Megatron's plan in this episode (to build a giant, purple, robotic griffin in the desert) is so nonsensical that it became something of a running joke among the fans to refer to it whenever someone calls the Decepticons' plans into question.
At this point in the series, it must not have been established who the Combaticon leader would be. Technically, Onslaught is the team leader, but in this episode Blast Off is giving the orders.
In the Complete Original Series DVD box set, this episode appears as the second-last of Season Two (on Disc 7),
This episode pits one combiner team against another, that are not their established rivals. In the case of the Arialbots, they face off against the Combatacons and Bruticus. Rather than be pitted against the Stuntacons and Menasor.