- Roller is a component of Autobot leader Optimus Prime.
In robot mode, Optimus Prime splits into three components:
- A sentient robot module, the Brain Center
- A wheeled drone module known as Roller.
- A Combat Deck.
Although Optimus Prime can function as three independent modules, injury to any one module is felt by the other two.
Roller is a small, cart-shaped device that Optimus Prime uses to slip unobtrusively behind enemy lines. He can maintain radio control over Roller at distances up to 1200 miles. Having Roller present somewhere is like being there himself.
Roller is a droid, able to function autonomously without Optimus's active oversight. But without Optimus, by far the most important of the three modules, Roller would not survive. Optimus shows great attachment and concern for Roller, who is left particularly vulnerable by the behind-the-scenes situations in which it specializes.
History
Pre-cartoon continuity
Several million years ago on Cybertron, when Optimus Prime was a mere transport and delivery worker known as Orion Pax, Roller was an industrial droid known as Barrelroller.[1] He transformed into an electromagnetic lift handle that helped Orion in his warehouse work moving heavy cargo. When Orion was fatally wounded by Megatron and rebuilt by Alpha Trion as Optimus Prime, Barrelroller was rebuilt into the Roller we all know and love.
Cartoon continuity
The Transformers cartoon
More than Meets the Eye
When Bumblebee and Sparkplug Witwicky were caught by Decepticons, and with the clock ticking on the bomb they planted, Optimus Prime sent Roller into the mine. When the bomb exploded, Optimus was nearly destroyed, but Roller emerged cheekily unscathed, prompting Jazz to observe "Roller's one tough little Autobot!"
Attack of the Autobots
Another of Megatron's schemes involved sabotaging the Autobots' recharging chamber with a personality destabilizer device, turning a good number of them, including Optimus Prime, "evil". When the unaffected Autobots attempted to restore Prime back to normal, he split into his three components. Both Roller and the Combat Deck attempted to take the Autobots out, but Hound was able to nail them both with attitude exchangers and stop their attacks.
The Autobot Run
The Autobots were stuck in vehicle mode by the evil Transfixatron. With Ironhide in the claws of Megatron's car-crushing machine, only Roller could save the day! Roller led the Decepticons on a merry chase, allowing Optimus to rescue Ironhide from the jaws of undignified death!
MUX History
On the MUX, Optimus Prime sometimes uses Roller as a way to check on and hang out with his troops in a less-intimidating form.
Notes
- Prime's original character description, as seen in the Transformers Universe profile comic, named the robot module "Optimus" and the drone module "Prime", noting that the Prime module is also known as Roller. However, in practice, these names were never used. The robot module was always treated as if named "Optimus Prime", with "Prime" even being his most common nickname.
- A reference to this "Prime module" was retained in Universe's Powermaster Optimus Prime profile, so the little guy must still be around, despite not being included with the Powermaster toy.
External links
- Optimus Prime's Universe profile at NTFA.net
- Powermaster Optimus Prime's Universe profile at NTFA.net
- Orion Pax's e-HOBBY bio.
Footnotes
- ↑ The name "Barrelroller" only appears in the official English-language translations of Orion Pax's bio on Takara's e-Hobby site. In the Japanese-language version of the bio—both online and on the pack-in bio card from the toy—Barrelroller is called simply "Roller".
| This page uses content from Transformers Wiki. The original article was at Roller (G1). The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with Transformers Universe MUX, the text of Transformers Wiki is available under the Creative Commons License. |