Does Optimus Prime Have a Transformers Family Tree? (2024)

Optimus Prime is undoubtedly the single most iconic character in the entire Transformers franchise, never failing to make an appearance no matter the continuity. His reputation as the noble leader of the Autobots has remained a staple of the franchise for nearly forty years now.

But Optimus Prime is but one in a long line of Primes spanning the millennia of Transformers history dating back to the dawn of life on the planet of Cybertron. The Primes have helped shape the history of Cybertron for millions of years, acting as great leaders or cruel tyrants. This honored legacy has weighed heavily on the humble Optimus, playing a big role in transforming him into the legendary leader he is today, each member inspiring him with their heroics or acting as a grim warning on how not to lead.

13 The Original Thirteen

Created by the deity Primus, the first Thirteen Primes were the primordial Cybertronians tasked with defending the universe from the all-consuming hunger of the dark god, Unicron. While their roster has changed over the years, the most consistent grouping of the Thirteen has Prima as the first-born, followed by Vector Prime, Alpha Trion, Solus Prime, Micronus Prime, Alchemist Prime, Nexus Prime, Onyx Prime, Quintus Prime, Liege Maximo, Megatronus Prime and the enigmatic Thirteenth Prime who has either been depicted as Autonomous Maximus, The Arisen or sometimes Optimus Prime himself.

Each of the Thirteen Primes wielded a powerful weapon bestowed upon them by Primus himself, all of which have become legendary relics worthy of myth in the modern day. Liege Maximo and Megatronus Prime were seduced by the power of Unicron, causing a rift between the Thirteen and leading to the deaths of some of its members and the ultimate disbandment of the team. This left the mantle of Prime to be passed on instead of held by a collective.

12 Septimus Prime

The earliest known Cybertronian to inherit the title of Prime after the creation of the Original Thirteen was created by IDW Publishing under the name of Septimus Prime. He existed during a period of Cybertrons history where the Thirteen were still active, but unlike his brethren, he was not a devotee of Primus, instead worshiping the god Solomus and introducing gladiator sports to the City of Protohex as a way to give tribute to the deity.

It was a common consensus among the Thirteen Primes that Septimus Prime was not considered "one of them", hence why they did not become the Fourteen Primes when Septimus was born. Ultimately, his malignant rule over Protohex and profane worship of Solomus lead to Megatronus Prime executing Septimus in order to take Protohex as part of his own territory on Cybertron.

11 Prime Nova

The first official successor of the Original Thirteen Primes, Prime Nova was given the Matrix of Leadership by Prima and officially declared leader of the Cybertronians. Unfortunately, his tenure as Prime occurred during the Quintessons' occupation of Cybertron, wherein all Cybertronians were turned into a slave race, with the ability to even construct new Cybertronians under the control of the hostile alien race.

This led Prime Nova to start a massive resistance movement to remove the Quintesson Occupation from Cybertron; this resistance would become known as the First Great War of Cybertron, becoming the first chapter in Cybertron's infamous history of warfare. Sadly, Prime Nova would never live to see the resistance succeed, as he was killed before the end of the Great War, leading to a new Prime taking on the Matrix of Leadership.

10 Primon

Primon was the leader of the Ancient Autobots at some point in Cybertron's ancient past. During the Transformers: Generation One cartoon episode "Five Faces of Darkness, Part 4," Primon guided the young Rodimus Prime as he journeyed within the Matrix of Leadership to learn the harrowing truth that the Autobots and Decepticons were created by the alien Quintessons.

The initial origin of Primon actually had him predating Prima, which contradicted the later concept that Prima was the First Prime. As such, it was later retconned by Dreamwave Publishing's Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye series that Primon was the Prime who succeeded Prime Nova and was later succeeded by Guardian Prime.

9 Guardian Prime

An Ancient Autobot with a suspicious resemblance to fan-favorite Hot Rod, Guardian Prime succeeded Prime Nova and Primon as leader of Cybertron after the end of the Quintesson Occupation. Unfortunately, the removal of the Quintessons did not lead to a lasting peace within Cybertron, as soon the Cybertronians were divided thanks to a civil war between the Ancient Autobots and the Cybertronian military class that would later become the Ancient Decepticons.

Before a peaceful resolution could be found, Guardian Prime was shot, dying of his mortal wounds just moments after he was able to pass the Matrix of Leadership on to a successor. In the original Transformers: Generation One cartoon, this successor was Zeta Prime, however, numerous continuities afterward have expanded the Lineage of Primes between Guardian and Zeta, chiefly IDW Publishing's continuity.

8 Amazon & Regulus Prime

Not much is known about the two Primes, Amazon and Regulus, and their time as Cybertron's leaders and the circ*mstances that led them to bear the Matrix of Leadership are complete unknowns to the fandom. As the history after Guardian Prime has been dramatically expanded upon since the original Transformers: Generation One cartoon, Amazon and Regulus likely ruled sometime after Guardian Prime's death, but this is speculation at best.

All that is known is that when Megatron briefly possessed the Matrix of Leadership in IDW's The Transformers vs GI Joe comic series, Amazon and Regulus' spirits haunted the Decepticon Leader, recounting his sins and attempting to demoralize him. Their goading of Megatron managed to provoke him so much that he attempted to shoot at the ghosts with his fusion cannon, to no avail.

7 Nova Prime

The leader of Cybertron during the Great Expansions, it is unknown who proceeded Nova Prime, but what is known is that his ambition knew no bounds, wanting Cybertron to become a galaxy-spanning empire through the colonizing/conquering of dozens of star systems. However, after his pride led him to believe he was capable of conquering the multiverse as well, Nova Prime was trapped in the Dark Universe for millions of years, with the corrupt energy of the dimension turning him into the demonic entity known as 'Nemesis Prime'.

Within IDW Publishing's Transformers comic series, Nemesis Prime returned to Cybertron on several occasions, each time requiring the Autobots and Decepticons to have to band together to stop Nemesis from effectively causing armageddon. Nova Prime has partially retconned into the Transformers: Generation One continuity thanks to the Transformers: Devastation video game, which merged many key elements of IDW Publishing's expanded lore into a G1-inspired setting.

6 Nominus Prime

When the Matrix of Leadership was lost with Nova Prime's disappearance, it appeared the Line of Primes had been broken, this led to the ascension of the first Faux-Prime, Nominus Prime, who was christened with a fake Matrix. Under the rulership of Nominus Prime, Cybertron fell into a sharp decline, with the creation of a rigid --almost totalitarian-- class system as the ruling Cybertronian Senate was filled with directionless, bickering autocrats.

It was during Nominus Prime's reign that Megatron was radicalized into starting the early political movements that would cause the creation of the Decepticons, in a manner greatly inspired by the Russian Revolution. Ultimately, Nominus was assassinated by the Cybertronian Senate after it was revealed his Matrix was a fake and a new Senate-appointed Prime took over leadership of Cybertron.

5 Sentinel Prime

Sentinel Prime's history has been heavily reworked and altered throughout Transformers' long history. In some versions, he was a member of the Thirteen Primes, other times the Dynasty of Primes and he even served as both the rival and mentor of Optimus Prime. Originally, Sentinal Prime was also a veteran of the Quintesson Occupation, dying in the line of battle and passing the Matrix of Leadership over to Prime Nova.

However, most modern continuities favor depicting him as the Prime who immediately predated (or penultimately predated) Optimus Prime. Sentinel Prime acted as a stern militaristic leader whose rule --in the same vain as Nominus-- resulted in increased hostilities with the Decepticons, resulting in an all-out civil war famously known as the Autobot-Decepticon War.

4 Zeta Prime

While many continuities have Sentinel Prime as the direct predecessor to Optimus Prime, some continuities, such as the Aligned, Legends and IDW continuities, gave Zeta Prime that honor. Acting as the original Autobot Military Leader during the early Autobot-Decepticon War, Zeta Prime's aggressive military exploits held the Autobot line against the Decepticons for many years.

Either because his militarism went too far, or because Megatron managed to track him down, Zeta was eventually killed. This left the Autobots leaderless and vulnerable, leading to the iconic ascension of Optimus Prime.

3 Optimus Prime

The bot, the myth, the legend; born under the name Orion Pax, he was chosen by Alpha Trion, one of the Original Thirteen, to lead the Autobots in their darkest hour, becoming known as Optimus Prime. The war on Cybertron waged on for thousands of years until a planet-wide resource depletion forced Optimus to make the critical decision to leave his home planet and find refuge on the planet Earth alongside his fellow Autobots.

Within this new frontier, Optimus had the Autobots adopt a new mission; that being the protection of Earth and humanity against the Decepticon's who'd seek only to plunder and enslave the planet. While his stories have veered in countless different directions spanning dozens of different continuities, the spirit of Optimus Prime and the hope he inspires endures.

2 Rodimus Prime

What remains one of the most iconic, yet shocking parts of Transformers history was during 1986's Transformers: The Movie when Optimus Prime was killed off in a heroic final battle with his eternal foe Megatron. The future of the Autobots was a complete unknown, especially when the demonic Unicron threatened to devour their home planet of Cybertron.

Thankfully, in their darkest hour, the plucky Autobot rookie known as Hot Rod took up the Matrix of Leadership, becoming Rodimus Prime and defeating the dark deity before he had the chance to consume Cybertron. While some fans look upon Rodimus with scorn, there is no denying that he is the definitive successor to Optimus Prime, something very few can claim.

1 The Primals

While not in the same prestigious position as the Primes of old, the Primal titles used by the Maximals three hundred years after the Autobot-Decepticon War acted as the spiritual successors of the Primes. They became inspirational leaders and great warriors in their fight against the nefarious Predacons. As seemed to be the case with most of the Primals, most notably Optimus Primal and 3H Comics' Onyx Primal, it was a tradition for them to hold the historic names of former Primes as a way to give tribute to the great leaders of the past and acting as a promise to hold their values.

In the case of other Primals, such as Primal Prime, they became a living conduit for the will of the Matrix of Leadership, though these cases were exceedingly rare. Regardless, the Legacy of the Primes ends with the installment of the Primals, acting as a replacement to the position, but also a tribute to their history and the great importance the title once served.

Transformers

Transformersis a mediafranchiseproduced by American toy company Hasbro and Japanese toy company Takara Tomy. It primarily follows the heroic Autobots and the villainous Decepticons, two alien robot factions at war that can transform into other forms, such as vehicles and animals.

First Film

Transformers

Latest Film

Transformers: Rise of the Beasts

First TV Show

The Transformers

Latest TV Show

Transformers: EarthSpark (2022)

Cast

Peter Cullen , Wil Wheaton , Shia LaBeouf , Megan Fox , Luna Lauren Velez , Dominique Fishback