Optimus Minor

Optimus Minor is a Maximal from the Beast Wars portion of the Generation 1 continuity family.

Monkey, check. Kung-fu, check. Well, Monty Fiske should be interested by now...

Optimus Minor is an upbeat and lively warrior. He has a tendency to make jokes even when the situation is rather grim and not to always think things through in advance, but he's always up for a mission, even when the odds of success (or even survival) are low. Sounds like fun.^[1]

In one universe, Minor is the son of Optimus Primal. Don't ask how that works.

Fiction

Toy bio

A result of Megatron's cloning experiments, Optimus Minor possessed many traits commonly attributed to monkeys: agility, speed, intelligence, and a superior ability to climb stuff. His animal instincts served him well in battle, where he was a savage fighter. However, like many Transmetals 2, he had rage issues and trouble controlling the resulting violent urges. Beast Wars Optimus Minor bio

Dreamwave Generation One continuity

On their way back to Cybertron after the conclusion of the Beast Wars, Rattrap had a dream from his time back on Earth:

Optimus Minor, Bonecrusher, and Wolfang rescued Rattrap from Dinobot II. Minor said that they couldn't return with Rattrap. Although they were "once" Maximals, they had gained a purpose which did not include fighting. Ain't No Rat

Optimus Minor, Wolfang and Bonecrusher appeared to Rattrap in a vision while he and the rest of Optimus Primal's crew were leaving the planet at the end of the Beast Wars. The three of them guilted the rodent for abandoning them, but for some reason, Rattrap was unable to recall his previous encounter with the trio. Optimus Minor and the other two Maximals pleaded with Rattrap to return to Earth. Shell Game #1

2006 IDW Beast Wars continuity

I'm having flashbacks to Marsupilami...

Razorbeast was ordered by Magmatron to wake the remaining Axalon stasis pods on prehistoric Earth as Predacons. Thankfully for Optimus Minor, Razorbeast was working undercover and inserted a viral code into the protoform-awakening process. This virus caused many of the protoforms to retain their Maximal status. This included Optimus Minor, who was among the first to join up with Razorbeast. The Gathering #2 Razorbeast and Minor were responsible for fouling Magmatron's attempt to send Megatron back to the Tripredacus Council. The Maximals thwarted Magmatron's plans to conquer Cybertron, but they were stranded on ancient Earth as a result. The Gathering #4

Cuz' that's what friends are foooorrrr!

Optimus Minor fought alongside his fellow Earthbound Maximals against Ravage's Predacons and later the Blendtrons. The Ascending #1 The Ascending #2 The Ascending #3

When Razorbeast was infected by Rartorata with Angolmois, Minor stuck with him, encouraging his friend to fight the madness-inducing effects of the poisoning. But in the end, Optimus Minor was forced to shoot Razorbeast in the head to prevent him from turning the Angolmois-rage on other Maximals. Minor was deeply distraught at this turn of events, and was consoled by B'Boom. The Ascending #4

Legends World

The young son of Optimus Primal, Minor (マイナー Mainā) came with him to look at toys during 2014's Tokyo Toy Show and was surprised when they ran into his dad's adult co-workers. Tokyo Toy Show 2014 Report Part 1 He was overjoyed to see Animated Optimus Prime and Bumblebee at the convention, having loved the cartoon, and had fun playing a soccer game with the actor portraying Prime. Scoring a goal netted Minor a movie Optimus Prime toy which his dad helped him transform. Tokyo Toy Show 2014 Report Part 2

When Optimus Primal was turned into a real Transformer, he was afraid Minor would be scared, when instead his son thought he was really cool and was happy to have a Transformer for a dad. Bonus Edition Vol. 2 During Christmas, Minor and Primal went on a walk and saw an advertisement for Transformers Adventure. Merry X'mas!! Together with his friends Lio Junior and Build Boy, Minor was really excited when he met Age of Extinction Optimus Prime and started playing with him, unaware that "Prime" was actually Gelshark in disguise. The three kids' innocence and joy was enough to convince Gelshark to give up his evil ways. Bonus Edition Vol. 6 Minor was going to attend a Transformers show at Tokyo Toy Show 2015 when he was kidnapped by Black Convoy, angering Gelshark who was meant to act in the show, and the shark convinced Black Convoy to let the kid go by challenging him to a (failed) duel. Minor and his friends then pleaded with Gelshark not to return to his home universe with Black Convoy, but in the end had to say goodbye to him. Bonus Edition Vol. EX

While visiting Lio Junior, Minor and Build Boy were impressed by his new home, made out of Lio Convoy's starship mode. Bonus Edition Vol. 41

Beast Wars: Uprising

Optimus Minor was the designated team leader of a Maximal team participating in the 1924th Games. He attempted to give an inspirational speech, but was drowned out by the cheering and heckling of the audience. Nevertheless, the match was interrupted by Lio Convoy's assassination of Supersonic and call for an uprising against the Builders. Broken Windshields Optimus fled the match along with the rest of his team. Head Games

Toys

Beast Wars

It's a felony to sell alcohol to Optimus Minors!

• Optimus Minor (Basic Transmetal 2, 1999)

• Accessories: Tail/whip
• Known designers: Aaron Archer (Hasbro), Masakatsu Saito (concept artist)

Part of the first wave of fourth-year Beast Wars Basics, Optimus Minor transforms into a black, red, and gold-chromed Transmetal 2 monkey by changing his legs into arms, and his arms become legs. In robot mode his tail becomes a whip, grabbed by a pin in his right arm.

Along with fellow Transmetals 2 Scarem, Sonar, and Tigerhawk, Optimus Minor has an odd feature which allows him to have extra limbs; his robot mode arms (his legs in beast mode) can split down the middle to the elbows. This feature is particularly noteworthy in Optimus Minor, as it is not due to his transformation process, unlike the others, showing that it was more than an afterthought. Oddly enough, he has never been portrayed utilizing this ability (not even on his package art, like the other two were.) His spark crystal is located in the side of his midsection.

In Japan, this toy was first available as a promotional item^{[citation needed]}, then as an "import" exclusive to Toys"R"Us in Hasbro packaging with Japanese-language stickers for legal information.

• More information on Optimus Minor at TFU.info

He's been feeling blue ever since he was canceled.

• Optimus Minor (Basic Transmetal 2, 1999)

• Accessories: Tail/whip

In 2002, a carded specimen of a blue-instead-of-black Optimus Minor appeared among many Transformers prototypes that Whiz Bang! Toys auctioned on eBay. Although these colors more closely match his card art, it was probably intended as a "running change" (à la blue Dinobot II and black Prowl II), given that the "Transmetals 2" logo on the bubble is the non-Roman numeral version. This blue Optimus Minor would probably have been released alongside the green-and-tan Ramulus, whose samples have been found at a similar stage of completion.

Proceed on your way to oblivion. This item has been canceled, with no current plans for release.

Notes

• While it's never made explicit, Optimus Minor's toy bio describing him as a product of Megatron's cloning experiments imply that he's a failed clone of Optimus Primal.
• The original stock photos for Optimus Minor show the toy as covered in purple paint splotches that may have been meant to represent an energy surge effect. Like the stripe deco that was present on the stock photos of Transmetals II Cheetor, the purple was dropped before production.

Foreign names

• Japanese: Optimus Minor (オプティマスマイナー Oputimasu Mainā)

References