddenly realizes that he's there to deliver a scroll telling the team their next opponent. Since all the teams have faced each other once, the matchups for the sixth and final race were chosen by lots. The scroll contains the pairings, the race rules, and instructions for the winners and losers. Don goes to his office to read the scroll. After a few tense moments, he lowers the scroll and drops it on the floor, a pained and furious look on his face. As everyone looks over the completed racer, Stan and Koji name it the "Arrow 3". Rick says it's a 'new racer for a new champion' while looking at Molly. Stan thanks the Skrub mechanics who helped them finish in time. Don appears and tells them their opponent for the sixth race will be Colonel Toros. Molly and Jordan become dejected, thinking of their last encounter with him. Don says they have no time to be doubting themselves and tells everyone to make final preparations. Molly climbs into the racer and Don reminds her that the only way to reach Ōban is to win the race, having no idea just how determined she really is to win.

"Win or no win, nothing will stand between me and the Ultimate Prize, not even a Crog."

Rush is attempting to leave the hospital but the nurse forces him back into bed. As Molly flies into the stadium Stan asks Molly how the Arrow is handling. Molly comments that it's "still a little stiff". Toros enters and it appears he has changed his 'trident' racer. The smooth edged blade-wings have been replaced with more sinister looking serrated-edged wings. The hospital nurse returns and finds that Rush has escaped and gone to the race to cheer for the Earth Team. As the race begins Molly jumps to a quick lead but the engines faulter causing her to brush against the wall, saying that she's still getting used to the "feel" of the new racer. She catches up and attempts to pass but Toros rams her into the wall. She tries again, this time with Jordan shooting at Toros, and manages to pass him and pull ahead. They enter the flooded plains portion of the race course and Jordan comments that this feels ominously familiar; it was there that Toros crushed them last time. Deciding that the race "has gone on long enough", Toros charges up his cutting edges, and surges forward towards the Arrow.

Jordan sees Toros coming and warns Molly. She spots him and remembers how he cut the Arrow 2 in half last time. Just as the Crog reaches them, Molly does a barrel roll barely missing one of the Crog's cutting blades; his tricks won't work on her again. As Toros pulls away, Molly engages the new hyperdrive. The front of the Arrow changes as wings and boosters emerge from the engines and the Arrow rockets forward at a high velocity. Don Wei can't believe the new Arrow is moving so fast, and Koji comments that they arranged the turbines in clusters for greater speed. Toros spots the Earth Team and engages his own hyperdrive and pulls away again. Molly screams at Stan and Koji asking if there is any way to go faster. Koji comments that there is but Stan protests saying it's too dangerous and could rip the new ship apart. Molly says they have to do something...anything. Don tells Stan they have no choice and Stan concedes after Don tells them that he will assume full responsibility. Koji unlocks the safety system and Molly engage the final sequence causing a new booster cluster to appear below the engine. The boosters engage and the Arrow streaks down the course leaving huge plumes of water in their wake. They catch up to Toros in a matter of moments and pass the Crog so fast that he curses in surprise.

Molly disengages the hyperdrive as they enter the next portion of the race course. Toros targets the Arrow and begins to fire red laser bolts from the front of his racer. Molly continues to weave in and out of the course avoiding Toros' guns as Jordan shoots back. As they approach the final stretch Toros disables Jordan's turret and pulls ahead and accelerates down the beach to the finish line. Molly engages the hyperdrive again and catches up to him. Stan warns Molly that if she keeps going like that they'll crash into the temple walls at the finish line. Toros doesn't approve of this either, believing that his "foolish human" opponent will get them both killed. Despite constant protests to slow down Molly refuses to disengage the hyperdrive saying she can't stop; her mother wouldn't have stopped. As the racers battle neck-and-neck towards the end, everyone in the audience becomes concerned.

At the last moment when it seems they will crash, Toros flinches and pulls back, giving Molly just enough room to slip by and cross the finish line first. She immediately disengages the hyperdrive and opens her speed flaps and pulls aside just before Toros' racer flys by and crashes into the wall on the other side of the arena. The Elders proclaim the Earth Team the winners to everyones joy, including Aikka's. The Elders then state that Toros, with five wins, advances to the finals on Ōban. However, the Earth team with three wins must wait for the results of the race between Aikka and Spirit. Everyone is shocked but Don tells them they have no choice but to wait. The only way they can advance is if Aikka wins since Spirit would be tied with Molly if he wins, and since he beat her last time, he would advance.

As the race prepares to start Jordan is convinced that Aikka will throw the race because he's working with Toros. Toros comments to Aikka's Blademaster that he hopes everything is in order. As the race begins it becomes clear that Aikka is holding back and allowing Spirit to take the lead. Molly doesn't believe Aikka would throw the race saying that Nourasian Knights are honorable. As the race continues, Aikka's beetle begins to buck in protest and Aikka shares his feeling that this is dishonorable; throwing the race would betray not only themselves but their friends as well. He finally resolves himself and infuses his beetle with energy and catches up to Spirit. Toros is angry that Aikka is breaking the arrangement. Aikka comments that Spirit is a great racer but can't allow him to win and fires a magical arrow. The arrow explodes above Spirit's head creating a blinding light causing Spirit to crash into several obstacles. Aikka wins the race and the Elders announce that Aikka and Molly with join Toros in the finals. The Earth Team is ecstatic. Toros leaves commenting that Aikka just made a deadly mistake.

Don Wei tells Rick he hasn't felt this good since Rick's first championship. As he leaves he comments that if it hadn't been for Rick training Molly they would have never made it. Back at the hangar, crews are helping pack up the Arrow and all the team's gear to prepare to leave for Ōban. Molly enters Rick's room but it is empty. She looks over, and noticing the stone talisman, picks it up and looks it over. Outside she asks Stan or Koji if they have seen Rick and they comment that he left with his bags heading towards the docks. Molly rushes to the docks and runs into Satis. She asks if he's seen Rick and he tells her that he's about to leave on a ship heading back to Earth. She finds Rick just as he's boarding one of the Avatar's ships and begs him not to leave. He smiles and tells her that he's taught her all he knows, that racing is over for him and that it's time to start his new life. Molly can only look on in sadness as Rick boards the ship. As the ships flies up into the skies, she finally smiles and thanks him for what he did for her. Don Wei is also watching and thanks Rick. Molly turns with a hard look on her face towards Don Wei and they stare at each other.

[edit] Semifinals 6th and final race results

• Winner listed first.

Super Racer: Withdrew before race

Rush: Eliminated from the competition

Earth Team vs. Toros

Aikka vs. Spirit

[edit] Trivia

• This episode marks the conclusion of "The Alwas Cycle" story arc that makes up the first half of the series.
• The second half of the series will be known as the "The Ōban Cycle" and will deal with The Earth Team's struggles during the The Grand Finals on Planet Ōban as they seek to obtain the Ultimate Prize.
• Both Ceres and Para-Dice can be briefly seen among the racers returning home at the end of the episode.