Zeta Prime (G1)

This article is about the Optimus precursor from the Generation 1 continuities. For the Optimus precursor from War for Cybertron, see Sentinel Zeta Prime.

Zeta Prime is an Autobot from the Generation 1 continuity family.

The classic battle between evil and the narrator.

Thrust into authority by the death of the previous Matrix bearer, Zeta Prime took on the thankless job of heading the Autobot forces in the wake of Decepticon conflicts.

Fiction

Generation 1 cartoon

Voice actor: Phillip Clarke (English)

Zeta Prime inherited the Matrix of Leadership from Guardian Prime when he was killed during the early days of the war with the Decepticons. His stint as Autobot leader appears to have been a short-lived one, as he died before the end of the war and was succeeded by Sentinel Prime.

When Rodimus Prime journeyed into the Matrix in 2005, Zeta Prime was the fifth guide he encountered, who gave a very short account of the continuing Autobot-Decepticon war. Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4

IDW Comics continuity

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Zeta Prime was given the unenviable task of solidifying Sentinel Prime's Autobot security forces into a true army to withstand the civil war Cybertron suddenly found itself embroiled in. Towards this end, he locked down most recreational activities, as they were magnets for terrorist activity by the Decepticons. This included a direct order to shut down the races which brought Blurr's stardom. In the wake of these shutdowns, he increased Autobot recruitment heavily, and many former entertainers joined the Autobot forces, only to find they were ill-prepared for the realities of war. Many attempts on his life were hatched, including one which was intercepted by a group of Autobots that included a young soldier named Optimus. Optimus was able to convince Blurr to carry news of the plot to Zeta Prime before the assassins could reach him. Spotlight: Blurr

Kup later implied that, like his predecessor, Zeta Prime was killed by Megatron. All Hail Megatron #6

Notes

• The cartoon incarnation was never named in the cartoon. The distinctly unimaginative designation of "New Narrator" was granted in the dialogue script for "Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4", and "Zeta Prime" comes from Transformers Animated: The AllSpark Almanac Volume 2.
• The IDW Publishing version of Zeta Prime must not have had a very illustrious career at all. He wasn't included in the lineage of Primes depicted in Spotlight: Optimus Prime, though the real world explanation for this was the Zeta Prime character was created after Spotlight: Optimus Prime had been published.

	"Five Faces of Darkness" spirit guides
Primon Prima Prime Nova Guardian Prime Zeta Prime Sentinel Prime Optimus Prime