Optimus Prime (Beast Wars Neo 1999)

You don't want to give Optimus Prime (Big Convoy ビッグコンボイ Biggu Konboi/オプティマス・プライム/コンボイ Oputimasu Puraimu/Konboi) a hard time. While most Maximal Supreme Commanders are known for their level-headed and friendly natures,Optimus Prime breaks the mold by positively wrecking and ruining anyone who gives him lip. A gargantuan bruiser of a warrior, he tramples the opposition in his woolly mammoth beast mode and utterly obliterates them in robot mode with his Big Cannon. He is known throughout the Maximal ranks as "The One-Man Army", a solitary Supreme Commander who can do the work of a whole battalion all on his lonesome.

So of course the Maximal Council felt he would make a perfect training instructor for a batch of new recruits freshly minted from the Maximal Military Academy. While it takes every ounce of restraint Big Convoy can muster not to completely throttle the green little twerps, deep down he kinda-sorta likes them. Or he's getting there, anyway. Vector Sigma has taken a special interest in Optimus Prime and often speaks through him via the Energon Matrix in his chest. And with each lesson in warfare he imparts on his new recruits, Big Convoy in turn learns a lesson about friendship and teamwork.

Sometimes he is previously known as Big and at other times he is known as Slammoth.As Optimus Prime

I never trust anyone—except for my Big Cannon.

Beast Wars Neo cartoon
Voice actor: Junichi Inoue (Japanese)

Optimus Prime once operated as a duo with Rockbuster and the two fought Predacons and adventured together. However, their solitary natures eventually drove them apart and both warriors decided to become solo acts in the war against the Predacons.

Optimus Prime's decision to go it alone brought him into conflict with the Maximal drill instructor Survive, a stern believer in the value of teamwork. They parted on shaky ground, with Survive determined to someday teach Big Convoy how to work in a group.

As "the One Man Army" (the nickname he quickly earned), Optimus Prime focused his energies on thwarting the machinations of Magmatron, the new leader of the Predacon forces. After a particularly explosive assault on a stronghold, the two became arch-foes.

Hoping to curb Optimus Prime's psychotically antisocial behavior, the Maximal Council ordered him to train a crew of unruly new recruits. Optimus Prime loathed the assignment at first, but being a loyal soldier, accepted the task. His first mission was to explore Gaea and investigate the disappearance of Lio Convoy. Little did he know, Magmatron and his Predacons were following close behind him. After finding a black box message from Lio Convoy, Optimus Prime learned of the Angolmois capsules ejected after the destruction of Nemesis. Optimus Prime then headed off with his group of trainees to collect the capsules, battling Magmatron every step of the way.

Optimus Prime is not one for compassion or sentimental gobbledygook. Because of this bitter attitude, Vector Sigma took it upon itself to dispense words of wisdom and encouragement to the recruits directly through Optimus Prime, via his Energon Matrix. Optimus Prime hated it at first, but over the course of the adventure, the sense of compassion began to rub off on him, and he started giving words of advice all on his own.

Eventually, after the Maximals and Predacons collected all the capsules, they were attacked by the Terrorcons, a fearsome trio of nearly invincible Transformers. The Terrorconss beat the mortal hell out of him, the Maximals and the Predacons, and took the Angolmois capsules. As it turned out, the Angolmois energy was really the essence of Unicron, and the Blendtrons were his creations.

The Blendtrons released the Angolomois energy into the corpse of Galvatron, resurrecting Unicron. Optimus Prime and the Maximals raced him back to Cybertron but were sidetracked by being sucked into a wormhole. It turned out to be the same wormhole that had sucked in Lio Convoy and his crew after their battle against Nemesis. Lio Convoy told Optimus Prime the history of Unicron and helped him escape the wormhole.

The Maximals arrived too late; Unicron had already destroyed the Maximal armada (and Great Convoy with it) and possessed Vector Sigma, turning Cybertron into his new body.

Optimus Prime, the Maximal recruits and Magmatron stood side-by-side to fight the menace. Unicron briefly exited Vector Sigma to swat his opponents. Using their newfound teamwork, the Maximals managed to hold off Unicron while Optimus Prime powered up his trademarked "Big Cannon" with his own Energon Matrix. This upgraded his Big Cannon into the "Matrix Buster". Optimus Prime unleashed a blast from his Matrix Buster directly into Unicron, seemingly destroying him.

With Unicron evicted from Vector Sigma, Optimus Prime and Magmatron chose to put aside their differences. Together, all missing Maximals and Predacons set adrift (especially those from Lio Convoy's time) returned to Cybertron to help rebuild the planet. In the end, Optimus Prime, Magmatron and Lio Convoy were seen standing side-by-side beneath Vector Sigma.