The Understated Genius of Optimus Prime's Character (Transformers: Prime) 

It's part of the fun of the franchise. Especially the "robots in disguise" bit.

This has acually been an idea of mine. Imagen a game where you are playing as very big buff guys with large guns and then at the end you discover that every single one of them is the same size (for excample) as Metroplex. I call it: Galactic Eternal Horizons

I only paid attention to it when i saw Raf in Bumblebee's hand like a fly on mine

Especially when you take into consideration the sizes of Metroplex and Trypticon from the Cybertron games

Me too buddy.🤖📺🥰

Same here

@@robertgonzalez6133 I agree with you on that buddy.🥰🫂🤖📺

Same he’s a hero we always root for organically in this new age we have a few real hero’s left

@@herbogarcia3022 Real talk

Same

I mean emperor kumquat already ended that a argument

@@omarsalem1219Kumquat v. PaperPlane boxing match

I have my...opinions on the ending, but I definitely agree that this show is one of the best. It elevated the Transformers to actual characters, not just archetypes (though I do still love G1 despite its cheesy nature). Every character is incredibly three-dimensional, even the villains, which makes it easy to love the whole cast. Well, almost the whole cast.

@@KnightsRealm98 I made a video essay for my own channel explaining why Arcee’s character arc is fantastic

@@musingsofahomeschooler5332 Definitely my favorite version of Arcee

I agree with a lot here But Optimus DID accept he would have to kill Megatron. In season 1 he tried to strike him down before Megs got bailed out by a power boost. In season 2 he drew his gun to execute a weakened Megatron. And in 3 he was about to kill him but the Megatron caught him off guard with the dark star saber

Is bro special?

Hes given the full wisdom of the primes. He prolly realizes that this is the best way to go about war aswell honestly. We do the same here in earth in alot of ways. Its a similar concept in bhuddism where you gotta wish good fortune even upon your enemies. Optimus Prime is a cybertronian religous leader, and reminds me alot of the Buddha. Hes basically the cybertronian buddha. Everything from his cadence, demeneanor, and even his backstory, reminds me of those jakatha tales from sunday school.

Huh, interesting comparison. 🤔

@@PixelaGames2000 yeah.

Bayverse Prime only had the original G1 cartoon to base shit off of. Back then, optimus was basically just "the leader" and nothing else. If Bayverse was remade but with Christopher Nolan at the helm, optimus would definitely be a Buddha-like character. Both from character traits, down to his role as a cybertronian religous leader.

​@@honkhonk8009Budha prime sounds interesting but he doesnt ever seem to be a pacifist either so im unsure of that

​@@honkhonk8009G1 was not the only cartoon back then lol

@@honkhonk8009 Buddha is too weak of a comparison. Optimus should always be down to squabble with the Decepticons, and be able to decide between right and wrong like all strong leaders do.

Are you kiddig me? This Optimus had the most badass personality in my eyes! He's serious, self disciplined, yet really cares for his team! One of his sweetest moments is when he says to Raphael that he will bring home a snowball for him! 🥰😍 He almost had a hint of fatherly or grandfatherly hint to his personality over his whole team, and his stoic personality always made me want to see his personality beneath! 🤩 What wouldn't I have given if I could've seen more of Orion interacting with the Anobots with his unrestrained personality! 🤩😁

He said it in the SAME episode!

He said "this mf however, an exception"

This gave me a good laugh

We also do have to factor in that most of the atrocities committed by the Decepticons were ordered out by Megatron. Starscream isn't innocent, but he's far from the worst, and showed willingness to end the war (Albeit only if Optimus would bow to him)

That’s one of the things that makes this Optimus so interesting imo He holds well to his beliefs, even offering Decepticons the chance to stand down before a firefight, and he won’t kill an already beaten/unarmed foe… …EXCEPT for Megatron.

*Palpatine Voice*: It's ironic...

Might need to make a video critiquing *that* mess one of these days.

What rid 2015 ? Some kind of cheap sequel to tfp which ruins its characters ? Nah never heart of it & never bothered to check it. There's only 1 rid that exists.

I personally like robots in disguise my favourite episode is combine and conquer.💜

Indeed it is

bayverse prime is pretty realistic too

@@8johh not really that much

​​@@vishnugopalawasthi5888yeah it is

​@@vishnugopalawasthi5888it explores alot of optimus mental state

I adore that about the Autobots (most of them). Yeah, the 'cons are their enemies, but the 'bots still believe that they deserve honor in death.

You might not know this, but he actually based his acting of Optimus Prime off of his late brother who was a soldier. When found this out it made character even more incredible to me.

That was an incredible few episodes. Optimus went absolutely ham. I still cringe every time it cuts from megatron being under optimus' foot, to then being like 20 ft away from him and sitting up to allow him to catch optimus' sword.

I guess there's a BIG difference between a literal kid who only knows about computers than a comrade in arms who fights at your side. The autobots are soldiers who are prepared to give their lives in war, while Raf is a boy who got involved in a war that he is not a part of just to help them. Optimus must feel more guilt in involving an innocent child in his own war against Megatron and cannot forgive Megatron for crossing that line.

I actually do have an idea for a couple vids on the Aligned Continuity as a whole, not to mention particular characters

@@KnightsRealm98 there's definitely a few videos you can do on the franchise so GL. Very excited to see them.

Same, he's my favourite childhood hero and leader! 🤩😍

Prime might just be my favorite hero in fiction. This definitely won't be the last time I talk about a version of him.

I agree with you on that buddy.🥰🤖📺

​@@KnightsRealm98I don't blame you on that buddy he good dad figure for bumblebee.🫂🥰🤖📺

​@@KnightsRealm98will you do a video on transformers prime Megatron as well he is much more interesting compared to others who are genetic villains

@@Darth-vade123 Working on a Megatron video right now. If everything goes well, it should be uploaded on Wednesday.

the addition of the caste system into the story was a genius move. Optimus was a higher caste office jockey that was timid but supported the revolutionairies untill they deviated from their values.

@@honkhonk8009 both characters sre very compelling

Megatron is a character I definitely want to do a deep-dive on in the future. His rivalry with Optimus is one of the best hero-villain relationships in fiction

​@@KnightsRealm98exavtly, but the most special relation between this 2, is the one portrayed in prime and cybertron games. Because optimus never tries to kill megatron ubtil megatron goes too far

I believe Optimus could, Megatron could not

When did Optimus say that?

@@jennahilton8259 Final battle of Fall of Cybertron, when Megs nearly killed Bee. The Cybertron games and TFP exist in what is known as the Aligned Continuity, a shared universe of...dubious combined canonicity

War veterans sick of war wouldn't rely on war crimes which is what bayverse prime at times does. Larry Cullen was a war veteran but he wasn't going mortal combat on Vietnamese soldiers

@Kaiju-bm4ts as much as I love the brutal combat in the movies, I do agree it's not very Optimus like. Which is why TF Prime is the vest example of Optimus. Other then the OG

@@redpandafirefox9434 same here, I see the movies as entertaining but that's it. Only the first film did optimus correct and while rotb does act like a bayverse film, it at least does the war torn optimus concept better as it was intentional from day 1. The bayverse just had it happen without it being pre-planned or valid explanation. I grew up with both bay optimus and prime optimus and while bay optimus was cool, prime optimus was the one I was emotionally invested in

@Kaiju-bm4ts Faxs bro. Exactly how I feel and see

I don't entirely disagree. I would have loved a scene where we just see Optimus out in nature or something, no Ratchet, no Megatron, no war. Or if someone like Ironhide showed up to be the friend Optimus needs; not a soldier, a friend.

@@KnightsRealm98 Yup. Or a lighthearted conversation with Fowler. Anything. We got to see a glimpse of the man behind his face in almost every episode and that's what made it so damn good. I just wish we could have seen a little more.

Cybertron was restored and life is blooming he is a hero😍

And I grew up with this Iteration of Optimus!

Ludicrous, but fun.

It's my favorite TF show for many reasons

Plus, Bulkhead being temporarily crippled in S2, what Airachnid did to Arcee, Airachnid in general, what MECH did to Breakdown, Bumblebee, and Starscream, and what Shockwave did to Arcee

@@KnightsRealm98 and there's bumblee's temporary death by megatron in the finale

Appreciate it!

After it stopped airing, some people who love to be contrary started nit-picking it, just because it was popular/mainstream. Most still hold it up as one of their favorites, but there's some who either like being contrarians or just have different tastes.

Also, you'll be very pleased to know that, so far, Skybound Comics Optimus is superb! Jumped right out of the G1 and Prime cartoons!

Dang it! Tf exodus is SO GOOD! peak transformers!

Yeah. It’s a shame none of that characterization makes it into the series. I don’t blame people for thinking TFP Optimus is a stick in the mud. Because he totally is, lol.

@@jonathandelgado3755 Actually I'd be willing to argue against that as well. The animators did a pretty good job showing op's emotions. It's subtle but it's there alright. If you take the episode nemesis prime, for example, when the autobots pull out their guns at optimus you could see the shock and betrayal on his face.

Sorry for the typo, I meant "warmhearted"

I don't dislike Bay Prime as much as some do, though he's far from my favorite version.

@@KnightsRealm98 well he’s other peoples favourite prime which is the point he’s not not some knight in shining for the fan he’s a war torn veteran who finally snapped trying to protect his friends

Season 3's a controversial topic in TFP circles, I've noticed. My personal opinion is that it needed to be longer, cause there were a lot of plot threads left dangling. Glad you enjoyed the video!

@KnightsRealm98 I never really noticed that since I chose to never really bother with the Fandom side of things. I do myself feel that Season 3 had a lot more to offer and as someone who actually thinks season three is the second best season, I wouldve really have liked to have seen more of Wheeljack and Ulrtra Magnus' relationship get explored, plant even more seeds for Knockouts eventual face turn. Tho I will say Optimus being the one to kill Megatron is something that I thought years back when I first saw this show.

Its what people mean when they say "real men dont show emotions". He shows his emotions through his actions. He doesnt cry or outwardly announce his emotions. But you can easily tell how he feels.

@@honkhonk8009 No a real men do show his emotion but he do not want other see it, I see it on my father, when he emotional hurt, he do not want to show it to his friends but he be ok to his family, because he need them to heal. The real men who never show their emotion is only in fiction but True real men do show but he hate to show and prefer to hided it to other, only his family have the right to see it and be their for support them, sure a Soldier is hard of them to show them but when he dos, is preferable to him to not other but he can't hide it forever, so he need to let it go or it will break him a part more them any battle damage, This is why Friends and Family are there for support them. back to Optimus, I am sure he a cry many time of the lost my of people and friends, so he get use to it and he no tear left but his emotion are there , but he do not show but need to strong for those who will break more easily them him, plus do not forget he got the matrix of Leadership, so the wisdom of preview Prime who too be hurt and give this wisdom to make sure the next prime will not break easily but is do not mean is easy for all who hold it, all this wisdom come with the pain and responsibly of a true leader and is why Megatron is NOT worthy of the Matrix of Leadership, Optimus show what is a true leader shout be and in any transformers series he show a leader who are not only a strong Warrior but a kind soul who care for other and will not think twist to risk his life for other!

I personally dislike the ending of Preds Rising, mostly because last-minute, unforeshadowed heel-turns are a personal pet peeve trope for me. If Megs's heel-turn had been set up before the movie, then I might like it. For example, I love Armada Megatron's redemption (I choose to ignore that Energon happened) and the original plan for DotM because those turns were set up. But Prime Megs is over here doing awful stuff right up until the end and...all it took was a couple days being puppeteered by Unicron for him to go, "My bad." I mean, it was him being oppressed that led to the Decepticon uprising in the first place (because Sentinel Prime can get fragged), so that whole, "now I understand oppression" line just rings hollow for me. Is it bad in concept? No, but the execution (and the execution of most of Season 3, honestly) left much to be desired. Thanks for commenting, by the way. I do like seeing others' perspectives, even if I may disagree. Hardly consider myself the "be-all, end-all" of media critiques. And I'm glad you enjoyed the video

@@ShadowedJJ I meant in the show itself, but you are correct

@@KnightsRealm98 Oh okay

Got a few on the horizon

@@AndrewDavis-sj6mb Never watched them

@@KnightsRealm98 Well some of them are real simple, but 😂

Optimus in the first movie is actually really well done. Second movie onward, he became kind of a psycho. Not just killing but brutalizing his enemies. He lost his better qualities, and it was never called out in-universe.

@KnightsRealm98 Ah, I see. Yeah, I can definitely see how that would piss people off and ruin his character and the movies for people (if they weren't already pretty bad)

He's probably my favorite heroic character ever.

I have thoughts for an analysis on both the Waves.

@@AndrewDavis-sj6mb Nope

@@KnightsRealm98 Unicorn is a hugely 👍 show what I've been told by my brother.

Fortunately, I have better hardware now

@@KnightsRealm98 Not me though :(

@@trheros7503 My newer stuff is better, don't worry

The recording wasn't great. The game was actually pretty smooth, oddly enough, but for some reason every time I recorded it the recording turned out janky (see the video description).

@@KnightsRealm98 Oh, sorry man If my comment was somehow disrespectful

@@blitzwing_4k No worries, man. The game footage annoyed me as well. That's why I'm switching backgrounds going forward (at least until I can figure out the problem). Experimenting is fun

@@KnightsRealm98 indeed

Cliff had a similar amount of screentime to Casey Becker from Scream. Much like Casey, Cliff was present in all the marketing leading up to the show's release, and was presented as a main character. Add on that he has a history in the franchise at large, and killing him was quite a hook. On top of that, stories kill off minor characters to establish stakes all the time. Gared/Wil and Waymar Royce from GoT/ASOIAF for example. We know next to nothing about those guys, yet their deaths establish the threat of the White Walkers (or the *stakes*) pretty early on. Horror movies always use the "first kill" to establish stakes, and we know nothing about that hapless victim. What about Harry Potter's parents? Captain Antilles in Star Wars? Prince Theodred in LotR? Batman's parents? Uncle Ben? The list goes on. Do we genuinely know much about these characters when they die? Nope. But they establish particular stakes early on. The Potters, the Waynes, and Uncle Ben establish why the hero is what he is now, on top of the Potters establishing that Voldemort is a murderous freak. Antilles establishes how strong Vader is and how ruthless he can be, thus setting stakes for Luke's later fights with him. Theodred's death is meant to build sympathy for the new faction of Rohan and to show how far Saruman has fallen. Cliffjumper's death establishes that this isn't G1 (pre-'86 movie, which I actually do think handles its stakes far better...mostly due to its larger cast). Characters can die, and brutally. Now, does Prime fall short of delivering on what Cliff's death promised? Unfortunately, yes, due both to the studio and the limited cast. One thing that people don't seem to understand about character death is that the main reason why most characters have plot armor is because once a character is dead, their story's done. Kaput. And if a writer isn't done with that character, death kinda cuts their plan short. Unless they get resurrected, which is a pain in the butt to do right. If TFP had a cast like G1, more character death would make sense. Look at all those guys. Half of them don't even have lines in every episode. But with a fluctuating cast of 5-8, it's a bit more difficult. Of course, if S3 had committed to Bulkhead's war wound and killing off Bumblebee, then I'd be happier. I did like what they did with Magnus, but it was a minor plot point at best. More lingering injuries would have been nice, essentially. But, again, studio and limited cast. In short, killing off a minor character to establish stakes is incredibly common in fiction, so saying that we only knew Cliff for a handful of minutes is irrelevant. Again, the show *does* fall short on delivering on the promise unfortunately, but that doesn't take away from the weight of Cliffjumper's demise. Especially in how it affects Arcee throughout the story. She might just have the best character arc in the show, aside from maybe Starscream, and that arc begins (for the audience) with Cliffjumper's death. Not to mention Tailgate, who we know even less about. Never even saw that guy's face before he got fileted by Airachnid. And yet, he hangs like a ghost over Arcee. We care because *she* cares. Anyway, long-winded reply done.

@@Void-r3b My computer when I made this video sucked. I have a new one now.