Optimus Prime Ice Sculpture By Antti Pedrozo And Michel De Kok

Across the assorted continuities of the original Transformers universe, there have been various interpretations of Optimus Prime. One of Prime's most notable characteristics in any form was his adamant commitment to leadership by example, and avoidance of any hypocrisy in his command, but beyond this, the animated series leaned towards Optimus Prime as a straightforward, wise and essentially upbeat battlefield general. The Marvel Comics series, on the other hand, in addition to these more obvious characteristics, suggested a Prime secretly plagued by self-doubt and, more importantly, a conflicted sense of pacifism that often made him an extremely reluctant warrior. It was occasionally implied that the conflict with the Decepticons lasted as long as it did primarily because of his unwillingness to take a more aggressive stance.
The animated series revealed other minor details about Optimus Prime's personality and personal life — for example, his dislike of rap music ("Blaster Blues" and "Quest for Survival"), which set him at odds with music-loving characters like Blaster and Jazz. Prime also enjoys televised sports, most notably basketball which he even plays ("The Master Builder"), as well as setting up a basketball court outside the Ark. Though Prime's personality is like that of a human man age 40-50, he is not above watching afternoon soap operas (in the episode "Prime Target", he is heard groaning out loud when the soap opera he is watching with the other Autobots gets interrupted for a news report).