Optimus Prime (RID)

The name or term "Optimus Prime" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Optimus Prime (disambiguation).

Optimus Prime is the Autobot leader from the Robots in Disguise continuity family.

Ironically, filled with burning justice.

Optimus Prime is a stern and serious commander, devoted to protecting freedom and innocent life. He has seen the galactic path of conquest and destruction already burned by Megatron and swears it will not include Earth. Optimus Prime often finds himself in the role of "straight man" to the more comic stylings of the other Autobots and Predacons, and tends to treat their humorous exaggerations or personality quirks as statements of straightforward fact. His subordinates view him as a great leader, if stubborn and much too prone to long speeches. Optimus Prime's greatest weakness is his sense of nobility. If an adversary claims to have had a change of heart and discovered inner goodness, Prime will fall for it every single time.

Japanese name: Fire Convoy

Fiction

Robots in Disguise cartoon

Voice actor: Neil Kaplan (English), Satoshi Hashimoto (Japanese), Guilherme Briggs (Portuguese)

Optimus Prime was created, along with Ultra Magnus, by Alpha Trion during the Golden Age. The two of them were raised together, and thus, saw each other as brothers. However, this relationship was torn apart after the Cybertron Civil Wars, whereupon the Matrix chose Optimus Prime to command the Autobots in stopping the Predacon leader Megatron from ravaging the universe in his quest for energy. Ultra Magnus left Cybertron that same day, bitter and spiteful of his brother.

Prime soon struck up command on Earth, where he took the form of a fire truck. Operating out of a secret base in Metro City, he and his fellow Autobots were more than ready to face Megatron and his Predacons. The conflict began when Megatron appeared in New York, attempting to kidnap the famous scientist Doctor Kenneth Onishi. Optimus struck up a friendship with Onishi's son, Koji, and despite not being able to save the boy's father, vowed that he would help rescue him. Battle Protocol!

In the events that followed, Prime was forced to deal with the Predacons' many energy-grabbing schemes, either personally, or indirectly by way of helping T-AI coordinate the movement of his troops by way of the Global Space Bridge.

However, Prime soon found another threat, in the form of the Decepticons—namely, one named Scourge. Scourge was a corrupted Autobot protoform, who, in addition to being infused with Megatron's evil, scanned Optimus Prime and a tanker truck at the same time, resulting in his looking like a twisted clone of the Autobot leader. The Decepticons Prime hoped that Scourge and his fellow Decepticons would one day be restored to their true Autobot selves, but after the Decepticons themselves tried to use this to trick him, he decided he should not allow this to cloud his judgement. The Test

Matters escalated when Ultra Magnus appeared on Earth, making his desire to take the Matrix from Optimus Prime known to his "brother". Optimus refused to fight Magnus, and was thus mercilessly fired upon, until Side Burn, Prowl, and X-Brawn arrived to carry him away. Prime took refuge on a deserted island, but the Decepticons, Megatron, and Magnus all tracked him there. In the midst of the battle, Magnus forcibly activated their ability to combine into Omega Prime, intending to use it to drain Prime of his energy so he could take the Matrix, but Optimus managed to take control and use their combination to stop the Decepticons. Ultra Magnus: Forced Fusion! This fusion apparently resulted in both Autobots sharing the Matrix's power, which led to Magnus's attitude softening towards his brother.

Eventually, it was revealed that Megatron's true purpose on Earth was to take control of the massive Autobot, Fortress Maximus. These events led to Megatron becoming the more powerful Galvatron, who eventually devastated the Autobot forces. In his final battle with the evil leader, Prime and Magnus combined into Omega Prime to face Galvatron at the Earth's core. They were seemingly no match for him, until Fortress Maximus sent them his power, which energized the Matrix, forming the giant weapon, the Matrix Blade. Galvatron was defeated, and with that, the Autobots' mission on Earth was finished, and Prime resolved to return to Cybertron—but not before "one last look around" with Koji and the rest of his team. The Final Battle

Ultra Magnus...to the Rescue?

With the other Autobots all engaged in other fights around the world, Optimus Prime alone was available to answer T-AI's battle protocol at an experimental nuclear generator in Arizona. His opening plan was to lure the Predacons and Decepticons away from the humans to battle them at a safe distance, but his wayward brother Ultra Magnus intervened, confronting the villains head on in the middle of the generator plant. As Prime chastised Magnus for his rash action, Scourge overheard and seized on the idea to threaten the humans if the Autobots didn't stand down. Despite his anger at Optimus, Ultra Magnus remembered his Autobot training and reluctantly laid down his weapon. At the proper moment, though, the brothers managed to attack a distracted Scourge and save the humans. The Predacons and Decepticons escaped with the generator, but the humans were safe. Ultra Magnus...to the Rescue?

Universe comic

Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus were among the countless Transformers pulled from the multiverse to engage in the death-duels of the Cauldron deep inside the shattered Unicron. As Omega Prime, they escaped this fate in the jail-break set by Trailbreaker and Silverbolt. Escape

Cybertron comic

During the final battle with the Minions of Unicron in the Pit, Optimus Prime and Ultra Magnus (as Omega Prime) were fighting alongside the Children of Primus when the corrupt pocket universe began to collapse around them. Omega Prime and the others fled through a dimensional portal, but the powerlinxed brothers were diverted by the former Mini-Con Over-Run into another reality, just in time to stop Nemesis Prime from unleashing the Dead Matrix inside the Spark Chamber of Primus. The evil clone was vanquished, and the brothers hooked up with Sentinel Maximus and his comrades as they attempted to fortify Cybertron against the Unicron Singularity.

Working relatively behind the scenes while that reality's Optimus Prime and his crew searched for the Cyber Planet Keys, Optimus Prime and his brother found themselves moderating an internal dispute among the Mini-Con colonies in Cybertron's debris field, and were engaged with a Cybertronian-sized version of Unicron himself when Primus first transformed due to an infusion of Cyber Key Power. Some months later, after the final battle with the Cyber Key empowered Galvatron, Optimus Prime first met his local counterpart, and they exchanged information on their endeavors over the last few months. With the newly reformed Unicron on the loose after their last encounter, Optimus chose to join Ultra Magnus and Sentinel Maximus in hunting him down. The final fate of their mission, and whether the brothers ever returned to their home reality, remains to be seen. Balancing Act

Toys

Robots in Disguise

BURNING JUSTICE

OpthimuthPrimeMaxthimithe.ogg Sound Chip Sounds from RiD Optimus Prime. It's no "Hypergoldfish! GOLFBALL!", but at least he has a lisp... — 96 Kb

• Optimus Prime (Super, 2000, 2001)
  • Japanese ID number: C-001
  • Accessories: Pistol, 4 missiles

Robots in Disguise Optimus Prime transforms into a Japanese Hino Brandlier fire truck. Harkening back to Generation 1 toys, he features chromed wheels with rubber tires. The forward section of his truck detaches to become his standard robot mode. His 'trailer' can be reconfigured into a sort of battle station. The station can then be disassembled and attached around the robot to form his Battle Mode. His standard robot can combine with Ultra Magnus to form Omega Prime.

The original Takara Car Robots release differs from the Hasbro version in that it has a darker, metallic-flake plastic, and has no Autobot symbols tampo-printed on the shoulder pads. Obviously, the voice clips used for the Japanese toy are also different, although the English clips are essentially translations of the Japanese ones (with the Hasbro toy incorrectly proclaiming that Optimus Prime's transformation into super mode uses the code-phrase "maximize"). Additionally, the Hasbro version has the unfortunate tendency for its rubber tires to split down its molding connection. Furthermore, Fire Convoy's missiles are of a different mold on the Japanese toy. The toy’s ladder features a trigger that flips all four of his missile launchers forward into firing position when pressed. On Fire Convoy, pressing this trigger causes all four missiles to immediately launch (if by "launch" you mean "be-flung-up-into-the-air-and-fall-to-the-ground-instantly") when they flip forward, whereas the Hasbro toy removes the auto-fire feature, allowing them to be launched one-at-a-time via individual triggers.

By some bizarre twist of fate, the standard robot mode has four Mini-Con ports on his arms before they were used in Armada.

• More information on Optimus Prime at TFU.info

• Black Super Fire Convoy (Super, 2000/2001)
  • Accessories: Pistol, 4 missiles

Also known as "Super Fire Convoy Black Version" and "Dark Super Fire Convoy", this black repaint of the Optimus Prime figure featured a golden chrome chest, and clear sirens. It was available only as a prize in several contests held by Takara: 15 units were avaialble as prizes in a raffle held in TV Magazine in July; 400 were raffled off in a drawing that involved sending in coupons that came with the Car Robots DVDs (200 from October to December 2000, and 200 more from March to May 2001); and an undetermined amount were offered in a scratch-card contest also held by TV Magazine.

This figure was also sold in a giftest with a black version of Ultra Magnus as "Black God Fire Convoy", noted below.

• Clear Super Fire Convoy (Super, 2000)
  • Accessories: Pistol, 4 missiles

Clear Super Fire Convoy is, as his name suggests, constructed primarily of translucent plastic, and like the Black Version of the figure, was only available as a contest prize. An unknown number of units were raffled off as part of the "Convoy Car Robots Campaign" between June and July 2000, while 15 were avaialble at drawings held at Tokyo's Seibu Department Store between the 15th and 28th of August.

This figure was also sold in a giftest with a translucent version of Ultra Magnus as "Clear God Fire Convoy", noted below.

• More information on Clear Super Fire Convoy at TFU.info

• Black God Fire Convoy (Giftset, 2000)

This two-figure giftset includes the Black Super Figure Convoy figure, plus a black version of the Ultra Magnus figure (itself exceptionally rare), who together combine to form Black God Fire Convoy. It was ludicrously limited in its availablity, with the only ten units known to exist being offered as prizes in a scratch-card contest that TV Magazine run until early November 2000.

• Clear God Fire Convoy (Giftset, 2000)
  • Accessories: Matrix Blade

This two-figure giftset includes the Clear Super Figure Convoy figure, plus a clear version of the Ultra Magnus figure not available anywhere else, who together combine to form Clear God Fire Convoy. The set also included the Matrix Blade sword, which had previously been available only through various contests and raffles.

The giftset was exclusive to Japanese Toys"R"Us stores. Released in November 2000, it was limited to 3000 pieces; reportedly, only 100 TRUs carried the set, and limited customers to one purchase on the day of release.

Tiny BURNING JUSTICE

• Optimus Prime (Basic, 2002)

This is a smaller, simplified version of Robots in Disguise Optimus Prime made for the Spy Changer/Basic class in the Robots In Disguise toyline. It has no standard robot mode and parts do not detach. Oddly, all promotional images of this figure depicted it colored in orange.

• More information on Spychanger Optimus Prime at TFU.info

Universe

File:Universe RID OptimusPrime toy.jpg

LEMON-FLAVORED BURNING JUSTICE

• Optimus Prime (Supreme, 2003)
  • Accessories: Pistol, 4 missiles

A Sam's Club exclusive, the Universe release of Robots in Disguise Optimus Prime basically swapped out all of his red plastic for a yellow-orange color. He came packed in robot mode in an upright display package, which featured a sticker on the front with a hilariously mistransformed Omega Prime, advertising the toy's combining ability with the simultaneously-released, slightly-redecoed Sam's Club exclusive Universe release of Robots In Disguise Ultra Magnus.

For some reason, the Autobot symbol on his chest in Battle Mode is left unpainted.

• More information on Universe Optimus Prime at TFU.info

File:Universe Spychanger OptimusPrime Prowl toys.jpg

Tiny LEMON-FLAVORED BURNING JUSTICE with donut chaser

• Optimus Prime and Prowl (Basic, 2003)

One of a half-dozen Wal-Mart exclusive Universe toys to hit in the span of a few short months in 2003, this version of Prime is a yellow redeco of the Robots in Disguise Spy Changer Prime (with an oddly-unpainted face), based on the Sam's Club version of the larger toy. He was only available in a Basic-pricepoint two-pack with Prowl.

This toy was later repurposed as an alternate universe version of Optimus Prime by the OTFCC 2004 Live-Action Script Reading.

• More information on Universe Spychanger Optimus Prime at TFU.info

Titanium Series

METAL BURNING JUSTICE

• Optimus Prime (6" Cybertron Heroes, 2006)
  • Accessories: Display stand, nameplate

Titanium Series Optimus is a six-inch tall die-cast metal and plastic version of Robots in Disguise Optimus Prime. In vehicle mode the ladder rotates at its base and the nozzles flip out of the end of the ladder, but the ladder cannot extend. As he is much simplified compared to the larger toy, the (largely hollow) front of the vehicle cannot separate and form the standard robot mode, nor can the rear of the vehicle form the battlestation. Instead, the entire fire truck transforms into a simplified version of the super robot Battle Mode.

This mold was also used to make Titanium Series Hot Zone.

• More information on Titanium Optimus Prime at TFU.info

Merchandise

Transformers DX

Puny BURNING JUSTICE

• Fire Convoy (2000)
  • Accessories: Pistol

As part of Kabaya's first collection of Robots in Disguise-themed candy toys, Optimus Prime was one of three pre-assembled transforming figurines packaged with lemon candy. Capable of transforming into only the cab portion of his vehicle mode, Prime's robot mode could also be upgraded into his Super Mode by attaching several additional armor pieces (two boots, two gauntlets, two arm-cannons, two shoulder guards, a head, a chest piece and a ladder), some of which came packaged with Prime himself, and the rest of which were split between the other two figures in the line, Rapid Run and Prowl.

Transformers Gum

Out of scale BURNING JUSTICE

• Fire Convoy (2000)
  • Japanese ID number: 1
  • Accessories: Pistol

Part of the second wave of Kabaya's Robots in Disguise candy toys, this version of Prime is a diminutive non-transforming model kit packaged with a stick of gun. Split across two plastic sprues, the kit is made of metallic silver and translucent red pieces with some painted details, which must be cut off their sprues and assembled by the buyer.

• Super Fire Convoy (2000)
  • Japanese ID number: 2

Also part of the second Kabaya candy toy wave, this version of Prime is likewise non-transforming, silver and translucent red, and packaged with gum.

Trans Kit

White Chocolate, Blueberry, and Cherry (not pictured) BURNING JUSTICE

• Super Fire Convoy (2000)
  • Japanese ID number: 1

Part of the third and final wave of Kabaya's RiD candy toys, this non-transforming Prime model kit is cast entirely in one color of plastic, but was available in either grey, blue or red. It came packaged in a two-piece box with candy-coated chocolates.

• Fire Convoy (2000)
  • Japanese ID number: 2
  • Accessories: Pistol

Like his larger self, this version of Prime was also available in both grey, blue and red plastic.

Robot Heroes

• Optimus Prime / Megatron

File:Robotheroesprimemegatron.jpg

ADORABLE BURNING JUSTICE with lazy madman

Your bargaining posture is highly dubious. Proceed on your way to oblivion. This item has been canceled, with no current plans for release.

Notes

• According to the first Car Robots toy catalog, Optimus and his Autobots are part of a "Dimensional Patrol" that followed the Predacons from another dimension. This seems to have been only vaguely alluded to in the Japanese version of the show—Fire Convoy proclaimed in the first episode that he would follow Gigatron wherever he went, "even if it's to the edge of the universe"—but does not seem to have played a large part of the main story, to the extent that the Robots in Disguise dub was able to omit it entirely. However, the 3H supplemental materials for the Universe series re-established the idea, presenting the "Dimensional Patrol" as a post-cartoon organization.

• The first Car Robots catalog also stated that Fire Convoy and Gigatron were once "childhood friends" that became eternal rivals. We don't really have any idea how that was supposed to work.

• Fans in Japan joke that Optimus Prime is an Autobot Emperor of Destruction rather than an Autobot Supreme Commander, due to his actions in the Car Robot anime.

• For this incarnation of Optimus, voice actor Neil Kaplan specifically impersonated the voice of the original Optimus Prime, Peter Cullen. Robots in Disguise Optimus Prime is one of the few Optimuses (two as of 2008) whose English voice actor isn't Cullen or Garry Chalk. At conventions, Kaplan refers to himself as "the George Lazenby of Optimus Primes".

• Cybertron "Multi-Pack" Optimus Prime's on-package bio seems to indicate he's Unicron Trilogy Optimus Prime. However, his (and Magnus') deco was later used in the Fun Publications Cybertron fan club magazine comic as Robots in Disguise Optimus Prime having traveled to the Unicron Trilogy universe.

• Optimus Prime's Super Mode chest resembles the chest of EnRyu from King of Braves GaoGaiGar, another Takara series. EnRyu also transforms into a fire truck with a similarly positioned "ladder cannon".

• This is the first incarnation of Optimus not to be killed off at any point during his series. Possibly due to the fact that he is not intended to be Optimus Prime in the original Car Robot series.