For untold eons, the Transformers multiverse has quaked beneath the shadow of the Chaos Bringer – Unicron, the Destroyer of Worlds. This immeasurably powerful force of annihilation seeks to consume all of existence, leaving only deafening silence and lifeless voids in his wake.
With Paramount‘s 2023 film Transformers: Rise of the Beasts set to feature this iconic villain, it‘s time to explore Unicron‘s sinister origins and apocalyptic goals. What sparked this unstoppable juggernaut‘s birth? How has he repeatedly brought Transformers‘ greatest civilizations to the brink over the millennia? And what monstrous new form might The Beast adopt for his next invasion in Rise of the Beasts?
Who is Unicron?
In essence, Unicron is Transformers‘ version of the anti-God – a multiversal singularity of chaos, darkness and devouring death. He is the ultimate cosmic destroyer; an insatiable force of annihilation seeking to become the sole flicker of life in a collapsed multiverse remade totally in his image.
To achieve his aims across infinity, Unicron possesses power beyond mortal reckoning. He warps space-time, shatters realities, corrupts matter and life itself, conjures apocalyptic legions, and crushes planets within his fist as easily as wadding paper. Entire universes have already burned in the fires of his shadow. All that remains now in Unicron‘s path is our small corner of existence…
Unicron unleashing his planet-killing powers (Transformers: Prime)
The Genesis of The Beast
Unicron‘s precise origins reside in the furthest mists of reality. Various conflicting tales offer glimpses into The Destroyer‘s beginnings…
In certain tellings, Unicron was forged alongside Primus at the very birth of all creation – perhaps splintering from the same cosmic seed in the extra-dimensional Matrix of Leadership. As Primus took shape as an incarnation of light, hope and creation, Unicron manifested as his inverse – darkness, chaos and relentless hunger.
Another account suggests Unicron was constructed long ago by an ancient scientist seeking to craft the ultimate force of cosmic balance…only to utterly lose control of his creation. Unchecked, the automaton known as "Unicron" swiftly grew obsessed with predation and extermination, no longer heeding the calls of his maker.
What is known is that eons past, Primus and Unicron waged apocalyptic warfare across every plane of the multiverse for dominance over existence itself. They unleashed attacks harnessing the explosive energy of supernovas and clashed with enough strength to crack space-time itself. Billions perished as collateral damage.
Ultimately after eons of deadlock however, Unicron at last overwhelmed his weakened sibling and seemingly annihilated Primus‘ material form completely during a cataclysmic final battle. Standing victorious over the broken remnants of his foe, The Destroyer used debris from Primus‘ shattered body as raw matter to encase his own form as the nascent planet Earth, which he crafted into an incubation chamber for cultivating worlds to consume.
Yet The Light had one last gambit in play. Unknown to Unicron, Primus‘ essence endured beyond physical death by instilling his life-force into the core of the barren planet Cybertron…
The Rise of Unicron
For countless vorns after his apparent victory over Primus, Unicron roamed the cosmos unchallenged – warping reality and devouring over 112 billion organic/mechanical worlds to satiate his endless hunger. Planets unfortunate enough to enter his gravity well would be slowly shredded apart and sucked into the abyssal vortex residing where his feeding maw should be.
Over time however, Primus began reasserting his influence across the multiverse – instilling gleams of his power/wisdom into select mechanical beings to create the first Generation One Transformers. The Thirteen Primes arose on barren Cybertron as stewards over this new race – infused with abilities from Primus himself.
Upon sensing glimmers of his ancient foe‘s power re-emerging, Unicron‘s wrath shook the heavens. He immediately plotted his return to eradicate Primus‘ last refuges – Cybertron and Earth.
Unicron first dispatched devastating Herald invasions against Cybertron to crush the burgeoning Transformer civilisation before it could gain strength. Zealous commanders like Megatronus and his later disciple The Fallen led these apocalyptic crusades. At times, Unicron‘s forces came within inches of overrunning Iacon and the Planet Key guarded by Primus‘ disciples.
In one notable fourth century assault, The Fallen‘s coalition of extremists cracked Cybertron‘s surface with the Trypticon Hammer, destabilising the planet‘s geology while slaughtering billions. They successfully assassinated all but one of the Dynasty – the valiant leader who would come to be known as Optimus Prime. Despite grievous losses, Optimus miraculously led shattered Transformer legions to victory, personally vanquishing The Fallen.
While Optimus and his successors repelled every external attack hurled at their world, over the ages Unicron continued discreetly manipulating Cybertron‘s politics and sciences towards destructive ends – fomenting functionalist extremism and perverting experiments with artificially created Transformer life. But his ultimate priority remained locating and consuming his eternal foe Primus, whose essence The Destroyer believed still lingered within Earth‘s depths…
By present times, Unicron‘s ancient crusade nears its endgame. The Chaos Bringer‘s heralds have awakened on Earth, portending the looming arrival of The Beast himself to finally erase Primus‘ last echoes from existence forever.
The Coming Annihilation
In Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, Unicron‘s apocalyptic assault may at last reach Earth and Cybertron after eons of anticipation. Myriad signs foretell The Destroyer is soon to emerge directly from the shadows and into our material plane – strange gravitic anomalies, deactivated colonies, surges in dark energy, ancient encrypted Decepticon signals reactivating…
Precisely how Unicron will physically manifest remains unknown. His abilities allow him to incarnate in manifold shapes – from roaming mechanical planetoids to gargantuan bipedal titans capable of wrestling with gods. Given the upcoming film‘s emphasis on ancient animal alternate modes however, numerous theories suggest we may witness Unicron adopt a chimeric creature guise or corrupt Maximals into monstrous "Predacon" forms to lead his invasion.
Irrespective of his final look, one certainty remains – Optimus Prime faces his ultimate nemesis. To confront the embodiment of apocalypse itself, the Last Prime must delve deeper into Cybertron‘s past and future than ever before. He must decode the prophecies of ancient Primes, master incredible relics from across Transformer history, unify warring factions and tribal predecessors alike, and steel his courage beyond limits…
For should Optimus fall, two worlds and untold civilizations will crumble before The Annihilator. This time however, no reset buttons or last-minute outs remain in play anymore. Beyond Earth and Cybertron‘s horizons, Unicron has already extinguished 96% of known life the universe over. Reality‘s final civilizations now stand upon extinction‘s edge.
As the Chaos Bringer‘s night exterminates all but the bitterest sparks, only a sliver of hope remains – that somehow, united, we may share the Light entrusted to Optimus Prime and endure Total Annihilation…
Unicron emerges to consume Earth (concept art for Transformers 6)