Optimus Prime

Character
Name:	Optimus Prime
Occupation:	Autobot leader
Relationships:	varies by series
Fandom:	Transformers
Other:
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Optimus Prime is a major character from the Transformers franchise. While many details of his depiction vary depending on the series, he is almost always the leader of the Autobots, and often has some connection with Megatron, the leader of the Decepticons. He usually transforms into a truck.

Canon Background

The Optimus Prime of the original cartoon series was the mold for all following Optimuses. He was the wise and noble leader of the Autobots, who was killed during the movie and replaced as Prime by Rodimus Prime. This set a precedent for Optimuses to die, often to be revived shortly thereafter; almost every Optimus since has done so.

Beast Wars introduced Optimus Primal, the descendant of the original Optimus, who transformed into a gorilla. This sparked significant fan ire at the time. Robots in Disguise Optimus Prime does not die at all, and is one of very few Optimuses to achieve this. Transformers Animated Optimus was not Autobot leader, "Prime" being an actual military rank which was below "Magnus". Transformers: Prime Optimus was the leader of only a few Autobots, as the war for Cybertron had utterly devastated their planet and its population.

Fandom

Optimus Prime has become emblematic of the franchise. While Bumblebee has usurped this role to some extent recently, thanks to the movie series, Optimus is still a highly recognizable character. He is considered the main character of many of the series. Many of the children watching the original series apparently considered him a surrogate father figure, which added to the audience-traumatizing nature of his death in the movie.

Common pairings for him vary by series, ranging from Megatron, leader of the Decepticons, to Elita One, his girlfriend from the original series, to Cade Yeager, a human from the Age of Extinction movie. Optimus/Megatron is a fairly popular pairing across all continuities, but is especially popular in Transformers: Prime fanworks, possibly because of the way the series depicts their pre-war relationship. Optimus/Elita and Optimus/Cade are only popular within fanworks for the series they originate from.

Notable Optimus-Centric Fanworks

Examples Wanted: Editors are encouraged to add more examples or a wider variety of examples.