Tag Archives: Optimus Prime

This Optimus is a Prime example of cuteness overload!

I need only two “words” to accurately describe this LEGO Optimus Prime variant by Angus MacLane: toats adorbz! The odd proportions here somehow work quite well together: tiny hands and feet, a boxy little head, and a big barrel chest sporting the truck’s grill and headlights. The overall look reminds me of some of the Playskool versions of the bot intended for toddlers. This is exactly the kind of masterful character creation you would expect from a much-revered builder like MacLane. Heck, I’m still flabbergasted by the shaping of that Optimus noggin in this scale! There’s so much crammed into that small 2x2x2 cube allowing for proper eyes and forehead visor, as well attachments for the side hardware.

Sub-Optimus Prime

Of course if it’s a Transformer, then it had better be able to transform. Angus’s Optimus folds up into a semi, with equally-adorable dimensions. The opaque medium blue windows are an elegant solution to the difficult task of conveying a windscreen without revealing the bot within. For all the unique stylistic choices here, I think I may even like this second version of Prime better than his first.

Sub-Optimus Prime

Optimus Prime Combat Deck, ready to roll out

For me, as long-time fan of the Transformers and having built LEGO Transformers myself, LEGO releasing LEGO Transformers 10302 Optimus Prime was a pleasant surprise. It looks great as a robot, decent as a truck and the transformation sequence is fantastic. Its look is also largely faithful to the original Optimus Prime toy from the eighties. In my book, the one thing that could make it even better was for Optimus to have his trailer or Combat Deck. So, I built one myself.

LEGO set 10302 with a custom trailer

Click to see inside!

This amazing Optimus Prime isn’t Optimus Prime

No, you read that right. This incredible build by Student Scissors is actually the Transtector of a human known as Ginrai. Transtectors, if you’re not familiar with the term, are non-sentient Transformers controlled by humanoids, and there’s a good reason Ginrai’s Transtector looks an awful lot like Optimus Prime. But all that is beside the point in appreciating this impressive build. If you want to call it Optimus Prime, go ahead. Truth be told, we did end up getting the Ginrai figure imported to the States rebranded as “Powermaster Optimus Prime.”

Lego Transformers: Ginrai

Anyway, convoluted franchise history aside, this fully transformable semi-truck doesn’t just convert into a robot, it also comes with a trailer that the main cab can combine with to form Super Ginrai. That Student Scissors made the combined form possible with enough articulation to put the original Ginrai toy to shame is an impressive feat. That it was accomplished at such a small scale – a truck mode that’s only four studs wide – is extra incredible.

Lego Transformers: Super Ginrai

If transforming LEGO sets are your thing, be sure and check out our review of LEGO’s upcoming official take on the Autobot leader.

LEGO The Transformers 10302 Optimus Prime is more than meets the eye. [Review]

In the early 1980s, an actor named Peter Cullen told his brother Larry that he was using their shared car to go to an audition for “the voice of a hero truck.” Larry, a decorated Marine officer, gave Peter some advice on how to play an effective leader, “Be strong enough to be gentle.” Peter took Larry’s words to heart and earned the role of Optimus Prime, commander of the Autobots. The show Peter Cullen was auditioning for, The Transformers, was basically a commercial meant to sell repurposed toys from Japan to kids in America. It wasn’t supposed to create an icon. But, when Optimus Prime was killed on-screen in The Transformers: The Movie, the backlash was swift and immediate. Peter Cullen’s “strong but gentle” performance had turned Optimus Prime into something more than just an action figure in the eyes of the audience. The Transformers team quickly set to work on a series of episodes to revive Optimus Prime in Season 3 of the show, and Optimus would remain one of the few constants of the ever-evolving franchise from then on. Now, nearly forty years later, that original incarnation of Optimus Prime has been given new life once again as a fully transformable 1508-piece LEGO set. LEGO The Transformers 10302 Optimus Prime will be available June 1st, for US $169.99 | CAN $219.99 | UK £149.99

The LEGO Group provided The Brothers Brick with an early copy of this set for review. Providing TBB with products for review guarantees neither coverage nor positive reviews.

Clicking here to read more is the right of all sentient beings.

What if Optimus Prime had samurai armour? Here’s your answer.

Psyro TtunTomato has constructed this inventive reimagined version of Optimus Prime presented in a samurai-inspired form. The build retains mechanical details, such as piping and exhausts, while wedge pattern pieces, at the arms and shoulders, creates an aesthetic reminiscent of real-life samurai armour. Receiving a kick from this model looks like it would be painful as the legs have sharp, aggressive angles and are portrayed in a similar style to the Barbatos’ legs from the Gundam Universe. Armed with two long blades, this version of Optimus is ready to slice up some Decepticons. The model has the ability to look different from the original Optimus design, while still being recognizable through its colour scheme.

Lego optimus mech samurai style psyrottuntomato

Build your own LEGO Transformers Optimus Prime [Instructions]

Four million years ago, a young dock worker named Orion Pax lived on the planet Cybertron. At the start of the great Cybertronian War, Orion Pax nearly died after an attack by the evil Megatron. Thankfully, he was re-built into the powerful Optimus Prime by an ancient robot known as Alpha Trion. Now you can dispense with Alpha Trion and build a fully transformable Optimus Prime of your very own, thanks to this tutorial by Tiago Catarino.

Click here to check out the instructions

More than meets the eye

As someone with a degree in Latin, I love seeing Latin words and phrases used out and about in the modern world. Car names in particular seem to be Latin-derived, like Maxima (greatest), Navigator (helmsman), and Optima (best). Speaking of the latter, there is also a well-known Autobot called Optimus Prime, which is roughly “Best First” in Latin (I say roughly, rather than exactly, since it ought to be Primus rather than Prime, but it is still based on the same word). He is the best Transformer, that much is clear, from the Prime family, which is the “first family” of the strange alien robots. Sam.C (S2 Toys Studio) brings us said Autobot with this stellar transforming LEGO build.

PMOP1

Optimus looks awesome with his massive guns and his blocky shape. I love the shaping on the head in particular. He looks so angry, like Megatron just stole the AllSpark. It brings me back to the toys I played with as a kid, with limited range of motion but big guns and broad shoulders.

Read on to see Optimus’ transformation

Freedom is the right of all sentient beings

The leader of the Autobots, Optimus Prime, is known for motivating the troops with a good speech, and this model by hachiroku24 is striking the perfect pose to deliver. While this Optimus may not actually transform into his truck form, the builder did manage to capture many of the details that make this instantly recognizable, from the blocky red and blue limbs to those windshield pectorals.

Lego Optimus Prime G1

Optimus is a popular subject for LEGO builders, so be sure to check out all the other amazing LEGO Optimus Prime models we’ve featured.

The ultimate crossover anime movie of the century, if it ever happens

If the right copyright holders ever found a way to collaborate, any movie featuring this legendary trio would probably be an instant blockbuster hit. The Gundam RX-78-2, Voltron, and Optimus Prime all in a single scene saving the world is what Tom Vanhaelen teases us with. I found it quite delightful how Voltron was sized down tremendously from its official LEGO Ideas Voltron set using some of the printed parts and looks like a medium-sized model of its larger cousin.

RX-78-2 - Voltron - Optimus Prime

To stand divided, we will surely fall

The Super Deformed (SD) aesthetic, sometimes better known as Chibi designs, has a unique appeal when representing characters, emphasizing cuteness and innocence. I think it works well with LEGO as a medium, especially when filled with details. Though this pair may not transform into their vehicle forms, these two best buddies Optimus Prime and Bumblebee, are built by Choi Dam Baek (최담백).

Posed in their robot mode, not only do they look great, but they do have enough articulation to bring them to life in a wonderful example of the Chibi aesthetic applied to unusual characters.

There’s a thin line between being a hero and being a memory

Optimus Prime is someone full of wise words of leadership, and he dishes them out frequently to his team of Autobots. It’s something that I’ve always liked about him besides his general cool factor. This excellent build of the Generation 1 series by Marco De Bon triggers some of those memories. I like how the ingot bars are used to create a very mechanical feeling at just the rights spots in the build.

Lego FA-04 "Optimus Prime"

There’s more to them than meets the eye

If you are looking for a striking vision of leadership, look no further than the indomitable Optimus Prime! Beautifully Lego-ized by builder Anakin Skywalker, this stunning rendition of the fearless leader of the Autobots captures the shaping of his head and torso superbly. I love the limb articulation and the poseable fingers, as well as the little details like the windscreen wipers. Optimus is posing Roosevelt-like with his “big stick”. Like any true commander, his philosophy was, “There’s a thin line between being a hero and being a memory.”

Lego - Optimus Prime!