Transformer afterlife
| This article is about the extradimensional entity also known as the Matrix. For the Unicron Trilogy power plant, see Allspark Power Generation Station. |
| The name or term "Matrix" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Matrix (disambiguation). |
The Allspark is the source of Transformer life. Frequently it is glossed as the essence of Primus.
Evolution
The concept of The Allspark has evolved and coalesced over the course of almost all Transformer fiction since the line began. The specific concepts that have evolved into "The Allspark" are traced below:
Generation 1 Cartoon
The Autobot Matrix of Leadership is a powerful, mysterious, and ancient vessel that contains the wisdom of all past Autobot leaders.
Marvel Comic
The Autobot Creation Matrix is a powerful and ancient vessel that contains the essence of the Transformers God Primus. All Transformers lifeforces are said to be fragments of Primus' own.
Beast Wars
Transformer life force is first described as a spark. This spark is said to come from the Matrix when a Transformer is born and return to it upon his death. The exact nature of what the Matrix here is, is not established but wait for it...
Beast Machines
What was known as "the Matrix" in Beast Wars is first refered to as "the Allspark." It is defined as the dimension from which all Transformer sparks that exist, have existed, or ever will exist originate, existing as a collective whole.
When a Transformer is "born," a single spark departs the Allspark and suffuses itself into the new Transformer body, giving it true life and soul. When the Transformer then reaches the end of its life, the spark departs its body and returns to the Allspark; all the knowledge that the Transformer acquired and all of its life experiences are contained with the spark, and they are added to the totality that is the Allspark.
(The connection of the Allspark to Primus is not made explicit at this point but seems an obvious one to many fans).
Dreamwave
The Well of All Sparks exists on Cybertron and seems to have some connection to the mystical source of Transformer life.
The fictive foundation of Sparks and the Allspark laid down in the Beast Era material is taken up and brought together with the concept of Primus
Means of access
There are several known means of accessing the Allspark.
- Most prominently, there is the Matrix of Leadership, the legendary talisman carried by Autobot leaders. In addition to permitting the creation of new Transformer life by transferring a spark from the Allspark, the Matrix also allows Autobots to access the Allspark's accumulated wisdom by sending their own spark into it, to be guided and informed by the sparks of the deceased Autobot leaders. This method, in particular, seems to have caused some confusion amongst Transformers - the Allspark has been called "The Matrix" on several occasions, and many Transformers labor under the misconception that the Matrix of Leadership actually contains the sparks of the Autobot leaders.
- Secondly, there is the mega-computer Vector Sigma, which, like the Matrix, endows new Transformers with life through the transferrence of sparks. The most common method of communication with the Allspark via Vector Sigma involves the use of its shell program, the Oracle, which permits a "receptive spark" to commune directly with the collective intelligence of the Allspark; at one stage, however, Optimus Prime used the empty shell of the Matrix of Leadership to access the Allspark through Vector Sigma and spoke directly to Alpha Trion.
All Spark (cube)
(Note: The movie uses the spelling "All Spark" (two words, rather than one) to refer to the object.)
The All spark is a physical object of mysterious origin. A large, metallic cube, it is inscribed with ornate runes and is believed to be responsible for creating and sustaining the Transformer race and the planet of Cybertron itself. Also believed, solving the puzzle of the Cube will grants you all the pleasure of Heaven.
(Note: The movie's Allspark is a big cube because, in the original screenplay, it was going to be called the "Energon Cube.")
Prequel
Swayed to the side of evil by the lure of the All spark's power, Cybertron's co-ruler Lord Megatron went rogue with his own army, seeking to take control of it. At Optimus Prime's orders, Bumblebee and a group of Autobots secretly transported the All spark to Tyger Pax, only to be pursued by the Decepticons. Megatron himself took a personal hand in the torture of Bumblebee, attempting to force him to reveal the All spark's location, but his efforts went in vain, and the All spark was blasted into space to put it beyond Megatron's reach. In response, Megatron crushed Bumblebee's voice box and began to follow the All spark to Earth.
Notes
- The All spark is comparable to both the Linkage, (the communal soul dimension of the Mini-Cons.) and also aspects of the Creation Matrix as mentioned above. Having dropped the title "Energon Cube" early in development, the writers adopted another canon term from G1 that, while still not accurate, is slightly more in keeping with the nature of the original Matrix. This completes the slow convergence of the Matrix, Vector Sigma, Energon and Primus into a single concept.
