Transformer afterlife
| This article is about the afterlife. For the life giving object, see AllSpark. For a list of other meanings, see Allspark (disambiguation). |
The Allspark is, in the simplest terms possible, the Transformer "afterlife". Also known variously as the Matrix and the Well of All Sparks, it is the nigh-indefinable extradimensional realm, or force, or even entity that is the living essence of the Transformers' creator Primus.
At the heart of an endless, cyclical process of birth, death and resurrection, the Allspark it is both the source and destination of all Transformer sparks. When a Transformer is brought online, it is commonly through use of a sacred implement which serves as a means of access to the Allspark. Through this implement, a Spark departs the Allspark, and enters the new Transformer's body, granting it life. The Transformer then lives out their life, and upon the moment of their death, their spark will return to the Allspark, taking with it all the emotions, experiences and knowledge that the Transformers has gained throughout their time online. This knowledge is suffused into the Allspark, gathering with all the other knowledge of all the other sparks from throughout time, forming a collection of information known as the "Wisdom of the Ages".
There is little individuality within the Allspark, however; the individual Transformers' experiences become one with all the others in the Allspark, and they effectively cease to exist as a singular entity. Some Transformers do retain their individuality, however—typically, those who have had close contact with sacred implements, such as the Autobots who have carried the Matrix of Leadership, remain self-aware within the Allspark, and can serve as guides for any visitors into its realm.
| “ | Where...all are one. | ” |
—Rhinox after travelling through the Allspark, "Coming of the Fuzors (Part 2)" | ||
Conceptual history
The concept of The Allspark as it now exists has evolved and coalesced over the course of almost all Transformer fiction since the line began, and this article will cover its history to minimize confusion. For the specifics on the different interpretations of the Allspark in various continuities, see the "Fiction" section below.
The very beginnings of the concept of the Allspark arose with the Generation 1 cartoon, which introduced the Autobot Matrix of Leadership in The Transformers: The Movie. The Matrix was a powerful, ancient talisman, revealed in the episode "Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4" to be a vessel containing the life essences of its previous bearers, who stood sentinel over the accumulated "Wisdom of the Ages" within the Matrix, and guided Rodimus Prime through its depths when he sent his own life-force into the Matrix in search of answers about the Transformers' past. In a curious error, the ancient Autobot Alpha Trion was shown to exist within the Matrix in "The Return of Optimus Prime, Part 2", but also within the mega-computer Vector Sigma, with which he had previously merged, in "The Rebirth, Part 2". Vector Sigma had been shown to be responsible for giving Transformers life in previous episodes.
While the Generation 1 Marvel comic had debuted its version of the Matrix, the "Creation Matrix", before the cartoon under writer Bob Budiansky, it was not until after the cartoon introduced these concepts that writer Simon Furman expanded on the nature of the comic's Matrix. Furman revealed it to be a vessel containing the essence and power of the Transformers' creator and god Primus, in addition to explaining that all Transformer life-forces are fragments of Primus' own.
It was the Beast Wars cartoon that took understanding of Transformer life to the next level when it established the concept of sparks, the pulsating balls of energy that were all at once a Transformer's heart, mind and soul. Sparks, it was explained, came from "the Matrix", and would return to this realm when they died. Piggybacking on a trail left when Optimus Primal died in a transwarp explosion, Rhinox was even able to enter this "Matrix" and recover Primal's spark. Additionally, the Transformers could often be heard swearing "by the Matrix", indicating its reverential place in their belief system.
Beast Wars writers Bob Forward and Larry DiTillio did not have the precise concept of the Matrix as they had employed it fleshed out, envisioning it variously as a mysterious facility on Cybertron, from which Maximal protoforms emerged, or as the nebula that was home to the cartoon's enigmatic aliens, the Vok, thus making those creatures responsible for Transformer life in the Beast Era. The latter idea was never used (and has since been pushed well out of the realm of possibility by subsequent fiction) while the former would later be officialized over a decade later in the Transformers Collectors' Club story "The Razor's Edge". Regardless, it was Beast Wars own sequel series Beast Machines that was first to expand on what this "Matrix" truly was, forging it into the central concept of its own storyline. What Beast Wars had called the "Matrix", Beast Machines called the "Allspark", establishing it to be the realm from which all Transformer sparks "that ever lived, or ever will live" come from, cementing the vast majority of the details covered in the top section of this article.
A vague reference to the Allspark was later made in Robots in Disguise, when Vector Sigma was dubbed "the Allspark of Cybertron" in "Ultra Magnus: Forced Fusion!", the first linking of the Beast Era's handling of Transformer life to the Generation 1 cartoon. Later still, in Dreamwave Productions' More Than Meets The Eye guidebook, the concepts of the Beast Era were brought together with the Generation 1 Marvel comic's concept of Primus, to first form the idea of the Allspark as it has been known since. And the end of this tale, then, we are able to return to that original error from the Generation 1 cartoon regarding Alpha Trion, and retroactively gloss it away by understanding that he was not within either the Matrix or Vector Sigma, but within the Allspark, which was merely being accessed by these two items.
With the concept firmly in place, the Allspark was not particularly touched upon in fiction for the immediate future, with the entire Unicron Trilogy going by with only an occasional name-drop, such as characters swearing by "the Allspark of Cybertron", or, in the episode "Trap", Starscream referring to death as being sent to "meet the Allspark". In 2006, the bio of the e-Hobby exclusive "Laser" Ultra Magnus figure touched upon the Allspark again, taking a moment to explain why the Autobot leaders from the Generation 1 cartoon had appeared as individuals within the Allspark when Beast Machines had established this should not be the case: those who had held the Matrix of Leadership were exempt from this rule, and retained their individuality within the Allspark.
It was not until the advent of the 2007 live-action movie that the idea of the Allspark was thrust back into the fore, as its name was given to the legendary object that drove the film's plot, the huge cube that was the source of Transformer life in this continuity. Takara's World of the Transformers website then created the idea of the "god item", grouping Vector Sigma, the Matrix and the movie's AllSpark together as items capable of bestowing Transformer life, and by logical extension, connections to the Allspark realm.
Most recently, Transformers Animated has followed the live-action movie's lead, featuring a physical AllSpark object responsible for bestowing Transformer life, which was identified as another sacred implement by the guidebook Transformers Animated: The AllSpark Almanac II. To spare confusion, when the afterlife is discussed in the Animated cartoon, it is referred to not as the "Allspark", but as "the Well of All Sparks", after a location introduced in Dreamwave's comic which was itself another connection to the Allspark realm. By this count, then, the Allspark is known by three different names, each of which is in turn also the name of one of the objects used to access it. Is it any wonder this is confusing?
According to the most recent Transformers Line, Transformers: Prime, the Allspark, along with Vector Sigma, the Matrix of Leadership, and the Well of All Sparks, are portrayed as separate entities. The Allspark is referred to as an "afterlife", where a fallen Cybertronian spark departs to after its body has died, often referred to as "becoming one with the Allspark". Primus used the Well of All Sparks to create the original thirteen Primes. Not much information is presented in this continuity about the Well of All Sparks, except that it is wholly separate from the Allspark. It would stand to reason that if a Spark departs to the Allspark in death, the source of any and all Sparks, their birthplace, would be the Well of All Sparks, though this has not yet been confirmed in the series. The Matrix of Leadership is a device that is bestowed upon a Cybertronian, by the Counsel of the Primes (who are not Primes themselves), whom they deem worthy to carry the title of Prime. In fact, the Counsel's denial of Megatron's demand for the Matrix is what started the Great War, and the schism between Autobot and Decepticon. The Matrix itself, is stored within the Prime's body. In dire situations, the Prime may call upon the power of the Matrix, as Optimus did to contain Unicron. However, in doing this, the Matrix reverts the Prime to their pre-Prime state, as the Matrix acts as the vessel of the "Wisdom of the Primes". If the Matrix is the vessel of the Wisdom of the Primes, to be carried by the Prime, then Vector Sigma would be the backup drive of the Matrix. Should the Matrix be emptied of its power, it can be reloaded by Vector Sigma, through the use of the Key to Vector Sigma. However, the Key is only granted to the current Prime, or one chosen by a Prime. The key scans the current owner's bio-signature, and will only function if in the possession of that life form.
Fiction
Beast Wars cartoon
When Optimus Primal perished in a transwarp explosion and his spark crossed over into the Allspark, the nature of the explosion meant that it left a trans-ion trail behind, an ethereal pathway leading into the great beyond. Piggybacking on this trail, Rhinox was able to project his own consciousness into "the other side of the Matrix", where he located Primal's spark, bringing it back to reality and implanting it into a blank protoform, restoring his leader to life. Coming of the Fuzors (Part 2)
Beast Machines cartoon
When the Beast Warriors first found the Oracle it showed them the Allspark. The Oracle went on to link Optimus Primal to the Allspark, showing him a vision of Cybertron before reformatting him. The Reformatting Primal saw the Allspark again, in an Oracle-induced vision before he was awoken by his well-meaning companions. Revelations Part II: Descent When Blackarachnia's spark was pulled from her body, she found herself in a higher plane of existence, speaking to Primal. She wondered how they could be talking, and he told her that all Transformers were linked through the Matrix. Revelations Part III: Apocalypse
After Tankor died, his spark joined the Allspark, but he appeared to Primal to impart a last message, resulting in Optimus nullifying the forces ravaging Cybertron. Optimus himself was about to join the Matrix, but came to a sudden realization as to what his mission was, and instead opted to return to lead his Maximals. Fallout Botanica saw the AllSpark when the Oracle granted her a vision of what had been happening to Cybertron. Sparkwar Pt. I: The Strike Optimus saw it again, when he appealed to the Oracle for help in fighting the Vehicons. Endgame Pt. II: When Legends Fall As Megatron began taking all the sparks into himself, Optimus pointed out to him that this was totally against the Matrix's purpose, but Megatron didn't care. Presumably both their sparks joined the Allspark when they died reformatting Cybertron. Endgame Pt. III: Seeds of the Future
IDW Generation 1 continuity
Nominus Prime was given a grand funeral to honor his "ascension to the Allspark". Patternism
Prime cartoon
As Optimus Prime lay dying, he had a vision of approaching the Allspark and speaking with Alpha Trion, who invited him to join it. Rebellion
Notes
Foreign names
- Japanese: Matrix Zone (マトリクスゾーン Matorikusu Zōn)
