Precursor World continuity

Gathered friends, listen again to our Legend of the BIONICLE. In the time before time-

The Precursor World franchise is home to the fictional universe and associated toys and storylines that sprung from e-HOBBY's Spin Off line of exclusive comics. Perhaps the most arcane extrusion yet of the behemoth that is the Japanese continuity of the original Generation 1 cartoon, it tells the tale of the Transformers' god Primus in the universe that existed prior to that of The Transformers, not dissimilar to the backstory of Marvel's Galactus. Its primary claim to fame is the fan-favorite Primus Vanguard, a flashy rainbow legion of officially repurposed toys from across the Transformers brand.

“	Once upon a time, in a certain ancient universe, fought the Warriors of the Seven Lights derived from G One. They were led by the Golden Warrior, Primus, who founded the Primus Vanguard, defenders of the universe.	”
—Generations Selects Finale

Franchise components

• A "virtual toyline" consisting of a combination of officially-released toys made especially for the line, repurposed toys, and potential redecos of other toys.
• A series of e-HOBBY comics, most of which form a single storyline.
• An e-HOBBY social media feature.
• The ongoing comic for TakaraTomy's portion of the Generations Selects toyline.

Setting

Taking place in the universe prior to that of Optimus Prime and friends, the citizens of the Precursor World are a race of shape-changing robots known as the "Warriors of the Seven Lights." Believing themselves charged with protecting the titular mystical energies known as the Seven Lights by their creator god G-One, the wheel around which the Warriors' society turns is the Primus Vanguard, a series of color-coded orders led by G-One's disciple Primus for this purpose. The strength of the Vanguard wanes as threats both internal and external loom, and Primus seeks out forbidden knowledge...

Overview

	Precursor World
Spin Off: "Cybertron Convobat" "Cybertron Magna Convoy" Spin Off web content: Convobat Magna Convoy Blue Big Convoy Generations Selects Special Comic: Star Convoy Seacons Super Megatron God Neptune Volcanicus Abominus Finale Other: Profile+

The Precursor World was first introduced in 2016 with "Cybertron Convobat", a pack-in comic for TakaraTomy's exclusive Spin Off imprint. Here, the diminutive clones Convobat and Megalligator fought to escape the laboratory of their creator Straxus. In the following installment, "Cybertron Magna Convoy", the details of the setting began to unfurl as Convobat ventured into the wider world and the concept of the Primus Vanguard was introduced as Straxus and Magna Convoy fought over the Vanguard's legacy amidst its ruins. These comics were supplemented by online prologues as well as Profile+, a feature on the official e-HOBBY twitter account that provided additional art and story tidbits.

In Spin Off's final installment, the narrative flashed back to the glory days of the Vanguard to introduce Blue Big Convoy, commander of the Blue Order, as well as the Vanguard's nemeses, the Specters.

The story was next picked up in 2019 with the Generations Selects Special Comic, a feature to promote TakaraTomy's offerings in the Generations Selects toyline. As such, it saw a series of Generation 1 characters shunted backwards in time to the Precursor universe, with particular emphasis placed on Optimus Prime and Galvatron. This series took place between the Convobat and Blue Big Convoy comics, dramatizing the rise and fall of the Primus Vanguard that led to the conflict in Magna Convoy's comic.

Creative team

The initial Spin Off pack-in comics developing the Precursor World and their various ancillary media were created by writer/artist Shin Sasaki and colorist Kazumasa Yasukuni.

The opening arc of the Generations Selects Special Comic was helmed by Sasaki as well, until with the final installment of the Seacons chapter the series was dramatically expanded in scope and handed off to the team of writer/artist Hayato Sakamoto, colorists Josh Perez and Gufu Kandagawa, general assistants Lebanon Sugi and Ricken, and many, many more.

Conceptual history

Magna Convoy makes his triumphant return in the finale of somebody else's toyline.

The exact nature of the Precursor World as a concept underwent some development over a number of comics from two major creators released by e-HOBBY and TakaraTomy. As presented in the Legends Spin Off comics by Shin Sasaki, the setting appears to be a universe totally unconnected to previous stories. Characters like Straxus and Rollermaster were given new backstories, while Convobat's function of "Amazon Warrior" implied that his pack-in comic takes place on Earth. Blue Big Convoy's comic presents the Vanguard as operating on a multiversal level similar to pre-existing groups while also pulling in Go Prime under the name "Master Black Lion", an Aligned continuity character previously established as being a multiversal traveller.

Under the Generations Selects line, Sasaki showed Optimus Prime and Galvatron being summoned from 2011 of the Japanese Generation 1 universe (known in-continuity as the "G1 World") to an undescribed time and place to face off against a swarm of Novaroids and eventually the two teams of Seacons. Of particular note here is the third Seacon comic, Sasaki's last work in the series, which shows Halfshell plotting on behalf of an unseen entity to create a new future, this being the earliest hint at this setting being in the distant past.

After this, Hayato Sakamoto presented the setting as the universe that existed before the G1 World, with multiple characters time-travelling back and forth between the two eras. Sakamoto also elaborated on concepts introduced by Sasaki, such as seven varieties of Star Power being derived from The One.

It wasn't until the Generations Selects finale that Sakamoto finally explicitly reconciled Spin Off and Generations Selects, and the mechanics of the transition to the G1 World were fully elucidated:

The events of Spin Off were confirmed to occur after the events of Generations Selects but before the yet-to-be-depicted universal rebirth that produces the G1 World. Furthermore, in an extended dialogue between Primacron and Primus in the immediate aftermath of the Big Bang, it was revealed that they would be the only two direct survivors from the Precursor World, with the "reincarnation" many characters anticipated throughout the narrative simply taking the form of a generalized life force making the journey within the Matrix of Leadership along with Primus.

Thus, the future is now wide open for new stories with the Primus Vanguard characters in the Precursor World setting, albeit with the threat of the Ragnarok that will ultimately produce the familiar Generation 1 cartoon looming ever on the horizon.

References

• Complete archive of Precursor World translations courtesy of Mohair Translations
• Lettered Precursor World translations by Fanofcoolstuff27