Beast Wars never really came right out and established who the Maximal Prime was after Optimus, and Rodimus. Was it Lio Convoy, and Big Convoy? The IDW comics established them as important figures in the Maximal military. But is Convoy the Maximal equivalent to Prime? Like when the Autobots evolved in Maximals, so did the title of the leadership? And one other quick question. If Primal Prime hadn't become Sentinal Maximus, and started traveling to other universes, would he have out ranked the two Convoys? Or would the Maximals have three leaders? I'm curious what your thoughts are.
Convoy was always the Japanese counterpart to "Prime", ever since G1. It wasn't something they just changed to during the Beast Era Optimus Prime = Convoy Rodimus Prime = Rodimus Convoy
By the time of the Beast Era, "Convoy aka Prime" had become a wide spread rank(however it's still an extremely high ranking one). There was no "Prime" in charge during the Beast Era like there was in G1 during Optimus's and Rodimus's time. The main title of leadership belonged to the Maximal High Council or Convoy Council depending on which continuity you're following.
Grand Convoy, I believe, though that's in BWII / BWN continuity, so I don't know if it fits completely. Maybe the Maximal Council of Elders replaced the Primes in the time of peace.
Forget the Japanese continuities and their story lines, but steal their characters. Someone like Big Convoy could be carrying the Matrix. He could be someone like Maximus Prime or something more anglosised, rather than Big Convoy. No doubt Optimus Prime handed back control of the Autobots/Maximals to the High Council. But he would have had to pass the Matrix on. Whoever got it became a Prime, but was not the leader of the whole faction. Just blur the lines between canon and imagination and you get a much better result.
I think it's similar to how the British government works, I think the title of prime is still around but it has no real power seeing as the whole concept of a prime wasn't too "democratic"
Following the end of the war, government got reorganized. The Maximals aren't led by a singular Prime, but by the Maximal Elders and/or the Maximal High Council - both names are used in the BW cartoon, and it's not clear if they refer to the same group or two houses in the "parliament". By the time of Beast Wars II and Neo, several hundred thousand years further into the future, they've been replaced by the Convoy Council, seemingly headed by Grand Convoy.
That much I did know. But there never really was a great link between the American/Canadian Beast Wars, and the Japanese Beast Wars until recently. Primal Prime was a Maximal Prime, and in the IDW comics Lio Convoy, and Big Convoy's name were not renamed to Prime. So that was the basis of my question. I remember in the G1 comics Optimus Prime having to deal with a counsel every once in a while, but I remember him mostly being the head honcho. I do remember in BW the mention of the Maximal Elders. I was just always wondering if a Prime was also calling the shot. Thanks.
