Template:Multiple issues Prime is a title in Transformers fiction, the designation given to the leader of the Autobots and bearer of the Autobot Matrix of Leadership. The Japanese equivalent of Prime is Convoy, sometimes explained in Western Transformers folklore as an honorific nickname given to Autobots (called Cybertrons in Japan) who possess the Autobot Matrix of Leadership. The name is derived from their creator, Primus.
An Autobot Supreme Commander may be called "Prime" even if he does not possess the Matrix. In such cases the term is a title only and not part of that Autobot’s name (see Ultra Magnus). In other cases an Autobot may serve as a Matrix Templar without being the Supreme Commander (see Vector Prime), however the honorific “Prime” is still attached to their name.
History of Primes
Marvel G1[1]
- Prima
- Prime Nova
- Optimus Prime
- Rodimus Prime, in the Generation 1 cartoon Marvel
Dreamwave G1
- Alpha Prime
- Guardian Prime
- Sentinel Prime
- Optimus Prime
IDW Publishing G1
- Nova Prime
- Sentinel Prime
- Zeta Prime
- Optimus Prime
Thirteen Original Transformers
Note: Each of the Original thirteen Transformers is a Prime.[2]
- Prima, the first Cybertronian Transformer and the first Matrix-bearer in comic continuity. Warrior of Light.
- Vector Prime, the guardian of Space and Time, another Matrix-bearer in the past.
- Nexus Prime, guardian of Rarified Energon. Formed by the combination of 5 Transformers. Breakaway (left arm), Heatwave (torso), Landquake (right arm), Skyfall (left leg) and Topspin (right leg).
- Alpha Trion, overseer of the past, present and future
- Liege Maximo
- Solus Prime, female warrior who makes weapons for the 13
- One of the Thirteen has a Beast Mode
- One of the Thirteen is a Minicon
- Megatronus Prime, also known as The Fallen, guardian of the force of entropy in universe, but later became Unicron's pawn. Warrior of Darkness.
Beast Wars & Beast Machines
- There is a Maximal called Optimus Primal, but he is not a Prime.
- In Episode 40, Primal takes the Matrix-shaped spark chamber of Optimus Prime into his own body and mutates into Optimal Optimus
- Primal Prime, the Living Matrix created by Vok and the leader of the Wreckers in Beast Era.
- Leo Prime, the English name of Lio Convoy, who has an Energon Matrix, which is different from the Autobot Matrix of leadership.
Transformers: Robots in Disguise
In Transformers: Robots in Disguise, the Autobots are the main race on Cybertron, and fought in a series of Cybertronian Civil Wars against their enemies, the Predacons. The Allspark, Vector Sigma, chooses which Autobot is to be granted the Matrix and thus the position of commander-in-chief. The Autobots were already on Earth when the Predacons arrived, having taken the form of Earth vehicles to work as camouflage and established a global space bridge network and a central base monitoring the entire planet. In the original Car Robots series, there is not one singular Matrix, but multiple ones, each held by high-ranking Autobot commanders. Magnus already possesses a Matrix, and simply seeks to steal the power of Fire Convoy's to increase his own, with the overspill of energy resulting in the supercharging of the Autobot Brothers.
| Japanese name | American name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Fire Convoy | Optimus Prime | Leader of the Autobots, bearer of the Matrix and brother to Ultra Magnus, Optimus Prime transforms into a fire engine. The forward portion of the truck transforms into Prime himself, while the rear portion can form a mobile weapons platform/communications array/recharging station, or combine with Prime as additional armor and weapons in Super Mode. |
| God Fire Convoy | Omega Prime | When his brother, Optimus Prime, was chosen to carry the Matrix, Ultra Magnus felt passed over, and was left carrying a grudge against his brother that eventually exploded into violence when he arrived on Earth with the intention of taking what he believed was rightfully his- by force, if necessary.[3] Severely injuring Prime, who refused to fight back, Magnus tracked him to a desert island, where he pretended to offer him the hand of friendship, only to attempt to absorb the Matrix for himself, forcing the brothers into the powerful combined form of Omega Prime. |
| Black Convoy | Scourge | Scourge was originally one of six unidentified Autobots sent to Earth to reactivate Fortress Maximus. In present time, Megatron came to Earth with the intent of harnessing Maximus's power and steals the six protoforms, taking them to a nearby military base to scan vehicle modes and infusing them with a part of his own spark energy to transform them into Decepticons. Scourge was born when Megatron scanned a tanker truck, Optimus Prime, truck driver Kelly, and an infusion of his own spark energy. |
| God Magnus | Ultra Magnus | Ultra Magnus, known as God Magnus in the Japanese 2000 line, Transformers: Car Robots, owed his name and alternate mode to Ultra Magnus (and also to Godbomber, an earlier character from the G1 "Super-God Masterforce" anime, who disassembled to form armor for his Prime-styled partner, Ginrai), so when the series was released in the US, the name change was obvious, and Ultra Magnus returned to TV screens for the first time since the G1 series. Ultra Magnus transforms into a car carrier capable of transporting other Autobots such as the Autobot Brothers. |
Unicron Trilogy
Transformers: Armada
Transformers: Energon
- Optimus Prime
- Wing Prime = (Optimus Prime + Wing Saber)
- Optimus Supreme = (Optimus Prime + Omega Supreme)
- Rodimus, (not actually called Rodimus Prime in the series but inarguably a homage to him).
Transformers: Cybertron
- Optimus Prime
- Savage Claw Mode Optimus Prime = (Optimus Prime + Leobreaker)
- Sonic Wing Mode Optimus Prime = (Optimus Prime + Wing Saber)
Dynasty of Primes
- Seven Primes
- Megatronus Prime, also known as The Fallen, the founder and true ruler of the Decepticons
- Sentinel Prime
- Optimus Prime
Transformers Animated
Prime is still a rank in the Transformers Animated continuity, but (uniquely) it is distinctly lower than commander of all Autobots (that would be Ultra Magnus — the "Magnus" refers to his rank). This is revealed when Sentinel Prime attempts to give an order to Optimus Prime. Optimus is able to disregard this order because regardless of Sentinel's standing on the Cybertron Elite Guard, they are both still Primes of equal rank. The Elite Guard members, Ultra Magnus and Sentinel Prime, have bars on their forearms, with more bars present for the superior officer. Optimus Prime lacks these, and as such it is unknown if they are only present on the Elite Guard. The rank of Prime seems to be roughly equivalent to the human naval rank of captain.
| Character name | Description |
|---|---|
| Longarm Prime/Shockwave | Shockwave has the ability to change his body, using this power to assume the guise of Longarm in order to creep up the Autobot ranks and serve Megatron incognito. |
| Optimus Prime | Instead of being leader of the Autobots, Prime was actually a washout from the Elite Guard. Despite no longer being a member, he maintains his military ranking of "Prime". |
| Rodimus | Rodimus Prime/Minor is a character who appeared in season 3 of the Transformers Animated series. He is an homage to the Generation 1 version of the character Hot Rod.[4] |
| Sentinel Prime | Sentinel Prime is a hotheaded member of the Cybertron Elite Guard. Sentinel's main weapon is a shield called the Skyboom Shield, that is able to generate force fields and can be used offensively when thrown. He also wields a laser lance, and can activate a battle mask when needed.[5] |
Transformers: Prime
Convoy
Convoy is the Japanese Equivalent of Prime. This is sometimes explained in Western Transformers lore as an honorific nickname given to the Autobot (called Cybertrons in Japan) who possess the Autobot Matrix of Leadership.[6]
Unlike the Decepticon (Destron) title Emperor of Destruction, an Autobot with the Convoy honorific is not necessarily the supreme commander of all Autobots. Instead, the title Convoy can be given to any Autobot officer as a sign of their office. There have been occasions, however, when an Autobot has been made Supreme Commander but lacks the Convoy honorific. The most famous of these is the hero Star Saber. Other notable non-Convoy commanders include Fortress Maximus and Dai Atlas.
In Transformers Galaxy Force (Western name: Transformers Cybertron), each of the planets has a Convoy who is said to be the living embodiment of the planet's driving force. Galaxy Convoy (Optimus Prime) is Supreme Commander of Cybertron. Nitro Convoy (Override) is the fastest on the Speed Planet. Flame Convoy (Scourge) is the strongest on the Beast Planet. Megalo Convoy (Metroplex) is the biggest on Giant Planet. Live Convoy (Evac) is an oddity, as there is no native Transformer population on Earth. For the most part, their names pay homage to the fact that Convoys are leaders.
The list of Convoy
Entries without an equals sign indicate a Prime for which there is no American equivalent.
- Generation One
- Convoy = Optimus Prime[7]
- Star Convoy - Optimus Prime revived with "Zodiac" energy
- Battle Convoy = Laser Optimus Prime, who was reconfigured from the edge of death by the power of Matrix
- Rodimus Convoy = Rodimus Prime
- Convoy (Beast Convoy in Robot Master) = Optimus Primal
- Metals Convoy = Transmetal Optimus Primal
- Powered Convoy = Optimal Optimus
- LioConvoy = Leo Prime
- Big Convoy
- Great Convoy (the apparent Supreme Commander of all Convoys, died in battle with Unicron)
- Crow Convoy (now trapped in a hideous mish-mash of beast modes due to Big Convoy's action without authorization.)
- Fire Convoy = Optimus Prime
- God Fire Convoy = Omega Prime
- Black Convoy = Scourge
- Convoy ("Monster Convoy" in the early design work) = Optimus Prime
- Grand Convoy = Optimus Prime
- Wing Convoy = Optimus Prime + Wing Saber
- Omega Convoy = Optimus Supreme
- Rodimus Convoy = Rodimus
- Galaxy Convoy = Optimus Prime
- Liger Convoy = Optimus Prime Savage Claw Mode (Optimus Prime + Leobreaker)
- Sonic Convoy = Optimus Prime Sonic Wing Mode (Optimus Prime + Wing Saber)
- Nitro Convoy = Override
- Flame Convoy = Scourge
- Live Convoy = Evac
- Megalo Convoy = Metroplex
Council of Convoys
The Council of Convoy is actually the Maximal Council of Elders: the Maximal Equivalent of the Tripredacus Council during the Beast Wars era, specifically the Japanese-exclusive 1999 anime Beast Wars: Neo . Each one resembled Optimus Prime; and each may have been Prime at one time. One of the Convoys' is known as "Great" Convoy, another was known as "Crow" Convoy. Great Convoy was apparently the Supreme Commander of the Council of Convoy, and in the Beast Wars II manga it is he who appoints Lio Convoy to go after the Predacons.
References
- ↑ "We are Primus. We are Prima. We are Prime Nova. We are Sentinel Prime. We are Optimus Prime." (from Marvel US issue 65, pages 25, panel 5
- ↑ "We are the 13, the first, the forgotten, each of us serving a function vital to the survival of the universe. Each of us designated a 'Prime' and given a function to serve during the long march of infinity." --- Vector Prime
- ↑ TRANSFORMERS ROBOTS IN DISGUISE Returns! Hasbro Launches Product Line Based on Original '80s Theme; Fox Kids Series to Debut September 8th. Business Wire September 5, 2001
- ↑ Transformers Animated.com - First Images of Animated Rodimus, Strika, Blackout and Spittor
- ↑ Jim Sorenson and Bill Forster (August 15, 2009). Transformers Animated: The Allspark Almanac. Idea & Design Works Llc. pp. 34–35. ISBN 978-1-60010-487-9.
- ↑ The anime encyclopedia: a guide to Japanese animation since 1917, by Jonathan Clements, Helen McCarthy - 2006
- ↑ GameAxis Unwired - March 2007 - Page 90, No. 43
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