Saddest Deaths in the Franchise

The constant and unending war for Cybertron between the Decepticons and the Autobots has seen far too many casualties to count in the Transformers franchise. With war, comes death, and Transformers has some of the saddest deaths in fiction with some beloved and unexpected characters receiving fates that they did not deserve.

The saddest deaths in the Transformers franchise range not just from the Bayverse movies, but from the animated shows and IDW comics that showcase how far the reach of Transformers can touch the hearts of fans. Each Transformer, whether Autobot or Decepticon, has had an emotional death worth remembering.

7 Wheeljack / Que

Executed by a Decepticon After Surrendering

• Died in: Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
• Killed by: Barricade

Wheeljack from the Michael Bay Transformers movies had perhaps one of the saddest and most unjust deaths out of them all. Wheeljack was not a soldier, nor was he a fighter. Wheeljack was a scientist and an inventor for the Autobots, but that didn’t stop the dreaded Decepticons from taking Wheeljack prisoner.

Wheeljack was then forced to his knees and executed by Decepticons ordered by Shockwave and Barricade. With two powerful shots, Wheeljack’s spark left him, but not before leaving audiences with his final and heartwrenching plea alongside Bumblebee. Decepticons chuckled mercilessly at the execution of a Cybertronian who just wanted peace.

6 Ratchet

Hunted by Humans and Finished Off by Lockdown

• Died in: Transformers: Age of Extinction (2014)
• Killed by: Lockdown

Ratchet was the chief medical officer of the Autobots, and a hero to the end. After the battle of Chicago, humanity deemed Autbots a threat – and thus Ratchet was forced into hiding. After a relentless hunt, this loyal physician was beaten, blown up, and shot at by humans, and eventually finished by the Cybertronian bounty hunter Lockdown.

In his last moments, Ratchet, in pain, refused to give up the location of Optimus Prime – showcasing unwavering loyalty to the very end. Ratchet didn’t deserve death for saving humanity, and what’s worse is how his mutilated corpse would be stripped of parts to create new machines for humanity.

5 Bumblebee

Shot in the Chest by Scourge

• Died in: Transformers: Rise of the Beasts (2023)
• Killed by: Scourge

As the first Autobot to see the goodness in humanity, Bumblebee would stop at nothing to save the innocence of their own planet against the horrors of the Decepticons. Bumblebee’s loyalty to humans and to his commander, Optimus Prime, would see him impaled by Scourge, and then shot in the chest with Scourge’s cannon.

Bumblebee’s final words are one of immense sadness, as he looks directly at Optimus and says “Oh, Captain, my Captain.” Before the light of his eyes dies out. While Bumblebee does return in the same movie, his absence is one that still stings to this day.

4 Ironhide

Discharged From Duty with Three Shots from Sentinel Prime’s Gun

• Died in: Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
• Killed by: Sentinel Prime

Ironhide was the weapons specialist of the Autobots and a good friend of Optimus Prime. Seeing their banter and clashes was part of the charm of this great Autobot, and his aggression and love of weapons made him an impressionable Autobot who was taken undeservedly by the man who he thought was his commander – Sentinel Prime.

Sentinel betrayed the Autobots by making a deal with Megatron, and with his reveal, he was quick to shoot Ironhide in the chest. Three shots tear Ironhide apart, and Sentinel’s gun could eat away at Ironhide’s metal, causing him to disintegrate and rust. Ironhide’s final moments were of confusion and pain, and he died alone.

3 Ravage

Fell to His Injuries of Being Ripped in Half by DJD’s Tarn

• Died in: The Transformers: More than Meets the Eye #55 (July, 2016)
• Killed by: Tarn

For the longest time, Ravage was just the cute and cool transforming panther that could emerge from Soundwave’s chest. This cool and cute design was given further life with the IDW comics, where Ravage had a voice, loyalty, and a personality of his own to Soundwave and Megatron. Ravage got into a fight with Tarn, the leader of the Decepticon Justice Division (D.J.D.) after Tarn deemed Megatron a defector. This fight would see Ravage ripped in half, with an Autobot Megatron coming to kill Tarn and save his friend, but Ravage was slowly dying.

Ravage puts his paw on Megatron’s chest and tells his leader in his last moment “Don’t change back”. It’s intentionally vague – did he mean that Megatron shouldn’t change into a Decepticon or an Autobot? Answers would never come, as Ravage died there and then – mourned by Megatron, with his death felt in the stars all those lightyears away by Soundwave, who mourned silently and alone.

2 Dinobot

Sacrificed Himself to Destroy the Golden Disk and Stop Megatron

• Died in: Transformers: Beast Wars – Code of Hero (S2E9)
• Killed by: Golden Disk

A noble Predacon who committed to honorable warrior ways, Dinobot pursued an endless glory that would be his undoing. Once a villain, Dinobot would use his incredible range of weapons and skills as a warrior to fight any who oppose him – until he decided that he could fight for himself, and not for glory. Dinobot joined the Maximals, but would accidentally become their betrayer.

His last moments were one of goodness, where he stopped Megatron by destroying the Golden Disk – which would forfeit his life. Dinobot died surrounded by Maximals, with an emotional speech that sums up his experience as a villain and a hero: “Tell my tale to those who ask. Tell it truly, the ill deeds along with the good, and let me be judged accordingly. The rest… is silence.” As Dinobot’s spark leaves him, the Maximals give a tearful salute.

1 Optimus Prime

Died Due to Injuries Sustained in a Fight with Megatron

• Died in: The Transformers: The Movie (1986)
• Killed by: Megatron

There are few characters in the Transformers franchise that have died as much as Optimus Prime. The courageous leader of the Autobots has been the poster-bot of self-sacrifice countless times, and Optimus has died so many times that it’s almost hard to count. However, it’s perhaps his first death that will remain the saddest of the whole series.

Until that day, until all are one.

Optimus Prime’s first death was in The Transformers: The Movie, in which he succumbed to his wounds caused by a fight with Megatron. Optimus’s body slowly fading from color, paired with the weakened and beautiful final speech of hope and optimism makes it a true tearjerker.