Kirkman said Elita Prime was never meant to be a villain
Seeing a lot of people thrown off by her after issue 30. But by seeing how she saved her troop from swarms of Deception attack in issue 32, Kirkman started to make it pretty clear — he just wanted a war-hardened Autobot leader who feels different from Optimus. That's it. Not a villain origin story, not a slow corruption arc, just a different kind of leader forged by a different kind of war.
Honestly, now it makes sense why people were thrown off — Kirkman was trying SO hard to differentiate her from Optimus that it almost felt like he overcorrected and she came across as someone she wasn't. But it feels like he's finding his footing with her now and I'm genuinely glad because the character has a lot of potential.
Idk, knowing RK's intent made me appreciate her a lot more. Curious if anyone else felt the same or if you're still skeptical of her.