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Optimus Prime (comic)

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The name or term "Optimus Prime" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Optimus Prime (disambiguation).
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Comic book titles with originality are the right of all sentient beings, so don't let me stop you or anything.

Optimus Prime was an ongoing comic series from IDW Publishing. It is a sequel to and rebranded version of The Transformers: Robots in Disguise. Beginning in December 2016, it ran alongside sister titles Lost Light and Till All Are One. It concluded with issue #25 in November 2018 as part of the ending of the IDW Universe.

I am Optimus Prime, and I know in my spark that I am the last—no; the only hope for life to continue. And I always thought that made me different from the other Primes.

Optimus Prime self-reflects , "A Sunrise Dark"

« Optimus Prime issues

Contents

Overview

Optimus Prime picks up where its predecessor left off: though Galvatron, Sentinel Prime, and Baron Karza have all been defeated, Optimus Prime is still dealing with the fallout of his controversial choice to annex Earth into the Council of Worlds. Prime's recent adventures have proved inspirational enough to recruit a slew of next-generation Autobots from across the Titan colonies; their blind devotion to their leader, combined with the religious fanaticism of Pyra Magna and her Torchbearers, causes friction with the old guard from the days of the Great War – including Prime's former enemy Soundwave, now reluctantly working alongside the Autobots from within their living base Metrotitan.

The uneasy status quo on Earth is thrown into chaos by the arrival of the Junkions: ramshackle refugees seeking to repair their destroyed homeworld using supplies of Ore-13. A newly international G.I. Joe taskforce cordons off the landing site; attempting to mediate between Joe commander Talon, Cybertronian ruler and Council leader Starscream and Junkion leaders Wreck-Gar and Rum-Maj, Optimus enacts a dangerous diplomatic gamble in an attempt to force Earth to join the Council in the hopes of helping humans and Junkions alike.

Though events briefly escalate into a massive showdown between the Autobots, the Junkions, and their Sharkticon slaves, Optimus — remembering the series of events that led him down a road of violence in the past — ultimately salvages the situation, convincing the Junkions begin construction of "Little Cybertron," a new city and embassy for mechanical life-forms on Earth. As Pyra Magna's faith in her leader wanes, she finds unlikely allies of her own starting with the young colonist Slide, left embittered by the death of her brother during the Junkion crisis.

The President of the United States, pushed to find a representative for the Council of Worlds, ultimately chooses Marissa Faireborn, left rudderless by the dissolution of the old Earth Defense Command, whose former supplies of salvaged, reverse-engineered technology now run rampant across global black markets while threatening to breach the Tyrest Accord. Optimus and Pyra Magna are ultimately able to settle their differences when Pyra shares a story from her past about an encounter with Onyx Prime, and, as Earth prepares to formally join the Council, Alpha Trion tells his own tale about the original rise of the Thirteen in the distant past — and how Onyx Prime played a crucial role in this initial unification.

On the day of the ceremony commemorating Earth's induction into the Council, Baron Ironblood launches a genocidal, retaliatory attack on Cybertron, leaving the Earthbound Transformers cut off from their homeworlds. With the situation deteriorating, Aileron takes command, but must contend with Slide's mounting frustration as they search for Jazz, missing in action since a disastrous television interview, and join forces with the Autobot fugitive to apprehend the culprits behind the illegal gun-running operations: Frenzy and Rumble.

Following Colton's attack on the planet — and the magical contamination of the planet's energon, thanks to the wizard Merklynn — Cybertron is left weakened and even more reliant on its colonies to sustain itself; as Optimus tries to pick up the pieces from this latest invasion, his worst fears are realized when Onyx Prime himself arrives on Cybertron, announcing his intent to cure Cybertron's many ills. But despite professing good intentions, Onyx and his Maximal followers only spread further discord and chaos amongst the divided population of Cybertron, plunging Iacon into anarchy. With Optimus Prime's remaining followers left confused and divided, "Onyx Prime" finally reveals himself as... Shockwave.

Having been temporally displaced by the destruction of his chronal drive, the Decepticon scientist reveals his hand in shaping the current state of Cybertron; having assumed the identity of "Onyx Prime," Shockwave engineered the rise and fall of the Thirteen, sowed Cybertronian history with the prophecy that his younger self attempted to fulfill, and even worked to place Starscream in charge of Cybertron, all leading up to this moment, all to further his goals. Though Prime and his allies are able to stop Shockwave, and rescue the seemingly-dead Bumblebee's consciousness from infraspace in the process, their victory is pyrrhic: Shockwave has robbed the colonists of their religion, the Decepticons of their ideology, and even Prime himself of the Matrix of Leadership, all to wipe the slate clean... and the process of wiping that slate clean begins with Unicron, having been awakened during Ironblood's attack on the planet. Unicron carves a path of destruction across the galaxy, targeting Cybertron's colonies; having lost their homeworlds, seemingly due to Prime's inaction, Slide and the colonists set out on a vengeful mission of their own. The final few issues of the comic tie closely into the continuity-ending Unicron crossover; telling the story from the perspective of the Earthbound Autobots following the destruction of Cybertron and Prime's own crisis of faith as he deals with Slide and her shaken faith.

The final issue of the series picks up immediately after issue #6 of Unicron, and ultimately serves as the conclusion to the entire 2005 IDW universe; a "coda" of sorts, it shows the victims of Unicron's attack on the galaxy settling into a new life on Earth in the wake of Prime's sacrifice and the destruction of Unicron, and their attempts to build a new future—a future that moves beyond the dark legacy of the Primes.

Creative team

John Barber returns as the writer, joined by Kei Zama as main artist[1] and returning colourist Josh Burcham. Zama employs heavy use of blacks and shadows in their artwork, while Burcham's usual warm palette and bright colours are combined with retro-styled Ben-Day dots to create an aesthetic reminiscent of Marvel Comics' Generation 2 comic book. Other contributing artists include Alex Milne (#4), Priscilla Tramontano (#7, 2017 annual, parts of 2018 annual, #23), Casey Coller (#8, parts of #20), Livio Ramondelli (parts of #10, #13, #14, parts of #18, parts of #21), Sara Pitre-Durocher (parts of #11 and #18, #19, parts of #21, #22), Fico Ossio (parts of #11), Paolo Villanelli (parts of #11), Andrew Griffith (issue #12, parts of 2018 annual).

Notes

  • The book is the rare Transformers-related thing not to have the Transformers brand appear on its front cover. In trade format however, it is Transformers: Optimus Prime, Volume 1.

Collections

  • Optimus Prime Volume 3 (June 6, 2018) ISBN 168405270X / ISBN 978-1684052707
    • Collects Optimus Prime issues #11–14 & First Strike #1, and Transformers: First Strike #1.
    • Bonus material includes art from most covers.
    • Trade paperback format.
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    Volume 5 – cover art by Casey Coller and John-Paul Bove

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    The Definitive G1 Collection Volume 78: New Cybertron – cover art by Don Figueroa and Casey Coller

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    The Definitive G1 Collection Volume 84: The Falling Part 1 – cover art by Dreamwave and Kei Zama

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    The Definitive G1 Collection Volume 85: The Falling Part 2 – cover art by Dreamwave and Kei Zama

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    The Definitive G1 Collection Volume 88: Unicron – cover art by Dreamwave and Alex Milne

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    Best of Optimus Prime – cover art by James Biggie

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    The IDW Collection Phase Three: Volume 2 – cover art by Sara Pitre-Durocher

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    The IDW Collection Phase Three: Volume 3 – cover art by Sara Pitre-Durocher

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    Best of Arcee – cover art by James Biggie

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    Best of Shockwave – cover art by James Biggie

References

  1. ↑ SDCC – IDW Announces Post-Revolution Debuts!
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