User:DrakeyC/Sandbox

"Orion Pax" redirects here. Not to be confused with Sentinel Prime.

For the comic book series featuring Optimus Prime, see Optimus Prime (comics).

Optimus Prime
Transformers character
Voiced by (English)	Peter Cullen (The Transformers, Rise of the Dark Spark, Transformers: Devastation, Transformers: Prime, Transformers: Rescue Bots, Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2015 TV series), Transformers: Titans Return) Ron Hayden (20th Anniversary toy sound base, Universe Flash cartoon) Neil Kaplan (Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2001 TV series)) Garry Chalk (Unicron Trilogy) David Kaye (Transformers: Animated) Jon Bailey (Transformers: Combiner Wars)
Voiced by (Japanese)	Tesshō Genda Satoshi Hashimoto Toru Ohkawa Katsuyuki Konishi Taiten Kusunoki Hiroki Takahashi Toshiyuki Morikawa
In-universe information
Alias	Orion Pax, Optronix
Affiliation	Autobot/Maximal
Japanese name	Inochi, Convoy, Battle Convoy Fire Convoy
Sub-group	Action Masters, Autorollers, Combat Heroes, Deluxe Vehicles, Go-Bots, Masterpiece, Primes, Powermasters, Voyagers
Function	Autobot Leader, Supreme Commander, Chief Commander
Rank	10
Partner	Roller, Hi-Q, Ultra Magnus
Motto	"Freedom is the right of all sentient beings." (Generation 1) "No sacrifice is too great in the service of freedom." (Classics)
Alternate modes	Freightliner Cab-over-engine Class 8 truck, Cybertronian truck, COBRA Sentry & Missile System tank, 1920s style truck, Peterbilt Truck, Mid-90s Peterbilt 4964EX Tanker Truck, Lamborghini Diablo, Dump truck, Dodge Ram SRT-10, Nissan GT-R, Bat

Optimus Prime, known in Japan as Convoy (コンボイ, Konboi), is a fictional character from the Transformers franchise. He is a member of the titular Transformers, an extraterrestrial race of robotic lifeforms able to reconfigure their forms into vehicles and other electronic devices. In most variations of the Transformers mythos, Optimus is the leader of the Autobots, a faction of transformers opposing the Decepticons led by Megatron. He has been portrayed by numerous voice actors, the most prominent of which is Peter Cullen; Garry Chalk, Neil Kaplan, David Kaye and Jake Tillman, have also voiced him in other media.

As the leader of the heroic Autobots, Optimus Prime is the protagonist and hero of most Transformer media he appears in, which includes cartoons, comics, and merchandise. He is considered a pop icon for the Transformers franchise and Hasbro media as a whole, and a cultural icon for his moral character, championing the virtues of honor, justice, and courage.

History

Television

Transformers: Generation 1

In the original cartoon series, Optimus was leader of the Autobots on the transformer home world of Cybertron. The war with the Decepticons has exhausted Cybertron's natural resources, so a shuttle of Autobots led by Optimus depart Cybertron to find a planet with fresh resources. Megatron and a faction of the Decepticons pursue and board the Autobot shuttle, which crashes into a volcano on prehistoric Earth. The crash renders the transformers inert, until 1984 when volcanic activity causes the shuttle's computers to reactivate. The shuttle's systems repair the transformers and scans objects from nearby human settlements for them to transform into, and the two sides resume their war on Earth. In the backstory of the cartoon, Optimus was originally known as Orion Pax, a dock worker at a Cybertron port. When a warehouse he was working at was attacked by Megatron to seize its energy reserves, Orion was badly damaged in the battle, and the Autobot Alpha Trion rebuilt him into a new form with superior combat capabilities, creating Optimus Prime.

The Transformers: The Movie, a cinematic tie-in to the cartoon series, takes place between Seasons 2 and 3. By the year 2005, the Decepticons have taken over Cybertron and the Autobots plot an insurgence from Cybertron's moons while maintaining a base on Earth. When the Decepticons attack their Earth stronghold with the intent to cripple the Autobot forces, Optimus wages a one-man stand against the Decepticons and then Megatron. The young Autobot Hot Rod tries to intervene to aid him, allowing Megatron to use him as a human shield and mortally wound Optimus. While Optimus had succeeded in stopping the Decepticon assault and forced them into retreat, he perished soon after. With his dying words, Optimus appointed Ultra Magnus the new Autobot leader and entrusted him with the Matrix of Leadership; at the end of the film, the Matrix came into the hands of Hot Rod and anointed him leader of the Autobots under the name Rodimus Prime.

In the Season 3 episode "Dark Awakening", Optimus is revived and reprogrammed by the Quintessons to lead the Autobots into a suicide mission on a Quintesson base. Rodimus and other Autobots realize the ploy and fight Optimus, and he is able to break free of his new programming and pilots a spacecraft into the Quintesson base, destroying it in a massive explosion. In the Season 3 finale "The Return of Optimus Prime", human scientists find the spacecraft with Optimus' inactive body aboard. As a viral "hate plague" spreads across the galaxy, the Autobots convince a Quintesson to revive Optimus to halt the plague. Optimus takes back the Matrix from Rodimus and uses its energy to cleanse the universe of the plague, and he returns to being leader of the Autobots for the remainder of the series.

Season 4 only consisted of three episodes which were effectively the series finale to the Generation 1 cartoon. Season 5, consisting of re-edited versions of past episodes, as well as Transformers: The Movie broken up into different parts for syndication, featured the framing device of Optimus telling a human boy about his adventures, with live action segments depicting a stop-motion Optimus Prime model interacting with a human actor. A Japan-exclusive series, Transformers: The Headmasters, continued the cartoon's continuity from the end of Season 3, with Optimus retaining his position of Autobot commander up to the series finale.

Beast Era

During development of the CGI cartoon Beast Wars, Hasbro envisioned the characters of Optimus Primal and Megatron as the same characters from the Generation 1 cartoon, but once this changed once the show began airing: in-story, Primal and Megatron took their names from their ancestors in honor of them. In Beast Wars, the events of the Generation 1 cartoon happened several centuries ago and are referred to as "the Great War", which ended in an Autobot victory and saw the transformers reformatted into smaller, more energy efficient bodies, creating the Maximals (descended from the Autobots) and the Predacons (descended from the Decepticons).

Season 2 of Beast Wars reveals that the unknown planet the Maximals and Predacons had crashed on was prehistoric Earth, during the time of early human evolution, and the Predacon leader Megatron had travelled back in time to this era to change history so the Decepticons won the Great War. In the final episode of Season 2, Megatron locates the crashed Autobot shuffle containing the inactive transformers, and mortally wounds Optimus Prime. In the Season 3 premiere, the Maximals attempt to undo the damage Megatron has done to history. Prime's spark, his lifeforce, was fading, so Primal took it into his own body to safeguard it while Prime's body was repaired; this act reconfigured Primal into Optimal Optimus, granting him greater power and a larger, more technological body. By the episode's end Prime is repaired and Primal returns his spark to him, restoring the proper timeline.

The sequel series to Beast Wars, Beast Machines, takes place on Cybertron when the two factions have returned home only to find Megatron arrived first and has conquered the planet. In the episode "The Search", Megatron uses a hologram of Prime to impersonate him and trick Primal into allowing him to access the Oracle supercomputer.

Transformers: Robots in Disguise

In Robots in Disguise, Optimus Prime is again the leader of the Autobots. As in the Generation 1 cartoon, the Autobots are at war with Megatron and his Predacons, and their war takes them to Earth to claim its resources for the war effort.

In the episode "The Decepticons", Megatron finds six ancient Autobot protoforms on Earth, transformers that have not yet been formated with bodies. Megatron reprograms them to be loyal to him, creating a faction he calls the Decepticons. During the formating of the protoforms, Optimus takes hold of a tanker truck as one of the protoforms scans it, causing both him and the truck to be scanned together; the protoform becomes Scourge, a evil twin of Optimus with an identical robot mode.

Late in the series, Optimus's brother Ultra Magnus comes to Earth to claim the Matrix of Leadership from Optimus, believing he is more worthy, but fails. Over time the animosity between the brothers dwindled and Magnus became a more consistent ally, and in the series finale the two combine into Omega Prime to defeat Megatron's new form Galvatron.

Unicron Trilogy

The "Unicron Trilogy" incarnation of Optimus Prime appears in all three series that make up the Trilogy: Transformers: Armada, Transformers: Energon and Transformers: Cybertron. In this continuity, the transformers came to Earth seeking a small race of power-enhancing Transformers known as Mini-Cons. Optimus led his small band of Autobots to stop Megatron from acquiring their power for himself.

Transformers Animated

Optimus Prime appears in the Transformers Animated series as the main protagonist. Unlike most other continuities, this Optimus is much younger and is not the leader of the Autobot faction, being the leader of a small and inexperienced Autobot maintenence crew. Instead of Optimus, Ultra Magnus is the leader of the Autobots as a whole.

The series begins when Optimus and his crew find the Allspark in a derelict space bridge and are attacked by Megatron and the Decepticons who are seeking it. Through treachery by Megatron's second-in-command, Starscream, Megatron was destroyed and the Autobots crashed in Lake Erie on Earth in the early 21st century. 50 years later, in the near future, they awaken in Detroit and become the city's protectors. In the series finale, Optimus is able to overpower Megatron using Ultra Magnus' hammer, but saves him from destruction at the hands of a self-destructing clone of Starscream. Optimus and his team return to Cybertron with the Decepticons as prisoners and are hailed as heroes.

Optimus Prime appears among the characters in Re-Unification, the 2010 TFCon voice actor play prelude comic. Animated Optimus Prime, in an Earth-based fire truck mode, appears as a hidden character in the Transformers Netjet video game by Hasbro. Instead of being leader of the Autobots, Prime was actually a washout from the Elite Guard. Despite no longer being a member, he maintains his military ranking of "Prime".

Aligned Continuity

Optimus Prime is the leader of the main group of Autobots in the iteration of the Transformers franchise primarily marked by the 2010 computer animated series Transformers: Prime on The Hub. Optimus is the leader of a band of Autobots on Earth, after the transformers were forced to flee Cybertron due to Megatron corrupting the planet with dark energon. The group operates out of a missile base in Nevada in cooperation with the United States government, who have offered the Autobots refuge on the planet in exchange for protecting Earth from the Decepticons.

In the show's lore, Optimus Prime was the name of one of the Thirteen Primes, the first generation of Transformers created by Primus. After the Thirteen had defeated Unicron and established the transformer race, Optimus chose to have his spark reincarnated and his memories erased, to better understand the new race. The reincarnated Orion Pax was a data clerk concerned with the oppressive caste system used on Cybertron, and he became friends with the gladiator Megatron, who held similar sentiments. After Megatron began a full-scale rebellion against Cybertron's ruling council, Orion made contact with the core of Cybertron and was touched by the consciousness of Primus, restoring his name and memories as Optimus Prime and granting him the Matrix of Leadership.

In the Season 1 finale "One Shall Rise", Optimus discovered that Earth had formed around a dormant Unicron, who was now reviving. Megatron allied with the Autobots to halt Unicron's awakening, but came under his control; to free him, Optimus used the energies of the Matrix, which caused him to revert to Orion Pax and lose his memories as Optimus. With Orion thinking of him as a friend again, Megatron manipulated him into joining the Decepticons, but Orion eventually discovered the ruse and the other Autobots were able to restore him to Optimus Prime. In the Season 3 finale "Deadlock", the Autobots restore Cybertron and return home, leading into the series's finale movie, Transformers Prime Beast Hunters: Predacons Rising. Unicron took control of Megatron to destroy Cybertron, and Optimus was forced to combine the Matrix and the Allspark to trap Unicron's anti-spark within their container, but the act forced Optimus to sacrifice his life by merging his own spark with them as well.

The sequel series, Transformers: Robots in Disguise, focuses on Bumblebee as the main protagonist. Optimus is revealed to have survived his sacrifice through the intervention of the Primes, but resided in the "Realm of the Primes". Optimus appeared to Bumblebee in a vision to direct him to go to Earth to defend it from a group of Decepticons that had escaped from a crashed prison ship. In the Season 1 finale "Battlegrounds", the Primes restore Optimus to physical form but he does not take command of Bumblebee's group, agreeing to stay with them only if he is treated as an equal.

Optimus Prime also appeared in Transformers: Rescue Bots, stated to take place in the same universe as Prime. He gave the Rescue Bots their mission and mainly appeared via a view-screen in the first season before becoming a recurring character in the second and third seasons.

Live-Action Films

See also: Transformers (film), Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Transformers: Dark of the Moon, Transformers: Age of Extinction, Transformers: The Last Knight, and Bumblebee (film)

A Peterbilt 379 used to portray Optimus Prime's alternate mode in Transformers.

Optimus Prime appears in the Transformers live-action film series as the leader of the Autobots and one of the main protagonists. In the first three films, he is able to transform into a conventional Peterbilt 379 cab, rather than the cab over design of his original Generation 1 body. In Transformers: Dark of the Moon, he gains a first generation-style trailer form before changing into a 2014 Western Star 5700 Concept.

In the 2007 film, Optimus is the leader of the Autobots who arrives on Earth to search for the Allspark with the help of Sam Witwicky and Mikaela Banes. After Bumblebee retrieves it from a military compound inside Hoover Dam, the Autobots flee the dam to keep the Allspark from Megatron, who was kept inside the dam frozen but has revived. In the film's climax Optimus fights Megatron and tells Sam to push the Allspark into his chest, sacrificing his own spark to destroy it, but Sam instead pushes it into Megatron's chest, killing him. Optimus declares Earth their new home and sends a signal into space inviting other surviving Autobots to the planet.

In Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. the Autobots are allied with a human task force NEST to hunt down Decepticons on Earth. Following Megatron's resurrection using a shard of the Allspark, Megatron impales and kills him. In the climax in Egypt, Sam is able to retrieve the Matrix of Leadership and uses it to revive Optimus. The transformer Jetfire, dying from battle wounds, grants Optimus his parts to upgrade him with flight and increased firepower, which Optimus uses to destroy the Fallen and wound Megatron, forcing him to retreat.

In the 2011 film Transformers: Dark of the Moon. Optimus' upgraded arsenal have been adapted into a trailer he tows in his vehicle mode. After assisting NEST operatives in fighting Shockwave at Chernobyl, Optimus learns that the humans have concealed the discovery of an ancient Cybertronian ship on the moon containing his old mentor, Sentinel Prime. Optimus revives Sentinel, but he betrays the Autobots and takes command of the Decepticons, planning to bring Cybertron through a space bridge to orbit in Earth's solar system, and then enslave humanity and use Earth's resources to rebuild Cybertron. Optimus eventually fights and kills Sentinel, in the battle also killing Megatron.

Between Dark of the Moon and Transformers: Age of Extinction, the transformer race was declared outlaws by humanity. Five years after the events of Dark of the Moon, Optimus had scanned a new alternate mode and gone into hiding where he lapsed into stasis lock from his injuries; he is found by the human Cade Yaeger, who reactivates him. Optimus scans a new alt mode closer to his original and returns to command of the Autobots to fight the Cemetary Wind, a military organization that is reverse-engineering transformation technology to create their own. Optimus battles the bounty hunter Lockdown, who tells Optimus "his creators" want him found, and also battles Galvatron, a Cemetary Wind-created transformer that contains Megatron's consciousness. At the end of the film Optimus departs Earth to make contact with his creators.

In Transformers: The Last Knight, Optimus had run out of energy and drifted through space, and is found by Quintessa when she brings the ruins of Cybertron into Earth's solar system. Quintessa revives Optimus and reveals that Earth had formed around the dormant Unicron, and she wished to drain his energy to restore Cybertron. Quintessa brainwashes Optimus, naming him "Nemesis Prime", and sends him to Earth to find Merlin's staff that is needed for her plan. Nemesis succeeds in retrieving the staff, but is hindered by Bumblebee, who regains his voice and breaks Quintessa's control. Megatron, revealed to be in league with Quintessa, steals the staff from Optimus and delivers it to Quintessa. Cade Yeager convinces Optimus to correct his mistake, and Optimus leads the Autobots in attack on Quintessa's lair, during which he defeats Megatron and Quintessa, though both escape.

Optimus Prime returns in the spin-off Bumblebee: The Movie. After leading an evacuation of Cybertron with the war against the Decepticons lost, Optimus entrusts Bumblebee to go to Earth and secure it as a refuge for the Autobots. In the film's ending, Optimus has come to Earth and meets with Bumblebee to thank him for completing his mission.

Comics

The Marvel Comcis The Transformers comics series ran from 1984 to 1991, spanning eighty issues. The comic follows the same basic premise as the cartoon, with the Autobots and Decepticons crashing on prehistoric Earth and awakening in 1984 to continue their war. In Issue #24, Optimus is killed after he shames himself in a virtual reality video game against Megatron, and the Dinobot Grimlock is named leader of the Autobots. Issue #40 revealed a copy of Optimus' mind had been retained on a floppy disk by the human who arranged the video game competition, and in Issue #42 he is restored to a rebuilt body and Grimlock returns command to him. In Issue #75, Optimus sacrifices his life to destroy Unicron with the energies of the Matrix, but his consciousness survives within his Powermaster partner Hi-Q, and in the comic's final issue, Optimus is returned to life as an Action Master.

Dreamwave Productions acquired the rights to Transformers comics and in 2002 began printing various limit series and one-shot issues based on the Generation 1 continuity. Optimus retains his basic design and character from the Generation 1 cartoon, acting as leader of the Autobots.

Following the bankruptcy of Dreamwave in 2005, IDW Publishing acquired the Transformers license and began a new Transformers comic series also based on Generation 1. Optimus is once again the leader of the Autobots, though for a time he relinquished his command to Bumblebee. When a malevolent entity called the "D-Void" threatened to destroy Cybertron, Optimus dove into the core of the supercomputer Vector Sigma and used the Matrix to purify the planet, returning it to a primeval state. Neutral Cybertronians saw Optimus as a symbol of the destructive war that had just ended, and Optimus choose to leave Cybertron to quell tensions, and for a time returned to using his original name Orion Pax. The IDW storyline ended after 426 comics in November 2018, with the final two issues depicting Optimus' death as he sacrifices himself to destroy Unicron.

The rebooted 2019 IDW comics depict Orion Pax as a Cybertronian senator.

Video games

Most Transformers video games include Optimus Prime, dating back to the first 1986 Transformers game; Transformers: The Battle to Save the Earth and Transformers: The Headmasters are the only video games based on the Generation 1 franchise to not feature Optimus in some manner. All other games based on a pre-existing Transformers series include Optimus in some manner.

Transformers: War for Cybertron is a video game that acts as a prequel to the Aligned continuity franchise. Optimus appears in both this game and its sequel Transformers: Fall of Cybertron, which depict the war between the Autobots and the Decepticons before the arrival of the Autobots on Earth. Transformers: Rise of the Dark Spark is a crossover between the Aligned continuity and the live-action film continuity, with an artifact called the Dark Spark traveling between the two dimensions and being fought over by the transformers.

Concept and Creation

The original Optimus Prime toy patent design. Art by Hiroyuki Obara.

The Transformers toyline that Hasbro launched in North America was created from several different toylines from Japan; the toy that would become Optimus Prime was a Diaclone toy called Battle Convoy, designed by Hiroyuki Obara. The toy's characteristics, such as the head design and the use of the cab front as the upper torso, have become design elements in nearly every incarnation and variant of Optimus Prime. Artists Shōhei Kohara and Floro Dery were responsible for adapting the toy designs into character models to be used in the cartoon, including Optimus Prime.

According to comic writer Bob Budiansky, when Hasbro was originally developing the franchise for the cartoon and comic, it was Denny O'Neil who came up with the name Optimus Prime while coming up with the personalities and names of various characters. O'Neil's work was rejected by Hasbro and he was replaced by Budiansky, but Budiansky retained some of O'Neil's work, which included the name of Optimus Prime. The word "Prime" would later be established to be an official rank or title in other Transformers media. When the Transformers cartoon was redubbed in Japanese for release in Japan, Optimus' name became Convoy, as the name Optimus Prime was deemed difficult for Japanese children to pronounce.

In most of his appearances, Optimus takes the alternate mode of a red and blue semi-trailer truck, but he is also frequently a fire truck; the exact design of his vehicle mode varies between different incarnations. A recurring trait of Optimus is the ability for his trailer to transform into a weapons platform, and/or to become a larger body that Optimus can combine with, referred to as a Powermaster in the Generation 1 franchise. In the cartoons he appears in, Optimus' trailer often disappears when he transforms into his robot mode and reappears when he turns back into his vehicle mode; various media and creators have called attention to this to explain it or for humorous effect, such as the Transformers: Animated episode "Career Day" where a boy asks where the trailer goes when Optimus transforms and Optimus stutters to answer.

Voice Actors

The most prolific voice actor for Optimus Prime is Peter Cullen, who voiced Optimus in the original Generation 1 cartoon series. Cullen also voiced Optimus in advertising and other tie-in media during the timeframe of the cartoon's run. Cullen returned to voice Prime in the 2007 live-action film, and has since lent his voice to Optimus in the live-action film series, cartoon series, and video games. Writing for the Calgary Herald, Eric Volmers said of Cullen "other actors have voiced the role, but it’s safe to say that Cullen is the actor best known for giving life to the heroic leader of the Autobots". Cullen attributes the inspiration for his performance as Optimus Prime to his older brother Larry, who drove him to the audition for the part. The elder Cullen had served in the Vietnam War, and he advised Cullen "to be a leader, be strong and compassionate. Don’t be a yelling, screaming, Hollywood phoney. The tone of [Larry's] voice was very, very clear and compassionate and soft with depth.

Other voice actors for Optimus Prime include Neil Kaplan (Transformers: Robots in Disguise), Jon Bailey (Transformers: Combiner Wars), and Garry Chalk (Unicron Trilogy); Chalk had previously voiced Optimus Primal in the Beast Wars franchise.

Cultural Impact

Merchandise

Optimus' original Generation 1 toy has been reissued many times over the years, sometimes repainted and/or with minor alterations to the figure and his accessories: if a trailer is included with the figure or not varies. Optimus Prime was also released as an Action Master and Powermaster toy in the original Transformers toy line. For the Generation 2 toy line, the original Optimus Prime toy was altered somewhat and an electronic sound maker was added. Later Generation 2 toys of Optimus were completely new designs, such as Combat Hero Optimus Prime, Laser Optimus Prime, and Gobot Optimus Prime, who could become a red Lamborghini car.

Toy designers writing for the 2019 of the Transformers Generations art book claimed that the Masterpiece line that launched in 2003 to celebrate the franchise's 20th anniversary was not intended as a full product line, but a one-off release of a re-imagined Optimus Prime toy, which was given the product designation "MP-01". In 2011, following the release of other Masterpiece toys, Takara Tomy released another Optimus Prime with the designation "MP-10". This toy, which was smaller than MP-01 and was intended to more closely match the original cartoon design, became the standard by which subsequent Masterpiece toys were produced; as Optimus Prime is representative of the Transformers brand, it was felt his toy must be the best they can produce. A third version, "MP-44", was created in 2018. MP-01 and MP-10 have been reissued numerous times, including a version of MP-01 in dark colors to match the appearance of Optimus Prime after his death in the 1986 film, called "Convoy Sleep Mode".

Reception

The 2000s film series incarnation of Optimus Prime was met with warm reception. It was named the 30th greatest movie superhero of all time by "Total Film Magazine".

Optimus is considered a pop-cultural role model for his strength, compassion, and valor. Juleyka Lantigua-Williams for The Atlantic credits Optimus as an inspirational figure to her growing up, inspiring her to mimic his speech patterns and personality, and as an adult reflected "Optimus reminded me that all of us have within us the basic elements for a meaningful life: intelligence, strength, courage, beauty, creativity, and love. Patricia Lonergan for Mississauga.com wrote "Optimus Prime has come to symbolise an incorruptible figure with a strong moral character and respect for all life. He is a brilliant, albeit reluctant, military strategist who strives for peace but is willing to fight for the weak." A United States National Guardsman, Scott Edward Nall, legally changed his name to Optimus Prime in 2001 in honor of the character, who he saw as a surrogate father growing up.

Death

The death of Optimus in the 1986 animated film is considered hugely impactful for the Transformers franchise and its fans. During the film's theatrical run, children left theatres in tears, and Hasbro and Peter Cullen received letters addressing the loss of Optimus. In a special feature for the DVD release of the 1986 film, screenwriter Flint Dille reflected that at the time, they did not realize that Optimus had become an icon, and did not anticipate the backlash from killing him; in the feature he claimed that he still gets approaches at fan conventions by adults who question "Why did you kill Optimus Prime?" Producer Joe Bacal claimed "[they]" only saw the cartoon as a toy promotion, and saw the movie as a way to introduce the new generation of characters while doing something that was rarely done in television, the death of a major character." Following the release of the film and backlash from parents with upset children, Bacal realized "maybe we went too far", but he thinks that the death of the original cast is part of the reason the movie continues to resonate with fans.

Rob Bricken of of the website Gizmodo said that, in 80s child media, directly showing the death of a major character was "so heinous as to be impossible", and credits the death of Optimus in the film as an upsetting but valuable lesson about mortality and grief. Henri Mazza of the website Birth. Movies. Death. claimed that the death of Optimus defined a generation, as for many children it was their first loss of a father figure.

Others

• A forty-foot (12.2 m) statue of Optimus Prime exists in Kunming city in Yunnan Province, China. It is located near several automobile dealerships.
• In the South Park trilogy "Imaginationland", Optimus Prime is one of the warriors who fight on the side of the good imaginary characters.
• A figure in the form of Optimus Prime appears in a pattern of windows and other markings on the background of the game Assassin's Creed.
• Optimus Prime was parodied in several episodes of Robot Chicken. He was voiced by character actor Abraham Benrubi.
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• Sheldon Comics includes several comics either containing Optimus Prime toys or referencing the Optimus Prime.
• In conjunction with the release of the 2007 live-action film, Hasbro released a Mr. Potato Head version of Optimus Prime named Optimash Prime and a transforming plush toy called Softimus Prime.
• Optimus Prime is mentioned in the Lemon Demon song "The Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny".
• In the 2006 comedy movie Clerks II, Elias states that his screen name is Optimus Prime.
• A Canadian military operation in Afghanistan was code-named "Op Timis Preem".
• British Prime Minister Gordon Brown told the news media that, "Optimus Prime could solve the current problems in our world."
• At a gathering of Jewish people near the end of the Family Guy episode "When You Wish Upon a Weinstein", Peter Griffin finds out that Optimus Prime is Jewish when the robot arrives at the gathering in vehicle form and transforms, complete with a yarmulke and tallit.
• Legacy Brewing Company from Reading, Pennsylvania, now out of business, made an Imperial India Pale Ale called "Hoptimus Prime". The beverage also appeared in the 2008 Xbox 360 game Fable II.
• Optimus Prime, as well as the whole Transformers franchise, is referred to in the 2009 song ''I Can Transform Ya'', by Chris Brown, Lil Wayne and Swizz Beatz. The music video also features the performers 'transforming' into various cars and motorcycles in a similar fashion as the transformation sequences in the film series.
• Optimus Prime is referred to in a verse from the song "Get at Me Dog" by DMX.
• Optimus Prime was featured in Seth MacFarlane's Cavalcade of Cartoon Comedy in a short cartoon in which Prime was having sex with a human female in robot mode. When he reached the climax, he transformed into his vehicle mode and crushed his partner.
• In 2011, James Reimer, the rookie goaltender of the Toronto Maple Leafs hockey team, has been dubbed "Optimus Reim" for his positive demeanour and machine-like ability to stop pucks.
• Presenter Tanner Foust makes a reference to Optimus Prime in a segment of Top Gear USA while driving a Peterbilt 379 (Optimus' vehicle disguise in the 2007 film).
• Optimus Prime makes a few appearances in Cartoon Network's Mad (in both his Generation 1 and Movie incarnations). He is voiced by Gary Anthony Williams.
• In the Disney Channel series A.N.T. Farm, Fletcher makes a reference to Optimus Prime when daring Nigel to turn into a truck (which he is somehow able to do).
• Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman is sometimes referred to by his fans as Optimus Prime.
• Optimus Prime is mentioned in the 2015 song ''WTF (Where They From)'', by rappers Missy Elliott ft. Pharrell Williams, in Pharrell's verse: ''...lyrically I'm Optimus Prime, look how I drive, look at my ride...'', directly referencing Optimus' well-versed speeches as well as the Transformers' vehicle modes.
• Optimus Prime made a cameo appearance in Ready Player One.
• Optimus Prime was featured on the online series Death Battle and was pitted up against the Gundam and won due to better combat experience, superior weapons and feats.

During the promotion of the Transformers films, Optimus Prime appeared in several commercials. Optimus Prime, along with other Transformers, were featured in several commercials for General Motors. Scenes with Optimus Prime were used in several General Motors commercials. A commercial for the Discovery Channel featured Optimus Prime singing part of a promotional song.

Optimus also appeared on the Late Show with David Letterman, giving "The Top Ten Things That Sound Cool When Spoken by a Giant Robot".

Honors

At BotCon 2010, Hasbro named Optimus Prime as one of the first five robot inductees in the Transformers Hall of Fame.

Bibliography

• Furman, Simon (2004). Transformers: The Ultimate Guide. London: DK Publishing (Dorling Kindersley). pp. 110, 118. ISBN 978-1-4053-0461-0. OCLC 223988192.

External links

• Official website
• Pages on Optimus Prime at the Transformers Wiki

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