The many deaths of Optimus Prime
Across the various continuities, Optimus Prime dies a lot. This happens for various reasons:
- It allows for him to be replaced by a new character (and thus a new toy).
- It allows for him to come back from the dead in a new body (again, a new toy).
- It's dramatic (or it used to be).
- It makes him into something of a Christ-figure.
- It allows for numerous memorials to be constructed in his honor (though they're sometimes built even before he dies, morbidly enough).
Nearly every continuity family has featured Optimus Prime dying at least once; the only exceptions are the Primes from the 2001 Robots in Disguise cartoon (though this was later retconned), IDW Generation 1 continuity (though not without multiple near-death experiences), and Shattered Glass (since in that case, it's Megatron's job).
Some examples:
Generation 1 cartoon continuity
The Transformers cartoon
Orion Pax died (or was at least severely damaged by Megatron) and had to be rebuilt into Optimus Prime by Alpha Trion. It's possible that if Orion had not been repaired, Optimus Prime would have ceased to exist. Pax's girlfriend Ariel was also heavily damaged, and rebuilt into Elita One. They were with their friend Dion when they were attacked by Megatron, but he was never rebuilt and presumably died. War Dawn
The Transformers: The Movie
This is the best known example, in which Optimus Prime infamously dies of wounds from his battle with Megatron. Notably, his body turns gray as he dies. (Urban legend says his body also crumbles, but no such footage is known to exist.) Being the first time he died, it was actually unexpected. The Transformers: The Movie
Kiss Players
Sometime between 2005 and 2010, Marissa Faireborn revives Optimus using the Galvatron cells in her body... by kissing him. Ultimately, all the cells are put back into Galvatron, and without them, Optimus promptly dies again. You, I and the Spinning Earth
The Transformers Season 3
He returns from the dead twice; first as a zombie under Quintesson control as part of a plan to destroy the Autobots, only to die again when he overcomes the Quintesson control through the power of the Matrix and possibly the strength of his will, and sacrifices himself to save the Autobots. Dark Awakening He then was brought to life again (and stayed alive). The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 1
The Headmasters
"YES, you are!"
"You think that's funny, Jennings?!"
Prime's death in The Transformers: The Movie was sort-of recreated in a flashback montage, but not really. Rather than die while taking down his ultimate nemesis in a one-on-one struggle to the death to defend his city, his comrades, the planet Earth, and freedom itself, he just kind of gets randomly shot while in the middle of an ordinary battle outside of the Autobot Headquarters, and turns gray. Nobody else seems to notice this. It's not clear that Prime himself notices it. It's about the most half-hearted death ever. Four Warriors Come out of the Sky
Optimus Prime later died again — in another act of self-sacrifice, of course — when he walked into Vector Sigma and tried to bring it back under control directly. His body turned gray as he died, followed by a (likely only symbolic) scene of him telling Rodimus Prime that it would be his responsibility to keep leading the Autobots and to continue his work, seen as a transparent, light-haloed figure against the sky and heard in third person narration as Rodimus stared into the sky. (Then again, given the proven existence of ghosts...) Birth of the Fantastic Double Prime
Return of Convoy
The Battlestars managed to restore Optimus's life with the power of the Zodiac, evolving him into Star Convoy. The Battlestars
Generation 2
In the Japanese version of Generation 2, Optimus Prime was badly wounded by Megatron's fusion cannon and almost died, but was resurrected and evolved yet again, this time into Laser Rod Optimus Prime, by the power of the Reconfiguration Matrix. G-2 #13
Henkei! manga
Marvel Comics continuity
Generation 1
Optimus Prime, after failing to live up to his moral principles while playing a video game against Megatron, actually volunteers to be killed. The Autobots launch his funeral bier into space. Fortunately, the creator of the video game, Ethan Zachary, saves a backup copy of Prime's mind on a floppy disk. Afterdeath! We first meet this virtual Prime sixteen issues later. Pretender to the Throne! He gets his new Powermaster body two issues thereafter. People Power! A previous attempt was made at making virtual Prime a new body. The body spontaneously blew up. Totaled!
About thirty issues later, Prime sacrifices himself again to defeat Unicron On the Edge of Extinction! and dies. Still Life! However, his Powermaster partner, Hi-Q, survives, and almost immediately begins babbling about how he's really Optimus Prime. This turns out to be true, and the Last Autobot metamorphoses Hi-Q into Prime (with a new Action Master body) in the last issue of the original Marvel US series. End of the Road!
Generation 2
This Prime wasn't done dying yet. His adventures continued in the G2 comics, and he died defeating the Swarm. The Swarm reconstituted him three pages later (in a body based on his then-current Hero toy). A Rage in Heaven!
Regeneration One
Template:Noterg1 Despite being possessed by the Dark Matrix creature, a wounded Optimus Prime was able to help Rodimus Prime and Circuit Smasher stop the creature's plan to spread across the multiverse from Zero Space. At the conclusion of the conflict, Rodimus and Spike bore witness as Optimus died in his protege's arms in the Primus chamber. The War to End All Wars, Part 5
Dreamwave Armada comic
An Optimus Prime from a Primax universe where he was fatally wounded by Unicron briefly appears before dying. Worlds Collide, Part 1 of 4 Yep, practically all we know about this Optimus is that he died. He doesn't turn gray, but his colors are faded.
IDW Generation 1 continuity
It looks like this Optimus Prime made a habit of almost dying even before he became a Prime - Megatron shoots him in the back, Overthrown and one issue later every Autobot believes Orion Pax is dead... but is he? (SPOILER ALERT: No, he's not.) Transformation
In his first battle with the Ore-13 powered Megatron, Optimus was killed. Escalation issue 5 Or at least, his main body was: by quickly downloading his consciousness into Combat Deck (and then back again), Optimus was able to survive. Being that close to death meant he briefly existed in a limbo state, which got him noticed by Nova Prime in the Dead Universe. Escalation issue 6
He then spends a considerable period badly damaged and near death. He is revived, however, when Kup and his crew arrive. All Hail Megatron
A rare metaphorical version occurs when he leaves Cybertron to appease the anti-Autobot NAILs. With no duties or lives to mind but his own, and no Matrix to carry, he claims that Optimus Prime is dead, but Orion Pax has been reborn. The Death of Optimus Prime Of course, just like the real deaths, this one doesn't stick; Orion later reclaims the Optimus name during his final battle with Nova Prime. Finis Temporis
Beast Wars cartoon continuity
Beast Wars cartoon
In Beast Wars and Beast Machines, you could mark the end of a season by the near-death experience of one Optimus or another...
At the end of the first season of Beast Wars, Optimus Primal piloted a bomb-equipped stasis pod in an attempt to destroy the Planet Buster. Unfortunately, Megatron had sealed the pod's hatch, and Optimus blew up with it. Other Voices, Part 2 Early in the second season (a few hours later as far as the characters were concerned), Rhinox managed to unite Optimus's drifting spark with a blank protoform, thus bringing him back to life (and in a new Transmetal body, too).Coming of the Fuzors (Part 2)
At the end of the second season, the Beast Wars Megatron came very close to killing the original Optimus Prime. But Prime didn't quite die, so we really shouldn't count it. The Agenda (Part III)
(Strangely, the end of the third season of Beast Wars had no Optimus deaths whatsoever! A half-dozen others died, but not Optimus.) Nemesis Part 2
Beast Machines cartoon
At the end of the first season of Beast Machines, Optimus and Megatron had a cataclysmic battle, using the energies of Vector Sigma and the Plasma Energy Chamber. This would have destroyed Cybertron, but Optimus took the warring energies into himself and disintegrated. However, his spark was trapped within the Oracle, and the other Maximals convinced him to return to the real world at the start of second season. The Oracle kindly gave him a new body (which, believe it or not, was not a new toy).End of the Line
At the end of the series, Optimus Primal gave his life to defeat Megatron once and for all, pushing him into the technorganic core of the planet. Endgame Pt. III: Seeds of the Future In assorted ancillary media, he comes back to life yet again. Transformers: Universe Beast Wars Reborn Transformers: Alternators
Beast Wars: Uprising
We don't actually get to see an Optimus of this universe die, but both Optimus Prime and Optimus Primal have died off-page. In this universe, the Builders of Cybertron, the former Autobots and Decepticons, constructed the Maximals and Predacons as proxy armies to continue a never-ending grudge that the Builders were too decrepit to continue fighting. Optimus Prime died at some point between the early 21st century and the early 25th century. Broken Windshields
Meanwhile, Blackarachnia was one of several rebels against this status quo, but her breaking point came when her colleagues Silverbolt and Rhinox died. When her commander Optimus Primal refused to turn against the Builders, Blackarachnia and Nightscream killed him. "TransTech" Blackarachnia's profile in Club magazine #25
Robots in Disguise continuity family
2001 Robots in Disguise cartoon
This Optimus Prime is one of the only Primes that didn't die! However, he came very close in the final battle, when he planned to sacrifice himself to stop Galvatron. The Final Battle
Shell Game
And scratch what we said above, because a 2015 retcon says a version of him was killed by Megazarak in Viron 704.31 Epsilon. Shell Game The tyrannical Decepticon's victory had come about in part due to the transdimensional abductions of several of Prime's loyal Autobots by Unicron. Ask Vector Prime
Unicron Trilogy continuity family
Armada cartoon
Optimus Prime used his body to block the blast of Megatron's Hydra Cannon, protecting the Earth. When the cannon's energy is spent, we see Optimus turn grayish-white, then actually crumble to bits. Crisis A bunch of Mini-Cons use the Matrix to resurrect him three episodes later. Miracle
Cybertron comic
The corpse of Optimus Prime (killed by Megazarak) from Aurex 304.0 Epsilon was cloned by Unicron to create Nemesis Prime. Balancing Act, Part 2 Ask Vector Prime Once again, practically all we know about this Optimus is that he died.
Live-action film series
Transformers The Game
In Decepticon mode storyline, Optimus Prime was beaten to the ground, and as he crawled for the AllSpark, Megatron smashed his head with his flail ... poor Prime, he gets the most violent death. Transformers The Game (console)
Titan movie comics
Optimus was left in a frozen, near-death state. Twilight's Last Gleaming, Part: 1
Revenge of the Fallen movie
This is perhaps the most brutal Prime death to date, in keeping with the rather more graphic nature of combat in the live-action movies. To protect Sam Witwicky, Optimus Prime engaged in a fierce battle with Megatron, Starscream, and Grindor. Despite injuring Starscream and destroying Grindor by ripping his head apart, Optimus is viciously run-through from behind by Megatron and then blasted through the back, killing him. While dead, Optimus' body is depicted with faded colours in reference to his history of turning grey upon death. This event causes Sam to follow the symbols the AllSpark sliver placed in his mind to find the ancient Matrix of Leadership, the only thing that could restore life to Optimus. Unfortunately, it crumbled into dust upon touching it in the Tomb of the Primes on the border between Egypt and Jordan. During the climactic battle in Egypt between NEST and the Decepticons, Sam was seemingly killed by Megatron, only to be taken to another plane of existence where he met the Primes who died to prevent The Fallen from achieving victory, and they bestowed upon him the true Matrix, which allowed Sam to revive Optimus. Revenge of the Fallen
Age of Extinction movie
Optimus Prime is SO good at dying, that he started the movie effectively dead after a human ambush in between movies - obligatory human Cade brought him back to life with a few repairs and a jump-start with a car battery. Even if it's not the miracle of rebirth we're used to, nothing kills our Prime for long - not even treacherous humans with exploding heavy artillery. Age of Extinction
Animated
Animated cartoon
In part three, Optimus Prime dies after his battle with Starscream. Like the Generation 1 Prime before him, he turns gray upon dying. Seventy-five seconds later - for us AND for the characters - Sari Sumdac uses the mysterious AllSpark Key to revive him. Transform and Roll Out
The Cool comic
During their final battle on earth, Megatron fired a devastating blast from his fusion cannon which was super charged by Starscream's AllSpark-fragment-powered head before driving one of his swords straight through Optimus' chest and spark. However this, somehow, did not completely kill him as his cries of justice and heroics caused his spark to shine and made a reaction from the shard in Starscream's head, which flew at Optimus giving him new power and a new body. The Cool Episode Final
Aligned continuity family
Prime cartoon
Following the creation of a Decepticon fortress practically on the Autobots' doorstep, Optimus had the others evacuate the base while he heroically stayed behind to destroy the GroundBridge to cover their retreat. He was still in the base when the Decepticons blew it up. Darkest Hour Smokescreen pulled him from the rubble and he lay dying in a cavern for several days. Darkmount, NV His lingering death seemed like it was coming to an end when he had a vision of the bright light of the Allspark and spoke with Alpha Trion. In the real world, the light faded from Optimus's optics and his chest opened to reveal the Matrix, at which point Smokescreen used the Forge of Solus Prime to return him to life in a new, upgraded body. Rebellion
To defeat Unicron the second time, Optimus had to merge the AllSpark with the Matrix of Leadership so he could use the empty container to entrap his foe. This essentially resulted in his own spark becoming one with the AllSpark, and thus in order to restore the AllSpark to its rightful place, Optimus was required to make the ultimate act of self-sacrifice, giving up his own existence so that Cybertron might bear new life. Predacons Rising
2015 Robots in Disguise cartoon
Despite being dead, Optimus Prime appeared to Bumblebee in visions, first guiding Bumblebee to Earth. Pilot (Part 1) Optimus was able to physically manifest himself for a brief period in order to help Bumblebee's team defeat Underbite. Afterwards, Optimus stated that he wasn't sure if he was alive or not, nor did he know what the fates had for him. He then disappeared. Pilot (Part 2) In another vision to Bumblebee, Optimus stated that he can only reappear when the need for him is most dire, as decided by the Thirteen. W.W.O.D.? It was later revealed that Optimus existed in the Realm of the Primes, undergoing training for a new mission on Earth. Out of Focus When the Primes could sense the coming to that planet of Megatronus, Optimus had to convince the Thirteen that he was ready to face him, despite not completing his training. In order to him to face Megatronus, the Thirteen had to put segments of their own sparks into Optimus, causing him to upgrade into a new form. Optimus was thus sent to Earth, re-entering the mortal plane and cheating death once more. Battlegrounds, Part 1
Rescue Bots cartoon
While traveling back in time to the year 1939 in order to save the Rescue Bots from Doctor Morocco, The Autobots and the human children attempt to escape through the time portal to the present. However, while the rest of the team makes it through the portal back to the future, it abruptly closes, seemingly trapping Optimus. It appeared that the Autobot leader was lost in time. The portal however, suddenly reopens, and Optimus jumps out. When they emerge from the lab, they find Griffin Rock greatly changed. This was another near death experience for Optimus Prime. It's a Bot Time
See also
- Primus apotheosis
- Death
- Prime Spark - The short story explores the question of where
allmost of those Optimus-es go when they die. (Answer: someplace dull.) - God Ginrai - Often erroneously put in this category.
- Dirge (G1) - The appropriately named, yet very unlucky guy who gets killed off in many continuities (but less than Optimus Prime).
- Sentinel Prime - The Prime who must always die (Usually).
- Cy-Kill, who is repeatedly killed COS HE SUCKS LOLOLOLOL.
- Starscream - He dies a lot.
