Optimus Minor
- Optimus Minor is a Maximal in the Beast Wars portion of the Generation 1 continuity family.
Optimus Minor is an upbeat and lively warrior. He has a tendency to make jokes even when the situation is rather grim and not to always think things through in advance, but he's always up for a mission, even when the odds of success (or even survival) are low. Sounds like fun.
What relationship, if any, he has to Optimus Primal (or, for that matter, Optimus Prime) has never been discussed.
Fiction
Beast Wars
Toy Bio
A result of Megatron's cloning experiments, Optimus Minor possesses many traits commonly attributed to monkeys: agility, speed, intelligence, and a superior ability to climb stuff. His animal instincts serve him well in battle, where he is a savage fighter. However, like many Transmetal 2's, he has rage issues and trouble controlling the resulting violent urges.
(Note: In the toy bios all Transmetal 2s are presented as being the results of Megatron's cloning experiments. However neither the Cartoon nor the IDW Comics have limited them to this origin. IDW Minor does not result from cloning experiments nor does he apparently experience TM2 rage.)
On their way back to Cybertron after the conclusion of the Beast Wars, Rattrap has a dream:
Optimus Minor, Bonecrusher, and Wolfang rescue Rattrap from Dinobot 2. Minor says that they cannot return with Rattrap. Although they were "once" Maximals, they now have a purpose which does not include fighting.
(Note: This story was part of the Dreamwave Summer Special. Readers got to vote, using a ballot in this issue, whether the next comic series would be Beast Wars or Robots in Disguise. Beast Wars won, but Dreamwave went bankrupt before the series was published. Also, this is a separate continuity from IDW's Beast Wars comic.)
Razorbeast is ordered by Magmatron to wake the remaining Axalon stasis pods on prehistoric Earth as Predacons. Thankfully for Optimus Minor, Razorbeast is working undercover and inserts a viral code into the protoform-awakening process. This virus causes many of the protoforms to retain their Maximal status. This includes Optimus Minor, who is among the first to join up with Razorbeast. Razorbeast and Minor are responsible for fouling Magmatron's attempt to send Megatron back to the Tripredacus Council. Instead, Magmatron himself is sent back. The Maximals thwart Magmatron's plans to conquer Cybertron, but they are now stranded on ancient Earth.
Optimus Minor fought alongside his fellow Earthbound Maximals against Ravage's Predacons and later the Blendtrons.
When Razorbeast was infected by Rartorata with Angolmois, Minor stuck with him, encouraging his friend to fight the madness-inducing effects of the poisoning. But in the end, Optimus Minor was forced to shoot Razorbeast in the head to prevent him from turning the Angolmois-rage on other Maximals. Minor was deeply distraught at this turn of events, and was consoled by B'Boom.
Toys
Beast Wars
- Optimus Minor (Basic, 1998)
- Transforms into a Transmetal 2 monkey by changing his legs into arms, and his arms become legs. In robot mode his tail becomes a whip, grabbed by a pin in his right arm.
