Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime

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"Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime"
Publisher	IDW Publishing
First published	December 21, 2011
Cover date	December 2011
Story by	James Roberts and John Barber
Art by	Nick Roche
Colors by	Josh Burcham
Letters by	Shawn Lee
Editor	Carlos Guzman
Continuity	2005 IDW continuity
Chronology	Current era (2011)

Optimus Prime returns to a Cybertron that no longer needs him.

Synopsis

...How did Metalhawk get through that door?

A confused and disoriented Optimus Prime awakens on what seems to be Cybertron, though the planet is now convulsing with primordial energies and is missing some of its characteristic features. He assumes he has somehow been transported into the distant past, but spotting the wreckage of Galvatron's Sweeps reveals that something even stranger is afoot. Prime soon discovers that Iacon still exists, though it is now populated by Cybertronians whom he does not recognize and who mostly seem equally ignorant of himself. One of them, however, certainly recognizes Optimus and berates him for Cybertron's sorry state. The situation is defused when Sideswipe and Whirl arrive, intimidating the outspoken Transformer and introducing Optimus to the newly adopted acronym "NAIL"—Non-Aligned Indigenous Lifeforms—designating the multitudes of Cybertronians who evacuated their planet in the early stages of the civil war rather than picking and fighting for a side. Optimus is then reunited with Rodimus and Bumblebee, who describe the relative ease with which they captured the disoriented, post-Deceptigod Decepticons. They also express both their awe at the never-ending hordes of NAILs now returning to a pacified Cybertron and their tension at the situation, since they realize the NAILs perceive the Autobots to be nothing but symbols of the war they hate so much. That's certainly how Metalhawk feels—though the harshness of his contempt for the Autobots is certainly matched by Optimus's own declarations that Metalhawk was a coward who abandoned his own race in its time of greatest need. Some of the Autobots recommend that Optimus demonstrate the power of the Matrix of Leadership in order to convince the NAILs of the justness of their cause, but this is clearly impossible as the Matrix is totally depleted.

Optimus visits the captive Decepticons, now imprisoned within the gun chamber of the crashed Kimia Facility. Ratbat tries to impress Optimus with his own record of Senatorial service, but Optimus tersely cuts him off by noting that, regardless of his pre-war history, he is now just as much a criminal as the rest of his faction.

Prime's just hanging out with the populace

Day by day, the standoff with the NAILs grows ever more tense; for all his own dislike of the Autobots, Metalhawk is forced to play peacemaker when other NAILs such as Zetca begin to openly rally for violence against them. Perceptor and Rewind finish their examination of the empty halves of the Matrix shell, and determine that it is actually an ancient cosmic map that leads to... something. Drift immediately declares that it must be pointing out the location of the Knights of Cybertron, whose awesome power could surely help unite all Cybertronians and restore stability to the planet. The fact that these Knights are widely believed to be mythical does not dissuade him, and nor does Optimus's insistence that the Circle of Light was nothing but an eccentric cult. Drift is adamant about the reality of the Knights, and the wisdom of Dai Atlas's guarantees of their power; gradually, he manages to convince some other Autobots of the need to undertake a quest for these Knights. Prowl is outraged at the thought of leaving Cybertron in control of the NAILs, whom he considers to be lazy and opportunistic ingrates—though Metalhawk retorts that Prowl is only bitter because he had tried and failed to remain unaligned during the war. Suddenly, the crowd of NAILs outside attacks the Autobot base. Though disorganized, they can present a threat—emphasis on "can", as Prowl fixates on the potential of Autobot lives being at risk as being sufficient justification for releasing the captive Decepticons to beat back the crowds. Ratbat pleads with the other Decepticons not to obey Autobot orders and, instead, to attack their old enemies then and there. Starscream countermands that order, pointing out that they would easily be destroyed by an alliance of Autobots and NAILs. With their transformation capabilities and heaviest weapons disabled, the Decepticons use sheer brute force to push back the NAILs, and thereafter are held in line by Prowl's warning that they have each been fitted with remote-controlled detonator chips.

Solomon Prime.

In despair, Optimus Prime addresses the entire populace of Cybertron. Though he means only the best for all of them, he grudgingly admits that in a way he himself has become just another aspect of endless war, and that he is willing to leave Cybertron forever in the hopes that its society will be able to restructure itself peacefully without him. As Optimus prepares for his departure, Rodimus and Bumblebee continue to disagree over the wisdom of manning an expedition to seek out the Knights of Cybertron and, in the end, decide to split their forces, with some Autobots going on the quest and others remaining behind to try to rebuild. Optimus Prime's last act among his old cohorts is to leave the empty halves of the Matrix shell in their hands.

On his lonely flight away from Cybertron, destined for parts unknown, the former leader of the Autobots reflects on how, for the first time in eons, he is no longer responsible for anyone else's life or death. At last, he feels free. Optimus Prime is dead; Orion Pax has been reborn.

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Quotes

"No! They're just using you! My Decepticons—we must rise against the Autobots!"
"That's what you want? Attack and give the Autobots and these rioters something to unite against?"
"You just don't understand, Starscream."
"Well, I understand why nobody's listened to Ratbat for four million years."

—Ratbat doesn't get much respect from Starscream

"That mob outside? We owe them nothing! We're the ones who risked our lives against the Decepticons! Where was Metalhawk when Megatron invaded Vos, or—or blew up the Grand Imperium? But now that the smoke's cleared, they think they can just turn up and reclaim the planet?! I don't know what's worse—their arrogance or their cowardice!"

—Prowl protests... too much

Notes

Continuity notes

• Cyclonus protests that he shouldn't be with the Decepticons.
• Swindle once again proposes to "make a deal". However, it doesn't fool Optimus Prime. Nice try, though.
• It would appear at least two members of The Circle of Light have made the journey back to Cybertron. They can be seen when Optimus has his run in with Tappet. Later one tussles with Pounce or Wingspan before Prime's speech.
• As he begins his speech, Optimus Prime calls back to "Chaos Theory Part 2" by answering the "three questions" that Megatron proposed should be asked of any governing body: in whose interests he exercises his power, to whom he is held accountable, and how they can get rid of him.
• Eleven small headshots decorate page 19, illustrating the crowd as they listen to Optimus Prime's speech. Ten are easily recognisable characters, with a monkey-like eleventh proving less familiar. It's easy to miss, but he's the generic NAIL who appears in two other scenes carrying a placard (illustrated above). Why did he get singled out? Probably something to do with his nasty fate...

Transformers references

• Sideswipe is now sporting a body based on the BotCon 2010 "customization class" toy: his 2008 Universe body in his Generation 2 colors. He's also wearing the bandolier and sword he wore in the Generation 2 comics.
• A generic NAIL on page 16 has a striking resemblance to movie Barricade: a mostly black body with a partially bronze face as well as red and blue siren lights. This generic is seen being held by Ironhide in a sort of Full Nelson. On the IDW boards, Josh Burcham confirmed that while the character wasn't specified to be Barricade in the script, he looked so much like him that he used Barricade's colors.
• This is the first fiction Zetca's ever gotten. Though, as a Masterforce Warrior, he should technically be a human. The alteration of organic characters into Cybertronians would become a wider trend in the IDW continuity here on out.

Real-life references

• Tappet is based on the famous British children's book character Noddy, sporting his conical blue "hat" topped in a bell, red torso, blue "shorts", and coloured cheeks. Moreover, his visible alternate mode components, including a chest grill and large red wheel wells on his shoulders, indicate that he transforms into Noddy's car, itself one of the most well-known aspects of the character. He also shares the same character model (with the exception of his head) as Dipstick.
• The Galactic Positioning System used by Optimus is a galaxy wide version of the Global Positioning System.

Errors

• Two typographic errors crop up on page 9; "Bubmlebee" and "befroe". These were not corrected in either the TPB, or the hardback IDW Collection.
• Many of the Decepticons are in new forms, some of which (Starscream, Soundwave) are based on the War for Cybertron versions of the characters. While this sort of thing was commonplace under the previous ongoing series, IDW had said that it wouldn't happen going forward. Indeed, the Autobots are still in their Earth forms and only switch to Cybertronian forms later. It's especially odd considering the Decepticons have apparently been in prison since the end of "Chaos".
• Optimus describes the Guiding Hand as an "alternative truth", secrets known only to him through his bond with the Matrix, which even professional historian Rewind was unaware of. However, Rewind DOES seem familiar with the Hand as of the 2012 More Than Meets the Eye annual, and Springarm was citing members of the Hand to Orion Pax four million years ago in "Chaos Theory Part 2". Now, neither of them specifically referred to "The Guiding Hand" by name, but...

Trivia

• This issue was originally advertised as "issue #125", but was instead sold as a standalone one-shot with a banner that simply identified it as a "celebration" of 125 issues. This count includes all of IDW's different Generation 1 universe series, mini-series and one-shots, with the exception of crossover projects New Avengers/Transformers and Infestation.
• This story's title is given in three different permutations throughout the issue: The Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime on the cover, The Transformers: Death of Optimus Prime in the indicia, and Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime in the story itself.
• An editorial note from Andy Schmidt quoted in the TPB states that the original title for the issue was to be "Schism", which was likely changed due to 2011's X-Men storyline of the same name.

Foreign Localization

Japanese

• Title: "Optimus Prime no Shi" (オプティマスプライムの死, "Death of Optimus Prime")

Swedish

• Title: "Optimus Prime är död..." (Optimus Prime is Dead...)

Covers (4)

• Cover A: Generation 1 Optimus Prime toy; photo by Viktor Deak
• Cover B: Homage to the cover of The Transformers (Marvel UK)#150; art by Nick Roche and colors by Josh Burcham
• Cover RI-A: Homage to "The Transformers" cover; art by Livio Ramondelli
• Cover RI-B: Montage of covers of the previous 124 issues

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Collections

• The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye Volume 1 (June 13, 2012) ISBN 1613772351 / ISBN 978-1613772355
  • Collects The Death of Optimus Prime, and More than Meets the Eye issues #1–3.
  • Bonus material includes art from most covers, 12 promotional images, "Meet the Crew" page, design sketches from Alex Milne for various characters and ship locations, and a 2-page editor's comment with "behind the scenes" information about the series.
  • Trade paperback format.

• The Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye Volume 1 (Reissue) (May 21, 2014) ISBN 1613779658 / ISBN 978-1613779651
  • Same content as above with a new cover.
  • Trade paperback format.

• The Transformers: The IDW Collection Phase Two: Volume 1 (September 3, 2014) ISBN 1631400401 / ISBN 978-1631400407
  • Collects The Death of Optimus Prime, More than Meets the Eye issues #1–3 & #4–5, and Robots in Disguise issues #1–5 & #6.
  • Hardcover format.

• Transformers: More Than Meets the Eye Box Set (December 2, 2015) ISBN 1631404741 / ISBN 978-1631404740
  • Collects More Than Meets the Eye Volumes 1–5 in a slipcover holder.

• Transformers: The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 52: The Death of Optimus Prime (December 13, 2017)
  • Collects The Transformers (2009) issues #24, #26, #28, & #30–31, and The Death of Optimus Prime.
  • Bonus content includes an interview with James Roberts on how he worked his way up to become an ongoing writer, character design sketches by Livio Ramondelli, a cover gallery and an intro by Simon Furman.
  • Hardcover format.

• Transformers: Kaos och skuggor (November, 2020)
  • Collects The Transformers (2009) issues #22–24, #26, #28 & #30, The Death of Optimus Prime, and More than Meets the Eye issues #9–13.
  • Swedish reprint. Hardcover format.

• 

  More than Meets the Eye Volume 1 – cover art by Alex Milne and Josh Perez

• 

  More Than Meets the Eye Volume 1 – cover art by Livio Ramondelli

• 

  The IDW Collection Phase Two: Volume 1 – cover art by Saren Stone

• 

  More Than Meets the Eye Box Set – cover art by Marcelo Matere

• 

  The Definitive G1 Collection: Volume 52: The Death of Optimus Prime – cover art by Don Figueroa (Prime) and Livio Ramondelli (retro)

• 

  Kaos och skuggor – cover art by Nick Roche and Josh Burcham.