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Prowl (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2017-01-28T13:14:26Z

AllAreTaken: I'm new, so I will go with what you guys decide. But I suggest a change of caption. Prowl waited 3 years before sending help to Garrus 9 because he was stranded on earth and he had intel that said they were dead, not because he chose to abandon Max.

{{disambig2|Prowl the existentially-cross table-flipping pragmatist|Prowl the [[Predabot]]|Dent}}{{suite}}
[[File:Prowl-Infiltration2&3covers.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|My prickitude [[Shane McCarthy|fluctuates]] [[Nick Roche|wildly]] [[Mike Costa|between]] [[John Barber|writers]].]]
Pragmatist. Calculating and cold. Rule-bound. Prickly. Just some of the words used to describe '''Prowl'''.
{{quote|We're not winning this war, and I'm '''''tired''''' of it. Tired of crunching stat after stat, formulating workable strategies for '''''achievable victory'''''. Prime listens--to a point--then gets '''''restless''''' and changes tack on a whim. The average Autobot default setting is daredevil maverick. That's not '''''us''''', [[Perceptor (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Perceptor]]. '''''We''''' can subdivide this war into its purest mathematical form and generate solutions all we want, but unless we happen to be [[Spotlight: Hot Rod|'''''surfing''''' on a '''''meteoroid''''']] at the time, '''''no one''''' will pay attention.|Prowl|"[[Everything in Its Right Place]]"}}
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==IDW Generation 1 comics==
{{ongoing}}
===From cop to soldier===
Prowl of [[Petrex]] was [[Reproduction|constructed cold]]. {{storylink|Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|Arm the Lonely}} He learned to appreciate rules and discipline during his formative years in Petrex, a strictly [[functionism|functionist]] town where saying anything bad about your [[alternate mode]] could get you thrown in jail. He eventually made it into the [[Iaconian Mechaforensic Division]], where he became famous for his tendency to order a full body autopsy during practically every investigation. This is exactly what he did when he and his partner [[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Tumbler]] were assigned to investigate the assassination of [[Sherma|Senator Sherma]], seemingly killed by Decepticons, leading to the discovery of [[cerulean glass]] on the victim's body. Following the trail to [[Translucentica Heights]], the duo ran straight into another body: that of [[Momus|Senator Momus]]. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}}

[[File:Prowl computing Patternism.jpg|left|upright=1.55|thumb|"Shut up." "I didn't say anything." You were ''thinking'' it's ''annoying''."]]
As Tumbler went after the killer, Prowl investigated the crime scene and found that Momus had in fact been a Decepticon himself... and also that there was a ''second'' killer, who promptly attacked them. Inexperienced in combat, Prowl could do little to fight back, but the two were rescued by a fellow cop named [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]] who believed the [[Senate]] to be targeting Decepticons. Pax suggested that they avoid reporting their findings to their superiors, but Prowl ignored him in favor of regular police procedure, which much to his chagrin led to his preliminary report being quoted as fact on the news. Sent by Pax to investigate a nearby [[Relinquishment Clinic]], he and Tumbler not only found proof that the killers had been using borrowed bodies, but also a complex dedicated to researching [[brain module]]s and a list of known Decepticons. While Tumbler, Orion Pax and several others believed that the clinic was the [[Institute]] and that the Senate was planning to use it to brainwash the Decepticons, Prowl rejected this as a far-fetched conspiracy theory. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 2: Patternism|Patternism}} He refused to have any part in Pax's plan to stop the Senate's evil plot, but worried about his partner's choice to join in. He asked Pax to keep Tumbler out of danger, and in exchange he wouldn't tell anyone what they were planning. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}}

[[File:MegatronOrigin2 boredAutobots.jpg|thumb|And remember to fill out those TPS reports.]]
Following the rise of [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]], Prowl joined the Autobot Security Services in [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]], working right under Sentinel. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}} Prowl's goal was to work against Sentinel's corrupt system from the inside, and he often talked Sentinel out of carrying out his destructive plans. {{storylink|Onyx Interface Part Three: ONoffON|ONoffON}} {{storylink|Last Light|Last Light}} However, becoming part of that system (even just for subversive reasons) resulted in the end of his close relationship with Tumbler. {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 1: All Our Parlous Yesterdays|All Our Parlous Yesterdays}} Tumbler would eventually become [[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Chromedome]], and Prowl would forever be made the butt of jokes by Chromedome's future [[Conjunx Endura]] [[Rewind (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rewind]]: usually featuring fictional instances of Prowl being beaten up. {{storylink|The Gloaming}}

[[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]]'s rise as the most popular and violent pit fighter in videos of Kaon's illegal [[gladiatorial combat]] attracted Prowl's attention, and he formed an Autobot Security Services team to crack down on them, though to the chagrin of his fellow officers, he tended to blather on about his theories about how somebody was making a fortune distributing on these inexpensive to produce videos. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}}

After the murder of [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (G1)|Fastback]], Sentinel and Prowl led a security forces deployment that arrested many of Megatron's pit fighters and those that they were attempting to recruit. Prowl personally attached the [[inhibitor claw]] to Megatron once he was overwhelmed by security forces. While processing the prisoners, he delivered the galling news that due to [[Ratbat (G1)#IDW Generation 1 continuity|senate orders]], the one known as [[Soundwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Soundwave]] was to be freed without charge. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} Unfortunately, it was all part of Megatron's mad plans. He allowed himself and his men to be captured so Starscream could feign turning coat and murder the senate members who questioned him. During the ensuing jail break that devastated the [[Security Services Headquarters|Security Team HQ]] and following street battle, Prowl lost his usual cool composure in the face of such onslaught and looked to Sentinel Prime for directions. When Prime left to face Megatron personally and was brutally defeated, it was Prowl who took control and ordered the evacuation of security forces from Kaon. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

During Sentinel's state funeral, Prowl made a public announcement that the Decepticons had desecrated Sentinel's body and stolen his head. {{storylink|The Last Autobot|The Last Autobot}}

When [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]] rose to power, Prowl took an interest in keeping watch on those in power. Orion Pax eventually brought him [[Jetfire (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jetfire]] who had been arrested for assaulting an officer of the law. Prowl was ready to dismiss them until Pax brought up the death of [[Hefter]], an act done by corrupt policemen gaining Prowl's interest. When the police mech interrogated Jetfire, the Decepticon started a fist fight which Prowl easily won before he convinced him that he and Pax wanted to help. He was able to deduced from Jetfire's words that no one had told Jetfire to attack Pax but someone had told him ''about'' him. {{storylink|New Cybertron Part 2: A Lonely Pillar on the Plain|A Lonely Pillar on the Plain}}

[[File:SinsOfTheWreckers3-ProwlAntiRadArmor.jpg|left|thumb|300px|]]
During the war, Prowl began working with the non-aligned scientist [[Tarantulas (BW)|Mesothulas]] in secret. Mesothulas saw their relationship as symbiotic — Prowl's imagination would feed into Mesothulas's desire to make the impossible real, and vice versa. Their partnership resulted in many frightening advancements, such as stasis bullets, spark extraction, and Decepti-bombs. The successful utilization of the latter resulted in Decepticons being blamed for the destruction of the neutral city [[Carpessa]], which allowed Prowl to recruit the survivors into the Autobots. Mesothulas also contributed the idea of the [[Aequitas]] computer, though Prowl reported that High Command were concerned with the ethics of the guilt-detecting supercomputer. Prowl eventually began to have very strong doubts about the ethics involved with Mesothulas's inventions, particularly after the revelation of his latest creations, the [[Noisemaze]], and an artificial Cybertronian life-form called Ostaros. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 3|Sins of the Wreckers #3}}

Prowl quietly made a deal with [[Impactor (G1)|Impactor]] where in he would dispose of Mesothulas by pushing the scientist into the Noisemaze and destroy all of his inventions, including Ostaros. However, Impactor could not bring himself to eliminate Ostaros, and told Prowl to do his own dirty work if he wanted it done. Prowl, however, could not kill him either, and instead had the artificial Cybertronian enlisted in the Autobots under the name [[Springer (G1)|Springer]]. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 3|Sins of the Wreckers #3}} {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 5|Sins of the Wreckers #5}} Prowl soon went on to create an automatic recording for the possibility of him ever being compromised, in which case he wanted Springer to be the one to rescue him from whatever may befall him. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 1|Sins of the Wreckers #1}} Prowl was among the arresting officers who took down [[Roadbuster (G1)|Roadbuster]] when he began [[Roadbuster affair|brutalizing his cadets]]. However, Impactor called in his favour with Prowl, who agreed to have Roadbuster released after serving minimum rehab. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 4|Sins of the Wreckers #4}}

As the Decepticon movement began to spread across Cybertron and [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]] took command, Prowl became a member of Orion Pax's Autobot counter-insurgency unit. He participated in a mission to arrest [[Swindle (G1)|Swindle]] as he was selling weapons to terrorists in [[Nyon]]. {{storylink|Law and Disorder}} Not long afterwards he helped hunt down Decepticon spy Soundwave, but was dealt with by [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] who collapsed the [[Neurospan Bridge]] on him. {{storylink|The Hunt for Soundwave}} When [[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]] was held hostage by Decepticons to convince Orion to come to Kaon and talk to Megatron, Prowl and the rest of the team came to their rescue. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}}

On a mission from Zeta Prime to arrest the insurgent [[Hot Rod/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hot Rod]], Orion Pax's team traveled to Nyon's [[Acropolex]], where Prowl noted that their target seemingly wasn't trying to kill them and also mentioned being a believer in the [[Matrix of Leadership]] unlike [[Ironhide (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|some people]]. At the heart of the Acropolex, the Autobots found that Hot Rod just wanted to show them multiple tanks full of energon drained from Nyon's populace to power Zeta Prime's war machines. He asked Orion Pax to join him against Prime's tyranny, though Prowl voiced his disapproval of officers joining the insurgents against their own government. {{storylink|Ruins}} He seemingly changed his mind as soon as Zeta Prime began directly assaulting Nyon. To distract Zeta's [[Guardian robot|Omega Destructor]]s while Hot Rod evacuated the city, Orion Pax and Prowl acted as bait and drew one of the Destructors into a trap, but failed to harm it and were defeated by Zeta Prime himself. {{storylink|Purge}} The Autobots' lives were saved by Megatron, who took them to Kaon for repairs and negotiated an alliance with Orion. {{storylink|Choices}}

[[File:Prowl Autocracy12 Endgame.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|This is my "up to something" face.]]
Together with their new allies, Prowl and the others attacked Zeta Prime's [[Citadel]] and put an end to his rule. Unsurprisingly, the Decepticons then betrayed them. {{storylink|Overthrown}} Prowl was among those captured under Megatron's new rule, but escaped alongside his cellmates [[Hound (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hound]], [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] and [[Kup (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Kup]]. They followed Orion Pax's ID signal to the ruins of Nyon, where they were shocked to learn that he had acquired the Matrix and become Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Rise}} When Optimus had to make a rallying call for more allies for their cause, Prowl cut the news-feed for the message to get carried out. He then participated in the assault against the Citadel. {{storylink|Broadcast}} After the battle, Prowl showed Optimus the armory that Zeta Prime had hidden in the [[Undergrid]], suggesting that they could use the weapons within against the Decepticons. Optimus refused this and ordered them destroyed. Knowing Prowl, however, he may not have followed orders... {{storylink|Endgame}}

Not long after Optimus's rise to leadership, Prowl aided him in responding to an attack on the [[Toraxxis mega-refinery]]. {{storylink|Rage (IDW)|Rage}} During the [[Exodus (G1)|Exodus]], his security unit was in charge of upholding order at Iacon's [[Starsreach Spaceport]], but growing tensions led to rioting among those who couldn't afford their way off the planet. Prowl called in Optimus Prime to calm the rioters, only to be pulled into combat when the Decepticons attacked the spaceport. {{storylink|Massacre}} After [[Grimlock (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Grimlock]] had chased off the attackers, Prowl watched him and the other [[Dinobot (G1)|Dynobots]] leave Cybertron. {{storylink|Unleashed}} He later participated in the Autobot defensive strategy against a rampaging [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]]. {{storylink|Annihilation}}

During an all-out Decepticon assault on Iacon, Prowl suggested the Autobots retreat to avoid being overwhelmed by Megatron's new [[Junkion (species)|Junkion]] allies, but was ordered by Prime to hold the line. {{storylink|Primacy issue 3|Primacy #3}} He continued to fight until Prime transmitted a holographic message telling all combatants that he had defeated Megatron and that the battle was over. {{storylink|Primacy issue 4|Primacy #4}}

Following the battle, Prowl led a group of Autobots to [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]] where they were met by Decepticons led by [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Shockwave]]. The two squads clashed over Junkion's gravimetric core with either Shockwave or Prowl eventually giving the order to detonate the core and destroy the planet completely. {{storylink|New Cybertron Part 2: A Lonely Pillar on the Plain|A Lonely Pillar on the Plain}}

Four million years ago, Prowl was working directly under Optimus Prime as the Autobots fought to prevent the Decepticons from bringing fresh energon supplies to the war effort. While Optimus went after the energon convoy himself, Prowl held the line with Hound and the others to prevent the Decepticons from getting hold of the latest city they had targeted. In the aftermath, Prowl congratulated Prime for capturing the convoy without having to fire a shot. {{storylink|The Iron Age}}

At some point during the war, Prowl tried to desert and escape the war on board the ''[[Peaceful Resolution]]''. It was shot down before reaching orbit, and he realized he had to help win the war instead of running from it. {{storylink|Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}

Half a million years ago, during the Decepticon's siege on Metroplex, Prowl protested Optimus's illogical decision to enter the battlefield himself, and found himself backed up by [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]], who suggested taking Metroplex out of the equation. {{storylink|Earthfall Part 1: Hello Cruel World|Hello Cruel World}} As he and Bumblebee watched the Titan depart Cybertron, Prowl grumbled that while it was necessary, the war itself was illogical, and that the reactive actions of Optimus were not the kind of leadership the Autobots needed, but rather someone like him who could plan for everything. {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 5: I Dream of Wires|I Dream of Wires}}

After the [[Garrus-9]] detention facility had been established, Prowl was among the law enforcement Autobots who endured Aequitas' guilt-detecting trials of ''Autobot'' [[Flame (Marvel)|criminals]] who inflicted unspeakable horrors on civilians and other non-combatants. Prowl and other luminaries such as [[Chief Justice]] [[Tyrest (G1)|Tyrest]], [[Xaaron]] and [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] agreed that the trials would remain a secret until the final verdict was cast, then it would be full disclosure, regardless of the damage to morale and the Autobots' political standing. {{Storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}} Prowl would later have concerns about Tyrest's state-of-mind following the Aequitas trials, and he would try to utilize [[Skids (G1)|Skids]] and [[Getaway]] to have the unstable Tyrest retire using a [[Institute|New Institute]] "[[nudge gun]]" to alter his memory. {{storylink|Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|Arm the Lonely}}

===Earth Unit===
[[File:Infiltration3 Prowl saveit.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|Talk to the hand, the prick ain't listening.]]
Millions of years later, Prowl was the leader of a detachment of Autobots that had operated covertly on [[Earth]] for at least four years, attempting to foil a Decepticon insurgency led by [[Starscream (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Starscream]] and blindly following the Autobot rules of counterinsurgency. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 1|Infiltration #1}} {{storylink|Infiltration issue 2|Infiltration #2}} He almost threw [[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]] in the brig for breaking cover to rescue three humans from the Decepticons, and subsequently refused to contact [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Optimus Prime]] until further evidence of enemy activities was uncovered. He did not willingly believe Ratchet when the medic told him that the Decepticons had stepped up their presence by constructing a [[Infiltration protocol|second base]]. However, [[Ironhide (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ironhide]] ended up sending a pulsewave transmission to Optimus Prime behind Prowl's back. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 3|Infiltration #3}} Prowl was forced to face reality when Megatron arrived on Earth to confront Starscream, {{storylink|Infiltration issue 5|Infiltration #5}} and he finally agreed to call in Optimus Prime. Thing was, Prime had already arrived. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

When Springer ordered several Autobots on a lethal mission to rescue the damaged and deranged Kup from [[Tsiehshi]], Prowl evidently helped conceal Springer's efforts from Optimus. However, he still felt it was a misguided effort, asking Springer if Kup would want other Autobots killed rescuing him. {{storylink|Spotlight: Kup}}

Prowl went with the Autobots to investigate Decepticon activity in the country of [[Latveria]]. There they discovered a heavily shielded "array" that the Decepticons were using as a base. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}} After a skirmish with the [[human]]s that were present there, they teamed up with them to shut down the [[Psycho-Prism]] human mind altering device the Decepticons had fortified inside the array. The Decepticons attacked. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} During the fight, [[Luke Cage]] and Ratchet discovered a weak spot in the array's defenses and went in. Prowl followed to make sure Ratchet didn't put human interests ahead of Autobot interests, but the human [[Spider-Man]] was held captive inside, so Prowl gave in and let Ratchet and Luke Cage attempt a rescue.

Prowl found the Psycho-Prism guarded by [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] and [[Doctor Doom]]. Doctor Doom zapped him into unconsciousness. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Three}} He awoke next to Ratchet to find Spider-Man had been freed by Doctor Doom, who had switched sides. Prowl and Ratchet decided to use the Decepticons' [[mirror response mode]] equipment to boost their power with Spider-Man's superhuman abilities. [[Wolverine (superhero)|Wolverine]] arrived with Jazz and Bumblebee and suggested they use his abilities instead. They did, then [[orbital jump|orbital bounced]] with Spider-Man back to the battle outside, where their added strength helped defeat Megatron. Wolverine, Jazz, and Bumblebee stayed to destroy the Psycho-Prism. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Four}}

[[File:Escalation6 Prowl MYTURF.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|Yeah, let the irresponsible loner look after the MacGuffin. Good call.]]
After [[Sunstreaker (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Sunstreaker]] was kidnapped by [[Machination|a mysterious group of humans]], {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} {{storylink|Spotlight: Optimus Prime}} Prowl was still obsessed with the rules of the counterinsurgency war and thus did not understand why Optimus Prime requested reinforcements to Earth. {{storylink|Escalation issue 2|Escalation #2}} Prowl was furious when Ironhide dared to go around him and volunteer himself to track down clues on Sunstreaker's disappearance, and subsequently forced him to stay behind while the Autobots not on his grievance list left for [[Brasnya]] to confront the Decepticons. {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}} When everything kicked off in the former [[Russia|Soviet]] nation, Prowl led [[Jazz (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jazz]] and [[Wheeljack (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Wheeljack]] (and later [[Hot Rod/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hot Rod]] and [[Hardhead (G1)|Hardhead]]) into battle, attempting to capture [[Georgi Koska]], a Decepticon [[Facsimile construct|facsimile]]. {{storylink|Escalation issue 4|Escalation #4}} He clashed with Hot Rod over the capture of Koska as both of them were of equal rank, {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} but when Optimus Prime was temporarily offline and believed dead, Prowl assumed full command and came up with a strategy for fighting Megatron (shoot him, then run away). {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

Under orders from Optimus, Prowl oversaw the moving of ''[[Ark-19]]'' to a more secure location. He turned to Prime rather than order the launch on his own discretion. (Prime had to order him to use his own discretion.) {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} When [[Sixshot]] blew them out of the sky, Optimus took command of the situation until the ''Ark-19'' was destroyed. {{storylink|Devastation issue 2|Devastation #2}}

Once on the ''[[Ark-32]]'', Prowl found that, due to injuries from the battle with Sixshot {{storylink|Devastation issue 3|Devastation #3}} {{storylink|Devastation issue 4|Devastation #4}} and separate missions, he and Hardhead were the only active Autobots. He was mildly annoyed that Optimus Prime and [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] were otherwise preoccupied during this crisis. He was then shocked when Optimus abruptly ordered their unit to withdraw from Earth to handle a situation at the [[Garrus-9]] secure facility. {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}}

Optimus Prime and Prowl met with [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]] and [[Jetfire (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jetfire]] on Garrus-9 to discuss the prisoners' breakout and how a surviving Decepticon had been tortured. Prime left Maximus in charge and said that he and Prowl had unfinished business aboard the ''Ark-32''. When [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]] was reported guarding a cave on [[Corata-Vaz]], Optimus Prime recognized this had something to do with his [[infraspace]] encounter in [[Brasnya]]. He ordered Prowl to summon the [[Wrecker]]s to find out what Thunderwing was guarding. {{storylink|Spotlight: Cyclonus}} He judged the subsequent battle between the Wreckers and Thunderwing as suicidal, and felt that they were wasting their time given everything seemed to be coming at them at once. {{storylink|Spotlight: Hardhead}}

Prowl was present to hear Ratchet diagnose Sunstreaker after the later's de-Headmasterification. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 14|Replay}}

[[File:AHM15 SpringerpunchesProwl.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|According to my calcula- ''OHGODMYFACE!'']]
Prowl became increasingly frustrated with the tendency of the Autobots in general and Optimus specifically to lionise and listen to charismatic warriors and mavericks. Realising nobody would listen to the more logical tactical advice that he or Perceptor gave, he had Kup sent to the [[Kimia Facility]] to be rebuilt... with some personality sub-routines added in, which would ensure that the iconic elder could be controlled and made to act as a proxy for him. Prowl didn't want attention or glory, he only wanted to do his job, and he had absolutely no ethical qualms about ensuring that "when [Kup] speaks, you won't even see my lips move"...

He ''really'' didn't like Springer either, and was annoyed that the ''Decepticons'' seem to be a more unified body than the Autobots. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 15|Everything in Its Right Place}}

After the [[Expansion]] incident, Optimus Prime reassigned more Autobots to Earth. The Decepticons had been laying low for months, and everyone was starting to get restless. While Prowl recommended a "wait and see" approach to Optimus Prime, Ironhide's calls for action soon drowned out Prowl's reasoning. When Mirage handed them solid intelligence about a possible opportunity to wipe out Starscream and a small group of Decepticons, the Autobots acted on it. It turned out to be an ambush, and the Autobots were soundly defeated by the Decepticons with the aid of [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]]. Informed that the Decepticons were launching simultaneous attacks across the galaxy on Autobot installations and also that there was a traitor among them, the Autobots' morale was dealt a heavy blow. Through use of a space bridge portal, Megatron planned to send the Autobots to Cybertron to have them devoured by the [[Insecticon swarm|Swarm]]. Optimus Prime managed to sabotage the portal and strand the Autobots on Cybertron before the Decepticons could follow, albeit nearly at the cost of his life. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}}

[[File:Ironhidepuncheseveryone.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|I'm sensing a pattern emerging.]]
In this unprecedented situation, Jazz's authority superseded Prowl's, and he took overall command of the battered and demoralized Autobots. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} Jazz also proved necessary to shore up Prowl's own authority, which was severely disregarded by his men. Jazz's reputation helped keep them in line, particularly the recalcitrant Ironhide, who had taken to striking superior officers, including Prowl himself. After the situation with Ironhide was defused, Prowl got Jazz to admit the energon searches he'd been sending troops out on were just to keep the men busy. Prowl worried that Prime would soon die, and about the details of their commander's condition that they had kept from the troops at large. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4|All Hail Megatron #4}}

Frustrated at being stranded on Cybertron, he listened to [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks's]] story about how awesome and cool Jazz is to pass the time. {{storylink|Spotlight: Jazz}}

In particular, what Jazz and Prowl were withholding was the fact that the [[Matrix of Leadership]] was not within Prime anymore, but had been absconded with by Megatron. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5|All Hail Megatron #5}}

Kup arrived on Cybertron shortly thereafter with his own team, and things took a turn for the worse, with the Swarm encroaching on their position. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}} Sunstreaker was revealed to be the traitor, having made a bargain with Starscream to kill Megatron. He sacrificed his life to buy the other Autobots time to put some distance between them and the Swarm. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 8|All Hail Megatron #8}}

[[File:AHM10 ProwlandJazz.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|Prick ''and'' nerd.]]
Thankfully, Ratchet finally managed to repair and revive Optimus Prime, and Autobot morale went on the upswing despite their situation. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 9|All Hail Megatron #9}} Under Prime's direction, they immediately began building a defense against the oncoming Swarm horde in a new temporary base. Once everything was nearly in place, Prowl calculated the odds of them succeeding and wound up with quite a dire forecast. Jazz urged him to keep it to himself, which Prowl quickly agreed to do. When the Swarm surged against them, the Autobots fought as hard as they could, but were eventually on the verge of being overwhelmed. Fortunately, [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]] arrived to tilt the odds squarely in the Autobots' favor. Prowl asked Omega how he had survived the galaxy-wide Decepticon attack, speculating that they had probably sent an army against him. Omega simply replied, "I am Omega Supreme". {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}}

The Autobots eventually boarded Omega's rocket mode and headed for Earth. There, they engaged the Decepticon forces in a fierce battle which ended with Megatron's defeat and Starscream ordering a withdrawal from the planet. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}} {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[File:Prowl Spotlight AdviseAgainstInvolvement.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|"But Prowl, look...teddy bear."]]
Over the next three years, the Autobots remained on Earth at the insistence of Optimus Prime. Optimus believed they could not leave in good conscience while human society was still in disarray from their war and rogue Decepticons still wandered the planet. The humans were not interested in having protectors, however, and soon learned to take care of themselves. [[Skywatch]] reverse-engineered Cybertronian technology to hunt and capture Autobots AND Decepticons left on the planet.

As part of Optimus Prime's belief that the Autobots must help humanity rebuild in whatever way possible, Prowl was assigned to assist the local police whilst in disguise as one of their squad cars. Over the next eight months, Prowl saw humanity at its lowest ebb. Desperate, angry people who would never forgive the Transformers for bringing their war to humanity's homeworld. He watched as some of his driver's fellow police officers set fire to the building that the Decepticon [[Thrust (G1)|Thrust]] was trapped in, a cold execution of what Prowl considered an enemy combatant. He protested to Optimus Prime that humanity was dangerous, they were now killing Transformers, and that there was no strategic purpose for the Autobots to be on this planet or for he to continue this masquerade of being a police car. Prime asked his officer to trust him in his belief to the value of this activity, and that all the Autobots were on a personal journey.

===Lessons from Earth===
[[File:Prowl Spotlight DoneTheNumbers.jpg|130px|thumb|Prowl finally realizes that math is useless.]]
And so Prowl continued to patrol the streets, and while he did so, he calculated. The humans numbered in their swarming billions versus less than ten thousand Cybertronians. Humanity lived brief, petty, frantic lives of comparatively little consequence, their world and its infrastructure inefficient, ramshackle and incompetent. Prowl concluded that not a single human life was worth that of a Cybertronian. However, when he and his police officer driver were overseeing the removable of volatile Cybertronian wreckage from a building, some workers accidentally triggered an abandoned weapon to fire, destroying a damaged building. Without thinking, Prowl transformed and pushed a young girl out of the way, saving her life, but in the process, was trapped under the rubble that would have crushed her. His driver expressed disbelief that the Autobot had been in disguise as his car for the past eight months, and that he had broken cover to save one girl. Prowl confessed that for eight months he had been watching, planning, but unable to do anything. There were so many times he could have assisted if he were able to break cover. He had run the numbers, made calculations on Earth and on humanity, his math was flawless, but they weren't ''right''. And when push came to shove, he couldn't rely on what he thought might happen, he had to act on instinct and do the right thing. The policeman, impressed, remarked that Prowl spoke like a true beat cop, and stated that while he was obligated to call this incident in, it wasn't an emergency and suggested that Prowl had an hour to extricate himself before Skywatch arrived. {{storylink|Ride-Along}}

[[File:Ongoing issue 1-Prowl shot in the back.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.1|Woman makes prick staticky. Hilarity ensues.]]
The Autobots moved west, where Prowl was joined in his undercover police work with new arrival [[Streetwise (G1)|Streetwise]]. They were present at a power installation in New Mexico, which was being ransacked by the ravenous [[Stunticon (G1)|Stunticon]] [[Breakdown (G1)|Breakdown]]. Skywatch deployed its robot-hunting crash-suits and brought down the Decepticon before leveling lethal particle cannons at him. Despite himself, Prowl broke cover to prevent the execution of a helpless Transformer. This left his backside open to the second Skywatch team on site, who used [[Suppressor (device)|mode lock inhibitors]] to capture him as well as the "bait", Breakdown.

Prowl's capture was reported back to Autobase by Streetwise, and Hot Rod assembled a strike team to infiltrate Skywatch and rescue him. These Autobots were outfitted with Wheeljack's new counter-inhibitors to prevent the mode lock from working. Unfortunately, this sudden change in tactical efficiency only caused Skywatch to panic, drawing out their lethal ordnance to protect themselves. Prowl was rescued...but Ironhide died in the assault. Grieving for his friend, Optimus Prime then stepped down as Autobot leader and turned himself over to Skywatch. {{storylink|...For All Mankind}}

With Optimus gone, Hot Rod advocated abandoning his plan and this planet, and Prowl was one of the first to sign up for Hot Rod's splinter group. They failed to convince [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]] to fly them off-world, but then encountered a group of Decepticons led by Swindle. After a brief scuffle, Hot Rod and Swindle entered into negotiations for a truce. Prowl was uncomfortable with the idea of collaboration, despite his earlier effort on Breakdown's behalf. Ultimately, however, he went along with it. {{storylink|Things Fall Apart, Part 1: "New Arrivals, Old Encounters"|New Arrivals, Old Encounters}}

[[File:Prowl Seasons In Flight.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Prowl always narcs on the cool kids.]]
The united Autobots and Decepticons attempted to construct a space cruiser in order to leave the planet. Their efforts reached a hurdle with the arrival of [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ultra Magnus]], duly appointed enforcer of the [[Tyrest Accord]]. Prowl had summoned Ultra Magnus to Earth as part of standard operating procedure after Ironhide's death, before Prime abdicated his leadership and the faction had split. Things became difficult as Magnus attempted to confiscate Hot Rod's "unlicensed interstellar vehicle". Prowl attempted to weigh in with legalese of his own, citing the line of procedural succession and emergency powers, but it became moot when Magnus discovered their collaboration. {{storylink|Things Fall Apart, Part 3: "Seasons in Flight"|Seasons in Flight}}

Eventually the collaboration ended when the Decepticons betrayed Hot Rod. Prowl and the others survived thanks to the intervention of Optimus Prime and Skywatch leading Bumblebee to form an alliance with humans. {{storylink|Things Fall Apart, Part 5: "Earthworks"|Earthworks}}

[[File:Prowl LSOTW5 Pressure.jpg|left|thumb|100px|To prick...or ''not'' to prick...]]
Sometime after things settled down on Earth, Prowl formed a plan to recapture the [[Garrus-9]] detention facility, which had fallen during Megatron's push three years earlier. On the basis of an earlier report from [[Dominus Ambus|Agent 113]], High Command had originally concluded that G-9 had been utterly destroyed, but Springer found new intel that suggested that Fortress Maximus and Co. had not only survived the Surge, but were repelling Decepticon invasion parties while waiting to be rescued.{{storylink|Bullets|Bullets}}

Prowl's primary objective on this mission was for the Wreckers to retrieve the data stored on [[Aequitas]], as he feared that if the Decepticons managed to get their hands on politically-damaging information about Autobot war criminals, it would be disastrous to the Autobot cause. When selections for the new Wreckers squad were being made, Prowl learned that [[Ironfist (G1)|Ironfist]] (a weapons researcher at [[Kimia Facility]] who had an obsessive fascination with the Wreckers) had recently suffered a lab accident involving cerebro-centric bullets and only had months to live. Applying pressure on psy-ops specialist [[Rung (G1)|Rung]] (who had judged the researcher unfit for Wreckers duty), Prowl arranged for Ironfist to be placed in Springer's squad on the condition that he would be the one to sacrifice his life to unlock Aequitas. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 4|Last Stand of the Wreckers #4}} After the surviving Wreckers defeated [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]] and liberated G-9, Prowl was given a [[data slug]] containing the Aequitas' data, the legacy of Ironfist, who had finally succumbed to his lab accident injury. Prowl explained to [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ultra Magnus]] how he regretted using Ironfist in this manner, and he would prefer if the information about trials were never made public, despite what he had agreed to millions of years ago, for fear of what it would do to Autobot morale. As Ultra Magnus left, Prowl started to apply pressure on the data slug... {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}}

[[File:Infestation2-Prowl.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|IM IN UR HEAD DRIVING U CRAZY...ER.]]
When [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] crash-landed a spaceship full of [[zombie]]s in [[Las Vegas]], Autobot and Skywatch troops were ready to defend the city. After a brief battle, they learned that the zombies were not on Galvatron's side, but rather a threat to the entire planet, and Prowl had the area quarantined before interrogating Galvatron on what he knew about the creatures. {{storylink|The Transformers: Infestation issue 1|The Transformers: Infestation #1}} The leader of the zombies, an interdimensional vampire in disguise named [[Britt]], soon revealed herself and attacked the Autobots and Decepticons, infecting Kup with the zombie plague and creating a space-time portal to Cybertron's distant past, intending to infect the planet while it was still teeming with life. Prowl, however, had a way to sabotage her plan: using his previously established mind link with Kup, he removed the virus's control over the old warrior and had him change the portal's coordinates, trapping Kup, Britt and the zombie army in the [[Dead Universe]]. {{storylink|The Transformers: Infestation issue 2|The Transformers: Infestation #2}} {{Storylink|Heart of Darkness issue 4|Heart of Darkness #4}}

Prowl was one of the Autobots who participated in the covert mission to take out the [[Combaticon (G1)|Combaticons]], who were working with [[North Korea]] in exchange for energon. {{storylink|International Incident Part 2: "Ranks of Bronze"|Ranks of Bronze}} In order to keep the battle a secret from the world at large, they hacked all spy satellites watch the area, after which Prowl helped defeat [[Brawl (G1)|Brawl]]. {{storylink|International Incident Part 3: "Hawk Among the Sparrows"|Hawk Among the Sparrows}} Then the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] joined the fray. Since Bumblebee and [[Kyle Pennington|Pennington]] back at base were unable to see what was going on, Prowl had to keep them informed, all while calculating the best strategies to avoid casualties. The Autobots were eventually victorious, but at the cost of humanity learning about their alliance with Skywatch. {{storylink|International Incident Part 4: "All My Sins Remembered"|All My Sins Remembered}}

As the Autobots flew home from Korea, the Decepticons returned to Earth with a vengeance and had their plane shot down. Prowl and the others survived, however, and made it to shore. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}} After their attacker was revealed to be none other than a returning Megatron, they confronted him and learned that he had defeated most of their troops in America and left them to the mercy of armed and angry humans. Prowl sent Jazz to save them, but against his direct orders to not resort to violence, Jazz ended up breaking cover and killing one of the men. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}} The Autobots regrouped at Omega Supreme, and were soon joined by Megatron, having given himself up just to taunt them. Prowl was contemplating how short-sighted it had been to have both their mechanics on the Korea team when Optimus Prime approached him, asking him to investigate Megatron's claims that [[Spike Witwicky (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Spike Witwicky]] had executed a [[Scrapper (G1)|surrendered combatant]]. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}}

[[File:PoliceActionPrologue-Prowl.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.1|Not to prick, apparently.]]
In order to finish his investigation, Prowl remained on Earth with Bumblebee, Ultra Magnus and some other Autobots while the rest of them left to drive Galvatron off of Cybertron. After a last-minute questioning of Megatron revealed nothing new, he tried unsuccessfully to get Decepticon deserter [[Thundercracker (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Thundercracker]] to stay with the Autobots, and lied to Bumblebee and Spike that he would keep them updated on what was going on. {{storylink|Police Action: Prologue}} Appearing via hologram on board Omega Supreme, Prowl participated in the talks on what the Autobots would do with Megatron. He agreed with [[Xaaron]] that they needed a third party to judge the Decepticon leader's trial, but admitted that personally he'd rather just execute the scumbag. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1|Chaos Theory #1}}

[[File:Prowl The Question.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7|Okay, so you say "we"...]]
For a time, Prowl and Bumblebee clashed over command of the Earth-bound Autobots. Prowl co-opted several operatives, such as Street-Wise and Groove, for his own operation, while Bumblebee was left with dealing with a Decepticon situation on his own. When Bumblebee returned to their headquarters with all five Stunticons as his prisoners, he earned a certain degree of respect from Prowl; until then Prowl had doubted Bumblebee's capabilities as a leader. {{storylink|The Question}}

When Spike let slip that he'd be gone from base for 36 hours for secret reasons, Prowl decided to spy on his activities. This proved uninformative as Spike just met with higher-ups and assorted women, but things got heated when Breakdown suddenly showed up for revenge against the human. Prowl defeated him with help from Streetwise, but was forced to break off the mission and was chewed out by Ultra Magnus for the attention attracted by the battle. He mentioned wanting to look into anti-Transformer spokesman [[Ben Simpson]], whom he suspected was providing people with guns made from Megatron's parts, but was ordered to focus on Spike. Searching the site of Scrapper's death, Prowl was sampling some odd chemical residue when he suddenly came under attack. {{storylink|Police Action: Part 1|Police Action #1}}

The assailant was Brawl, though Prowl noticed he had a spotter that got away. Together with Streetwise he defeated the Decepticon and took him in for questioning, but a failsafe in his body caused him to shut down during interrogation. Continuing with the investigation on Spike, Prowl had former Skywatch member [[Sandra (G1)|Sandra]] brought in while he looked into the sample he had found. Just as he figured out that Scrapper had been attacked by a human with a chemical weapon rather than another Decepticon as previously assumed, Spike approached him and shamelessly admitted that it was all true. {{storylink|Police Action Part 2: Only Forward|Only Forward}}

While Spike argued that it was a strategical operation to rid the world of Devastator, Prowl saw it as murder with vengeance for Spike's friend [[Tim Simmons]] as the motive. Spike didn't care for being lectured, calling Prowl out on making his own tough decisions and keeping secrets from his allies for their own sake. Before he could think of what to do next, Prowl got word from Bumblebee that Ultra Magnus had agreed to go after Ben Simpson, and rolled out alongside him and Streetwise. Simpson turned out to be a [[facsimile construct]] created by Swindle to boost anti-Transformer sentiment among humanity for profit. When captured, Swindle not only admitted to being responsible for the situation in North Korea, but also for helping Skywatch by selling Cybertronian technology to... Spike Witwicky. Before the Autobots could do much, Spike had fled while Jazz went off on his own and announced to the world that the Autobots were cutting all ties with Skywatch and humanity. {{storylink|Police Action Part 3: A Second Chance at Eden|A Second Chance at Eden}}

===Schemers never change===
[[File:Prowl DeathofOptimusPrime.jpg|upright=0.85|left|thumb|Emo prick.]]
The few Autobots on Earth returned to Cybertron in the wake of Galvatron and the [[D-Void]]'s defeat. Though the war was over, [[Autobot High Command]] found themselves stuck with the thankless job of governing the many neutral Cybertronians returning home. Prowl coined the term Non-Aligned Indigenous Life-forms, or [[NAIL]]s, for them, and they didn't like being ruled by the people who had ruined their world through war. When a riot took place, the Autobots were outnumbered 20-to-1 and Prowl had no choice but to release the captive Decepticons and have them lend a hand, though [[inhibitor/deterrence chip]]s kept from using lethal force. Things got worse when Rodimus and Ultra Magnus announced that they were leaving Cybertron in search of the [[Knights of Cybertron]] when he needed them to deal with the neutrals. This caused Prowl to blow up in anger towards the neutrals, calling them arrogant and ungrateful cowards who did nothing during the war but now acted like they owned the planet. {{storylink|Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}

Contrary to Prowl's belief that nobody would willingly come with Rodimus, he managed to gather over 200 Autobots for his quest, including his old partner and friend Chromedome. Prowl ended up goading Rodimus {{storylink|The Sound of Breaking Glass}} into installing [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]] on the Lost Light covertly on board the ''[[Lost Light]]'' {{storylink|Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|This Calamitous Life}} and asked Chromdome to perform mnemosurgery on the captive in the hopes of learning the secrets of what made a Phase-Sixer. When Chromedome refused, Prowl attempted to blackmail him with an unsavoury secret from the mnemosurgeon's past, threatening to tell Rewind; Chromedome responded by assaulting Prowl and erasing some of his memory to protect his relationship with Rewind. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} Not to be deterred by his slight amnesia, Prowl still tried to convince Chromedome to stay as he truly needed his special abilities, but Chromedome refused as he'd rather leave his past behind. After a brief fit of anger, Prowl resorted to plan B, contacting his [[Duobot|agents]] on board [[Lost Light|Rodimus's ship]]. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It}} {{storylink|No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases}} He ordered them to place a tracker on its engines, though unfortunate events would lead to them to fail and be killed. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}} Prowl and Bumblebee watched the launch of the ''Lost Light'' be cut short when the ship disappeared in a sudden explosion. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It}}

[[File:Prowl Arcee TheAutomonyLesson.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Prick talking about how he hasn't gone soft.]]
Prowl was left handling the Decepticons, who were very harsh law enforcers and very unhappy about their imprisonment. After arresting [[Needlenose (G1)|Needlenose]] and [[Horri-Bull]] for assaulting [[Tappet|a NAIL]] (and then arresting the NAIL for disturbing the peace), he took them back to the Decepticon pen and was confronted by Decepticon spokesman [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], who demanded his faction be treated as equals. Believing him to have some sort of plan, Prowl reported his suspicions to Bumblebee and suggested they cancel the memorial service dedicated to Rodimus's crew, what with the large NAIL population being indifferent to the fate of their friends. He later discussed the matter of Ratbat with his secret weapon, [[Arcee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Arcee]], telling her that he was going to preserve the peace even if he had to do things he didn't want to do. {{storylink|The Autonomy Lesson (issue)|The Autonomy Lesson}} He learned the truth soon enough when Starscream came to the Autobots and sold out Ratbat, telling Prowl that he planned to assassinate Bumblebee during the memorial service then stage a coup. Acting on this info, Prowl managed to stop [[Skywarp (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Skywarp]] from sniping Bumblebee and leaving a NAIL to take the blame, and in the meantime sent Arcee to deal with Ratbat. Even though she mercilessly murdered the Decepticon, the two agreed afterwards that she had acted in self-defense and had no other choice. {{storylink|The World & Everything in It}} Prowl later addressed to the Decepticons in the wake of Ratbat's death, claiming that evidence suggested suicide. Starscream stepped in and backed the cover story, much to Prowl's discomfort. Very shortly thereafter, mysterious explosions began striking Cybertron, leading Prowl to believe the Decepticons were responsible. Metalhawk questioned this, adding in some cutting remarks about the war not being over for Prowl yet. Eventually Wheeljack figured out the origin of the explosions and that all parties were innocent in the matter. Much to Prowl's displeasure, Starscream came up with a plan to protect the civilians while Wheeljack ended the threat. When Starscream was granted a place in the new government thanks to his actions, [[Silverbolt (G1)|Silverbolt]] became enraged and struck Prowl, who had tried to calm him down. {{storylink|Stick Together}}

[[File:Prowl Bombshell Devisive.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|Reports of this headshot may have been greatly exaggerated.]]
Starscream immediately began undermining Bumblebee's position in the new government, adding to Prowl's growing frustration. When the Decepticon [[Skydive (Predator)|Skydive]] was found murdered, Prowl saw to the investigation. While interrogating the only witness, [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]], Prowl found a [[cerebro-shell]] implanted on the Decepticon, leading him to the conclusion that [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]] was the murderer. Prowl and Arcee used the entranced Dirge to track Bombshell down, finding the [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticon]] ensnaring [[Sunstorm (G1)|another victim]]. After a scuffle where Prowl found out that Bombshell's I/D chip wasn't functioning, he ordered [[Blurr (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Blurr]] to pursue the fleeing suspect. Prowl and Arcee soon caught up and found Blurr being accosted by the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]]. While Arcee was ordered to save Blurr, Prowl kept on with his pursuit of Bombshell, eventually cornering him. When Bombshell refused to give him any information or the identity of any possible collaborators, a fed-up Prowl coldly executed the deranged Insecticon. The cerebro-shell fell off Dirge, and he witnessed the aftermath of Prowl's actions. Dirge managed to escape and Prowl ordered Arcee to pursue him while he dealt with the Constructicons. Utilizing a hidden override code on the I/D chips to overcome whatever was blocking the signal, Prowl activated their chips and disabled all five Constructicons at once. Later, an injured Blurr gave Prowl a piece of his mind for being ordered after Bombshell without backup, calling him "crazy" and "paranoid". Prowl ignored Blurr's concerns, and pointed out that there was something larger at play with the Decepticons, telling Bumblebee that they had to "take control" of this new era. {{storylink|Devisive}}

When the NAIL [[Sky-Byte (RID)|Sky-Byte]] arrived, Prowl kept close tabs with him along with Sideswipe. Later on, he was informed that Sky-Byte was having a secret meeting with the Decepticons and broke into their hiding place with Streetwise and Sideswipe and after a brief fight, managed to capture Sky-Byte and Needlenose. They were about to lynch them in public when Ironhide stopped Prowl after saying that it was a way to have a better future of equality for Autobot and Decepticon. When questioned the next day at [[Maccadam's Old Oil House]] of his new attitude, Ironhide said he had a vision that he and Alpha Trion were telling war stories on Gorlam Prime and that every Autobot and Decepticon by that time, were dead along with their old grudges. {{storylink|A Better Tomorrow}}

[[File:Sideswipe Prowl and Wheeljack vehicle Primus All Good Things.jpg|thumb|upright=1.7]]
When the Decepticon captain [[Turmoil]] landed his ship on Cybertron, Prowl and his security forces were ordered in by Bumblebee to attack if necessary. When the order was given by Metalhawk, the Autobot forces stormed in to capture the Decepticons. {{storylink|Interference Patterns}} Prowl saw the Dinobots, Sky-Lynx and Ironhide off when they headed out into the wilderness in response to a distress signal. After they were out of earshot, Prowl noted that he was uncomfortable with the Dinobots retaining their Earth altmodes, and wish they would return to "normal." Bumblebee responded that things had been far from normal recently. He then joined Metalhawk and Starscream in their criticisms about the free elections being stalled on Cybertron, though Bumblebee insisted that they were forthcoming. He later explained to Bumblebee that he desired the elections to take place because he had confidence that Bumblebee would be elected as the planet's leader. {{storylink|Dinobot Hunt (IDW)|Dinobot Hunt}} When [[Turmoil]]'s ship, containing a sort of time machine, disappeared under Bumblebee's nose, Prowl arrived to assist the investigation. {{storylink|Night and the City}} He was later present when a Metrotitan appeared beneath Cybertron's surface and declared Starscream as the Cybertronian conqueror who would unite the planet. {{storylink|Primus: All Good Things}}

[[File:CityOnFire-NewProwl.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.2|<---o The Verge]]
A short while later, Omega Supreme was bombed in a terror attack, and Prowl used the opportunity as pretense to arrest the Decepticons still working under Soundwave and Shockwave. To allow him to spirit the Decepticons away to secret captivity, Prowl had Arcee infiltrate their hideout, disable them with a special stasis bomb, and then planet explosives throughout the pen. Prowl then lead his public arrest force to the pen, where he purposely tripped the explosives to present the appearance that the Decepticons had booby-trapped their own base and had perished in the blast. {{storylink|The End of the Beginning of the World}} The blast left Prowl in a serious, although stable, condition, but he soon mysteriously disappeared from his [[CR chamber]]. A short while later, when Decepticons had begun rioting in response to Megatron's return, Prowl reappeared in an upgraded body, and shot [[Staxx]] to save Wheeljack, who had been corned by the angry mob. {{storylink|City on Fire}} He subsequently led the Autobot engineer to the [[Black Room]], where the Decepticons Prowl had previously 'killed' were waiting, repaired and upgraded. Wheeljack was taken hostage, and soon the escaped Megatron arrived, with a stunned Starscream in tow. {{storylink|The Verge}}

[[File:IDWRID14 prowlstator.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Deva-prick? Prick-astator?]]
When a group of Autobots, joined by Metalhawk, Dirge and Swindle arrived at the Black Room, Prowl was holding Starscream and Wheeljack at gunpoint. The engineer tried to remind Bumblebee of what was "most important", but was shot through the head by his captor. Bombshell and Prowl revealed to their audience that the Autobot law enforcer had been taken by one of the Insecticon's mind control devices as he attempted to execute him, and had been a pawn of the Decepticons ever since. Bombshell also noted that Prowl had been easily controlled due to his memories already being damaged in some manner. With that concluded, Megatron declared that the Autobot had outlived his usefulness as a secret pawn, and announced that he would now become part of the next generation of Decepticon warrior. Briefly freed from Bombshell's influence, Prowl collapsed to the ground, aghast that his friends had never suspected his being controlled, but was suddenly wracked with pain as his body transformed against his will... into the head and shoulders of a reborn Devastator! The behemoth proceeded to attack the Autobot command center and snatch [[Sky High (Pretender)|Sky High]] out of the air, before proceeding, under Bombshell's influence, to the med-center, where the highest concentration of Autobots was. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}}

The Prowl-Devastator remained conscious under Bombshell's control, but unable to direct his own actions. He was confronted by Ironhide's newly arrived Autobot gestalt, the former Aerialbots known as [[Superion (G1)|Superion]], and battled the giant. Prowl-Devastator's mind temporarily shut down when Arcee revealed her true colors and executed Bombshell. The gestalt soon started back up again, however, as Prowl's mind interfaced with the Devastator gestalt and began willingly causing vast amounts of destruction. The Devastator-Prowl started rampaging again, completely out of Decepticon control, and tore his way through Superion. {{storylink|Plan for Everything}}

Ironhide managed to get through to Prowl inside Devastator's psyche, convincing him to stop the devastation. Prowl re-exerted control over himself and Devastator long enough to rip the gestalt's head from its shoulders, separating Prowl and the Constructicons back into their component parts. Undeterred, Megatron prepared to enter the Devastator gestalt personally with his new body. Luckily, Bumblebee deciphered Wheeljack's last words in time, and he, Prowl and Ironhide spoke the access code for Wheeljack's system bypass, reactivating the force field bubble the engineer had secretly implanted in Megatron's spark casing. Unfortunately for the Autobot government, however, the NAILs had had enough after this latest outbreak of warfare. Led by Starscream, they cast both Autobots and Decepticons out of new Iacon. {{storylink|Heavy Is the Head}}

===Suffering the consequences===
Almost immediately after departing, the Autobots were confronted by the Constructicons, who wanted to join up with Prowl since their unification had given them a glimpse into Prowl's mind, and they had liked what they had seen. Bumblebee attempted to rationalise that Prowl had only done all the terrible things he had done under Bombshell's influence, but Arcee, thinking she was helping, pointed out that Ratbat's assassination ''had'' been Prowl. She later attempted to apologise for revealing this. {{storylink|Second Exodus}} When Tyrest's [[universal killswitch]] was activated, Prowl was among those affected. {{storylink|Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|Arm the Lonely}} Luckily Prowl was saved thanks to Rodimus and Perceptor. {{storylink|Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|This Calamitous Life}} Later, when a bright light mysteriously appeared, {{storylink|Second Exodus}} Prowl and the other Autobots approached it, only for a [[Necrotitan|Titan]] to emerge from the ground in front of them. {{storylink|Dark Dawn: Dark Cybertron Chapter 1|Dark Dawn}}

As Bumblebee tried to organise an offensive, he asked Prowl if it was that same Titan that had proclaimed Starscream would rule, Prowl admitted he wasn't sure since his memories from his time under Bombshell's control were fuzzy. Despite insisting that attacking immediately was their best course of action, Bumblebee protested, leading Prowl to argue that it was Bumblebee's indecisiveness that led to him losing Iacon, at which point they were suddenly attacked by Soundwave's Decepticons. {{storylink|Black Metal: Dark Cybertron Chapter 2|Black Metal}} However, when Starscream arrived to confront the Titan, Prowl once again became infuriated with Bumblebee's hesitation in allowing Arcee to take him out and with his sudden collaboration with Soundwave on the situation. The final straw came when the Titan unleashed a wave of energy, injuring several of the Autobots, leading Prowl to outright blame Bumblebee for their problems. {{storylink|Winners & Losers: Dark Cybertron Chapter 3|Winners & Losers}}

While Prowl thought they should press the attack Bumblebee favored a more logical approach, which was when Soundwave heard Megatron screaming.{{storylink|Into the Abyss: Dark Cybertron Chapter 4|Into the Abyss}} Following the sound, the combined force found Shockwave's lab, where [[Nova Prime]] and Galvatron were attempting to emerge from the [[Dead Universe]] through a space bridge in Megatron's chest. While battling Shockwave's forces, Prowl tried to order Bumblebee to focus on fighting rather than reaching the resurrected Metalhawk, but when Shockwave called in the Necrotitan, Prowl ordered a retreat. {{storylink|Finest Hour: Dark Cybertron Chapter 5|Finest Hour}} Prowl called for the combined Autobot and Decepticon forces to retreat to Iacon, retorting [[Swoop (G1)|Swoop's]] protest that they wouldn't be leading it there since it was already heading towards the city. {{storylink|No Exit: Dark Cybertron Chapter 6|No Exit}}

They eventually made it back to Iacon, where [[Rattrap (BW)|Rattrap]] led them to the self-pitying Starscream. Prowl, recognizing that Shockwave was relying on them to fight among themselves, decided to play things logically and took charge of the situation, organizing the treatment of the wounded, the evacuation of the survivors, and preparing a counter-strike against the Titan. While coordinating with Soundwave, he questioned whether the Decepticon understood Shockwave's logic, but Soundwave admitted he never understood Shockwave, and as Prowl scoffed at his belief that they could still defeat him, Bumblebee arrived with an injured Megatron. Furious that Bumblebee would rescue their longtime enemy, Prowl was prepared to shoot the Decepticon leader, however as they all argued, Metroplex and the ''Lost Light'' arrived via quantum jump to fight the Necrotitan. {{storylink|Burning Bright: Dark Cybertron Chapter 8|Burning Bright}} After greeting the ''Lost Light'' crew as they disembarked, Prowl smugly reprimanded Bumblebee for allowing Megatron to disappear with a portion of Metroplex's thumb; when Bumblebee aggressively told him to piss off and that he'd made a choice, Prowl looked smug indeed about the little guy having made a decision like he'd wanted. Luckily too, the Decepticon leader did not adandon them as Prowl thought; Megatron teleported into Metroplex's hand to give him the Regenisis ore in the thumb, allowing Metroplex to defeat the Necrotitan. {{storylink|Finis Temporis: Dark Cybertron Chapter 9|Finis Temporis}}

[[File:TheBecoming-throw.jpg|left|thumb|300px|Cybertron's hottest new sport, prick toss.]]
After reluctantly admitting that Bumblebee was right to trust Megatron, Prowl then sought out Chromedome, having realised that the mnemosurgeon had worked on him, which was what had allowed Bombshell to control him. Taunting him on the recent loss of Rewind, the pair fought, and Prowl found himself cheered on by the Constructicons until Ultra Magnus arrived to break up the fight. Magnus then gave Prowl a few choice words, pointing out that Prowl had been indirectly responsible for many problems on the ''Lost Light'', and that he had never suffered through any of his own actions. Prowl was left alone with his admirers after a final remark from Magnus citing that he was the loneliest person he had ever met and was now among like-minded company. Before too long, however, the calm was ended by the arrival of Shockwave's army of [[Ammonite]]s. {{storylink|The Becoming: Dark Cybertron Chapter 10|The Becoming}} Seeing that [[Monstructor (G1)|Monstructor]] was about to harass Metroplex, a hesitant Prowl was convinced by the Constructicons into reforming Devastator, {{storylink|Black Planet: Dark Cybertron Chapter 11|Black Planet}} who managed to defeat the original combiner with help from the ''Lost Light''. After the fighting was over, Prowl was among the crowd who witnessed Optimus and Megatron exit the ''Lost Light'', with the Decepticon leader having defected. {{storylink|...And the Damage Done: Dark Cybertron Finale|...And the Damage Done}}

In a meeting to discuss what to do with Megatron, Prowl urged that they simply move forward with executing him rather than go through the mockery of a trial, however it was decided that a trial would go ahead to show the public that the Autobots didn't operate outside the law. Prowl was pleased to hear Optimus appoint him prosecutor. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 1: Towards Peace|Towards Peace}} As the trial progressed, Prowl had many testimonies against Megatron made, including ones from [[Gripper (G1)|Gripper]] and Starscream. However, when Megatron changed his plea from guilty to not guilty {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 2: Words Hang in the Air|Words Hang in the Air}} and made clear his desire to be tried by the Knights of Cybertron, a legal loophole possible because of the trial taking place on Luna-2 where the laws were different. Prowl insisted that they move the trial back to Cybertron so that it wouldn't be an issue, however Ultra Magnus pointed out that they couldn't do so for their own convenience. As a result, Optimus ended up allowing Megatron to join the ''Lost Light'' in order to have the former Decepticon's fate decided by the Knights. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 3: Predestination: A Beginner's Guide|Predestination: A Beginner's Guide}}

Prowl let his fury at Optimus fly, but when Optimus pointed out that Megatron was accepting his mistakes and the wrongness of his actions, Prowl admitted that he too had been ruthless throughout the course of the war, and that Bumblebee's death was clouding his judgement. Accepting Optimus's offer to join him on another mission to Earth, Prowl hoped that he might learn more from the planet. When the Constructicons, whom Prowl had reluctantly accepted, asked if they were joining the ''Lost Light'' under Megatron, Prowl raged that he would never stand with Megatron, and told them they would be going to Earth, knowing that Optimus was making a mistake and that he would have to be there to fix things. {{storylink|Earthfall Part 2: Detonation Boulevard|Detonation Boulevard}} [[Cosmos (G1)|Cosmos]] attempted to discuss the result of the trial with Prowl, but Prowl instead preferred to vent his frustrations to the lonely Autobot, sarcastically stating that a bold new future awaited them. {{storylink|Earthfall Part 1: Hello Cruel World|Hello Cruel World}} Before they departed, Prowl offered his opinion to Arcee on the difference between her and the Camiens, and was pleased when she asked Optimus permission to join their mission. {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 3: The Mind Bomb|The Mind Bomb}}

===Erratic behavior===

As they approached Earth, Prowl stated it was good to be home, to the confusion of Cosmos, who pointed out how personally Prowl took Spike Witwicky's betrayal. Prowl brushed aside the comment, and asked if Cosmos trusted Prime's leadership, revealing that he asked him to come along because he needed someone he can trust on the mission. {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 5: I Dream of Wires|I Dream of Wires}} Arriving in Earth's orbit, the Ark-7 was immediately attacked by Cybertronian-like weapons, and Prowl protested against falling back to the moon since the humans knew they were coming. As Optimus organised a team to go to the surface aboard [[Sky Lynx (G1)|Sky Lynx]], Prowl was ordered to remain with Arcee and Sky Lynx to investigate who launched the missiles, and Arcee suspected Prowl was unhappy with being sidelined. {{storylink|Earthfall Part 1: Hello Cruel World|Hello Cruel World}} As a battle between Optimus's team and the allied [[Earth Defense Command]] and Galvatron-led Decepticons erupted, Prowl sent Arcee and Sideswipe to back them up while he and Sky Lynx gathered the Constructicons. When the battle moved into the small town of [[Poverty Flat]], Prowl revealed his plan to force the Decepticons into revealing themselves, and combined with the Constructicons into Devastator, {{storylink|Earthfall Part 2: Detonation Boulevard|Detonation Boulevard}} thereby threatening the EDC's attempt to cover up the return of the Cybertronians. Once the EDC pulled the Decepticons out, Prowl dismissed Optimus's concerns about the recklessness of Prowl's plan and his horror at Prowl's expectation that the EDC would have executed the civilians, pointing out that he had exposed the EDC's mind bomb weapon, which was doubtlessly designed thanks to access to a Cybertronian brain, giving them a lead as to the captured Alpha Trion's location. {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 3: The Mind Bomb|The Mind Bomb}}

As the Autobots worked on a way to infiltrate the base, Optimus was unhappy with Prowl's presumption about leading the rescue mission, and ordered him to remain with Sky Lynx. Arcee took a moment to confide in Prowl that she thought that [[Scavenger (G1)|Scavenger]] was a spy, however Prowl wasn't concerned with that, only if she had told Optimus. After asking if she was still loyal to him, Arcee responded that she was loyal to the Autobot cause, a fact that Prowl found highly amusing. As Optimus's team started their attack, Prowl used the distraction to disembark Sky Lynx and infiltrate the base himself, where he caught up with Jazz, who had found Alpha Trion. Holding a gun to his comrade's head, he stated that Trion wasn't going anywhere, {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 4: Full Fathom Five|Full Fathom Five}} and with Jazz's attention on him, pointed out the alarms set up around Alpha Trion. Having realized that the humans couldn't have used Alpha Trion to create their mind bomb in the short time he was their captive, Prowl and Jazz began searching their base for clues. When Prowl was apparently knocked out by the mind bomb, he used the connection to the EDC's mainframe, but lacking time to go through their encrypted files, took control of their weapons and take out the Decepticon worldburner. After Jazz carried him to their teammates, Prowl awoke to reveal that Scavenger's leaking of information to the Decepticons was his plan to make events play out as they did. After forming Devastator to cover the rescue of Alpha Trion, Prowl counted the mission as a complete success. While Optimus was furious about Prowl's actions and secrets, Prowl insisted that it was all justifiable in this dangerous new era.

Meanwhile, Galvatron murdered [[Sparkplug Witwicky|General Witwicky]], and claimed that Prowl had been the culprit, and was believed due [[Marissa Faireborn|Marissa Faireborn's]] awareness of the animosity between Prowl and his son. {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 5: I Dream of Wires|I Dream of Wires}}

When Optimus and Alpha Trion journeyed to the moon for a private conversation, Prowl used a stealth-painted Cosmos to listen in as Trion explained his role in history, and of the mysterious [[Enigma of Combination]] that could allow Cybertronian's to merge located on Earth. When Alpha Trion asked whether Optimus would share this information with Prowl, due to his control of the only truly successful combiner in eons, Optimus questioned why he wouldn't share what he had learned from his friend. {{storylink|The Crucible}}

As Prowl learned of the resurfacing of Spike Witwicky, Optimus prepared to head back to Cybertron, leaving Prowl in charge, but warned him against taking more unnecessary risks. Overcome with anger over Optimus's weakness and suffering from another nosebleed, which were getting more frequent, Prowl gathered the Constructicons and informed them that they were going after Spike {{storylink|Onyx Interface Part One: Signals, Calls, and Marches|Signals, Calls, and Marches}} Believing that Spike knew of the Enigma of Combination's whereabouts, Prowl and the Constructicons took on a dangerous pursuit through the streets of Tokyo for their target. Momentarily halted in his pursuit by Arcee, who was concerned about him putting innocent humans in danger, Prowl finally managed to capture his quarry just as the Decepticons arrived, also in search of Spike.

Escaping to the cover of a nearby forest, Spike expected to be executed, but Prowl proclaimed that he had forgiven Spike. {{storylink|Onyx Interface Part Two: Vs.|Vs.}} While Spike was quick to assume that it was because he was justified in defending the preservation of his own species, Prowl corrected him by saying he now understood how destructive his own race was and that they needed to be stopped. Requesting Spike's help in recovering the Enigma, Prowl and the Constructicons headed to [[G.B. Blackrock|Garrison Blackrock's]] facility in Wanmu. Using Spike to infiltrate and confirm the Enigma's presence, and upon hearing from Cosmos that the Decepticons were inbound, Prowl then ordered the Constructicons to combine so that they could take the Enigma, and that Spike was only a secondary target, having lied about his forgiveness. {{storylink|Onyx Interface Part Three: ONoffON|ONoffON}} While Devastator did manage to retrieve the Enigma, his components' shared hatred for Spike derailed the combiner's objective, throwing the Enigma away as he attempted to squash Spike. Arcee finally managed to reach Prowl by revealing that the Enigma had been taken by [[Scoop (G1)|Scoop]] during his blind attack. After taking a [[space bridge]] as a bonus prize, Prowl blamed the Constructicons for taking control of Devastator from him, but they pointed out Prowl was as much to blame, and Arcee suggested that Prowl find a way to explain his actions to Optimus. {{storylink|The Onyx Interface Conclusion: The Obliterati|The Obliterati}}

As he showed off the space bridge to Jetfire, Prowl received word from Rattrap about Starscream's recent contact with the colony of [[Caminus]] and his acquisition and use of the Enigma of Combination. Furious, Prowl contacted Optimus, demanding to know what he was thinking in allowing Starscream access to colonies, accusing Prime of not seeing the bigger picture. As Optimus terminated the call, omitting the fact that Starscream had combiners, Prowl seethed with rage at not being trusted, and decided to act himself. Having Rattrap use Metroplex's space bridge to provide a connection to Cybertron, Prowl and the Constructicons traveled through. Seeking to prevent Starscream from achieving an empire, Prowl stated that Caminus and the other colonies would need to be cut off, ensuring the safety of the universe, even if it came at the cost of Cybertron and everyone on it. {{storylink|The Possible Light}}

[[File:Mistakes&Mayhem-ProwlArested.jpg|right|thumb|250px|]]

Interrupting the clean-up on Caminus, Prowl and Constructicons formed Devastator and ordered all Cybertronians to return through the space bridge, but [[Chromia (G1)|Chromia's]] protest and [[Sparkstalker|Sparkstalker's]] refusal led to Devastator opening fire. After besting Superion once again and dragging him through the space bridge to Cybertron, the Prowl-controlled-Devastator stated that he was doing what was necessary and began destroying the space bridge. Optimus tried to convince Starscream and [[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] that Prowl could be reasoned with, but Starscream used the Enigma of Combination to heal Superion and force the "[[Protectobot (G1)|Protectobots]]" to merge into [[Defensor (G1)|Defensor]], and together both combiners defeated Devastator. While Starscream sought Prowl's death, Optimus and Windblade managed to convince him other, but as Prowl was arrested and dragged off, Prowl raged that Starscream would never change and Optimus was playing with fire. {{storylink|Mistakes and Mayhem}}

When Optimus visited the imprisoned Prowl to talk over recent events, Prowl was unconvinced by Prime's attempts to put a system in place to curb Starscream's ambition, and pointed out that Starscream still needed the combiners on his side since Superion and Defensor were likely more loyal to Optimus, and would likely recruit Devastator. Believing that Prowl had been twisted by numerous betrayals he feels he has suffered, Prowl retorted that Optimus could include himself in that list. As Prowl insisted that he has always been the one to make the tough calls Optimus couldn't, the [[Stunticon (G1)|Stunticons]] broke free and formed [[Menasor (G1)|Menasor]], starting a battle between him, Superion, Defensor and a Scoop-included Devastator. When Rattrap arrived with the Enigma of Combination, Prowl ordered him to use it, forcing Prowl, Optimus, Ironhide, Mirage and Sunstreaker to form [[Optimus Maximus (G1)|a new combiner]], who quickly confronted the other combiners and stated that it was time for him to take control. {{storylink|You, Me, and the Universe}}

[[File:NowAndOnEarth-PrimePunchesProwl.jpeg|thumb|left|upright=1.025|Prowl's had this coming for how long now?]]

Devastator recognized that Prowl was in control of the new combiner, due to his previous experience in combining, and was furious that he had been rejected by his former component for an upgrade. Suddenly the combiner collapsed as Prowl began fighting his fellow components for control within the combiner's psyche. One by one, Optimus, Ironhide, Sunstreaker, and Mirage rallied, refusing to look at the world only as numbers and statistics the way Prowl does, instead sharing their belief in the power of people that can change and be there to help one another. Synchronized by this shared belief, their minds slowly came together, and while Prowl refused to accept their way of thinking, his refusal was what allowed him to finally understand them, and in that understanding, all five were unified and Optimus Maximus was truly born. Alongside Superion and Defensor, Optimus Maximus defeated the other combiners, and then willingly separated himself so that Prowl could be arrested, knowing they could not be above the law. {{storylink|All That Remains}}

With Prowl now in custody, Optimus hoped that he could talk some sense into his old ally. Prowl simply replied that morality had nothing to do with military strategy, and that spending time as Devastator meant that he could no longer tell the difference between himself and the Decepticons. The two former friends finally came to blows, although Prowl's knowledge that a part of him would always exist within Prime convinced the Autobot leader to spare his life. However while Optimus's back was turned, Rattrap spirited Prowl away; with both their plans having failed, he stated that Prowl owed him a victory. {{storylink|Now and On Earth}} Prowl was branded a fugitive for his actions, and wanted signs were scattered throughout Iacon. {{storylink|The Transgressors}}

=== Gone Too Far ===
[[File:SinsOfTheWreckers2-ProwlWebbedUp.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Prowl web of lies have come back to bind him, literally.]]
Prowl received a message from Verity Carlo, who had a copy of the Aequtias data and threatened to release it. Getting to Earth quickly by utilizing his mind link to Kup, Prowl prepared to confront Verity in Nome, Alaska when he suddenly was attacked and kidnapped. When Prowl woke up, he was in a strange landscape which attacked his sensors, and lost consciousness again as a blurry figure welcomed him to the Noisemaze. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 1|Sins of the Wreckers #1}} After having a dream in which Prowl's recent actions had resulted in peace coming to Cybertron and Optimus thanking him, Prowl awoke to find himself trapped in a giant web. Recognising his captor's voice, Prowl asked what Mesothulas wanted, though the scientist responded that he no longer answered to that name and stated that Prowl had something he wanted, threatening to expose his dirty secrets. Once he was alone, Prowl used his mind-link to Kup to address the recently awakened Springer and the Wreckers, fully exposing his manipulation of the older bot, but explained as much as he could about his situation before being cut off.

[[File:SinsOfTheWreckers3-Tarantulas'FinalOffer.jpg|left|thumb|300px|]]Mesothulas then returned, revealing his possession of the Aequitas data Verity had had, resigning Prowl to agree to talk. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 2|Sins of the Wreckers #2}} Mesothulas then fully revealed himself to Prowl, shocking the Autobot with his new form, and his new name, Tarantulas. Prowl suspected that Tarantulas had come to the conclusion that he had pushed him into the Noisemaze, and intended to use the war crimes data from Aequitas to blackmail him as revenge. However, Tarantulas merely wished to work with Prowl again, to recreate the symbiosis of their original relationship. When Prowl refused, he was placed in the company of his would-be rescuers: Verity, Springer, Roadbuster, and Arcee, and forced to watch as their most shameful, damning thoughts were bared to him thanks to Tarantulas's new invention, the guilt-extracting [[Impetus]]. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 3|Sins of the Wreckers #3}}

Prowl tried to reason with [[Hubcap (G1)|Hubcap]], whom Tarantulas had recruited as a mole within the Autobots, but the intelligence analyst had been infuriated by his early-releasing of Roadbuster, and verbally tore into Prowl for his various crimes. At that moment, Verity revealed that she had not intended to release Aequitas, but had only wanted to force Prowl to help treat her for the illness caused by her exposure to Aequitus, and Prowl lamented that he wished she had just asked. Before Tarantulas could hook him up to Impetus, Prowl attempted to make the scientist give up on another partnership by claiming that he had killed Ostaros, though this failed. At that moment, Kup used their connection to inform his that rescue was on its way, but only because of Prowl's value and not because he deserved to be saved. Finally convincing Hubcap not to release the Aequitas data, the analyst freed him and the other captives. Prowl pulled a gun on Hubcap, believing he had too much incriminating data to be allowed to live. Hubcap pleaded for his life, arguing that killing him would only continue the cycle of violence and secrecy that has resulted in their current situation. Though Prowl was swayed by Hubcap's logic, Impactor believed it was too great a risk and shot Hubcap. Insisting that they destroy all of Taratulas' work, Prowl and the others began preparing to collapse the Noisemaze, just as Tarantulas returned. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 4|Sins of the Wreckers #4}}

[[File:SinsOfTheWreckers5-kuppunchesprowl.jpg|right|300px|thumb|YOU punch a car! And YOU punch a car! EVERYBODY PUNCH A CAR!!!]]

After failing once more to convince his former partner to give up, Prowl listened as Impactor revealed the truth of what happened, at which point Tarantulas realised Springer was Ostaros and went after him. Ordered by the Wrecker to get out of the maze, Prowl prepared to force [[Tidal Wave (G1)|Tidal Wave]] to consume the [[Obtenteum]] in order to collapse the Noisemaze. After meeting up with Kup and Guzzle, the former got in a good hit on Prowl's jaw for his manipulations of him, and Guzzle took care of Tidal Wave. However once they escaped into Debris, Guzzle pulled his weapons on Prowl and Kup, determined to take revenge for the friends he had lost because of them, forcing Impactor to put him down. Later, Prowl went back into the remains of the Noisemaze to rescue the still-alive Springer, and severed his link with Kup. Neither Kup nor Arcee wanted to deal with him further, and decided to let Prowl go for the time being, yet not informing Optimus about the crisis either. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 5|Sins of the Wreckers #5}}

When Optimus annexed Earth into the Council of Worlds and broadcast a message, Prowl watched and refuted his former friend's claim that he was bringing freedom to Earth. {{storylink|All Hail Optimus Part 1: Once Upon a Time on Earth|Once Upon a Time on Earth}}

His time on Earth was remembered by [[Scarlett]] and [[Joe Colton]] as they discussed the threat the Cybertronians posed to Earth. {{storylink|Secret Raiders: A Revolution Prelude|Secret Raiders}}

After [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]] came back to life, casually murdered people and kidnapped Optimus and Soundwave via a [[Space bridge|Space Bridge]], Arcee contacted Prowl, who knew exactly where his old boss would go. {{storylink|White Light}}

[[File:TenToMidnight-ProwlStrugglesToRemember.jpg|left|thumb|200px|Statistically it was just a matter of time before one of the blows to the head caused a slight amnesia.]]

That place was [[Moonbase One|Luna 1]] where Prowl suspected Sentinel would try to raise the graveyard of Titans as the former Prime had dreamed of using a Titan army before the Great War began. When Prowl arrived on the moon, he was attacked by [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]] for [[Garrus-9]] before [[Cerebros (G1)|Cerebros]] held back his boss. It was only after that Prowl actually recalled the Garrus-9 fiasco before he warned them and [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]] of great danger to Luna 1. Prowl explained Sentinel's return to life, that Titan plan and that he himself was here to deactivate Luna 1's Space Bridge. The trio, specifically Red Alert, were skeptical of Prowl's words before [[Beak]] arrived with proof of Prowl's claims which led Red to believe he was stalling them and working with Sentinel. Nonetheless, the four Autobots set out to stop the Prime. On the way Prowl spoke to Max about the [[Team Rodimus]] and the fact that the ''[[Lost Light]]'' was non-responsive to hails. Their trail led them to the [[Planetary engine|massive engines]] which prompted Max to question Sentinel's age if he knew exactly where and what they were. When they arrived to confront Sentinel in a Titan's brain module, they found the unwilling [[Sovereign]] strapped to the giant's CPU from which the other Titans rose up. Before any action could be taken, Sentinel took control of Red Alert who shot Prowl into stasis. {{storylink|Ten to Midnight}}

[[File:LastLight-Prowl'sStaying.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Oh good. Prowl's staying. Yaaaaaay...]]
As Sentinel gloated, Cerebros placed a shell on Prowl that allowed the former to control his motor functions. He used this to hit Sentinel over the head with a [[Mobile Autobot Repair Bay|M.A.R.B.]] before the three Autobots escaped. When Prowl awoke, he was dismayed to learn what Cerebros had done and that he was being left out the loop for once. Max and Cerebros planned to use the body of the Titan they were based in to stop Sentinel's army but the [[Transformation cog|T-Cog]] was stuck in place. Prowl casually used his table flipping skills to manually complete the transformation. While Maximus fought off the Titan army, Prowl and Cerebros confronted Sentinel who promptly shot them both down where he tried to force Red Alert to execute Prowl. Red Alert managed to break free and separate Sentinel's [[Titan Master]] self from his true body. Sentinel would have forced Red to kill himself had Beak not pushed the Prime into one of the thrusters. Prowl asked how deep the thrusters were (one and a half miles) before casually noting that Sentinel was dead. Prowl had his missing optic replaced before he took Sovereign back to Earth and then decided to stay on Luna-1, intending to take a long overdue sabbatical. He sympathized with Maximus over his fears of change and endings before an alert came through pertaining to information regarding the ''Lost Light''. However the message seemed to just be gibberish and the quartet ignored it before they resumed cleaning the Titan's T-Cog. {{storylink|Last Light}}

{{charstubfiction|{{storylink|New Cybertron Part 2: A Lonely Pillar on the Plain|A Lonely Pillar on the Plain}} {{storylink|New Cybertron Part 3: Behind My Bleeding Back|Behind My Bleeding Back}}}}

==INSIRT continuity==
Long ago on Cybertron, [[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity#INSIRT continuity|Chromedome]] served in the [[Autobot Police]] and harbored an interest in the field of mnemosurgery. Over time, he was able to use his highly decorated partner Prowl's status to pursue his interest in mnemosurgery, developing the ability to extract information directly from a suspect's mind. {{storylink|Chromedome (G1)#Timelines|''Timelines'' Chromedome bio card}}

==Ask Vector Prime==
[[File:Megatron cam.jpg|left|upright=0.9|thumb|I think this is a killing joke!]]
In [[Primax 708.10-R Lambda]], [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]] cracked the codes to an Autobot forward listening outpost. He walked in, shot Prowl, and then laughed and took a photo of what he had done. Prowl would be unable to transform for many stellar cycles. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime#Facebook|Ask Vector Prime, 2015/08/06}}
{{--}}

==Notes==
*[[James Roberts]] has said that pre-war Prowl and Chromedome had a, ah, "stronger bond" than just being partners.<ref>[http://theunderbase.libsyn.com/the-underbase-deconstructs-shadowplay "The Underbase Podcast Deconstructs Shadowplay"], 17:17 - 14:58</ref> This would put their tension in the present day as more personal than we thought (and Rewind's constant insults against Prowl as being the new boyfriend having a go at the crappy ex).
*According to IDW story editor [[Andy Schmidt]], ''[[Ride-Along|Spotlight: Prowl]]'' was originally going to be told in [[The Transformers (IDW)|the ongoing series]]. But when fans reacted badly to Prowl's characterization in [[...For All Mankind|the first issue of that series]], IDW decided to jump the gun and publish the story early as a ''Spotlight''.<ref>[http://www.comicscontinuum.com/stories/1002/19/schmidt.htm Comics Continuum video interview with Andy Schmidt]</ref> It is intended to reconcile his new, rashly self-sacrificial portrayal with the methodical, vehemently anti-hotheaded-maverick personality he [[The Transformers: Infiltration|had]] [[The Transformers: Escalation|exhibited]] [[All Hail Megatron issue 15|previously]]. But that reconciliation doesn't actually address the core concern of many of those upset fans, who wanted not just explanation, but ''reversion'' to the subversive schemer that Prowl had recently developed into.<ref>[http://forum.idwpublishing.com/viewtopic.php?t=7345 IDW forum thread practically begging for Prowl's new characterization to be undone.]</ref> John Barber eventually saw fit to explain this snapback in [[Devisive|''Robots in Disguise'' #4]].
*Prowl's design in the first portion of ''[[The Transformers: Robots in Disguise|Robots in Disguise]]'' is based on a [[:File:BluestreakWFCconceptart.jpg|concept drawing of ''War for Cybertron'' Bluestreak]] that never saw its way in to the game.

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Combiners]]
[[Category:IDW Generation 1 Autobots]]
[[Category:Strategists]]

Prowl (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2017-01-28T13:00:02Z

AllAreTaken:

{{disambig2|Prowl the existentially-cross table-flipping pragmatist|Prowl the [[Predabot]]|Dent}}{{suite}}
[[File:Prowl-Infiltration2&3covers.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|My prickitude [[Shane McCarthy|fluctuates]] [[Nick Roche|wildly]] [[Mike Costa|between]] [[John Barber|writers]].]]
Pragmatist. Calculating and cold. Rule-bound. Prickly. Just some of the words used to describe '''Prowl'''.
{{quote|We're not winning this war, and I'm '''''tired''''' of it. Tired of crunching stat after stat, formulating workable strategies for '''''achievable victory'''''. Prime listens--to a point--then gets '''''restless''''' and changes tack on a whim. The average Autobot default setting is daredevil maverick. That's not '''''us''''', [[Perceptor (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Perceptor]]. '''''We''''' can subdivide this war into its purest mathematical form and generate solutions all we want, but unless we happen to be [[Spotlight: Hot Rod|'''''surfing''''' on a '''''meteoroid''''']] at the time, '''''no one''''' will pay attention.|Prowl|"[[Everything in Its Right Place]]"}}
__TOC__
==IDW Generation 1 comics==
{{ongoing}}
===From cop to soldier===
Prowl of [[Petrex]] was [[Reproduction|constructed cold]]. {{storylink|Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|Arm the Lonely}} He learned to appreciate rules and discipline during his formative years in Petrex, a strictly [[functionism|functionist]] town where saying anything bad about your [[alternate mode]] could get you thrown in jail. He eventually made it into the [[Iaconian Mechaforensic Division]], where he became famous for his tendency to order a full body autopsy during practically every investigation. This is exactly what he did when he and his partner [[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Tumbler]] were assigned to investigate the assassination of [[Sherma|Senator Sherma]], seemingly killed by Decepticons, leading to the discovery of [[cerulean glass]] on the victim's body. Following the trail to [[Translucentica Heights]], the duo ran straight into another body: that of [[Momus|Senator Momus]]. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}}

[[File:Prowl computing Patternism.jpg|left|upright=1.55|thumb|"Shut up." "I didn't say anything." You were ''thinking'' it's ''annoying''."]]
As Tumbler went after the killer, Prowl investigated the crime scene and found that Momus had in fact been a Decepticon himself... and also that there was a ''second'' killer, who promptly attacked them. Inexperienced in combat, Prowl could do little to fight back, but the two were rescued by a fellow cop named [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]] who believed the [[Senate]] to be targeting Decepticons. Pax suggested that they avoid reporting their findings to their superiors, but Prowl ignored him in favor of regular police procedure, which much to his chagrin led to his preliminary report being quoted as fact on the news. Sent by Pax to investigate a nearby [[Relinquishment Clinic]], he and Tumbler not only found proof that the killers had been using borrowed bodies, but also a complex dedicated to researching [[brain module]]s and a list of known Decepticons. While Tumbler, Orion Pax and several others believed that the clinic was the [[Institute]] and that the Senate was planning to use it to brainwash the Decepticons, Prowl rejected this as a far-fetched conspiracy theory. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 2: Patternism|Patternism}} He refused to have any part in Pax's plan to stop the Senate's evil plot, but worried about his partner's choice to join in. He asked Pax to keep Tumbler out of danger, and in exchange he wouldn't tell anyone what they were planning. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}}

[[File:MegatronOrigin2 boredAutobots.jpg|thumb|And remember to fill out those TPS reports.]]
Following the rise of [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]], Prowl joined the Autobot Security Services in [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]], working right under Sentinel. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}} Prowl's goal was to work against Sentinel's corrupt system from the inside, and he often talked Sentinel out of carrying out his destructive plans. {{storylink|Onyx Interface Part Three: ONoffON|ONoffON}} {{storylink|Last Light|Last Light}} However, becoming part of that system (even just for subversive reasons) resulted in the end of his close relationship with Tumbler. {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 1: All Our Parlous Yesterdays|All Our Parlous Yesterdays}} Tumbler would eventually become [[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Chromedome]], and Prowl would forever be made the butt of jokes by Chromedome's future [[Conjunx Endura]] [[Rewind (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rewind]]: usually featuring fictional instances of Prowl being beaten up. {{storylink|The Gloaming}}

[[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]]'s rise as the most popular and violent pit fighter in videos of Kaon's illegal [[gladiatorial combat]] attracted Prowl's attention, and he formed an Autobot Security Services team to crack down on them, though to the chagrin of his fellow officers, he tended to blather on about his theories about how somebody was making a fortune distributing on these inexpensive to produce videos. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}}

After the murder of [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (G1)|Fastback]], Sentinel and Prowl led a security forces deployment that arrested many of Megatron's pit fighters and those that they were attempting to recruit. Prowl personally attached the [[inhibitor claw]] to Megatron once he was overwhelmed by security forces. While processing the prisoners, he delivered the galling news that due to [[Ratbat (G1)#IDW Generation 1 continuity|senate orders]], the one known as [[Soundwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Soundwave]] was to be freed without charge. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} Unfortunately, it was all part of Megatron's mad plans. He allowed himself and his men to be captured so Starscream could feign turning coat and murder the senate members who questioned him. During the ensuing jail break that devastated the [[Security Services Headquarters|Security Team HQ]] and following street battle, Prowl lost his usual cool composure in the face of such onslaught and looked to Sentinel Prime for directions. When Prime left to face Megatron personally and was brutally defeated, it was Prowl who took control and ordered the evacuation of security forces from Kaon. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

During Sentinel's state funeral, Prowl made a public announcement that the Decepticons had desecrated Sentinel's body and stolen his head. {{storylink|The Last Autobot|The Last Autobot}}

When [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]] rose to power, Prowl took an interest in keeping watch on those in power. Orion Pax eventually brought him [[Jetfire (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jetfire]] who had been arrested for assaulting an officer of the law. Prowl was ready to dismiss them until Pax brought up the death of [[Hefter]], an act done by corrupt policemen gaining Prowl's interest. When the police mech interrogated Jetfire, the Decepticon started a fist fight which Prowl easily won before he convinced him that he and Pax wanted to help. He was able to deduced from Jetfire's words that no one had told Jetfire to attack Pax but someone had told him ''about'' him. {{storylink|New Cybertron Part 2: A Lonely Pillar on the Plain|A Lonely Pillar on the Plain}}

[[File:SinsOfTheWreckers3-ProwlAntiRadArmor.jpg|left|thumb|300px|]]
During the war, Prowl began working with the non-aligned scientist [[Tarantulas (BW)|Mesothulas]] in secret. Mesothulas saw their relationship as symbiotic — Prowl's imagination would feed into Mesothulas's desire to make the impossible real, and vice versa. Their partnership resulted in many frightening advancements, such as stasis bullets, spark extraction, and Decepti-bombs. The successful utilization of the latter resulted in Decepticons being blamed for the destruction of the neutral city [[Carpessa]], which allowed Prowl to recruit the survivors into the Autobots. Mesothulas also contributed the idea of the [[Aequitas]] computer, though Prowl reported that High Command were concerned with the ethics of the guilt-detecting supercomputer. Prowl eventually began to have very strong doubts about the ethics involved with Mesothulas's inventions, particularly after the revelation of his latest creations, the [[Noisemaze]], and an artificial Cybertronian life-form called Ostaros. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 3|Sins of the Wreckers #3}}

Prowl quietly made a deal with [[Impactor (G1)|Impactor]] where in he would dispose of Mesothulas by pushing the scientist into the Noisemaze and destroy all of his inventions, including Ostaros. However, Impactor could not bring himself to eliminate Ostaros, and told Prowl to do his own dirty work if he wanted it done. Prowl, however, could not kill him either, and instead had the artificial Cybertronian enlisted in the Autobots under the name [[Springer (G1)|Springer]]. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 3|Sins of the Wreckers #3}} {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 5|Sins of the Wreckers #5}} Prowl soon went on to create an automatic recording for the possibility of him ever being compromised, in which case he wanted Springer to be the one to rescue him from whatever may befall him. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 1|Sins of the Wreckers #1}} Prowl was among the arresting officers who took down [[Roadbuster (G1)|Roadbuster]] when he began [[Roadbuster affair|brutalizing his cadets]]. However, Impactor called in his favour with Prowl, who agreed to have Roadbuster released after serving minimum rehab. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 4|Sins of the Wreckers #4}}

As the Decepticon movement began to spread across Cybertron and [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]] took command, Prowl became a member of Orion Pax's Autobot counter-insurgency unit. He participated in a mission to arrest [[Swindle (G1)|Swindle]] as he was selling weapons to terrorists in [[Nyon]]. {{storylink|Law and Disorder}} Not long afterwards he helped hunt down Decepticon spy Soundwave, but was dealt with by [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] who collapsed the [[Neurospan Bridge]] on him. {{storylink|The Hunt for Soundwave}} When [[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]] was held hostage by Decepticons to convince Orion to come to Kaon and talk to Megatron, Prowl and the rest of the team came to their rescue. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}}

On a mission from Zeta Prime to arrest the insurgent [[Hot Rod/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hot Rod]], Orion Pax's team traveled to Nyon's [[Acropolex]], where Prowl noted that their target seemingly wasn't trying to kill them and also mentioned being a believer in the [[Matrix of Leadership]] unlike [[Ironhide (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|some people]]. At the heart of the Acropolex, the Autobots found that Hot Rod just wanted to show them multiple tanks full of energon drained from Nyon's populace to power Zeta Prime's war machines. He asked Orion Pax to join him against Prime's tyranny, though Prowl voiced his disapproval of officers joining the insurgents against their own government. {{storylink|Ruins}} He seemingly changed his mind as soon as Zeta Prime began directly assaulting Nyon. To distract Zeta's [[Guardian robot|Omega Destructor]]s while Hot Rod evacuated the city, Orion Pax and Prowl acted as bait and drew one of the Destructors into a trap, but failed to harm it and were defeated by Zeta Prime himself. {{storylink|Purge}} The Autobots' lives were saved by Megatron, who took them to Kaon for repairs and negotiated an alliance with Orion. {{storylink|Choices}}

[[File:Prowl Autocracy12 Endgame.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|This is my "up to something" face.]]
Together with their new allies, Prowl and the others attacked Zeta Prime's [[Citadel]] and put an end to his rule. Unsurprisingly, the Decepticons then betrayed them. {{storylink|Overthrown}} Prowl was among those captured under Megatron's new rule, but escaped alongside his cellmates [[Hound (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hound]], [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] and [[Kup (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Kup]]. They followed Orion Pax's ID signal to the ruins of Nyon, where they were shocked to learn that he had acquired the Matrix and become Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Rise}} When Optimus had to make a rallying call for more allies for their cause, Prowl cut the news-feed for the message to get carried out. He then participated in the assault against the Citadel. {{storylink|Broadcast}} After the battle, Prowl showed Optimus the armory that Zeta Prime had hidden in the [[Undergrid]], suggesting that they could use the weapons within against the Decepticons. Optimus refused this and ordered them destroyed. Knowing Prowl, however, he may not have followed orders... {{storylink|Endgame}}

Not long after Optimus's rise to leadership, Prowl aided him in responding to an attack on the [[Toraxxis mega-refinery]]. {{storylink|Rage (IDW)|Rage}} During the [[Exodus (G1)|Exodus]], his security unit was in charge of upholding order at Iacon's [[Starsreach Spaceport]], but growing tensions led to rioting among those who couldn't afford their way off the planet. Prowl called in Optimus Prime to calm the rioters, only to be pulled into combat when the Decepticons attacked the spaceport. {{storylink|Massacre}} After [[Grimlock (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Grimlock]] had chased off the attackers, Prowl watched him and the other [[Dinobot (G1)|Dynobots]] leave Cybertron. {{storylink|Unleashed}} He later participated in the Autobot defensive strategy against a rampaging [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]]. {{storylink|Annihilation}}

During an all-out Decepticon assault on Iacon, Prowl suggested the Autobots retreat to avoid being overwhelmed by Megatron's new [[Junkion (species)|Junkion]] allies, but was ordered by Prime to hold the line. {{storylink|Primacy issue 3|Primacy #3}} He continued to fight until Prime transmitted a holographic message telling all combatants that he had defeated Megatron and that the battle was over. {{storylink|Primacy issue 4|Primacy #4}}

Following the battle, Prowl led a group of Autobots to [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]] where they were met by Decepticons led by [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Shockwave]]. The two squads clashed over Junkion's gravimetric core with either Shockwave or Prowl eventually giving the order to detonate the core and destroy the planet completely. {{storylink|New Cybertron Part 2: A Lonely Pillar on the Plain|A Lonely Pillar on the Plain}}

Four million years ago, Prowl was working directly under Optimus Prime as the Autobots fought to prevent the Decepticons from bringing fresh energon supplies to the war effort. While Optimus went after the energon convoy himself, Prowl held the line with Hound and the others to prevent the Decepticons from getting hold of the latest city they had targeted. In the aftermath, Prowl congratulated Prime for capturing the convoy without having to fire a shot. {{storylink|The Iron Age}}

At some point during the war, Prowl tried to desert and escape the war on board the ''[[Peaceful Resolution]]''. It was shot down before reaching orbit, and he realized he had to help win the war instead of running from it. {{storylink|Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}

Half a million years ago, during the Decepticon's siege on Metroplex, Prowl protested Optimus's illogical decision to enter the battlefield himself, and found himself backed up by [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]], who suggested taking Metroplex out of the equation. {{storylink|Earthfall Part 1: Hello Cruel World|Hello Cruel World}} As he and Bumblebee watched the Titan depart Cybertron, Prowl grumbled that while it was necessary, the war itself was illogical, and that the reactive actions of Optimus were not the kind of leadership the Autobots needed, but rather someone like him who could plan for everything. {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 5: I Dream of Wires|I Dream of Wires}}

After the [[Garrus-9]] detention facility had been established, Prowl was among the law enforcement Autobots who endured Aequitas' guilt-detecting trials of ''Autobot'' [[Flame (Marvel)|criminals]] who inflicted unspeakable horrors on civilians and other non-combatants. Prowl and other luminaries such as [[Chief Justice]] [[Tyrest (G1)|Tyrest]], [[Xaaron]] and [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] agreed that the trials would remain a secret until the final verdict was cast, then it would be full disclosure, regardless of the damage to morale and the Autobots' political standing. {{Storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}} Prowl would later have concerns about Tyrest's state-of-mind following the Aequitas trials, and he would try to utilize [[Skids (G1)|Skids]] and [[Getaway]] to have the unstable Tyrest retire using a [[Institute|New Institute]] "[[nudge gun]]" to alter his memory. {{storylink|Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|Arm the Lonely}}

===Earth Unit===
[[File:Infiltration3 Prowl saveit.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|Talk to the hand, the prick ain't listening.]]
Millions of years later, Prowl was the leader of a detachment of Autobots that had operated covertly on [[Earth]] for at least four years, attempting to foil a Decepticon insurgency led by [[Starscream (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Starscream]] and blindly following the Autobot rules of counterinsurgency. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 1|Infiltration #1}} {{storylink|Infiltration issue 2|Infiltration #2}} He almost threw [[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]] in the brig for breaking cover to rescue three humans from the Decepticons, and subsequently refused to contact [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Optimus Prime]] until further evidence of enemy activities was uncovered. He did not willingly believe Ratchet when the medic told him that the Decepticons had stepped up their presence by constructing a [[Infiltration protocol|second base]]. However, [[Ironhide (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ironhide]] ended up sending a pulsewave transmission to Optimus Prime behind Prowl's back. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 3|Infiltration #3}} Prowl was forced to face reality when Megatron arrived on Earth to confront Starscream, {{storylink|Infiltration issue 5|Infiltration #5}} and he finally agreed to call in Optimus Prime. Thing was, Prime had already arrived. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

When Springer ordered several Autobots on a lethal mission to rescue the damaged and deranged Kup from [[Tsiehshi]], Prowl evidently helped conceal Springer's efforts from Optimus. However, he still felt it was a misguided effort, asking Springer if Kup would want other Autobots killed rescuing him. {{storylink|Spotlight: Kup}}

Prowl went with the Autobots to investigate Decepticon activity in the country of [[Latveria]]. There they discovered a heavily shielded "array" that the Decepticons were using as a base. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}} After a skirmish with the [[human]]s that were present there, they teamed up with them to shut down the [[Psycho-Prism]] human mind altering device the Decepticons had fortified inside the array. The Decepticons attacked. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} During the fight, [[Luke Cage]] and Ratchet discovered a weak spot in the array's defenses and went in. Prowl followed to make sure Ratchet didn't put human interests ahead of Autobot interests, but the human [[Spider-Man]] was held captive inside, so Prowl gave in and let Ratchet and Luke Cage attempt a rescue.

Prowl found the Psycho-Prism guarded by [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] and [[Doctor Doom]]. Doctor Doom zapped him into unconsciousness. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Three}} He awoke next to Ratchet to find Spider-Man had been freed by Doctor Doom, who had switched sides. Prowl and Ratchet decided to use the Decepticons' [[mirror response mode]] equipment to boost their power with Spider-Man's superhuman abilities. [[Wolverine (superhero)|Wolverine]] arrived with Jazz and Bumblebee and suggested they use his abilities instead. They did, then [[orbital jump|orbital bounced]] with Spider-Man back to the battle outside, where their added strength helped defeat Megatron. Wolverine, Jazz, and Bumblebee stayed to destroy the Psycho-Prism. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Four}}

[[File:Escalation6 Prowl MYTURF.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|Yeah, let the irresponsible loner look after the MacGuffin. Good call.]]
After [[Sunstreaker (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Sunstreaker]] was kidnapped by [[Machination|a mysterious group of humans]], {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} {{storylink|Spotlight: Optimus Prime}} Prowl was still obsessed with the rules of the counterinsurgency war and thus did not understand why Optimus Prime requested reinforcements to Earth. {{storylink|Escalation issue 2|Escalation #2}} Prowl was furious when Ironhide dared to go around him and volunteer himself to track down clues on Sunstreaker's disappearance, and subsequently forced him to stay behind while the Autobots not on his grievance list left for [[Brasnya]] to confront the Decepticons. {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}} When everything kicked off in the former [[Russia|Soviet]] nation, Prowl led [[Jazz (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jazz]] and [[Wheeljack (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Wheeljack]] (and later [[Hot Rod/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hot Rod]] and [[Hardhead (G1)|Hardhead]]) into battle, attempting to capture [[Georgi Koska]], a Decepticon [[Facsimile construct|facsimile]]. {{storylink|Escalation issue 4|Escalation #4}} He clashed with Hot Rod over the capture of Koska as both of them were of equal rank, {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} but when Optimus Prime was temporarily offline and believed dead, Prowl assumed full command and came up with a strategy for fighting Megatron (shoot him, then run away). {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

Under orders from Optimus, Prowl oversaw the moving of ''[[Ark-19]]'' to a more secure location. He turned to Prime rather than order the launch on his own discretion. (Prime had to order him to use his own discretion.) {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} When [[Sixshot]] blew them out of the sky, Optimus took command of the situation until the ''Ark-19'' was destroyed. {{storylink|Devastation issue 2|Devastation #2}}

Once on the ''[[Ark-32]]'', Prowl found that, due to injuries from the battle with Sixshot {{storylink|Devastation issue 3|Devastation #3}} {{storylink|Devastation issue 4|Devastation #4}} and separate missions, he and Hardhead were the only active Autobots. He was mildly annoyed that Optimus Prime and [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] were otherwise preoccupied during this crisis. He was then shocked when Optimus abruptly ordered their unit to withdraw from Earth to handle a situation at the [[Garrus-9]] secure facility. {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}}

Optimus Prime and Prowl met with [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]] and [[Jetfire (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jetfire]] on Garrus-9 to discuss the prisoners' breakout and how a surviving Decepticon had been tortured. Prime left Maximus in charge and said that he and Prowl had unfinished business aboard the ''Ark-32''. When [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]] was reported guarding a cave on [[Corata-Vaz]], Optimus Prime recognized this had something to do with his [[infraspace]] encounter in [[Brasnya]]. He ordered Prowl to summon the [[Wrecker]]s to find out what Thunderwing was guarding. {{storylink|Spotlight: Cyclonus}} He judged the subsequent battle between the Wreckers and Thunderwing as suicidal, and felt that they were wasting their time given everything seemed to be coming at them at once. {{storylink|Spotlight: Hardhead}}

Prowl was present to hear Ratchet diagnose Sunstreaker after the later's de-Headmasterification. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 14|Replay}}

[[File:AHM15 SpringerpunchesProwl.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|According to my calcula- ''OHGODMYFACE!'']]
Prowl became increasingly frustrated with the tendency of the Autobots in general and Optimus specifically to lionise and listen to charismatic warriors and mavericks. Realising nobody would listen to the more logical tactical advice that he or Perceptor gave, he had Kup sent to the [[Kimia Facility]] to be rebuilt... with some personality sub-routines added in, which would ensure that the iconic elder could be controlled and made to act as a proxy for him. Prowl didn't want attention or glory, he only wanted to do his job, and he had absolutely no ethical qualms about ensuring that "when [Kup] speaks, you won't even see my lips move"...

He ''really'' didn't like Springer either, and was annoyed that the ''Decepticons'' seem to be a more unified body than the Autobots. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 15|Everything in Its Right Place}}

After the [[Expansion]] incident, Optimus Prime reassigned more Autobots to Earth. The Decepticons had been laying low for months, and everyone was starting to get restless. While Prowl recommended a "wait and see" approach to Optimus Prime, Ironhide's calls for action soon drowned out Prowl's reasoning. When Mirage handed them solid intelligence about a possible opportunity to wipe out Starscream and a small group of Decepticons, the Autobots acted on it. It turned out to be an ambush, and the Autobots were soundly defeated by the Decepticons with the aid of [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]]. Informed that the Decepticons were launching simultaneous attacks across the galaxy on Autobot installations and also that there was a traitor among them, the Autobots' morale was dealt a heavy blow. Through use of a space bridge portal, Megatron planned to send the Autobots to Cybertron to have them devoured by the [[Insecticon swarm|Swarm]]. Optimus Prime managed to sabotage the portal and strand the Autobots on Cybertron before the Decepticons could follow, albeit nearly at the cost of his life. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}}

[[File:Ironhidepuncheseveryone.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|I'm sensing a pattern emerging.]]
In this unprecedented situation, Jazz's authority superseded Prowl's, and he took overall command of the battered and demoralized Autobots. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} Jazz also proved necessary to shore up Prowl's own authority, which was severely disregarded by his men. Jazz's reputation helped keep them in line, particularly the recalcitrant Ironhide, who had taken to striking superior officers, including Prowl himself. After the situation with Ironhide was defused, Prowl got Jazz to admit the energon searches he'd been sending troops out on were just to keep the men busy. Prowl worried that Prime would soon die, and about the details of their commander's condition that they had kept from the troops at large. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4|All Hail Megatron #4}}

Frustrated at being stranded on Cybertron, he listened to [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks's]] story about how awesome and cool Jazz is to pass the time. {{storylink|Spotlight: Jazz}}

In particular, what Jazz and Prowl were withholding was the fact that the [[Matrix of Leadership]] was not within Prime anymore, but had been absconded with by Megatron. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5|All Hail Megatron #5}}

Kup arrived on Cybertron shortly thereafter with his own team, and things took a turn for the worse, with the Swarm encroaching on their position. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}} Sunstreaker was revealed to be the traitor, having made a bargain with Starscream to kill Megatron. He sacrificed his life to buy the other Autobots time to put some distance between them and the Swarm. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 8|All Hail Megatron #8}}

[[File:AHM10 ProwlandJazz.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|Prick ''and'' nerd.]]
Thankfully, Ratchet finally managed to repair and revive Optimus Prime, and Autobot morale went on the upswing despite their situation. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 9|All Hail Megatron #9}} Under Prime's direction, they immediately began building a defense against the oncoming Swarm horde in a new temporary base. Once everything was nearly in place, Prowl calculated the odds of them succeeding and wound up with quite a dire forecast. Jazz urged him to keep it to himself, which Prowl quickly agreed to do. When the Swarm surged against them, the Autobots fought as hard as they could, but were eventually on the verge of being overwhelmed. Fortunately, [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]] arrived to tilt the odds squarely in the Autobots' favor. Prowl asked Omega how he had survived the galaxy-wide Decepticon attack, speculating that they had probably sent an army against him. Omega simply replied, "I am Omega Supreme". {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}}

The Autobots eventually boarded Omega's rocket mode and headed for Earth. There, they engaged the Decepticon forces in a fierce battle which ended with Megatron's defeat and Starscream ordering a withdrawal from the planet. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}} {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[File:Prowl Spotlight AdviseAgainstInvolvement.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|"But Prowl, look...teddy bear."]]
Over the next three years, the Autobots remained on Earth at the insistence of Optimus Prime. Optimus believed they could not leave in good conscience while human society was still in disarray from their war and rogue Decepticons still wandered the planet. The humans were not interested in having protectors, however, and soon learned to take care of themselves. [[Skywatch]] reverse-engineered Cybertronian technology to hunt and capture Autobots AND Decepticons left on the planet.

As part of Optimus Prime's belief that the Autobots must help humanity rebuild in whatever way possible, Prowl was assigned to assist the local police whilst in disguise as one of their squad cars. Over the next eight months, Prowl saw humanity at its lowest ebb. Desperate, angry people who would never forgive the Transformers for bringing their war to humanity's homeworld. He watched as some of his driver's fellow police officers set fire to the building that the Decepticon [[Thrust (G1)|Thrust]] was trapped in, a cold execution of what Prowl considered an enemy combatant. He protested to Optimus Prime that humanity was dangerous, they were now killing Transformers, and that there was no strategic purpose for the Autobots to be on this planet or for he to continue this masquerade of being a police car. Prime asked his officer to trust him in his belief to the value of this activity, and that all the Autobots were on a personal journey.

===Lessons from Earth===
[[File:Prowl Spotlight DoneTheNumbers.jpg|130px|thumb|Prowl finally realizes that math is useless.]]
And so Prowl continued to patrol the streets, and while he did so, he calculated. The humans numbered in their swarming billions versus less than ten thousand Cybertronians. Humanity lived brief, petty, frantic lives of comparatively little consequence, their world and its infrastructure inefficient, ramshackle and incompetent. Prowl concluded that not a single human life was worth that of a Cybertronian. However, when he and his police officer driver were overseeing the removable of volatile Cybertronian wreckage from a building, some workers accidentally triggered an abandoned weapon to fire, destroying a damaged building. Without thinking, Prowl transformed and pushed a young girl out of the way, saving her life, but in the process, was trapped under the rubble that would have crushed her. His driver expressed disbelief that the Autobot had been in disguise as his car for the past eight months, and that he had broken cover to save one girl. Prowl confessed that for eight months he had been watching, planning, but unable to do anything. There were so many times he could have assisted if he were able to break cover. He had run the numbers, made calculations on Earth and on humanity, his math was flawless, but they weren't ''right''. And when push came to shove, he couldn't rely on what he thought might happen, he had to act on instinct and do the right thing. The policeman, impressed, remarked that Prowl spoke like a true beat cop, and stated that while he was obligated to call this incident in, it wasn't an emergency and suggested that Prowl had an hour to extricate himself before Skywatch arrived. {{storylink|Ride-Along}}

[[File:Ongoing issue 1-Prowl shot in the back.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.1|Woman makes prick staticky. Hilarity ensues.]]
The Autobots moved west, where Prowl was joined in his undercover police work with new arrival [[Streetwise (G1)|Streetwise]]. They were present at a power installation in New Mexico, which was being ransacked by the ravenous [[Stunticon (G1)|Stunticon]] [[Breakdown (G1)|Breakdown]]. Skywatch deployed its robot-hunting crash-suits and brought down the Decepticon before leveling lethal particle cannons at him. Despite himself, Prowl broke cover to prevent the execution of a helpless Transformer. This left his backside open to the second Skywatch team on site, who used [[Suppressor (device)|mode lock inhibitors]] to capture him as well as the "bait", Breakdown.

Prowl's capture was reported back to Autobase by Streetwise, and Hot Rod assembled a strike team to infiltrate Skywatch and rescue him. These Autobots were outfitted with Wheeljack's new counter-inhibitors to prevent the mode lock from working. Unfortunately, this sudden change in tactical efficiency only caused Skywatch to panic, drawing out their lethal ordnance to protect themselves. Prowl was rescued...but Ironhide died in the assault. Grieving for his friend, Optimus Prime then stepped down as Autobot leader and turned himself over to Skywatch. {{storylink|...For All Mankind}}

With Optimus gone, Hot Rod advocated abandoning his plan and this planet, and Prowl was one of the first to sign up for Hot Rod's splinter group. They failed to convince [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]] to fly them off-world, but then encountered a group of Decepticons led by Swindle. After a brief scuffle, Hot Rod and Swindle entered into negotiations for a truce. Prowl was uncomfortable with the idea of collaboration, despite his earlier effort on Breakdown's behalf. Ultimately, however, he went along with it. {{storylink|Things Fall Apart, Part 1: "New Arrivals, Old Encounters"|New Arrivals, Old Encounters}}

[[File:Prowl Seasons In Flight.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Prowl always narcs on the cool kids.]]
The united Autobots and Decepticons attempted to construct a space cruiser in order to leave the planet. Their efforts reached a hurdle with the arrival of [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ultra Magnus]], duly appointed enforcer of the [[Tyrest Accord]]. Prowl had summoned Ultra Magnus to Earth as part of standard operating procedure after Ironhide's death, before Prime abdicated his leadership and the faction had split. Things became difficult as Magnus attempted to confiscate Hot Rod's "unlicensed interstellar vehicle". Prowl attempted to weigh in with legalese of his own, citing the line of procedural succession and emergency powers, but it became moot when Magnus discovered their collaboration. {{storylink|Things Fall Apart, Part 3: "Seasons in Flight"|Seasons in Flight}}

Eventually the collaboration ended when the Decepticons betrayed Hot Rod. Prowl and the others survived thanks to the intervention of Optimus Prime and Skywatch leading Bumblebee to form an alliance with humans. {{storylink|Things Fall Apart, Part 5: "Earthworks"|Earthworks}}

[[File:Prowl LSOTW5 Pressure.jpg|left|thumb|100px|To prick...or ''not'' to prick...]]
Sometime after things settled down on Earth, Prowl formed a plan to recapture the [[Garrus-9]] detention facility, which had fallen during Megatron's push three years earlier. On the basis of an earlier report from [[Dominus Ambus|Agent 113]], High Command had originally concluded that G-9 had been utterly destroyed, but Springer found new intel that suggested that Fortress Maximus and Co. had not only survived the Surge, but were repelling Decepticon invasion parties while waiting to be rescued.{{storylink|Bullets|Bullets}}

Prowl's primary objective on this mission was for the Wreckers to retrieve the data stored on [[Aequitas]], as he feared that if the Decepticons managed to get their hands on politically-damaging information about Autobot war criminals, it would be disastrous to the Autobot cause. When selections for the new Wreckers squad were being made, Prowl learned that [[Ironfist (G1)|Ironfist]] (a weapons researcher at [[Kimia Facility]] who had an obsessive fascination with the Wreckers) had recently suffered a lab accident involving cerebro-centric bullets and only had months to live. Applying pressure on psy-ops specialist [[Rung (G1)|Rung]] (who had judged the researcher unfit for Wreckers duty), Prowl arranged for Ironfist to be placed in Springer's squad on the condition that he would be the one to sacrifice his life to unlock Aequitas. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 4|Last Stand of the Wreckers #4}} After the surviving Wreckers defeated [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]] and liberated G-9, Prowl was given a [[data slug]] containing the Aequitas' data, the legacy of Ironfist, who had finally succumbed to his lab accident injury. Prowl explained to [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ultra Magnus]] how he regretted using Ironfist in this manner, and he would prefer if the information about trials were never made public, despite what he had agreed to millions of years ago, for fear of what it would do to Autobot morale. As Ultra Magnus left, Prowl started to apply pressure on the data slug... {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}}

[[File:Infestation2-Prowl.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|IM IN UR HEAD DRIVING U CRAZY...ER.]]
When [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] crash-landed a spaceship full of [[zombie]]s in [[Las Vegas]], Autobot and Skywatch troops were ready to defend the city. After a brief battle, they learned that the zombies were not on Galvatron's side, but rather a threat to the entire planet, and Prowl had the area quarantined before interrogating Galvatron on what he knew about the creatures. {{storylink|The Transformers: Infestation issue 1|The Transformers: Infestation #1}} The leader of the zombies, an interdimensional vampire in disguise named [[Britt]], soon revealed herself and attacked the Autobots and Decepticons, infecting Kup with the zombie plague and creating a space-time portal to Cybertron's distant past, intending to infect the planet while it was still teeming with life. Prowl, however, had a way to sabotage her plan: using his previously established mind link with Kup, he removed the virus's control over the old warrior and had him change the portal's coordinates, trapping Kup, Britt and the zombie army in the [[Dead Universe]]. {{storylink|The Transformers: Infestation issue 2|The Transformers: Infestation #2}} {{Storylink|Heart of Darkness issue 4|Heart of Darkness #4}}

Prowl was one of the Autobots who participated in the covert mission to take out the [[Combaticon (G1)|Combaticons]], who were working with [[North Korea]] in exchange for energon. {{storylink|International Incident Part 2: "Ranks of Bronze"|Ranks of Bronze}} In order to keep the battle a secret from the world at large, they hacked all spy satellites watch the area, after which Prowl helped defeat [[Brawl (G1)|Brawl]]. {{storylink|International Incident Part 3: "Hawk Among the Sparrows"|Hawk Among the Sparrows}} Then the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] joined the fray. Since Bumblebee and [[Kyle Pennington|Pennington]] back at base were unable to see what was going on, Prowl had to keep them informed, all while calculating the best strategies to avoid casualties. The Autobots were eventually victorious, but at the cost of humanity learning about their alliance with Skywatch. {{storylink|International Incident Part 4: "All My Sins Remembered"|All My Sins Remembered}}

As the Autobots flew home from Korea, the Decepticons returned to Earth with a vengeance and had their plane shot down. Prowl and the others survived, however, and made it to shore. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}} After their attacker was revealed to be none other than a returning Megatron, they confronted him and learned that he had defeated most of their troops in America and left them to the mercy of armed and angry humans. Prowl sent Jazz to save them, but against his direct orders to not resort to violence, Jazz ended up breaking cover and killing one of the men. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}} The Autobots regrouped at Omega Supreme, and were soon joined by Megatron, having given himself up just to taunt them. Prowl was contemplating how short-sighted it had been to have both their mechanics on the Korea team when Optimus Prime approached him, asking him to investigate Megatron's claims that [[Spike Witwicky (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Spike Witwicky]] had executed a [[Scrapper (G1)|surrendered combatant]]. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}}

[[File:PoliceActionPrologue-Prowl.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.1|Not to prick, apparently.]]
In order to finish his investigation, Prowl remained on Earth with Bumblebee, Ultra Magnus and some other Autobots while the rest of them left to drive Galvatron off of Cybertron. After a last-minute questioning of Megatron revealed nothing new, he tried unsuccessfully to get Decepticon deserter [[Thundercracker (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Thundercracker]] to stay with the Autobots, and lied to Bumblebee and Spike that he would keep them updated on what was going on. {{storylink|Police Action: Prologue}} Appearing via hologram on board Omega Supreme, Prowl participated in the talks on what the Autobots would do with Megatron. He agreed with [[Xaaron]] that they needed a third party to judge the Decepticon leader's trial, but admitted that personally he'd rather just execute the scumbag. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1|Chaos Theory #1}}

[[File:Prowl The Question.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7|Okay, so you say "we"...]]
For a time, Prowl and Bumblebee clashed over command of the Earth-bound Autobots. Prowl co-opted several operatives, such as Street-Wise and Groove, for his own operation, while Bumblebee was left with dealing with a Decepticon situation on his own. When Bumblebee returned to their headquarters with all five Stunticons as his prisoners, he earned a certain degree of respect from Prowl; until then Prowl had doubted Bumblebee's capabilities as a leader. {{storylink|The Question}}

When Spike let slip that he'd be gone from base for 36 hours for secret reasons, Prowl decided to spy on his activities. This proved uninformative as Spike just met with higher-ups and assorted women, but things got heated when Breakdown suddenly showed up for revenge against the human. Prowl defeated him with help from Streetwise, but was forced to break off the mission and was chewed out by Ultra Magnus for the attention attracted by the battle. He mentioned wanting to look into anti-Transformer spokesman [[Ben Simpson]], whom he suspected was providing people with guns made from Megatron's parts, but was ordered to focus on Spike. Searching the site of Scrapper's death, Prowl was sampling some odd chemical residue when he suddenly came under attack. {{storylink|Police Action: Part 1|Police Action #1}}

The assailant was Brawl, though Prowl noticed he had a spotter that got away. Together with Streetwise he defeated the Decepticon and took him in for questioning, but a failsafe in his body caused him to shut down during interrogation. Continuing with the investigation on Spike, Prowl had former Skywatch member [[Sandra (G1)|Sandra]] brought in while he looked into the sample he had found. Just as he figured out that Scrapper had been attacked by a human with a chemical weapon rather than another Decepticon as previously assumed, Spike approached him and shamelessly admitted that it was all true. {{storylink|Police Action Part 2: Only Forward|Only Forward}}

While Spike argued that it was a strategical operation to rid the world of Devastator, Prowl saw it as murder with vengeance for Spike's friend [[Tim Simmons]] as the motive. Spike didn't care for being lectured, calling Prowl out on making his own tough decisions and keeping secrets from his allies for their own sake. Before he could think of what to do next, Prowl got word from Bumblebee that Ultra Magnus had agreed to go after Ben Simpson, and rolled out alongside him and Streetwise. Simpson turned out to be a [[facsimile construct]] created by Swindle to boost anti-Transformer sentiment among humanity for profit. When captured, Swindle not only admitted to being responsible for the situation in North Korea, but also for helping Skywatch by selling Cybertronian technology to... Spike Witwicky. Before the Autobots could do much, Spike had fled while Jazz went off on his own and announced to the world that the Autobots were cutting all ties with Skywatch and humanity. {{storylink|Police Action Part 3: A Second Chance at Eden|A Second Chance at Eden}}

===Schemers never change===
[[File:Prowl DeathofOptimusPrime.jpg|upright=0.85|left|thumb|Emo prick.]]
The few Autobots on Earth returned to Cybertron in the wake of Galvatron and the [[D-Void]]'s defeat. Though the war was over, [[Autobot High Command]] found themselves stuck with the thankless job of governing the many neutral Cybertronians returning home. Prowl coined the term Non-Aligned Indigenous Life-forms, or [[NAIL]]s, for them, and they didn't like being ruled by the people who had ruined their world through war. When a riot took place, the Autobots were outnumbered 20-to-1 and Prowl had no choice but to release the captive Decepticons and have them lend a hand, though [[inhibitor/deterrence chip]]s kept from using lethal force. Things got worse when Rodimus and Ultra Magnus announced that they were leaving Cybertron in search of the [[Knights of Cybertron]] when he needed them to deal with the neutrals. This caused Prowl to blow up in anger towards the neutrals, calling them arrogant and ungrateful cowards who did nothing during the war but now acted like they owned the planet. {{storylink|Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}

Contrary to Prowl's belief that nobody would willingly come with Rodimus, he managed to gather over 200 Autobots for his quest, including his old partner and friend Chromedome. Prowl ended up goading Rodimus {{storylink|The Sound of Breaking Glass}} into installing [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]] on the Lost Light covertly on board the ''[[Lost Light]]'' {{storylink|Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|This Calamitous Life}} and asked Chromdome to perform mnemosurgery on the captive in the hopes of learning the secrets of what made a Phase-Sixer. When Chromedome refused, Prowl attempted to blackmail him with an unsavoury secret from the mnemosurgeon's past, threatening to tell Rewind; Chromedome responded by assaulting Prowl and erasing some of his memory to protect his relationship with Rewind. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} Not to be deterred by his slight amnesia, Prowl still tried to convince Chromedome to stay as he truly needed his special abilities, but Chromedome refused as he'd rather leave his past behind. After a brief fit of anger, Prowl resorted to plan B, contacting his [[Duobot|agents]] on board [[Lost Light|Rodimus's ship]]. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It}} {{storylink|No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases}} He ordered them to place a tracker on its engines, though unfortunate events would lead to them to fail and be killed. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}} Prowl and Bumblebee watched the launch of the ''Lost Light'' be cut short when the ship disappeared in a sudden explosion. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It}}

[[File:Prowl Arcee TheAutomonyLesson.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Prick talking about how he hasn't gone soft.]]
Prowl was left handling the Decepticons, who were very harsh law enforcers and very unhappy about their imprisonment. After arresting [[Needlenose (G1)|Needlenose]] and [[Horri-Bull]] for assaulting [[Tappet|a NAIL]] (and then arresting the NAIL for disturbing the peace), he took them back to the Decepticon pen and was confronted by Decepticon spokesman [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], who demanded his faction be treated as equals. Believing him to have some sort of plan, Prowl reported his suspicions to Bumblebee and suggested they cancel the memorial service dedicated to Rodimus's crew, what with the large NAIL population being indifferent to the fate of their friends. He later discussed the matter of Ratbat with his secret weapon, [[Arcee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Arcee]], telling her that he was going to preserve the peace even if he had to do things he didn't want to do. {{storylink|The Autonomy Lesson (issue)|The Autonomy Lesson}} He learned the truth soon enough when Starscream came to the Autobots and sold out Ratbat, telling Prowl that he planned to assassinate Bumblebee during the memorial service then stage a coup. Acting on this info, Prowl managed to stop [[Skywarp (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Skywarp]] from sniping Bumblebee and leaving a NAIL to take the blame, and in the meantime sent Arcee to deal with Ratbat. Even though she mercilessly murdered the Decepticon, the two agreed afterwards that she had acted in self-defense and had no other choice. {{storylink|The World & Everything in It}} Prowl later addressed to the Decepticons in the wake of Ratbat's death, claiming that evidence suggested suicide. Starscream stepped in and backed the cover story, much to Prowl's discomfort. Very shortly thereafter, mysterious explosions began striking Cybertron, leading Prowl to believe the Decepticons were responsible. Metalhawk questioned this, adding in some cutting remarks about the war not being over for Prowl yet. Eventually Wheeljack figured out the origin of the explosions and that all parties were innocent in the matter. Much to Prowl's displeasure, Starscream came up with a plan to protect the civilians while Wheeljack ended the threat. When Starscream was granted a place in the new government thanks to his actions, [[Silverbolt (G1)|Silverbolt]] became enraged and struck Prowl, who had tried to calm him down. {{storylink|Stick Together}}

[[File:Prowl Bombshell Devisive.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|Reports of this headshot may have been greatly exaggerated.]]
Starscream immediately began undermining Bumblebee's position in the new government, adding to Prowl's growing frustration. When the Decepticon [[Skydive (Predator)|Skydive]] was found murdered, Prowl saw to the investigation. While interrogating the only witness, [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]], Prowl found a [[cerebro-shell]] implanted on the Decepticon, leading him to the conclusion that [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]] was the murderer. Prowl and Arcee used the entranced Dirge to track Bombshell down, finding the [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticon]] ensnaring [[Sunstorm (G1)|another victim]]. After a scuffle where Prowl found out that Bombshell's I/D chip wasn't functioning, he ordered [[Blurr (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Blurr]] to pursue the fleeing suspect. Prowl and Arcee soon caught up and found Blurr being accosted by the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]]. While Arcee was ordered to save Blurr, Prowl kept on with his pursuit of Bombshell, eventually cornering him. When Bombshell refused to give him any information or the identity of any possible collaborators, a fed-up Prowl coldly executed the deranged Insecticon. The cerebro-shell fell off Dirge, and he witnessed the aftermath of Prowl's actions. Dirge managed to escape and Prowl ordered Arcee to pursue him while he dealt with the Constructicons. Utilizing a hidden override code on the I/D chips to overcome whatever was blocking the signal, Prowl activated their chips and disabled all five Constructicons at once. Later, an injured Blurr gave Prowl a piece of his mind for being ordered after Bombshell without backup, calling him "crazy" and "paranoid". Prowl ignored Blurr's concerns, and pointed out that there was something larger at play with the Decepticons, telling Bumblebee that they had to "take control" of this new era. {{storylink|Devisive}}

When the NAIL [[Sky-Byte (RID)|Sky-Byte]] arrived, Prowl kept close tabs with him along with Sideswipe. Later on, he was informed that Sky-Byte was having a secret meeting with the Decepticons and broke into their hiding place with Streetwise and Sideswipe and after a brief fight, managed to capture Sky-Byte and Needlenose. They were about to lynch them in public when Ironhide stopped Prowl after saying that it was a way to have a better future of equality for Autobot and Decepticon. When questioned the next day at [[Maccadam's Old Oil House]] of his new attitude, Ironhide said he had a vision that he and Alpha Trion were telling war stories on Gorlam Prime and that every Autobot and Decepticon by that time, were dead along with their old grudges. {{storylink|A Better Tomorrow}}

[[File:Sideswipe Prowl and Wheeljack vehicle Primus All Good Things.jpg|thumb|upright=1.7]]
When the Decepticon captain [[Turmoil]] landed his ship on Cybertron, Prowl and his security forces were ordered in by Bumblebee to attack if necessary. When the order was given by Metalhawk, the Autobot forces stormed in to capture the Decepticons. {{storylink|Interference Patterns}} Prowl saw the Dinobots, Sky-Lynx and Ironhide off when they headed out into the wilderness in response to a distress signal. After they were out of earshot, Prowl noted that he was uncomfortable with the Dinobots retaining their Earth altmodes, and wish they would return to "normal." Bumblebee responded that things had been far from normal recently. He then joined Metalhawk and Starscream in their criticisms about the free elections being stalled on Cybertron, though Bumblebee insisted that they were forthcoming. He later explained to Bumblebee that he desired the elections to take place because he had confidence that Bumblebee would be elected as the planet's leader. {{storylink|Dinobot Hunt (IDW)|Dinobot Hunt}} When [[Turmoil]]'s ship, containing a sort of time machine, disappeared under Bumblebee's nose, Prowl arrived to assist the investigation. {{storylink|Night and the City}} He was later present when a Metrotitan appeared beneath Cybertron's surface and declared Starscream as the Cybertronian conqueror who would unite the planet. {{storylink|Primus: All Good Things}}

[[File:CityOnFire-NewProwl.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.2|<---o The Verge]]
A short while later, Omega Supreme was bombed in a terror attack, and Prowl used the opportunity as pretense to arrest the Decepticons still working under Soundwave and Shockwave. To allow him to spirit the Decepticons away to secret captivity, Prowl had Arcee infiltrate their hideout, disable them with a special stasis bomb, and then planet explosives throughout the pen. Prowl then lead his public arrest force to the pen, where he purposely tripped the explosives to present the appearance that the Decepticons had booby-trapped their own base and had perished in the blast. {{storylink|The End of the Beginning of the World}} The blast left Prowl in a serious, although stable, condition, but he soon mysteriously disappeared from his [[CR chamber]]. A short while later, when Decepticons had begun rioting in response to Megatron's return, Prowl reappeared in an upgraded body, and shot [[Staxx]] to save Wheeljack, who had been corned by the angry mob. {{storylink|City on Fire}} He subsequently led the Autobot engineer to the [[Black Room]], where the Decepticons Prowl had previously 'killed' were waiting, repaired and upgraded. Wheeljack was taken hostage, and soon the escaped Megatron arrived, with a stunned Starscream in tow. {{storylink|The Verge}}

[[File:IDWRID14 prowlstator.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Deva-prick? Prick-astator?]]
When a group of Autobots, joined by Metalhawk, Dirge and Swindle arrived at the Black Room, Prowl was holding Starscream and Wheeljack at gunpoint. The engineer tried to remind Bumblebee of what was "most important", but was shot through the head by his captor. Bombshell and Prowl revealed to their audience that the Autobot law enforcer had been taken by one of the Insecticon's mind control devices as he attempted to execute him, and had been a pawn of the Decepticons ever since. Bombshell also noted that Prowl had been easily controlled due to his memories already being damaged in some manner. With that concluded, Megatron declared that the Autobot had outlived his usefulness as a secret pawn, and announced that he would now become part of the next generation of Decepticon warrior. Briefly freed from Bombshell's influence, Prowl collapsed to the ground, aghast that his friends had never suspected his being controlled, but was suddenly wracked with pain as his body transformed against his will... into the head and shoulders of a reborn Devastator! The behemoth proceeded to attack the Autobot command center and snatch [[Sky High (Pretender)|Sky High]] out of the air, before proceeding, under Bombshell's influence, to the med-center, where the highest concentration of Autobots was. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}}

The Prowl-Devastator remained conscious under Bombshell's control, but unable to direct his own actions. He was confronted by Ironhide's newly arrived Autobot gestalt, the former Aerialbots known as [[Superion (G1)|Superion]], and battled the giant. Prowl-Devastator's mind temporarily shut down when Arcee revealed her true colors and executed Bombshell. The gestalt soon started back up again, however, as Prowl's mind interfaced with the Devastator gestalt and began willingly causing vast amounts of destruction. The Devastator-Prowl started rampaging again, completely out of Decepticon control, and tore his way through Superion. {{storylink|Plan for Everything}}

Ironhide managed to get through to Prowl inside Devastator's psyche, convincing him to stop the devastation. Prowl re-exerted control over himself and Devastator long enough to rip the gestalt's head from its shoulders, separating Prowl and the Constructicons back into their component parts. Undeterred, Megatron prepared to enter the Devastator gestalt personally with his new body. Luckily, Bumblebee deciphered Wheeljack's last words in time, and he, Prowl and Ironhide spoke the access code for Wheeljack's system bypass, reactivating the force field bubble the engineer had secretly implanted in Megatron's spark casing. Unfortunately for the Autobot government, however, the NAILs had had enough after this latest outbreak of warfare. Led by Starscream, they cast both Autobots and Decepticons out of new Iacon. {{storylink|Heavy Is the Head}}

===Suffering the consequences===
Almost immediately after departing, the Autobots were confronted by the Constructicons, who wanted to join up with Prowl since their unification had given them a glimpse into Prowl's mind, and they had liked what they had seen. Bumblebee attempted to rationalise that Prowl had only done all the terrible things he had done under Bombshell's influence, but Arcee, thinking she was helping, pointed out that Ratbat's assassination ''had'' been Prowl. She later attempted to apologise for revealing this. {{storylink|Second Exodus}} When Tyrest's [[universal killswitch]] was activated, Prowl was among those affected. {{storylink|Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|Arm the Lonely}} Luckily Prowl was saved thanks to Rodimus and Perceptor. {{storylink|Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|This Calamitous Life}} Later, when a bright light mysteriously appeared, {{storylink|Second Exodus}} Prowl and the other Autobots approached it, only for a [[Necrotitan|Titan]] to emerge from the ground in front of them. {{storylink|Dark Dawn: Dark Cybertron Chapter 1|Dark Dawn}}

As Bumblebee tried to organise an offensive, he asked Prowl if it was that same Titan that had proclaimed Starscream would rule, Prowl admitted he wasn't sure since his memories from his time under Bombshell's control were fuzzy. Despite insisting that attacking immediately was their best course of action, Bumblebee protested, leading Prowl to argue that it was Bumblebee's indecisiveness that led to him losing Iacon, at which point they were suddenly attacked by Soundwave's Decepticons. {{storylink|Black Metal: Dark Cybertron Chapter 2|Black Metal}} However, when Starscream arrived to confront the Titan, Prowl once again became infuriated with Bumblebee's hesitation in allowing Arcee to take him out and with his sudden collaboration with Soundwave on the situation. The final straw came when the Titan unleashed a wave of energy, injuring several of the Autobots, leading Prowl to outright blame Bumblebee for their problems. {{storylink|Winners & Losers: Dark Cybertron Chapter 3|Winners & Losers}}

While Prowl thought they should press the attack Bumblebee favored a more logical approach, which was when Soundwave heard Megatron screaming.{{storylink|Into the Abyss: Dark Cybertron Chapter 4|Into the Abyss}} Following the sound, the combined force found Shockwave's lab, where [[Nova Prime]] and Galvatron were attempting to emerge from the [[Dead Universe]] through a space bridge in Megatron's chest. While battling Shockwave's forces, Prowl tried to order Bumblebee to focus on fighting rather than reaching the resurrected Metalhawk, but when Shockwave called in the Necrotitan, Prowl ordered a retreat. {{storylink|Finest Hour: Dark Cybertron Chapter 5|Finest Hour}} Prowl called for the combined Autobot and Decepticon forces to retreat to Iacon, retorting [[Swoop (G1)|Swoop's]] protest that they wouldn't be leading it there since it was already heading towards the city. {{storylink|No Exit: Dark Cybertron Chapter 6|No Exit}}

They eventually made it back to Iacon, where [[Rattrap (BW)|Rattrap]] led them to the self-pitying Starscream. Prowl, recognizing that Shockwave was relying on them to fight among themselves, decided to play things logically and took charge of the situation, organizing the treatment of the wounded, the evacuation of the survivors, and preparing a counter-strike against the Titan. While coordinating with Soundwave, he questioned whether the Decepticon understood Shockwave's logic, but Soundwave admitted he never understood Shockwave, and as Prowl scoffed at his belief that they could still defeat him, Bumblebee arrived with an injured Megatron. Furious that Bumblebee would rescue their longtime enemy, Prowl was prepared to shoot the Decepticon leader, however as they all argued, Metroplex and the ''Lost Light'' arrived via quantum jump to fight the Necrotitan. {{storylink|Burning Bright: Dark Cybertron Chapter 8|Burning Bright}} After greeting the ''Lost Light'' crew as they disembarked, Prowl smugly reprimanded Bumblebee for allowing Megatron to disappear with a portion of Metroplex's thumb; when Bumblebee aggressively told him to piss off and that he'd made a choice, Prowl looked smug indeed about the little guy having made a decision like he'd wanted. Luckily too, the Decepticon leader did not adandon them as Prowl thought; Megatron teleported into Metroplex's hand to give him the Regenisis ore in the thumb, allowing Metroplex to defeat the Necrotitan. {{storylink|Finis Temporis: Dark Cybertron Chapter 9|Finis Temporis}}

[[File:TheBecoming-throw.jpg|left|thumb|300px|Cybertron's hottest new sport, prick toss.]]
After reluctantly admitting that Bumblebee was right to trust Megatron, Prowl then sought out Chromedome, having realised that the mnemosurgeon had worked on him, which was what had allowed Bombshell to control him. Taunting him on the recent loss of Rewind, the pair fought, and Prowl found himself cheered on by the Constructicons until Ultra Magnus arrived to break up the fight. Magnus then gave Prowl a few choice words, pointing out that Prowl had been indirectly responsible for many problems on the ''Lost Light'', and that he had never suffered through any of his own actions. Prowl was left alone with his admirers after a final remark from Magnus citing that he was the loneliest person he had ever met and was now among like-minded company. Before too long, however, the calm was ended by the arrival of Shockwave's army of [[Ammonite]]s. {{storylink|The Becoming: Dark Cybertron Chapter 10|The Becoming}} Seeing that [[Monstructor (G1)|Monstructor]] was about to harass Metroplex, a hesitant Prowl was convinced by the Constructicons into reforming Devastator, {{storylink|Black Planet: Dark Cybertron Chapter 11|Black Planet}} who managed to defeat the original combiner with help from the ''Lost Light''. After the fighting was over, Prowl was among the crowd who witnessed Optimus and Megatron exit the ''Lost Light'', with the Decepticon leader having defected. {{storylink|...And the Damage Done: Dark Cybertron Finale|...And the Damage Done}}

In a meeting to discuss what to do with Megatron, Prowl urged that they simply move forward with executing him rather than go through the mockery of a trial, however it was decided that a trial would go ahead to show the public that the Autobots didn't operate outside the law. Prowl was pleased to hear Optimus appoint him prosecutor. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 1: Towards Peace|Towards Peace}} As the trial progressed, Prowl had many testimonies against Megatron made, including ones from [[Gripper (G1)|Gripper]] and Starscream. However, when Megatron changed his plea from guilty to not guilty {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 2: Words Hang in the Air|Words Hang in the Air}} and made clear his desire to be tried by the Knights of Cybertron, a legal loophole possible because of the trial taking place on Luna-2 where the laws were different. Prowl insisted that they move the trial back to Cybertron so that it wouldn't be an issue, however Ultra Magnus pointed out that they couldn't do so for their own convenience. As a result, Optimus ended up allowing Megatron to join the ''Lost Light'' in order to have the former Decepticon's fate decided by the Knights. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 3: Predestination: A Beginner's Guide|Predestination: A Beginner's Guide}}

Prowl let his fury at Optimus fly, but when Optimus pointed out that Megatron was accepting his mistakes and the wrongness of his actions, Prowl admitted that he too had been ruthless throughout the course of the war, and that Bumblebee's death was clouding his judgement. Accepting Optimus's offer to join him on another mission to Earth, Prowl hoped that he might learn more from the planet. When the Constructicons, whom Prowl had reluctantly accepted, asked if they were joining the ''Lost Light'' under Megatron, Prowl raged that he would never stand with Megatron, and told them they would be going to Earth, knowing that Optimus was making a mistake and that he would have to be there to fix things. {{storylink|Earthfall Part 2: Detonation Boulevard|Detonation Boulevard}} [[Cosmos (G1)|Cosmos]] attempted to discuss the result of the trial with Prowl, but Prowl instead preferred to vent his frustrations to the lonely Autobot, sarcastically stating that a bold new future awaited them. {{storylink|Earthfall Part 1: Hello Cruel World|Hello Cruel World}} Before they departed, Prowl offered his opinion to Arcee on the difference between her and the Camiens, and was pleased when she asked Optimus permission to join their mission. {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 3: The Mind Bomb|The Mind Bomb}}

===Erratic behavior===

As they approached Earth, Prowl stated it was good to be home, to the confusion of Cosmos, who pointed out how personally Prowl took Spike Witwicky's betrayal. Prowl brushed aside the comment, and asked if Cosmos trusted Prime's leadership, revealing that he asked him to come along because he needed someone he can trust on the mission. {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 5: I Dream of Wires|I Dream of Wires}} Arriving in Earth's orbit, the Ark-7 was immediately attacked by Cybertronian-like weapons, and Prowl protested against falling back to the moon since the humans knew they were coming. As Optimus organised a team to go to the surface aboard [[Sky Lynx (G1)|Sky Lynx]], Prowl was ordered to remain with Arcee and Sky Lynx to investigate who launched the missiles, and Arcee suspected Prowl was unhappy with being sidelined. {{storylink|Earthfall Part 1: Hello Cruel World|Hello Cruel World}} As a battle between Optimus's team and the allied [[Earth Defense Command]] and Galvatron-led Decepticons erupted, Prowl sent Arcee and Sideswipe to back them up while he and Sky Lynx gathered the Constructicons. When the battle moved into the small town of [[Poverty Flat]], Prowl revealed his plan to force the Decepticons into revealing themselves, and combined with the Constructicons into Devastator, {{storylink|Earthfall Part 2: Detonation Boulevard|Detonation Boulevard}} thereby threatening the EDC's attempt to cover up the return of the Cybertronians. Once the EDC pulled the Decepticons out, Prowl dismissed Optimus's concerns about the recklessness of Prowl's plan and his horror at Prowl's expectation that the EDC would have executed the civilians, pointing out that he had exposed the EDC's mind bomb weapon, which was doubtlessly designed thanks to access to a Cybertronian brain, giving them a lead as to the captured Alpha Trion's location. {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 3: The Mind Bomb|The Mind Bomb}}

As the Autobots worked on a way to infiltrate the base, Optimus was unhappy with Prowl's presumption about leading the rescue mission, and ordered him to remain with Sky Lynx. Arcee took a moment to confide in Prowl that she thought that [[Scavenger (G1)|Scavenger]] was a spy, however Prowl wasn't concerned with that, only if she had told Optimus. After asking if she was still loyal to him, Arcee responded that she was loyal to the Autobot cause, a fact that Prowl found highly amusing. As Optimus's team started their attack, Prowl used the distraction to disembark Sky Lynx and infiltrate the base himself, where he caught up with Jazz, who had found Alpha Trion. Holding a gun to his comrade's head, he stated that Trion wasn't going anywhere, {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 4: Full Fathom Five|Full Fathom Five}} and with Jazz's attention on him, pointed out the alarms set up around Alpha Trion. Having realized that the humans couldn't have used Alpha Trion to create their mind bomb in the short time he was their captive, Prowl and Jazz began searching their base for clues. When Prowl was apparently knocked out by the mind bomb, he used the connection to the EDC's mainframe, but lacking time to go through their encrypted files, took control of their weapons and take out the Decepticon worldburner. After Jazz carried him to their teammates, Prowl awoke to reveal that Scavenger's leaking of information to the Decepticons was his plan to make events play out as they did. After forming Devastator to cover the rescue of Alpha Trion, Prowl counted the mission as a complete success. While Optimus was furious about Prowl's actions and secrets, Prowl insisted that it was all justifiable in this dangerous new era.

Meanwhile, Galvatron murdered [[Sparkplug Witwicky|General Witwicky]], and claimed that Prowl had been the culprit, and was believed due [[Marissa Faireborn|Marissa Faireborn's]] awareness of the animosity between Prowl and his son. {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 5: I Dream of Wires|I Dream of Wires}}

When Optimus and Alpha Trion journeyed to the moon for a private conversation, Prowl used a stealth-painted Cosmos to listen in as Trion explained his role in history, and of the mysterious [[Enigma of Combination]] that could allow Cybertronian's to merge located on Earth. When Alpha Trion asked whether Optimus would share this information with Prowl, due to his control of the only truly successful combiner in eons, Optimus questioned why he wouldn't share what he had learned from his friend. {{storylink|The Crucible}}

As Prowl learned of the resurfacing of Spike Witwicky, Optimus prepared to head back to Cybertron, leaving Prowl in charge, but warned him against taking more unnecessary risks. Overcome with anger over Optimus's weakness and suffering from another nosebleed, which were getting more frequent, Prowl gathered the Constructicons and informed them that they were going after Spike {{storylink|Onyx Interface Part One: Signals, Calls, and Marches|Signals, Calls, and Marches}} Believing that Spike knew of the Enigma of Combination's whereabouts, Prowl and the Constructicons took on a dangerous pursuit through the streets of Tokyo for their target. Momentarily halted in his pursuit by Arcee, who was concerned about him putting innocent humans in danger, Prowl finally managed to capture his quarry just as the Decepticons arrived, also in search of Spike.

Escaping to the cover of a nearby forest, Spike expected to be executed, but Prowl proclaimed that he had forgiven Spike. {{storylink|Onyx Interface Part Two: Vs.|Vs.}} While Spike was quick to assume that it was because he was justified in defending the preservation of his own species, Prowl corrected him by saying he now understood how destructive his own race was and that they needed to be stopped. Requesting Spike's help in recovering the Enigma, Prowl and the Constructicons headed to [[G.B. Blackrock|Garrison Blackrock's]] facility in Wanmu. Using Spike to infiltrate and confirm the Enigma's presence, and upon hearing from Cosmos that the Decepticons were inbound, Prowl then ordered the Constructicons to combine so that they could take the Enigma, and that Spike was only a secondary target, having lied about his forgiveness. {{storylink|Onyx Interface Part Three: ONoffON|ONoffON}} While Devastator did manage to retrieve the Enigma, his components' shared hatred for Spike derailed the combiner's objective, throwing the Enigma away as he attempted to squash Spike. Arcee finally managed to reach Prowl by revealing that the Enigma had been taken by [[Scoop (G1)|Scoop]] during his blind attack. After taking a [[space bridge]] as a bonus prize, Prowl blamed the Constructicons for taking control of Devastator from him, but they pointed out Prowl was as much to blame, and Arcee suggested that Prowl find a way to explain his actions to Optimus. {{storylink|The Onyx Interface Conclusion: The Obliterati|The Obliterati}}

As he showed off the space bridge to Jetfire, Prowl received word from Rattrap about Starscream's recent contact with the colony of [[Caminus]] and his acquisition and use of the Enigma of Combination. Furious, Prowl contacted Optimus, demanding to know what he was thinking in allowing Starscream access to colonies, accusing Prime of not seeing the bigger picture. As Optimus terminated the call, omitting the fact that Starscream had combiners, Prowl seethed with rage at not being trusted, and decided to act himself. Having Rattrap use Metroplex's space bridge to provide a connection to Cybertron, Prowl and the Constructicons traveled through. Seeking to prevent Starscream from achieving an empire, Prowl stated that Caminus and the other colonies would need to be cut off, ensuring the safety of the universe, even if it came at the cost of Cybertron and everyone on it. {{storylink|The Possible Light}}

[[File:Mistakes&Mayhem-ProwlArested.jpg|right|thumb|250px|]]

Interrupting the clean-up on Caminus, Prowl and Constructicons formed Devastator and ordered all Cybertronians to return through the space bridge, but [[Chromia (G1)|Chromia's]] protest and [[Sparkstalker|Sparkstalker's]] refusal led to Devastator opening fire. After besting Superion once again and dragging him through the space bridge to Cybertron, the Prowl-controlled-Devastator stated that he was doing what was necessary and began destroying the space bridge. Optimus tried to convince Starscream and [[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] that Prowl could be reasoned with, but Starscream used the Enigma of Combination to heal Superion and force the "[[Protectobot (G1)|Protectobots]]" to merge into [[Defensor (G1)|Defensor]], and together both combiners defeated Devastator. While Starscream sought Prowl's death, Optimus and Windblade managed to convince him other, but as Prowl was arrested and dragged off, Prowl raged that Starscream would never change and Optimus was playing with fire. {{storylink|Mistakes and Mayhem}}

When Optimus visited the imprisoned Prowl to talk over recent events, Prowl was unconvinced by Prime's attempts to put a system in place to curb Starscream's ambition, and pointed out that Starscream still needed the combiners on his side since Superion and Defensor were likely more loyal to Optimus, and would likely recruit Devastator. Believing that Prowl had been twisted by numerous betrayals he feels he has suffered, Prowl retorted that Optimus could include himself in that list. As Prowl insisted that he has always been the one to make the tough calls Optimus couldn't, the [[Stunticon (G1)|Stunticons]] broke free and formed [[Menasor (G1)|Menasor]], starting a battle between him, Superion, Defensor and a Scoop-included Devastator. When Rattrap arrived with the Enigma of Combination, Prowl ordered him to use it, forcing Prowl, Optimus, Ironhide, Mirage and Sunstreaker to form [[Optimus Maximus (G1)|a new combiner]], who quickly confronted the other combiners and stated that it was time for him to take control. {{storylink|You, Me, and the Universe}}

[[File:NowAndOnEarth-PrimePunchesProwl.jpeg|thumb|left|upright=1.025|Prowl's had this coming for how long now?]]

Devastator recognized that Prowl was in control of the new combiner, due to his previous experience in combining, and was furious that he had been rejected by his former component for an upgrade. Suddenly the combiner collapsed as Prowl began fighting his fellow components for control within the combiner's psyche. One by one, Optimus, Ironhide, Sunstreaker, and Mirage rallied, refusing to look at the world only as numbers and statistics the way Prowl does, instead sharing their belief in the power of people that can change and be there to help one another. Synchronized by this shared belief, their minds slowly came together, and while Prowl refused to accept their way of thinking, his refusal was what allowed him to finally understand them, and in that understanding, all five were unified and Optimus Maximus was truly born. Alongside Superion and Defensor, Optimus Maximus defeated the other combiners, and then willingly separated himself so that Prowl could be arrested, knowing they could not be above the law. {{storylink|All That Remains}}

With Prowl now in custody, Optimus hoped that he could talk some sense into his old ally. Prowl simply replied that morality had nothing to do with military strategy, and that spending time as Devastator meant that he could no longer tell the difference between himself and the Decepticons. The two former friends finally came to blows, although Prowl's knowledge that a part of him would always exist within Prime convinced the Autobot leader to spare his life. However while Optimus's back was turned, Rattrap spirited Prowl away; with both their plans having failed, he stated that Prowl owed him a victory. {{storylink|Now and On Earth}} Prowl was branded a fugitive for his actions, and wanted signs were scattered throughout Iacon. {{storylink|The Transgressors}}

=== Gone Too Far ===
[[File:SinsOfTheWreckers2-ProwlWebbedUp.jpg|right|thumb|300px|Prowl web of lies have come back to bind him, literally.]]
Prowl received a message from Verity Carlo, who had a copy of the Aequtias data and threatened to release it. Getting to Earth quickly by utilizing his mind link to Kup, Prowl prepared to confront Verity in Nome, Alaska when he suddenly was attacked and kidnapped. When Prowl woke up, he was in a strange landscape which attacked his sensors, and lost consciousness again as a blurry figure welcomed him to the Noisemaze. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 1|Sins of the Wreckers #1}} After having a dream in which Prowl's recent actions had resulted in peace coming to Cybertron and Optimus thanking him, Prowl awoke to find himself trapped in a giant web. Recognising his captor's voice, Prowl asked what Mesothulas wanted, though the scientist responded that he no longer answered to that name and stated that Prowl had something he wanted, threatening to expose his dirty secrets. Once he was alone, Prowl used his mind-link to Kup to address the recently awakened Springer and the Wreckers, fully exposing his manipulation of the older bot, but explained as much as he could about his situation before being cut off.

[[File:SinsOfTheWreckers3-Tarantulas'FinalOffer.jpg|left|thumb|300px|]]Mesothulas then returned, revealing his possession of the Aequitas data Verity had had, resigning Prowl to agree to talk. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 2|Sins of the Wreckers #2}} Mesothulas then fully revealed himself to Prowl, shocking the Autobot with his new form, and his new name, Tarantulas. Prowl suspected that Tarantulas had come to the conclusion that he had pushed him into the Noisemaze, and intended to use the war crimes data from Aequitas to blackmail him as revenge. However, Tarantulas merely wished to work with Prowl again, to recreate the symbiosis of their original relationship. When Prowl refused, he was placed in the company of his would-be rescuers: Verity, Springer, Roadbuster, and Arcee, and forced to watch as their most shameful, damning thoughts were bared to him thanks to Tarantulas's new invention, the guilt-extracting [[Impetus]]. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 3|Sins of the Wreckers #3}}

Prowl tried to reason with [[Hubcap (G1)|Hubcap]], whom Tarantulas had recruited as a mole within the Autobots, but the intelligence analyst had been infuriated by his early-releasing of Roadbuster, and verbally tore into Prowl for his various crimes. At that moment, Verity revealed that she had not intended to release Aequitas, but had only wanted to force Prowl to help treat her for the illness caused by her exposure to Aequitus, and Prowl lamented that he wished she had just asked. Before Tarantulas could hook him up to Impetus, Prowl attempted to make the scientist give up on another partnership by claiming that he had killed Ostaros, though this failed. At that moment, Kup used their connection to inform his that rescue was on its way, but only because of Prowl's value and not because he deserved to be saved. Finally convincing Hubcap not to release the Aequitas data, the analyst freed him and the other captives. Prowl pulled a gun on Hubcap, believing he had too much incriminating data to be allowed to live. Hubcap pleaded for his life, arguing that killing him would only continue the cycle of violence and secrecy that has resulted in their current situation. Though Prowl was swayed by Hubcap's logic, Impactor believed it was too great a risk and shot Hubcap. Insisting that they destroy all of Taratulas' work, Prowl and the others began preparing to collapse the Noisemaze, just as Tarantulas returned. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 4|Sins of the Wreckers #4}}

[[File:SinsOfTheWreckers5-kuppunchesprowl.jpg|right|300px|thumb|YOU punch a car! And YOU punch a car! EVERYBODY PUNCH A CAR!!!]]

After failing once more to convince his former partner to give up, Prowl listened as Impactor revealed the truth of what happened, at which point Tarantulas realised Springer was Ostaros and went after him. Ordered by the Wrecker to get out of the maze, Prowl prepared to force [[Tidal Wave (G1)|Tidal Wave]] to consume the [[Obtenteum]] in order to collapse the Noisemaze. After meeting up with Kup and Guzzle, the former got in a good hit on Prowl's jaw for his manipulations of him, and Guzzle took care of Tidal Wave. However once they escaped into Debris, Guzzle pulled his weapons on Prowl and Kup, determined to take revenge for the friends he had lost because of them, forcing Impactor to put him down. Later, Prowl went back into the remains of the Noisemaze to rescue the still-alive Springer, and severed his link with Kup. Neither Kup nor Arcee wanted to deal with him further, and decided to let Prowl go for the time being, yet not informing Optimus about the crisis either. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 5|Sins of the Wreckers #5}}

When Optimus annexed Earth into the Council of Worlds and broadcast a message, Prowl watched and refuted his former friend's claim that he was bringing freedom to Earth. {{storylink|All Hail Optimus Part 1: Once Upon a Time on Earth|Once Upon a Time on Earth}}

His time on Earth was remembered by [[Scarlett]] and [[Joe Colton]] as they discussed the threat the Cybertronians posed to Earth. {{storylink|Secret Raiders: A Revolution Prelude|Secret Raiders}}

After [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]] came back to life, casually murdered people and kidnapped Optimus and Soundwave via a [[Space bridge|Space Bridge]], Arcee contacted Prowl, who knew exactly where his old boss would go. {{storylink|White Light}}

[[File:TenToMidnight-ProwlStrugglesToRemember.jpg|left|thumb|200px|With all the wrongs he's done lately, its easy to believe he might not remember his wrongdoings from only a few years ago.]]

That place was [[Moonbase One|Luna 1]] where Prowl suspected Sentinel would try to raise the graveyard of Titans as the former Prime had dreamed of using a Titan army before the Great War began. When Prowl arrived on the moon, he was attacked by [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]] for [[Garrus-9]] before [[Cerebros (G1)|Cerebros]] held back his boss. It was only after that Prowl actually recalled the Garrus-9 fiasco before he warned them and [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]] of great danger to Luna 1. Prowl explained Sentinel's return to life, that Titan plan and that he himself was here to deactivate Luna 1's Space Bridge. The trio, specifically Red Alert, were skeptical of Prowl's words before [[Beak]] arrived with proof of Prowl's claims which led Red to believe he was stalling them and working with Sentinel. Nonetheless, the four Autobots set out to stop the Prime. On the way Prowl spoke to Max about the [[Team Rodimus]] and the fact that the ''[[Lost Light]]'' was non-responsive to hails. Their trail led them to the [[Planetary engine|massive engines]] which prompted Max to question Sentinel's age if he knew exactly where and what they were. When they arrived to confront Sentinel in a Titan's brain module, they found the unwilling [[Sovereign]] strapped to the giant's CPU from which the other Titans rose up. Before any action could be taken, Sentinel took control of Red Alert who shot Prowl into stasis. {{storylink|Ten to Midnight}}

[[File:LastLight-Prowl'sStaying.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Oh good. Prowl's staying. Yaaaaaay...]]
As Sentinel gloated, Cerebros placed a shell on Prowl that allowed the former to control his motor functions. He used this to hit Sentinel over the head with a [[Mobile Autobot Repair Bay|M.A.R.B.]] before the three Autobots escaped. When Prowl awoke, he was dismayed to learn what Cerebros had done and that he was being left out the loop for once. Max and Cerebros planned to use the body of the Titan they were based in to stop Sentinel's army but the [[Transformation cog|T-Cog]] was stuck in place. Prowl casually used his table flipping skills to manually complete the transformation. While Maximus fought off the Titan army, Prowl and Cerebros confronted Sentinel who promptly shot them both down where he tried to force Red Alert to execute Prowl. Red Alert managed to break free and separate Sentinel's [[Titan Master]] self from his true body. Sentinel would have forced Red to kill himself had Beak not pushed the Prime into one of the thrusters. Prowl asked how deep the thrusters were (one and a half miles) before casually noting that Sentinel was dead. Prowl had his missing optic replaced before he took Sovereign back to Earth and then decided to stay on Luna-1, intending to take a long overdue sabbatical. He sympathized with Maximus over his fears of change and endings before an alert came through pertaining to information regarding the ''Lost Light''. However the message seemed to just be gibberish and the quartet ignored it before they resumed cleaning the Titan's T-Cog. {{storylink|Last Light}}

{{charstubfiction|{{storylink|New Cybertron Part 2: A Lonely Pillar on the Plain|A Lonely Pillar on the Plain}} {{storylink|New Cybertron Part 3: Behind My Bleeding Back|Behind My Bleeding Back}}}}

==INSIRT continuity==
Long ago on Cybertron, [[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity#INSIRT continuity|Chromedome]] served in the [[Autobot Police]] and harbored an interest in the field of mnemosurgery. Over time, he was able to use his highly decorated partner Prowl's status to pursue his interest in mnemosurgery, developing the ability to extract information directly from a suspect's mind. {{storylink|Chromedome (G1)#Timelines|''Timelines'' Chromedome bio card}}

==Ask Vector Prime==
[[File:Megatron cam.jpg|left|upright=0.9|thumb|I think this is a killing joke!]]
In [[Primax 708.10-R Lambda]], [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]] cracked the codes to an Autobot forward listening outpost. He walked in, shot Prowl, and then laughed and took a photo of what he had done. Prowl would be unable to transform for many stellar cycles. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime#Facebook|Ask Vector Prime, 2015/08/06}}
{{--}}

==Notes==
*[[James Roberts]] has said that pre-war Prowl and Chromedome had a, ah, "stronger bond" than just being partners.<ref>[http://theunderbase.libsyn.com/the-underbase-deconstructs-shadowplay "The Underbase Podcast Deconstructs Shadowplay"], 17:17 - 14:58</ref> This would put their tension in the present day as more personal than we thought (and Rewind's constant insults against Prowl as being the new boyfriend having a go at the crappy ex).
*According to IDW story editor [[Andy Schmidt]], ''[[Ride-Along|Spotlight: Prowl]]'' was originally going to be told in [[The Transformers (IDW)|the ongoing series]]. But when fans reacted badly to Prowl's characterization in [[...For All Mankind|the first issue of that series]], IDW decided to jump the gun and publish the story early as a ''Spotlight''.<ref>[http://www.comicscontinuum.com/stories/1002/19/schmidt.htm Comics Continuum video interview with Andy Schmidt]</ref> It is intended to reconcile his new, rashly self-sacrificial portrayal with the methodical, vehemently anti-hotheaded-maverick personality he [[The Transformers: Infiltration|had]] [[The Transformers: Escalation|exhibited]] [[All Hail Megatron issue 15|previously]]. But that reconciliation doesn't actually address the core concern of many of those upset fans, who wanted not just explanation, but ''reversion'' to the subversive schemer that Prowl had recently developed into.<ref>[http://forum.idwpublishing.com/viewtopic.php?t=7345 IDW forum thread practically begging for Prowl's new characterization to be undone.]</ref> John Barber eventually saw fit to explain this snapback in [[Devisive|''Robots in Disguise'' #4]].
*Prowl's design in the first portion of ''[[The Transformers: Robots in Disguise|Robots in Disguise]]'' is based on a [[:File:BluestreakWFCconceptart.jpg|concept drawing of ''War for Cybertron'' Bluestreak]] that never saw its way in to the game.

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Combiners]]
[[Category:IDW Generation 1 Autobots]]
[[Category:Strategists]]

Overlord (G1)

2017-01-24T18:55:18Z

AllAreTaken: /* IDW Generation 1 continuity */

{{faction|decepticon}}
{{Disambigm|Overlord (disambiguation)|Gigatron (disambiguation)}}
{{featured}}
:''Overlord is a [[Decepticon]] [[Godmaster (lifeform)|Godmaster]] from the [[Generation 1 continuity family|Generation 1]] [[continuity family]].''

[[File:Overlord.jpg|upright=1.67|thumb|Check out these killer abs!]]
[[Autobot]]s quake in fear when '''Overlord''' (オーバーロード ''Ōbārōdo'') thunders on to the battlefield. This towering warrior is an amalgamation of the deadliest [[Decepticon]] weaponry known, armed with laser blasters and grenade launchers in his stomach, and the terrifying ability to prevent the wounds he inflicts upon his opponents from healing. He is even equipped with an internal arms factory. Overlord is formed from two individual vehicles, a tank and a jet, which combine together to form his colossal [[robot mode]], a heavily-armed advance base, or a larger jet capable of space flight.

He is sometimes known as '''Gigatron'''.

{{note|Exactly who—and even ''what''—Overlord is varies greatly from continuity to continuity, to the point that it could conceivably be argued whether or not the different incarnations represent different characters. See individual sections below for details.}}

==Fiction==
===Japanese Generation 1 continuity===
The story of the Overlord begins with the mysterious alien energy-being and self-styled Decepticon god, [[Devil Z]], who schemed to create the ultimate lifeform by merging Transformers and humans into one. Devil Z stole a collection of Transformer [[Transtector]]s from the [[G Nebula 89|G Nebula]] and brought them to Earth. Devil Z recruited two human beings, husband and wife [[Giga]] and [[Mega]], and charged them with creating an army for him. Mega and Giga were both bonded to the largest Transtector, and together, they became the terrifying Overlord, serving as Devil Z's "Ambassador of Destruction" on Earth.

In this continuity, each of Overlord's two components are piloted by Giga and Mega, and are hence known as the '''Gigatank''' and the '''Megajet'''. As deadly as his "Chōkon Daemon Blast" lasers and "Chōkon Bolt Masher" grenade launcher are, Overlord has little need for projectile weapons: as a [[Godmaster (lifeform)|Godmaster]], he is capable of manipulating [[Chōkon Power]], and can even employ it to inhibit the regenerative abilities of other Godmasters.

====Ask Vector Prime====
In some versions of the history of the [[OG World|Primax 785.06 Alpha]] system, the G Nebula Transtector that became Overlord was intended to be a new body for a fallen Decepticon known as [[Gigatron (G1)|Gigatron]]. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime#Facebook|Ask Vector Prime, 2015/07/24}}

====Cartoon continuity====
=====''Super-God Masterforce'' cartoon=====
{{voiceactor|[[Keiichi Noda]] (Japanese)|[[Rik Thomas]] (English, Omni Productions dub)}}
[[File:Overlord r.jpg|left|225px|thumb|Believe it or not, this is a crane shot.]]
Giga and Mega took their Transtectors into battle for the first time after a string of failures that resulted in several of the Godmaster Transtectors falling into the hands of the [[Autobot]]s. The couple had [[Hydra (Masterforce)|Hydra]] and [[Buster (Masterforce)|Buster]] lure Autobot commander [[Ginrai (human)|Ginrai]] into the desert, and then confronted him as Overlord, immediately proving their superiority by beating him to near-death. {{storylink|Super Ginrai Gets Blown Away in the Desert!?}} Believing Ginrai dealt with, Overlord subsequently departed into space, {{storylink|Will the Bomber Project Be Destroyed!?}} taking control of a [[Weather Observatory Moon Base|weather-monitoring base]] on the [[Moon (moon)|moon]] in order to rendezvous with the approaching [[Scorponok (G1)|BlackZarak]] there. Ginrai, however, proved entirely too stubborn to die, and, powered-up through his combination with the freshly-constructed [[Godbomber]] drone, soon pursued Overlord and engaged him in battle above the moon's surface. {{storylink|God Ginrai - Into the Sky!!}} During the fight, Ginrai was blindsided by BlackZarak and sent crashing down to the moon, where he found himself hunted by the two powerful Decepticons. Luckily, the Autobot battleship [[Grand Maximus]] arrived to help, and the two Decepticon tried to break off the fight an return to Earth. Ginrai and Grand vowed to stop them, and a shot from Ginrai's God Cannon sent Overlord plummeting back to the moon, forcing Giga and Mega to split into their individual Transtectors to soften their impact and save their lives. The Autobot pair managed to drive BlackZarak back to the moon as well, and the dark Decepticon insisted that Overlord return to Earth alone and inform Devil Z of the situation. Overlord refused, furious that anyone other than Devil Z would presume to give him orders, but when Ginrai and Grand returned to press their attack, he realised the damage he had sustained prevented him from carrying on the fight, and he relented. After Overlord departed for Earth, however, the outnumbered BlackZarak was then beaten by Ginrai and sent fleeing back into the depths of space. {{storylink|God Ginrai - Showdown on the Surface of the Moon}}

[[File:Overlord v.jpg|205px|thumb|I'm easy come. Easy go. Little High. Little Low.]]
Incensed by this failure, Giga decided to reduce Ginrai's power level by destroying Godbomber. A desert again served as Ginrai and Overlord's battleground, as Overlord used his Chōkon Power to create a massive whirling tornado out of the shifting sands, but when he was thrown off balance by a sneaky God Punch attack, Overlord's "Chōkon Tornado" quickly backfired on him and sent him spinning off wildly through the sky. {{storylink|Overlord - Terror of the Chōkon Tornado}} Despite this setback, Overlord made another attempt to eliminate Godbomber, this time by separating him from Ginrai with an ambush in the American heartland. In their separate Transtectors, Giga and Mega wore down Ginrai until he no longer had enough Chōkon Power to animate Godbomber, but the plan was foiled when the Autobot [[Headmaster Junior]]s discovered they could combine their own energy to control Godbomber themselves. With Ginrai and Godbomber reunited, Overlord was sent packing by a blast of Chōkon Power. {{storylink|Destroy Godbomber!!}}

[[File:Overlord b.jpg|left|205px|thumb|Umm, Giga? Where are we supposed to sleep?]]
Overlord later adopted his base mode for the first time to act as a staging ground for the search for the final Godmaster. The search came to an abruptly end, however, when the Godmaster himself, [[Clouder]], sought out the Decepticons, and the villains decided to use his ability to adopt two robot forms to install him as a double agent within the Autobot ranks. {{storylink|Appearance!! The Final Godmaster}} Using information fed to them by Clouder, the Decepticons initiated a full-scale attack on the Autobots' headquarters, again using Overlord's base mode as a mobile headquarters from which the assault was masterminded. {{storylink|Secret Orders! Destroy the Autobot Base!!}} When Ginrai (who had been lured away from the base so the attack to begin) returned to aid his fellow Autobots, Overlord transformed to [[robot mode]] and again engaged him in battle, intending to keep him occupied until a [[Seacon (Masterforce)|Seacon]] force could destroy the Autobot base from within. Although defeated in combat, Overlord was still able to gloat, as Ginrai failed to realise that he was being stalled until it was too late. Furious at his own short-sightedness, Ginrai hurled Overlord and embedded him, head-first, in the side of the mountain housing the Autobot base. At that moment, the base's magma converter power core finally exploded, and Overlord was sent flying over the horizon by a jet of lava. {{storylink|Disaster! The Autobot Base Explodes}}

[[File:Overlord spacejet.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|Set controls to outer space, now, flying higher than ever before!]]
Soon thereafter, BlackZarak returned to Earth, and the Decepticons began "Operation M-1" to cut a swathe of devastation across the Earth. While BlackZarak tore through [[New York City|New York]], Overlord landed in the heart of [[Paris]], decimating military resistance and destroying the [[Arc de Triomphe]]. With these cities in ruins, the two Decepticons began to converge on Tokyo; while passing over China, Overlord landed on the Great Wall and broadcasted a message to the leaders of the world, warning them to surrender or witness Tokyo's destruction. Overlord then carried on his way, easily defeating [[Metalhawk (Masterforce)|Metalhawk]], [[Phoenix (Masterforce)|Phoenix]] and [[Diver (Masterforce)|Diver]] when they attempted to block his path. Overlord and BlackZarak soon arrived in Tokyo, and with no surrender forthcoming, began razing the city. In the midst of the chaos, however, Ginrai and Grand Maximus—who had been trapped in a black hole by BlackZarak, and only just managed to escape—arrived to stop their evil deeds. During the ensuing battle, Ginrai manoeuvred himself between the two Decepticons, and dodged at the last second, causing them to blast each other. With his two most powerful warriors damaged, Devil Z called off Operation M-1, and initiated Operation M-2 {{storylink|BlackZarak - Destroyer from Space}} which involved destroying the Earth's atmosphere from orbit with the unholy [[Death Para-Machine]]. Overlord transformed to his "space jet" mode to carry the Decepticon Headmaster Juniors into space for the operation, but naturally, the Autobots pursued their enemies, and Ginrai was able to destroy the Death Para-Machine before it caused irreparable damage to Earth. {{storylink|Crisis! The Day of Human Extinction}}

[[File:Overlord vs ginrai.jpg|left|225px|thumb|"I outrank you, Ginrai!" "You do NOT! 'God' outranks 'Overlord'!"]]
After a battle with [[Lightfoot (Masterforce)|Lightfoot]] in southern Europe, {{storylink|God Ginrai - Save Cancer!?}} Overlord tried a more underhanded tactic, capturing Autobot Headmaster Junior [[Shūta Gō]], and using him as a bargaining chip to bring Ginrai to the Decepticon base. The battle that followed was distinctly one-sided, as Ginrai was unable to fight back due to Shūta being in danger, but this suddenly took an unexpected turn when Decepticon Junior [[Cancer (Masterforce)|Cancer]] turned on his teammates and freed Shūta. Even as the shocked Overlord commanded him to stop, Ginrai got back in the fight, and flattened Overlord before escaping with Shūta and Cancer. {{storylink|God Ginrai: Showdown at the Decepticon Base}} With the information Cancer provided them, the Autobots were able to stage an all-out attack on the Decepticon base, during which Overlord again battled Ginrai. The fight came to a sudden end when Devil Z merged with BlackZarak and collapsed the Decepticon base in a failed attempt to destroy the Autobots. {{storylink|The Ultimate Combination!! BlackZarak, the New Lifeform}}

For a time, Devil Z's hatred of humankind had been steadily growing, and rankled with Giga and Mega, reaching a head when the alien abandoned [[Wilder (Masterforce)|Wilder]] and [[Bullhorn (Masterforce)|Bullhorn]] in the ruins of the Decepticon base, and transformed Hydra and Buster into true robots. {{storylink|Battle to the Death!! God Ginrai VS Darkwings Reborn}} Confronting God Ginrai for one final time in the heart of the [[Grand Canyon]], Overlord vowed to fight him without weapons, battling him only through the use of his physical strength and the power of his human flesh. He didn't explain his motives to Ginrai, but Ginrai observed Overlord's refusal to draw his weapons, and fought honourably. When Grand Maximus arrived on the scene, however, he was not so concerned, and simply shot Overlord out of the sky. {{storylink|Autobots! Desperate Attack!!}}

[[File:Overlord ginrairescue.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|I get by with a little help from my ... uh, foes.]]
After the battle in the Grand Canyon, the Decepticons relocated to the Alps, and the Autobots again gave chase. Overlord was willing to engage the Autobot Godmasters, but the merged Devil Z/BlackZarak entity held him back and instead buried them under an avalanche. Meanwhile, Ginrai again defeated Hydra and Buster, and the two brothers limped back to the peak of the Matterhorn, where Devil Z turned on them for their failure. As their punishment continued, Overlord at last stood up to his emperor and attempted to stop him, only to be on the receiving end of the emperor's wrath. {{storylink|Malevolent and Inhuman! The True Form of Devil Z}} Unexpectedly, Overlord was rescued by Ginrai, and as the Autobot leader began his final battle with BlackZarak, Giga and Mega realized that they owed him a debt of honor for saving them and finally made the decision to turn against their former master. When Overlord attempted to aid God Ginrai in his battle with BlackZarak, however, they were struck down and enveloped in a sphere of Devil Z's [[Devil Power]]. Devil Z separated Mega and Giga from their Transtectors, bringing Overlord to live as a true super-robot lifeform. As their [[Master-Brace]]s vanished from their wrists, Giga and Mega died, regretting that they could not settle their rivalry with Ginrai honourably. Alas, there was not even time to mourn, as the new, robotic Overlord lunged for Ginrai, but was tackled by Grand Maximus. Ginrai subsequently united his powers with the Headmasters Juniors to finally destroy Devil Z and BlackZarak, and at the sight of his leader being vaporized, Overlord immediately called for the Decepticons to retreat. As they fled into space, the Autobots' Transtectors were also brought to life, as Overlord's had been, by the death of Devil Z, and they headed into space in pursuit of Overlord's Decepticons. {{storylink|A Battle... and Then...}}
{{-}}

=====''Transformers Legends'' comic=====
The now-living Overlord transtector and his followers joined with the Decepticon forces in space, and in [[2021]], Overlord led an attack on the [[transtector]] factory in [[G Nebula 89]], forcing [[Grand Maximus|Grand]] to send the former [[Decepticon]] [[Headmaster Junior]]s to the [[Legends Universe]] for their safety. {{storylink|LG24 Shockwave & Cancer Prologue}} During one of his assaults, Overlord was defeated by a [[Getmaster]]-powered [[Brainstorm (G1)|Brainstorm]]. {{storylink|Legends Comic: Bonus Edition Vol. 39|Bonus Edition Vol. 39}}

=====''Victory'' cartoon=====
[[File:Decepticons in the g nebula.jpg|left|upright=0.85|thumb|Those car washes get more dangerous every year.]]
Overlord briefly led the Decepticon army before the rise to power of [[Deathsaurus (Victory)|Deathsaurus]]. {{storylink|Deathsaurus (Victory)|Deathsaurus's toy bio}} Following this, Overlord commanded the Sector Two Decepticon force, based in the G Nebula, where they battled the Autobots under the command of his old foe, God Ginrai. {{storylink|Planet Micro - The Mysterious Warrior}}
{{-}}

=====''Zone'' cartoon=====
{{voiceactor|[[Keiichi Noda]] (Japanese)}}
[[File:OverlordZone1.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|Robots should not wear [[Transformer clothing#Capes|capes]].]]
Years later, when the supernatural creature known as [[Violen Jiger]] seized command of the Decepticons, his first act was to recruit nine "[[Nine Great Demon Generals|Demon Generals]]" from Decepticon history. Overlord was selected to be one of those Generals and was given new power and weaponry to make him an even greater threat than before. At Violen Jiger's instruction, Overlord was sent to the planet [[Feminia]] to wreak havoc along with [[Abominus (G1)|Abominus]] and [[Menasor (G1)|Menasor]]. Together, the three Decepticon Demon Generals destroyed the entire planet and nearly killed Autobot [[Supreme Commander]] [[Star Saber (Victory)|Victory Saber]] in the process.

Two-and-a-half months later, Overlord led Menasor, Abominus, and [[Bruticus (G1)|Bruticus]] in an attack on the planet of [[Micro|Zone]], gleefully blasting [[Micromaster]]s and using his trident to slice into [[Zone Base]] to retrieve a sample of [[Energon Z]] for Decepticon use. With the Micromasters completely unable to harm the Decepticon generals, Overlord left the planet in triumph, handing the Energon Z off to the second group of Generals, who went on to attack Earth, but were stopped by Autobot [[Powered Master]] [[Dai Atlas (Zone)|Dai Atlas]]. {{storylink|Enter the New Supreme Commander, Dai Atlas!}}

=====Wars manga=====
In the aftermath of Violen Jiger's defeat, Overlord's faction of Decepticons in G Nebula 89 tried to reorganize and desired to take control of the nebula's transtector factory to create more Decepticon soldiers. {{storylink|Train Wars: Goshooter & Shūta Gō Chapter}}
{{-}}

====Manga continuity====
=====''Super-God Masterforce'' manga=====
[[File:Overlord manga.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|"I am a freak?, Not so, I am a devil!"]]

After a failed assault on planet [[Athenia]] and the defeat of [[Scramble 7]], the Decepticons returned to Earth and were met by their new commander, the mysterious Overlord. {{storylink|The Battle Begins! The United Earth-Space Troops}}

Giga and Mega debuted their Transtectors in an attack on a city, during which they combined into Overlord and devastated the Autobot Godmasters with their Daemon Blast and Bolt Masher weapons. Blindsided and badly damaged by the newly created God Ginrai, Overlord was goaded into pursuing the Autobot out into space, where BlackZarak was battling the Autobot [[Headmaster (technology)|Headmasters]]. As BlackZarak turned to face the approaching Ginrai, the cunning Autobot swiftly ducked out of the way, causing Overlord and BlackZarak to attack each other. Gravely wounded, Overlord returned to Earth, while BlackZarak fled back into space. {{storylink|God Ginrai's Amazing Super-God Combination!}}

Overlord's base mode was employed by the Decepticon to hold Shūta Gō and [[Cab (human)|Cab]] prisoner, when they attempted to torture the two boys into becoming members of the Decepticons. Their fellow Autobot Junior, [[Minerva (Masterforce human)|Minerva]], came to their rescue when she crashed Godbomber through Overlord's walls and freed them, after which Overlord transformed to robot mode to face the approaching Ginrai and Grand Maximus. It wasn't his best showing: after Ginrai combined with Godbomber, Grand crashed his battleship directly into Overlord's face, and God Ginrai used the Headmaster's "[[Master Blade (Masterforce)|Master Blade]]" to slice off Overlord's legs. Their Transtectors forcibly separated, the battered Giga and Mega escaped. {{storylink|The Earth Family of Good and Evil}}

[[File:Overlord aolaser.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|"Cry some more!"]]
From the top of [[Qomolangma]], Overlord rained destruction down on the world using the Decepticons' newest weapon, the [[A.O. Laser]]. When Ginrai and Godbomber arrived to stop him, Overlord turned the laser on them; they dodged, but they had failed to observe the presence of the Decepticons' newest member, the Godmaster Clouder, who reflected the laser beam back at them and knocked them out of the sky. Unfortunately for Overlord, a chance comment from Cancer insulting Clouder's falcon mode plunged the Godmaster into such a rage that he turned on his Decepticon allies and blew up the A.O. Laser in Overlord's hands. Although Ginrai had been temporarily blinded by the A.O. Laser, the Headmaster Juniors were able to serve as his eyes and point him in the right direction to unleash his "God Punch" attack, which clobbered Overlord so hard that Giga and Mega actually popped out of his chest. {{storylink|Decepticons' Great Counterattack!}}

Soon thereafter, when the Autobots were off-Earth visiting their space-based allies, BlackZarak was able to return to Earth, and he and Overlord took the opportunity to attack a city. The Autobots soon returned with, and Ginrai and Godbomber grappled with Overlord, forcing him to separate back into the Megajet and Gigatank. The two Autobots clung onto the separate Transtectors, however, refusing to let them escape, as they waited for the new weapon they had brought back from space, the [[VX Bomb]] to detonate. The explosion came seconds later, knocking Mega and Giga's Transtectors offline, but Ginrai and Godbomber survived by combining into God Ginrai. {{storylink|Live? Die?! The Desperate Super-God Combination}}

[[File:Overlord vs blackzarak.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|Don't ever speak about Broly.]]
When BlackZarak attacked a city, Cancer happened to be here, and BlackZarak showed his disdain for humans by using the boy as a bargaining chip to prevent the Autobots from interfering with his deviltry. Horrified at this treatment of Cancer, Overlord viciously attacked BlackZarak, rescuing Cancer from his grip, but while they were fighting, it allowed the Autobots to take down both of them. {{storylink|Great Turn-Around! Autobots}}

In light of this act of treachery by Overlord, it was perhaps not surprising that in the midst of his next battle with Ginrai, Overlord himself was the subject of a betrayal. In an attempt to transform himself into the ultimate lifeform, Devil Z fused with BlackZarak, and then turned on Overlord and the Decepticon Headmaster Juniors, attempting to drain theirs and Ginrai's [[Chōkon Power|Jinchōkon]] and take it for his own. They were saved by the Autobot Pretenders, who blocked the Jinchōkon-absorbing beam, and Overlord decided to join with the Autobots in defeating Devil Z. Overlord joined with all the other Transformers in combining their energies into the "Perfect Transform Attack", which finally destroyed BlackZarak and Devil Z once and for all. With the alien's death, the Transformers' Transtectors were brought to life as true super-robot lifeforms, Overlord's included. Alas, Devil Z's energies had also been sustaining the lives of Giga and Mega, and his death also resulted in theirs. The now-living Overlord and Ginrai Transtectors decided to take their troops back into space, where Overlord vowed to defeat Ginrai in memory of Mega and Giga, and for the honor of the Decepticons. {{storylink|The Birth of the Super Lifeforms}}
{{-}}

=====''Zone'' manga and story pages=====
[[File:Overlord zone manga.jpg|upright=0.9|thumb]]
Years after the end of the [[Masterforce War]], Overlord was among the Decepticons recruited by the new Decepticon emperor Violen Jiger to become the strongest of his Nine Great Demon Generals. In addition to his new title of "Super-God General", Overlord was outfitted with new armor and weapons that made him even more dangerous than before. {{storylink|Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers: Zone (story page)|Zone Part 1}}

One month after the Demon Generals destroyed the planet Feminia, apparently taking the life of the Autobot Supreme Commander Victory Saber in the process, Overlord led Menasor, Bruticus and Abominus in an attack on the planet Zone, where they successfully stole a sample of the super-energy, Energon Z. When the Zone Base transformed into battle mode and opened fire on the Decepticons, Overlord called retreat, seeing no need to stay and fight when the prize was already theirs. Overlord then handed the Energon Z off to the second platoon of generals, who subsequently headed for Earth, but were defeated in battle there by the Autobot Powered Master Dai Atlas. {{storylink|Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers: Zone (manga)|Transformers: Zone}}

It wasn't long before Overlord got his own chance to go up against Dai Atlas, but the Powered Master didn't think much of this so-called "Strongest of the Generals," aiming to finish their battle in under eight seconds. Whether or not he achieved this lofty goal is unknown, but he ''did'' lay out Overlord with his powerful "Galactic Dash" attack. {{storylink|Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers: Zone (story page)|Zone Part 6}}

The Generals later schooled [[Metrotitan (Zone)|Metrotitan]] and the [[Metrosquad]] in the ways of evil, making them formidable foes for the [[Powered Master]]s. {{storylink|Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers: Zone (story page)|Zone Part 7}}
{{-}}

====''Transformers PD Type''====
[[File:Pdtype overlord.jpg|left|thumb]]
During a battle between Overlord and Super Ginrai, the Autobot Godmaster prepared to attack with Chokon Power. When he raised his hands to summon Tenchokon, however, he was struck by a bolt of lightning, causing Overlord to smirk that the weather wasn't looking too good. {{storylink|Transformers PD Type##7 "Fight! Super Ginrai!"|Fight! Super Ginrai!!}}

Sitting in a field, watching the clouds float by, Overlord started to wonder what he was doing with his life and decided he needed a day off to reflect on his lot. Unfortunately, he had chosen to sit down and have this epiphany in the middle of a huge battle, and [[Megatron (G1)|Megatron]] began shouting at him to get back up and join the fight. {{storylink|Transformers PD Type##9 "Oh Overlord."|Oh, Overlord}}
{{-}}

===European toy bio continuity===
[[File:Overlord vs motorvators.jpg|thumb|Collect all time-displaced toys.]]
A legend by virtue of his very existence, Overlord is the ultimate Decepticon anti-hero. Emerging to join the Transformers' war at some undetermined point in space and time, Overlord fights alone on the battlefield despite his Decepticon allegiance, a monolithic horror born of "advanced robotic engineering" whose special abilities—including the power to travel across dimensions—come from the "[[Energon figure]]s" that operate his multiple functions.

To counter the monstrous threat posed by this powerful new breed of Decepticon, the Autobots developed their own new team of warriors, the [[Motorvator]]s, emulating Overlord's Energon figure technology to make the trio a match for his awesome power.<ref>Overlord's European toy bio</ref><ref>Story blurb on Overlord and the Motorvators' packaging.</ref>
{{-}}

===IDW Generation 1 continuity===
{{bigquote|A good strategist is half psychologist and half '''sadist'''. And I was the '''best'''.|Overlord|[[Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 3|''Last Stand of the Wreckers'' #3]]}}
[[File:Overlords spark remembrance day.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|They're so cute when they're small.]]
Overlord was "born" on [[Cybertron (planet)|Cybertron]]'s [[Moonbase Two|second moon]] 4.2 million years ago, a rare breed known as a "[[Point One Percenter]]". After its "first flash" killed the [[Frak|hapless]] [[Rushcut|miners]] who discovered it, his [[spark]] was taken by the [[Functionist Council]]'s authenticator [[Three-of-Twelve]]. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}}

[[File:MegatronOrigin2 fightcrowd1.jpg|upright=1.67|thumb|Hey, he appeared as a rabid fan of gladiatorial combat in a crowd shot once. Wouldn't it be ''awesome'' if [[Nick Roche|someone]] built a whole character round that?]]
In the days before the [[Great War (G1)|Cybertronian civil war]], Overlord was both an avid spectator of [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]]'s gladiatorial matches {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}} and a participant in the bouts, even fighting Megatron himself. Megatron would be the only opponent to ever defeat Overlord, and he did so regularly, giving Overlord a pathological fear of defeat. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} {{storylink|Under Cold Blue Stars}} All the same, Overlord still joined Megatron's Decepticon faction upon its founding, though it was not the loftiness of the Decepticon cause that Megatron espoused which enticed him. Rather, it was the chance to have the glorious excess of the gladiator battles move beyond the arena, to encompass entire worlds. To Overlord, the ends didn't matter overly much when the ''means'' themselves were this pleasurable. As a result, his tactics developed a reputation as unsound, and his schemes as nothing more than flights of brutal whimsy. Unlike [[Scorponok (G1)|many]] [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|other]] powerful Decepticons, he had no interest in command, only in taking his slaughter to the next stage. Megatron was not convinced, however, believing the image of Overlord as simply interested in killing to be a façade, and began searching for a way to exert greater control over him.

[[File:Overlord UnuntriumInfusion RemembranceDay.jpg|upright=0.85|thumb|left|Weapon O.]]
Recognizing Overlord's power, Megatron regularly sparred with him, and eventually, three million years ago, selected him to be the fourth candidate for an upgrade process that would transform him into a world-shatteringly powerful superwarrior. Rendered virtually indestructible by an infusion of [[ununtrium]] to his endoskeleton, Overlord's first action as a member of the "[[Warriors Elite]]" was to smash out of his capsule and kill the scientist who oversaw the process, [[Rossum]]. He could not, however, do the same to Megatron: the Decepticon leader had not been foolish, and had, during the upgrade process, had [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Shockwave]] equip Overlord with both a killswitch that could deactivate him, and infect him with an [[Achilles virus]] that caused a "tactical blindspot" preventing him from figuring out how to harm Megatron. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 3|Last Stand of the Wreckers #3}} When [[Soundwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Soundwave]] was captured by the Autobots and brought to the [[Institute|New Institute]] for brainwashing, Overlord saw his chance to free himself from these shackles. While ostensibly attacking the facility to rescue Soundwave, he also captured the cerebroscientist [[Trepan]], and studied the basics of [[mnemosurgery]] from him, intending to hack Shockwave's memories and learn how to deactivate his killswitch and the virus. Megatron caught wind of Overlord's scheming before he learned how to interface with others, and had Trepan killed. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} Overlord later participated in the [[Battle for Hell's Point]] alongside the other members of the Warriors Elite. {{storylink|The Gloaming}}

[[File:LastStandoftheWreckers2-teleconference.jpg|thumb|upright=1.67|I am not a number!]]
While embroiled in battle on [[Caldoon 4]], Overlord was called to a teleconference with [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]], who announced the finalization of his [[infiltration protocol]], and that Overlord would join fellow Warriors Elite [[Sixshot]] and [[Black Shadow (Victory)|Black Shadow]] in being reclassified as "[[Phase Sixer]]s", called in to alien worlds to enact the doomsday scenario of the protocol's final phase. Dissatisfied with being declared a weapon that operated at someone else's whim, Overlord contested his appointment, and Megatron gave him two options: do as he was told, or refuse and have Megatron hunt him down. Overlord made his choice quickly, returning to the battle outside and dispatching every Autobot save one—[[Kup (G1)|Kup]]—who he allowed to survive so a message could be sent to Megatron: Overlord had chosen option two. He proceeded to leave Caldoon 4 to plan for Megatron's inevitable coming. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 2|Last Stand of the Wreckers #2}}

Some time later, Overlord initiated a conflict with the emperor of a star system who was in possession of interstellar travel capabilities and weapons technology that rivaled his own. Finding himself overmatched, Overlord sought and secured the aid of [[Gorelock]]'s Decepticon battalion, which, at the time, was assigned to [[Spensifax B]]. The ensuing battle, according to the estimates of science officer [[Vivisector]], set the technological development of the empire back an estimated 250,000 years. {{storylink|The Transformers: Last Stand of the Wreckers|Gorelock's prisoner clemency request}}

[[File:LastStandoftheWreckers1-Overlord.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|We peed a little.]]
At the height of the [[Surge (event)|cross-galactic Decepticon uprising]], Overlord arrived at [[Garrus-9]] in the midst of the Decepticon siege of the prison, and casually murdered garrison leader [[Skyquake (G1)|Skyquake]] when he refused to turn command over to him. Intending to turn Garrus-9 into his home away from home, Overlord personally defeated warden [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]] and threw him to the crowd of Decepticon prisoners he had freed as a show of good faith. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 1|Last Stand of the Wreckers #1}} Overlord was not done with Maximus, though, later imprisoning him and personally torturing him for information on the [[Aequitas]] computer hidden in the bowls of Garrus-9, and the mysterious secret of the prison that the computer had been created to hide. Maximus refused to give up the passcodes to the device's chamber even after Overlord threatened to kill an Autobot for every second that he withheld them. {{storylink|Interiors}}

[[File:Overlord-Fort-Max-Interiors.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|"Do you expect me to talk?" "No, I expect you to die and be a cheap funeral".]]
During his time in command of Garrus-9, Overlord turned the prison into a huge gladiatorial arena, and had the prisoners fight for their lives with the promise that victory meant freedom. This was, of course, a lie; those who won in twelve bouts were offered the choice of facing Overlord himself or committing suicide. Overlord forced the imprisoned [[Grimlock (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Grimlock]] to watch footage both of these matches and of the sacking of the prison, possibly driving him insane. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 4|Last Stand of the Wreckers #4}} After a year of this, some of the Decepticons began to have doubts about their sadistic leader; [[Fearswoop (G1)|Fearswoop]] was lucky to survive when he questioned Overlord's lack of sportsmanship, but [[Wingblazer]] and his partner were not so fortunate when they let an Autobot prisoner get the better of them during a hunt, and Overlord killed them for their carelessness. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 1|Last Stand of the Wreckers #1}} Around this time, Overlord also released Shockwave from confinement and let him leave in return for the Achilles Virus being removed. Shockwave could tell that all Overlord was doing with Garrus-9 was trying to get Megatron's attention, though Overlord denied it. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 3|Last Stand of the Wreckers #3}}

[[File:LastStandoftheWreckers1-BoreholeKickoff.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|Better than television!]]
Two years later, Overlord and his Decepticons watched the captive Autobot [[Kick-Off (G1)|Kick-Off]] battle the Decepticon [[Borehole]] for his amusement. Kick-Off triumphed and was taken to Overlord's quarters {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 1|Last Stand of the Wreckers #1}} where he was offered the customary choice; {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 4|Last stand of the Wreckers #4}} he evidently opted to fight Overlord, given the brutalized state of his body when it was later found. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 3|Last Stand of the Wreckers #3}}

Not long thereafter, the Autobot strike team known as the [[Wrecker]]s arrived to liberate Garrus-9, one of their drop pods crashing into the arena chamber right in front of Overlord's feet. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 2|Last Stand of the Wreckers #2}} Although disappointed to discover that the new arrivals were not troops sent by Megatron, Overlord was amused by the joke made by [[Rotorstorm (G1)|Rotorstorm]] about Wreckers combining... right before he shot him through the head. The Wreckers turned down Overlord's proposal of surrender but were unable to injure him, and escaped into the prison by detonating a fuel tank to cover their withdrawal. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 3|Last Stand of the Wreckers #3}}

[[File:LastStandofWreckers4- OverlordSpringerReady.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|FINAL ROUND, FIGHT!]]
Regrouping with help from the Decepticon [[Snare]], who had come to believe that the Decepticons on Garrus-9 were as trapped by Overlord as the Autobots were, the Wreckers established a new mission objective: kill Overlord. They did not have to hunt him down, however, as he soon arrived to take them on. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 4|Last Stand of the Wreckers #4}} The fight quickly made its way to the rooftop of Garrus-9, where [[Guzzle (G1)|Guzzle]] was torn in half and used to dispatch Kup. A harpoon through the eye courtesy of [[Impactor (G1)|Impactor]] barely fazed Overlord, who delivered a defeat more crushing than any beating: the Autobot prisoners the Wreckers had come to liberate had all been executed on his orders already. Overlord proved able even to shrug off the massive payload of a huge chaingun-like weapon provided to Springer by [[Ironfist (G1)|Ironfist]], but after all the other Autobots around him had been dispatched, Ironfist revealed the weapon's secret: it had injected Overlord with thousands of deterrence chips, which Ironfist then remotely detonated, reducing Overlord to a flaming, yet still-functional skeleton.

[[File:LastStandoftheWreckers5-brittlebones.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|"Megatron better not show up when I'm naked!"]]
Ironfist fell unconscious, leaving only Verity to hear Overlord's wrathful ranting, as he demanded to know how he could meet a challenge from Megatron in this sorry state. Realizing this was what Overlord had longed for all along, Verity dropped the bomb: Megatron was ''dead''. Overlord was stunned by the realization that while he had dedicated every waking hour of his existence to his supposedly inevitable fight with Megatron, the Decepticon leader had never cared, and would never come. He put up no resistance when Impactor recovered, but Impactor refused to kill Overlord, for Springer's sake, and promised to take him in to face justice. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}}

[[File:Overlord-Lost-Light-Interiors.jpg|thumb|First class may seem like a rip off but it has advantages over the alternatives.]]
[[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]] believed that the Autobots had a moral obligation to return P.O.W.S to their natural state, so he had the Decepticon's body rebuilt. [[Prowl (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Prowl]], intent on learning from Overlord the secrets of the process that created the phase sixers, acquiesced to Bumblebee's decision in hopes it would encourage Overlord to talk, and released a cover story that claimed the villain's spark had been extracted and sealed in a [[whiteout vacuum]]. In the wake of Cybertron's rebirth following the [[Chaos (IDW)|Chaos event]], Prowl petitioned [[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Chromedome]] to use his mnemosurgery skills to read Overlord's memories and discover the secrets for him, but Chromedome refused. Learning that Chromedome was leaving Cybertron aboard the ''[[Lost Light]]'', Prowl convinced [[Hot Rod/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]] to allow him to put Overlord on the Lost Light. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} {{storylink|The Sound of Breaking Glass}} At launch, he had the [[Duobot]]s secretly load Overlord aboard the ship and instructed [[Drift (G1)|Drift]] to talk Chromedome around to his way of thinking when the time was right. As a security measure, Overlord was held within a [[slow cell]] in which time passed much more slowly, {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} but when a crack was cut in the cell by a stowaway [[Sparkeater (creature)|Sparkeater]], paranoid security director [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]] began hearing noises from within it. After recording the noises and discovering, with aid from [[Rung (G1)|Rung]], that it was a massively-slowed down voice repeating "Kill me", {{storylink|How Ratchet Got His Hands Back}} Red Alert widened the crack and discovered the cell's occupant, {{storylink|Interiors}} but was mysteriously deactivated in an alleged suicide before he could tell anyone. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}}

[[File:Overlord bigfight UnderColdBlueStars.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|left|So Overlord walks into a [[Swerve's|bar]]. Everybody dies. Painfully.]]
After Chromedome's partner [[Rewind (G1)|Rewind]] was grievously injured in battle, Drift was able to successfully petition Chromedome for his aid. Entering the slow cell, Chromedome tapped into Overlord's memories, but in the process, wound up revealing to Overlord that Megatron was still alive. Spurred back to action, Overlord used the mnemosurgery tricks he had learned from Trepan to take over their mental link and plucked the code for the slow cell from Chromedome's memories. Bursting free from his restraints, he opened the cell and sealed Chromedome in, {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} then proceeded to go on a rampage through the ship, first stomping [[Pipes (G1)|Pipes]] to death, then attacking [[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]] in the medibay. The assembled crew of the ship confronted him in battle, during which Overlord stabbed [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ultra Magnus]] through the [[spark]], then turned on [[Hot Rod/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]] asking him for last words. When Rodimus replied "[['Til all are one]]", however, Overlord suddenly found himself panicking, thanks to a mnemonic trigger that Chromedome had installed in his brain that would trigger his fear of defeat when he heard the phrase. The shaken Overlord was then herded back into the slow cell by a revenge-hungry Fortress Maximus so that Chromedome could jettison it from the ship, only for a sword Overlord had stolen during the fight to become lodged in the cell doors. As the only 'bot small enough to remove it, Rewind squeezed through the gap and pulled the sword free, allowing the cell to jettison, but trapping himself in it with Overlord. As an act of mercy, Chromedome used the ship's guns to blow the cell up with Overlord and Rewind in it. {{storylink|Under Cold Blue Stars}} Overlord was last seen drifting in space, mostly intact but seemingly deactivated. {{storylink|The Gloaming}}

Unbeknownst to anyone, the ''Lost Light'' had been duplicated into two by the accident it experienced at launch. On this ''Lost Light'', Rodimus died in the accident with the [[sparkeater (creature)|sparkeater]], and Ultra Magnus became the Captain. This ''Lost Light'' thus never experienced the sequence of events leading to Overlord's escape and rampage. {{storylink|slaughterhouse Part 2: The Road Not Taken|The Road Not Taken}} Meanwhile, the [[Decepticon Justice Division]] had Overlord on their [[The List|List]]. {{storylink|Scavengers (Part 2): Who's Afraid of the DJD?|Who's Afraid of the DJD?}} For reasons not completely clear, the Brainstorm of the duplicate ''Lost Light'', a deep cover Decepticon spy like his main counterpart, contacted the DJD and informed them of Overlord's internment aboard his ''Lost Light''. Brainstorm sabotaged the slow cell so that the DJD could detect Overlord's signature. The DJD initially agreed to not harm the ''Lost Light'' crew in order to maintain Brainstorm's cover but reneged when they discovered Drift aboard the ''Lost Light''. The DJD proceeded to slaughter the entire crew of the ''Lost Light'' {{storylink|slaughterhouse}} {{storylink|slaughterhouse Part 2: The Road Not Taken|The Road Not Taken}} {{storylink|The Permanent Revolution}} before finally going to chop off Overlord's head off with a saw. The DJD left the shattered wreckage of the ''Lost Light'' behind in orbit of [[Ofsted XVII]]. {{storylink|slaughterhouse}}

Much, much later, after several other adventures that culminated in the disappearance of the main ''Lost Light'' itself, members of the vanished vessel (which now included Megatron himself as captain) encountered the wreck of the quantum duplicate ''Lost Light'' in orbit of Ofsted XVII. Initially thinking that the wreckage was their own ''Lost Light'' from the future, they boarded and investigated the ship. New crewmembers [[Nautica (G1)|Nautica]] and [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] discovered Overlord's headless corpse in the slow cell. {{storylink|slaughterhouse}} This, combined with numerous other historical inconsistencies and the atrocities found by the others, led the Lost Lighters to figure out that they were aboard an quantum duplicate version of their ship that had been visited by the DJD. The alternate Overlord's corpse vanished with the rest of the wrecked ''Lost Light'' when the main ''Lost Light'' was restored to reality. {{storylink|slaughterhouse Part 2: The Road Not Taken|The Road Not Taken}}.

[[File:TarnvsOverlord.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|right|And another thing, Dad told me when you were born what he really wanted as a Labrador.]]

Overlord was left incapacitated in the void of space {{storylink|No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases}} until the [[Galactic Council]] found and restored him for unknown reasons. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 6: Do Not Go Gentle|Do Not Go Gentle}} It took them a lot of time {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 3: Your Fierce Tears|Your Fierce Tears}} but once Megatron finally crossed the Council, they dispatched Overlord to the [[Necroworld|homeworld]] of the [[Censere|Necrobot]] to kill him. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 6: Do Not Go Gentle|Do Not Go Gentle}} Overlord interrupted a one-sided battle between his old tormentor and the D.J.D. commander Tarn. Declaring that only he was allowed to kill Megatron, Overlord attacked Tarn, distracting both from noticing the crippled Megatron escaping on a hoverscooter. Seeing that their goals overlapped, Tarn brought Overlord in as a temporary ally.

Aboard the ''Peaceful Tyranny'', Overlord immediately began undermining Tarn's command by trying to sow doubt in the mind of Deathsaurus while openly mocking the D.J.D. The D.J.D's image didn't benefit from a panicked Kaon begging Tarn to save the captured Pet. Overlord watched on as Tarn decapitated Kaon and then jammed his severed head into Overlord's chest, telling him he wouldn't be mocked by such a desperate attention seeker. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 3: Your Fierce Tears|Your Fierce Tears}}

[[File:mtmte54 KRACK.jpg|left|thumb|250px]]

When sundown came, Overlord stood with Tarn and Deathsaurus, a big smirk on his face, as they prepared to storm the Autobots. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 4: At Close of Day|At Close of Day}} After swatting Cyclonus to the floor, he gleefully sought out Chromedome and began to mock him with claims of what he'd done to Rewind ''so Chromedome decked him'', the first obvious sight the Autobots were charged with something. Once the charge ran out though, Megatron finally emerged to tear through the Decepticons...

...and Overlord dismissed this as just him getting a gun back. Bored and finding it easy to now shoot him down, {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 5: Rage, Rage|Rage, Rage}} once Megatron activated a panic-bubble force field he just walked off. Now Megatron had seemingly shown himself to be a coward, he didn't ''care'' about beating him. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 6: Do Not Go Gentle|Do Not Go Gentle}}
{{-}}

===''Classics''===
[[File:InvasionPrologue-Gigatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.67|Everything's shrunk except those glorious lips.]]
Long ago, Gigatron, the Overlord, grew restless in his duties at [[Darkmount (Cybertron)|Darkmount]], and forfeited his throne to [[Straxus (G1)|Straxus]]. His psychotic craving for power led him to scour the universe, ultimately leading him to Earth.

Gigatron crash-landed in [[Japan]], where he adopted a robot form resembling a shogun and a Type 90 tank altmode. With most of Earth's Decepticons offplanet with [[Megatron (G1)/Marvel Comics continuity|Megatron]], he was able to gather a small army of ten warriors, and he would infrequently clash with [[Metalhawk (Masterforce)|Metalhawk]] and his fellow Earthbound Autobots. {{storylink|#Timelines|BotCon 2012 Gigatron profile card}} Once, Gigatron searched in [[Kitakyushu]] for [[Musashi Miyamoto|Musashi]]'s sword, but legends of the sword's strength were exaggerated.

Soon, Gigatron had set his sights on another potential source of power, [[Rarified Energon]]. The Autobots had been guarding it for a period of time, and had been moving it frequently to keep it out of the hands of the Decepticons. But Gigatron discovered that the Rarified Energon had been moved to [[Construction station|Ironworks]], and effortlessly battled through an army of [[Armored Robot Hunters|RUNTs]] to reach the Autobot station. There, he fought Metalhawk, and he and his Decepticons were forced to retreat. {{storylink|Overlord (Masterforce)#Timelines|BotCon 2012 Gigatron profile card}} {{storylink|Invasion Prologue}}

Gigatron continued to keep vigil over Ironworks, however, and when [[Spinister (G1)|Spinister]] brought him news of a skirmish involving heroic Decepticons and evil Autobots, Gigatron knew it was time to strike! With this distraction, they could easily take the Rarified Energon hidden in the vaults for themselves.

[[File:Invasion-destroythem.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Gigatron's about to be really happy he got stuck on Earth.]]
Once it was discovered that the evil Autobots were also after the Rarified Energon, Gigatron refused to be out-conquered. He and the majority of his troops came to the rescue of [[Sir Soundwave]], who was about to get assimilated by [[Junkion (species)#Shattered Glass|Junkions]]. Aiming to show these heroic Decepticons how it's done, he set Soundwave loose and continued battling the Junkions.

What Gigatron did not know was that the evil Autobots, led by [[Ultra Magnus (SG)|Ultra Magnus]], intended to warp this iteration of Earth to their own universe's Cybertron, destroying it in the process. Though Sir Soundwave was able to expand the force field surrounding the evil Autobots' machinery large enough to protect the entire planet, saving Gigatron and his troops, no one foresaw the true scale of Magnus's intentions. And so as Earth neared the [[Primax -408.24 Epsilon|alternate universe]] Cybertron, its [[Primax 207.0 Epsilon|entire dimension]] was destroyed behind them, leaving Gigatron and the rest of his Earth's denizens the last remnants of their universe.

Gigatron and the others were unsurprisingly distraught, so [[Straxus (SG)|the Bard of Darkmount]] recited for them a hopeful poem. {{storylink|Invasion (issue)|Invasion}}

[[Laserbeak (G1)|Laserbeak]] took to perching on Overlord's arm. {{storylink|Recordicons#Recordicons #23|Recordicons #23}}
{{-}}

===''Kre-O'' online comic===
[[File:KreO-webcomic-5-Overlord.jpg|right|thumb|75px|He's using...the smolder.]]

Overlord was part of a massive Decepticon invasion force intended to ruin the Autobots' picnic. However, [[Optimus Prime (Kre-O)|Optimus Prime]] plowed through them with his truck and left them scattered... and then left. Returning to the scene after.. ''ahem'', taking care of some pressing business, Optimus gathered up the still-wiped-out Kreons, bound them up on a flatbed trailer, and took them to the picnic. {{storylink|Emergency! Hurry to the Base, Optimus!}}

===''TransTech''===
A [[Duocon]] Overlord found his way to [[Axiom Nexus]], and became one of its most infamous "Parallel Killers". {{storylink|Rook - Axiom Nexus News: Investigative Journalist|Rook - Axiom Nexus news, 2015/06/15}}

===Ask Vector Prime===
In one reality, Overlord was a Decepticon who was "genderfluid" by organic-based gender standards. The [[Arcee (G1)#Ask Vector Prime|Arcee]] of Overlord's reality would mention Overlord in a lecture given in [[Axiom Nexus]] which [[Vector Prime]] attended. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime#Facebook|Ask Vector Prime, 2015/12/23}}

===''Beast Wars: Uprising''===
At the onset of the [[Pax Cybertronia]], Overlord held [[Decepticon leader]]ship for a brief time, {{storylink|A Brush With Infamy}} before he was overthrown by [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]] {{storylink|Cultural Appropriation}}

==Games==
===''Transformers Legends''===
Overlord was part of a battle at some point, fighting alongside [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]], [[Jetfire (G1)|Jetfire]], and [[Sunstreaker (G1)|Sunstreaker]]. {{storylink|Fan Favorite}}

==Toys==
===Super-God Masterforce===
[[File:G1 overlord toy.jpg|325px|thumb|Not to be confused with Blackstar's nemesis.]]
*'''Overlord''' (Godmaster, [[1988]])
**''Japanese ID number:'' '''D-307'''
**''Accessories:'' Giga and Mega Godmaster engines, "Transtector Destroyer Cannon", three missiles, tank barrel, two ramps/shin guards, central ramp, two radar arrays, double-barreled laser, rocket launcher, car

:Overlord consists of two vehicles, the Gigatank and the Megajet, which are able to combine together to form a [[robot mode]] or a base mode. Like any Godmaster (or [[Powermaster]]), Overlord is only able to transform when the Giga and Mega Godmaster figures are transformed into engine mode and snapped into place in the sockets on top of the vehicles. Inserting Giga into the tank splits it in half to form legs for robot mode, or alternatively, the left and right emplacements of the base (the left containing a fold-out twin cannon, the right a poseable claw arm). Fitting Mega into the jet, meanwhile, unlocks the toy's shoulder articulation for robot mode and its fold-out launchpad for base mode. Once the toy is in its hefty, 15"-tall robot mode, the figures can be removed from their sockets and fitted into two further ports hidden beneath doors on his chest, which unlock the multi-barreled "Chōkon Daemon Blast" and spring-loaded "Chōkon Bolt Masher" weapons that pop out of his stomach. One figure can also fit into the [[Roller (G1)|Roller]]-style car that comes with the set.

:There is, unfortunately, no one mode that uses all of Overlord's many accessories.

:Overlord's instructions do not feature the additional large jet mode seen in the animated series and manga, as it (like [[Sixshot]]'s "Wingwolf" mode or BlackZarak's "Dakatsu" mode) was created by the production staff after fiddling around with the toy itself. As such, it's entirely possible to put the toy in this form, although it doesn't rest evenly on a flat surface.

::*''[http://www.tfu.info/1988/Destron/Overlord/overlord.htm More information on Overlord at TFU.info]''
{{-}}

===Generation 1===
*'''Overlord''' ([[1991]])

:Initially exclusive to Japan, Overlord's toy was later released in Europe and Australasia with a different shade of purple plastic.

===Timelines===
[[File:Timelinestoy-BC2012Gigatron.jpg|thumb|upright=1.67|Oh my, Bludgeon, you've never looked so... ''kissable''... before...]]
*'''Invasion''' ([[BotCon 2012]] box set)
**''Accessories:'' {{w|Katana}}, {{w|Wakizashi|tanto}}
:''[[Transformers Timelines (toyline)|Timelines]]'' Gigatron is a [[redeco]]/[[retool]] of ''[[Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (toyline)|Revenge of the Fallen]]'' Voyager Class [[Bludgeon (ROTF)#Voyager|Bludgeon]], sporting a new head. Gigatron transforms from a Japanese {{w|Type 90 Kyū-maru|Type 90}} tank into a samurai-esque robot mode. He features a flexible plastic sword which is made out of a portion of the barrel of the tank's main gun as well as a smaller dagger. The dagger can be stored in a sheath which is revealed from inside the tank turret, and both blades can be slotted in holes provided on the robot mode's left hip guard. Additionally, the dagger's handle can fit in the base of the sword's handle, forming a double-bladed weapon. He has [[Mech Alive]] [[gimmick]]s in his thighs and turret: Sculpted cylinders in his thighs rotate whenever his lower legs are rotated, and pulling his turret open makes a sculpted "disc" at the center rotate while a scabbard for the tantō hinges over to the side and props itself up for use.

:The [[alternate mode|vehicle mode]] is one of the very few Transformer tank toys with rubber components to its treads. Portions of the tread links can unlock, allowing them to hang from the robot mode, while the wheels of the treads are integrated separately into the robot mode form itself. The treads still do not function realistically; small plastic wheels on the underside of the treads help the tank mode roll, as is standard with nearly all Transformer tank toys.

:The original version of this mold was [[redeco]]ed into ''[[Transformers (2010 toyline)|Transformers]]'' [[Banzaitron]], and it was differently retooled to make ''[[Transformers: Generations|Generations]]'' [[Megatron (G1)/toys#Generations|Megatron]] and ''[[Transformers Cloud|Cloud]]'' [[Megatron (G1)/toys#Cloud|Megatron]].

:Gigatron was released in a box set with [[Ultra Magnus (SG)#Timelines|Ultra Magnus]], [[Tracks (SG)#Timelines|Tracks]], [[Treadshot (SG)#Timelines|Treadshot]], [[Sir Soundwave#Timelines|Soundwave]], and [[Metalhawk (Masterforce)#Timelines|Metalhawk]].

::*''[http://www.tfu.info/2012/Decepticon/BCGigatron/gigatron.htm More information on BotCon Gigatron at TFU.info]''
{{ROTFBludgeonMold}}

===Kre-O===
{{anchor|BotCon2014}}
[[File:KreO-Toy BC14-Gigatron.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Far less kissable than previous Gigatrons.]]
*'''Kreon Gigatron''' (Kreon Souvenir Figure Set, 2014)
**''Accessories'': Katana, robot sword

: "Kreon Gigatron" is based on the [[BotCon 2012]] [[#Timelines|Gigatron figure]], and can be re-built into a battle tank. His gun barrel is partially made from/stores his katana blade, just like the larger figure. He uses the [[Sentinel Prime (Kre-O)|Sentinel Prime]] helmet.

: This figure was only available as part of a [[BotCon 2014]] ''Kre-O'' six-pack, including [[Breakdown (G1)#Kre-O|Breakdown]], [[Fractyl]], [[Landshark (Kre-O)|Landshark]], [[Rattrap (Kre-O)|Rattrap]], and [[Rodimus (SG Kre-O)|''Shattered Glass'' Rodimus]].

::*''[http://www.tfu.info/2014/Decepticon/BCKre-OGigatron/gigatron.htm More information on Gigatron at TFU.info]''
{{--}}

==Merchandise==
===Parody Deformed===
[[File:Overlord pd model.jpg|thumb|Overlooked.]]
*'''Overlord''' ([[1990]])

:A small blue and white, non-transforming [[super deformed]] model kit of Overlord was available as part of [[Kabaya]]'s "[[Parody Deformed]]" line of [[candy toy]]s. The eighth figure in the series, he came with a "[[Transformers PD Type]]" comic about himself, "Oh, Overlord", and something that could charitably be described as "chocolate".
{{-}}

===Super Collection Figure===
[[File:HOC Gigatron.jpg|thumb|I can't transform? Where's the fun in that?]]
*'''Overlord''' ([[2001]])

:A PVC figure of Overlord was part of the ''Super-God Masterforce''-centric fifth act of [[TakaraTomy|Takara]]'s ''[[Heroes of Cybertron|Super Collection Figure]]'' series, available in both full colour and metallic silver "pewter" in an equal ratio of one each per case of twelve figures. In eight out of every ten cases, the pewter version of Overlord came packaged with the right leg of the wave's "build-a-figure", BlackZarak, itself also available in full color and pewter versions.

:The colour version of his figure was later released in the fourth wave of [[Hasbro]]'s ''[[Heroes of Cybertron]]'', under the new name of [[Gigatron (G1)#Heroes of Cybertron|Gigatron]].

::*''[http://www.tfu.info/2002/Decepticon/HoCGigatron/gigatron.htm More information on ''Super Collection Figure'' Overlord at TFU.info]''
::*''[http://www.tfu.info/2002/Destron/PewterOverlord/overlord.htm More information on pewter Overlord at TFU.info]''
{{-}}

===Transformers Gum===
[[File:KabayaDX2Overlord.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|Breaking out of these plastic sprues was never a challenge - I just lacked motivation.]]
*'''Overlord''' ([[2013]])
:Overlord was released in series 2 of Kabaya's larger-sized DX gum kits. Since the original ''Masterforce'' Overlord toy could only transform by being disassembled, this particular Kabaya kit stands out from most others in terms of near-perfectly matching the transformation mechanism of its template, and can be configured into the paired Megajet-and-Gigatank vehicle modes, city mode, and a 5" tall robot mode. It also includes tiny transforming removable Mega and Giga Godmaster engines, though all of their associated spring-loaded features are no longer present.

:This kit also adds some new features to the Overlord design. There is now a gear-driven rotating platform in the city mode on which the small car can be spun around before deploying, and every accessory can now be stored in all of Overlord's modes.
{{-}}

==Notes==
*Overlord was a new [[character]] created for the 1988 Japanese ''Super God Masterforce'' series. While all his fellow Godmasters had American Powermaster counterpart characters (Ginrai had [[Optimus Prime (G1)|Optimus Prime]], Lightfoot had [[Getaway]], and so forth), Overlord's counterpart came later in the form of a 1991 European and Australasian exclusive. The bio of this figure stated that he was a dimension-hopper, which leaves the door open for him being the ''Masterforce'' character who jumped dimensions into the European toy bio continuity. Overlord did not have an American counterpart until 2003, when the ''Heroes of Cybertron'' line introduced "Gigatron". However, the little-known nature of this character (existing as he did only as an obscure PVC figurine), coupled with the fact that Overlord had been around for fifteen years already, meant that the idea of a Powermaster named Gigatron who existed as a separate character from the Godmaster Overlord didn't really catch on. Surprisingly, Dreamwave stuck with the formula in their ''More Than Meets The Eye'' series, briefly mentioning the character as the originator of the Powermaster process, but when the non-Godmaster version of the character appeared again a few years later in [[IDW Publishing]]'s ''Last Stand of the Wreckers'' series, he was "Overlord" once more.
*Early during pre-production for ''Masterforce'', Overlord was named '''Leviathan'''. This was almost certainly a name based in series creator [[Masumi Kaneda]]'s desire to sprinkle the series with assorted Biblical allegories; the name-change is fairly symptomatic of how these references wound up being downplayed to the point of near-total obfuscation in the finished show.
*Like all non-toy robot Kreons in the ''Kre-O'' comics, Overlord is made from existing ''Kre-O'' parts. He uses the [[Ironhide (Kre-O)|Ironhide]] helmet, the twin-cannon backpack, a black clip-on tread with a small jet-fin plugged into each side, and the bazooka with an extra 1x1 cone on the end.
*The concept image for Kreon Gigatron used in the pack-in flier shows him with white tank-turret parts rather than the final toy's light gray.
*A proposed [[Fun Publications]] [[BotCon]] [[exclusive]] was a redeco of [[Mindwipe (ROTF)#Toys|''Revenge of the Fallen'' Mindwipe]] into "'''[[Mega]]'''bolt", a counterpart to the BotCon 2012 "'''[[Giga]]'''tron" toy.<ref>[http://www.toycollectors.com.au/bc14/bc14br.html BotCon 2014 attendee report]</ref>
*In [[2015]], ''[[Transformers Animated: The Complete AllSpark Almanac|The Complete AllSpark Almanac]]'' retroactively declared Overlord to be a [[Duocon]] and to possess a [[mitotic spark]].

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.tfw2005.com/transformers-images/tech-specs/Heroes-Of-Cybertron-Tech-Specs/2003-Transformers-Tech-Specs/Powermaster_Gigatron.jpg.html Powermaster Gigatron's tech-specs] at TFW2005.com

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Prowl (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2017-01-24T18:37:14Z

AllAreTaken:

{{disambig2|Prowl the existentially-cross table-flipping pragmatist|Prowl the [[Predabot]]|Dent}}{{suite}}
[[File:Prowl-Infiltration2&3covers.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|My prickitude [[Shane McCarthy|fluctuates]] [[Nick Roche|wildly]] [[Mike Costa|between]] [[John Barber|writers]].]]
Pragmatist. Calculating and cold. Rule-bound. Prickly. Just some of the words used to describe '''Prowl'''.
{{quote|We're not winning this war, and I'm '''''tired''''' of it. Tired of crunching stat after stat, formulating workable strategies for '''''achievable victory'''''. Prime listens--to a point--then gets '''''restless''''' and changes tack on a whim. The average Autobot default setting is daredevil maverick. That's not '''''us''''', [[Perceptor (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Perceptor]]. '''''We''''' can subdivide this war into its purest mathematical form and generate solutions all we want, but unless we happen to be [[Spotlight: Hot Rod|'''''surfing''''' on a '''''meteoroid''''']] at the time, '''''no one''''' will pay attention.|Prowl|"[[Everything in Its Right Place]]"}}
__TOC__
==IDW Generation 1 comics==
{{ongoing}}
===From cop to soldier===
Prowl of [[Petrex]] was [[Reproduction|constructed cold]]. {{storylink|Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|Arm the Lonely}} He learned to appreciate rules and discipline during his formative years in Petrex, a strictly [[functionism|functionist]] town where saying anything bad about your [[alternate mode]] could get you thrown in jail. He eventually made it into the [[Iaconian Mechaforensic Division]], where he became famous for his tendency to order a full body autopsy during practically every investigation. This is exactly what he did when he and his partner [[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Tumbler]] were assigned to investigate the assassination of [[Sherma|Senator Sherma]], seemingly killed by Decepticons, leading to the discovery of [[cerulean glass]] on the victim's body. Following the trail to [[Translucentica Heights]], the duo ran straight into another body: that of [[Momus|Senator Momus]]. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}}

[[File:Prowl computing Patternism.jpg|left|upright=1.55|thumb|"Shut up." "I didn't say anything." You were ''thinking'' it's ''annoying''."]]
As Tumbler went after the killer, Prowl investigated the crime scene and found that Momus had in fact been a Decepticon himself... and also that there was a ''second'' killer, who promptly attacked them. Inexperienced in combat, Prowl could do little to fight back, but the two were rescued by a fellow cop named [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]] who believed the [[Senate]] to be targeting Decepticons. Pax suggested that they avoid reporting their findings to their superiors, but Prowl ignored him in favor of regular police procedure, which much to his chagrin led to his preliminary report being quoted as fact on the news. Sent by Pax to investigate a nearby [[Relinquishment Clinic]], he and Tumbler not only found proof that the killers had been using borrowed bodies, but also a complex dedicated to researching [[brain module]]s and a list of known Decepticons. While Tumbler, Orion Pax and several others believed that the clinic was the [[Institute]] and that the Senate was planning to use it to brainwash the Decepticons, Prowl rejected this as a far-fetched conspiracy theory. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 2: Patternism|Patternism}} He refused to have any part in Pax's plan to stop the Senate's evil plot, but worried about his partner's choice to join in. He asked Pax to keep Tumbler out of danger, and in exchange he wouldn't tell anyone what they were planning. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}}

[[File:MegatronOrigin2 boredAutobots.jpg|thumb|And remember to fill out those TPS reports.]]
Following the rise of [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]], Prowl joined the Autobot Security Services in [[Kaon (polity)|Kaon]], working right under Sentinel. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 1|Megatron Origin #1}} Prowl's goal was to work against Sentinel's corrupt system from the inside, and he often talked Sentinel out of carrying out his destructive plans. {{storylink|Onyx Interface Part Three: ONoffON|ONoffON}} {{storylink|Last Light|Last Light}} However, becoming part of that system (even just for subversive reasons) resulted in the end of his close relationship with Tumbler. {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 1: All Our Parlous Yesterdays|All Our Parlous Yesterdays}} Tumbler would eventually become [[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Chromedome]], and Prowl would forever be made the butt of jokes by Chromedome's future [[Conjunx Endura]] [[Rewind (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rewind]]: usually featuring fictional instances of Prowl being beaten up. {{storylink|The Gloaming}}

[[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]]'s rise as the most popular and violent pit fighter in videos of Kaon's illegal [[gladiatorial combat]] attracted Prowl's attention, and he formed an Autobot Security Services team to crack down on them, though to the chagrin of his fellow officers, he tended to blather on about his theories about how somebody was making a fortune distributing on these inexpensive to produce videos. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 2|Megatron Origin #2}}

After the murder of [[Bumper (G1)|Bumper]] and [[Fastback (G1)|Fastback]], Sentinel and Prowl led a security forces deployment that arrested many of Megatron's pit fighters and those that they were attempting to recruit. Prowl personally attached the [[inhibitor claw]] to Megatron once he was overwhelmed by security forces. While processing the prisoners, he delivered the galling news that due to [[Ratbat (G1)#IDW Generation 1 continuity|senate orders]], the one known as [[Soundwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Soundwave]] was to be freed without charge. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 3|Megatron Origin #3}} Unfortunately, it was all part of Megatron's mad plans. He allowed himself and his men to be captured so Starscream could feign turning coat and murder the senate members who questioned him. During the ensuing jail break that devastated the [[Security Services Headquarters|Security Team HQ]] and following street battle, Prowl lost his usual cool composure in the face of such onslaught and looked to Sentinel Prime for directions. When Prime left to face Megatron personally and was brutally defeated, it was Prowl who took control and ordered the evacuation of security forces from Kaon. {{storylink|Megatron Origin issue 4|Megatron Origin #4}}

During Sentinel's state funeral, Prowl made a public announcement that the Decepticons had desecrated Sentinel's body and stolen his head. {{storylink|The Last Autobot|The Last Autobot}}

When [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]] rose to power, Prowl took an interest in keeping watch on those in power. Orion Pax eventually brought him [[Jetfire (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jetfire]] who had been arrested for assaulting an officer of the law. Prowl was ready to dismiss them until Pax brought up the death of [[Hefter]], an act done by corrupt policemen gaining Prowl's interest. When the police mech interrogated Jetfire, the Decepticon started a fist fight which Prowl easily won before he convinced him that he and Pax wanted to help. He was able to deduced from Jetfire's words that no one had told Jetfire to attack Pax but someone had told him ''about'' him. {{storylink|New Cybertron Part 2: A Lonely Pillar on the Plain|A Lonely Pillar on the Plain}}

During the war, Prowl began working with the non-aligned scientist [[Tarantulas (BW)|Mesothulas]] in secret. Mesothulas saw their relationship as symbiotic — Prowl's imagination would feed into Mesothulas's desire to make the impossible real, and vice versa. Their partnership resulted in many frightening advancements, such as stasis bullets, spark extraction, and Decepti-bombs. The successful utilization of the latter resulted in Decepticons being blamed for the destruction of the neutral city [[Carpessa]], which allowed Prowl to recruit the survivors into the Autobots. Mesothulas also contributed the idea of the [[Aequitas]] computer, though Prowl reported that High Command were concerned with the ethics of the guilt-detecting supercomputer. Prowl eventually began to have very strong doubts about the ethics involved with Mesothulas's inventions, particularly after the revelation of his latest creations, the [[Noisemaze]], and an artificial Cybertronian life-form called Ostaros. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 3|Sins of the Wreckers #3}}

Prowl quietly made a deal with [[Impactor (G1)|Impactor]] where in he would dispose of Mesothulas by pushing the scientist into the Noisemaze and destroy all of his inventions, including Ostaros. However, Impactor could not bring himself to eliminate Ostaros, and told Prowl to do his own dirty work if he wanted it done. Prowl, however, could not kill him either, and instead had the artificial Cybertronian enlisted in the Autobots under the name [[Springer (G1)|Springer]]. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 3|Sins of the Wreckers #3}} {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 5|Sins of the Wreckers #5}} Prowl soon went on to create an automatic recording for the possibility of him ever being compromised, in which case he wanted Springer to be the one to rescue him from whatever may befall him. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 1|Sins of the Wreckers #1}} Prowl was among the arresting officers who took down [[Roadbuster (G1)|Roadbuster]] when he began [[Roadbuster affair|brutalizing his cadets]]. However, Impactor called in his favour with Prowl, who agreed to have Roadbuster released after serving minimum rehab. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 4|Sins of the Wreckers #4}}

As the Decepticon movement began to spread across Cybertron and [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta Prime]] took command, Prowl became a member of Orion Pax's Autobot counter-insurgency unit. He participated in a mission to arrest [[Swindle (G1)|Swindle]] as he was selling weapons to terrorists in [[Nyon]]. {{storylink|Law and Disorder}} Not long afterwards he helped hunt down Decepticon spy Soundwave, but was dealt with by [[Rumble (G1)|Rumble]] who collapsed the [[Neurospan Bridge]] on him. {{storylink|The Hunt for Soundwave}} When [[Bumblebee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Bumblebee]] was held hostage by Decepticons to convince Orion to come to Kaon and talk to Megatron, Prowl and the rest of the team came to their rescue. {{storylink|Cause and Effect}}

On a mission from Zeta Prime to arrest the insurgent [[Hot Rod/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hot Rod]], Orion Pax's team traveled to Nyon's [[Acropolex]], where Prowl noted that their target seemingly wasn't trying to kill them and also mentioned being a believer in the [[Matrix of Leadership]] unlike [[Ironhide (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|some people]]. At the heart of the Acropolex, the Autobots found that Hot Rod just wanted to show them multiple tanks full of energon drained from Nyon's populace to power Zeta Prime's war machines. He asked Orion Pax to join him against Prime's tyranny, though Prowl voiced his disapproval of officers joining the insurgents against their own government. {{storylink|Ruins}} He seemingly changed his mind as soon as Zeta Prime began directly assaulting Nyon. To distract Zeta's [[Guardian robot|Omega Destructor]]s while Hot Rod evacuated the city, Orion Pax and Prowl acted as bait and drew one of the Destructors into a trap, but failed to harm it and were defeated by Zeta Prime himself. {{storylink|Purge}} The Autobots' lives were saved by Megatron, who took them to Kaon for repairs and negotiated an alliance with Orion. {{storylink|Choices}}

[[File:Prowl Autocracy12 Endgame.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|This is my "up to something" face.]]
Together with their new allies, Prowl and the others attacked Zeta Prime's [[Citadel]] and put an end to his rule. Unsurprisingly, the Decepticons then betrayed them. {{storylink|Overthrown}} Prowl was among those captured under Megatron's new rule, but escaped alongside his cellmates [[Hound (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hound]], [[Springer (G1)|Springer]] and [[Kup (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Kup]]. They followed Orion Pax's ID signal to the ruins of Nyon, where they were shocked to learn that he had acquired the Matrix and become Optimus Prime. {{storylink|Rise}} When Optimus had to make a rallying call for more allies for their cause, Prowl cut the news-feed for the message to get carried out. He then participated in the assault against the Citadel. {{storylink|Broadcast}} After the battle, Prowl showed Optimus the armory that Zeta Prime had hidden in the [[Undergrid]], suggesting that they could use the weapons within against the Decepticons. Optimus refused this and ordered them destroyed. Knowing Prowl, however, he may not have followed orders... {{storylink|Endgame}}

Not long after Optimus's rise to leadership, Prowl aided him in responding to an attack on the [[Toraxxis mega-refinery]]. {{storylink|Rage (IDW)|Rage}} During the [[Exodus (G1)|Exodus]], his security unit was in charge of upholding order at Iacon's [[Starsreach Spaceport]], but growing tensions led to rioting among those who couldn't afford their way off the planet. Prowl called in Optimus Prime to calm the rioters, only to be pulled into combat when the Decepticons attacked the spaceport. {{storylink|Massacre}} After [[Grimlock (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Grimlock]] had chased off the attackers, Prowl watched him and the other [[Dinobot (G1)|Dynobots]] leave Cybertron. {{storylink|Unleashed}} He later participated in the Autobot defensive strategy against a rampaging [[Trypticon (G1)|Trypticon]]. {{storylink|Annihilation}}

During an all-out Decepticon assault on Iacon, Prowl suggested the Autobots retreat to avoid being overwhelmed by Megatron's new [[Junkion (species)|Junkion]] allies, but was ordered by Prime to hold the line. {{storylink|Primacy issue 3|Primacy #3}} He continued to fight until Prime transmitted a holographic message telling all combatants that he had defeated Megatron and that the battle was over. {{storylink|Primacy issue 4|Primacy #4}}

Following the battle, Prowl led a group of Autobots to [[Junkion (planet)|Junkion]] where they were met by Decepticons led by [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Shockwave]]. The two squads clashed over Junkion's gravimetric core with either Shockwave or Prowl eventually giving the order to detonate the core and destroy the planet completely. {{storylink|New Cybertron Part 2: A Lonely Pillar on the Plain|A Lonely Pillar on the Plain}}

Four million years ago, Prowl was working directly under Optimus Prime as the Autobots fought to prevent the Decepticons from bringing fresh energon supplies to the war effort. While Optimus went after the energon convoy himself, Prowl held the line with Hound and the others to prevent the Decepticons from getting hold of the latest city they had targeted. In the aftermath, Prowl congratulated Prime for capturing the convoy without having to fire a shot. {{storylink|The Iron Age}}

At some point during the war, Prowl tried to desert and escape the war on board the ''[[Peaceful Resolution]]''. It was shot down before reaching orbit, and he realized he had to help win the war instead of running from it. {{storylink|Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}

Half a million years ago, during the Decepticon's siege on Metroplex, Prowl protested Optimus's illogical decision to enter the battlefield himself, and found himself backed up by [[Alpha Trion (G1)|Alpha Trion]], who suggested taking Metroplex out of the equation. {{storylink|Earthfall Part 1: Hello Cruel World|Hello Cruel World}} As he and Bumblebee watched the Titan depart Cybertron, Prowl grumbled that while it was necessary, the war itself was illogical, and that the reactive actions of Optimus were not the kind of leadership the Autobots needed, but rather someone like him who could plan for everything. {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 5: I Dream of Wires|I Dream of Wires}}

After the [[Garrus-9]] detention facility had been established, Prowl was among the law enforcement Autobots who endured Aequitas' guilt-detecting trials of ''Autobot'' [[Flame (Marvel)|criminals]] who inflicted unspeakable horrors on civilians and other non-combatants. Prowl and other luminaries such as [[Chief Justice]] [[Tyrest (G1)|Tyrest]], [[Xaaron]] and [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] agreed that the trials would remain a secret until the final verdict was cast, then it would be full disclosure, regardless of the damage to morale and the Autobots' political standing. {{Storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}} Prowl would later have concerns about Tyrest's state-of-mind following the Aequitas trials, and he would try to utilize [[Skids (G1)|Skids]] and [[Getaway]] to have the unstable Tyrest retire using a [[Institute|New Institute]] "[[nudge gun]]" to alter his memory. {{storylink|Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|Arm the Lonely}}

===Earth Unit===
[[File:Infiltration3 Prowl saveit.jpg|upright=1.66|thumb|Talk to the hand, the prick ain't listening.]]
Millions of years later, Prowl was the leader of a detachment of Autobots that had operated covertly on [[Earth]] for at least four years, attempting to foil a Decepticon insurgency led by [[Starscream (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Starscream]] and blindly following the Autobot rules of counterinsurgency. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 1|Infiltration #1}} {{storylink|Infiltration issue 2|Infiltration #2}} He almost threw [[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]] in the brig for breaking cover to rescue three humans from the Decepticons, and subsequently refused to contact [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Optimus Prime]] until further evidence of enemy activities was uncovered. He did not willingly believe Ratchet when the medic told him that the Decepticons had stepped up their presence by constructing a [[Infiltration protocol|second base]]. However, [[Ironhide (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ironhide]] ended up sending a pulsewave transmission to Optimus Prime behind Prowl's back. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 3|Infiltration #3}} Prowl was forced to face reality when Megatron arrived on Earth to confront Starscream, {{storylink|Infiltration issue 5|Infiltration #5}} and he finally agreed to call in Optimus Prime. Thing was, Prime had already arrived. {{storylink|Infiltration issue 6|Infiltration #6}}

When Springer ordered several Autobots on a lethal mission to rescue the damaged and deranged Kup from [[Tsiehshi]], Prowl evidently helped conceal Springer's efforts from Optimus. However, he still felt it was a misguided effort, asking Springer if Kup would want other Autobots killed rescuing him. {{storylink|Spotlight: Kup}}

Prowl went with the Autobots to investigate Decepticon activity in the country of [[Latveria]]. There they discovered a heavily shielded "array" that the Decepticons were using as a base. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part One}} After a skirmish with the [[human]]s that were present there, they teamed up with them to shut down the [[Psycho-Prism]] human mind altering device the Decepticons had fortified inside the array. The Decepticons attacked. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Two}} During the fight, [[Luke Cage]] and Ratchet discovered a weak spot in the array's defenses and went in. Prowl followed to make sure Ratchet didn't put human interests ahead of Autobot interests, but the human [[Spider-Man]] was held captive inside, so Prowl gave in and let Ratchet and Luke Cage attempt a rescue.

Prowl found the Psycho-Prism guarded by [[Ramjet (G1)|Ramjet]] and [[Doctor Doom]]. Doctor Doom zapped him into unconsciousness. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Three}} He awoke next to Ratchet to find Spider-Man had been freed by Doctor Doom, who had switched sides. Prowl and Ratchet decided to use the Decepticons' [[mirror response mode]] equipment to boost their power with Spider-Man's superhuman abilities. [[Wolverine (superhero)|Wolverine]] arrived with Jazz and Bumblebee and suggested they use his abilities instead. They did, then [[orbital jump|orbital bounced]] with Spider-Man back to the battle outside, where their added strength helped defeat Megatron. Wolverine, Jazz, and Bumblebee stayed to destroy the Psycho-Prism. {{storylink|Man and Machine, Part Four}}

[[File:Escalation6 Prowl MYTURF.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|Yeah, let the irresponsible loner look after the MacGuffin. Good call.]]
After [[Sunstreaker (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Sunstreaker]] was kidnapped by [[Machination|a mysterious group of humans]], {{storylink|Escalation issue 1|Escalation #1}} {{storylink|Spotlight: Optimus Prime}} Prowl was still obsessed with the rules of the counterinsurgency war and thus did not understand why Optimus Prime requested reinforcements to Earth. {{storylink|Escalation issue 2|Escalation #2}} Prowl was furious when Ironhide dared to go around him and volunteer himself to track down clues on Sunstreaker's disappearance, and subsequently forced him to stay behind while the Autobots not on his grievance list left for [[Brasnya]] to confront the Decepticons. {{storylink|Escalation issue 3|Escalation #3}} When everything kicked off in the former [[Russia|Soviet]] nation, Prowl led [[Jazz (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jazz]] and [[Wheeljack (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Wheeljack]] (and later [[Hot Rod/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Hot Rod]] and [[Hardhead (G1)|Hardhead]]) into battle, attempting to capture [[Georgi Koska]], a Decepticon [[Facsimile construct|facsimile]]. {{storylink|Escalation issue 4|Escalation #4}} He clashed with Hot Rod over the capture of Koska as both of them were of equal rank, {{storylink|Escalation issue 5|Escalation #5}} but when Optimus Prime was temporarily offline and believed dead, Prowl assumed full command and came up with a strategy for fighting Megatron (shoot him, then run away). {{storylink|Escalation issue 6|Escalation #6}}

Under orders from Optimus, Prowl oversaw the moving of ''[[Ark-19]]'' to a more secure location. He turned to Prime rather than order the launch on his own discretion. (Prime had to order him to use his own discretion.) {{storylink|Devastation issue 1|Devastation #1}} When [[Sixshot]] blew them out of the sky, Optimus took command of the situation until the ''Ark-19'' was destroyed. {{storylink|Devastation issue 2|Devastation #2}}

Once on the ''[[Ark-32]]'', Prowl found that, due to injuries from the battle with Sixshot {{storylink|Devastation issue 3|Devastation #3}} {{storylink|Devastation issue 4|Devastation #4}} and separate missions, he and Hardhead were the only active Autobots. He was mildly annoyed that Optimus Prime and [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] were otherwise preoccupied during this crisis. He was then shocked when Optimus abruptly ordered their unit to withdraw from Earth to handle a situation at the [[Garrus-9]] secure facility. {{storylink|Devastation issue 5|Devastation #5}}

Optimus Prime and Prowl met with [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]] and [[Jetfire (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Jetfire]] on Garrus-9 to discuss the prisoners' breakout and how a surviving Decepticon had been tortured. Prime left Maximus in charge and said that he and Prowl had unfinished business aboard the ''Ark-32''. When [[Thunderwing (G1)|Thunderwing]] was reported guarding a cave on [[Corata-Vaz]], Optimus Prime recognized this had something to do with his [[infraspace]] encounter in [[Brasnya]]. He ordered Prowl to summon the [[Wrecker]]s to find out what Thunderwing was guarding. {{storylink|Spotlight: Cyclonus}} He judged the subsequent battle between the Wreckers and Thunderwing as suicidal, and felt that they were wasting their time given everything seemed to be coming at them at once. {{storylink|Spotlight: Hardhead}}

Prowl was present to hear Ratchet diagnose Sunstreaker after the later's de-Headmasterification. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 14|Replay}}

[[File:AHM15 SpringerpunchesProwl.jpg|upright=1.1|thumb|According to my calcula- ''OHGODMYFACE!'']]
Prowl became increasingly frustrated with the tendency of the Autobots in general and Optimus specifically to lionise and listen to charismatic warriors and mavericks. Realising nobody would listen to the more logical tactical advice that he or Perceptor gave, he had Kup sent to the [[Kimia Facility]] to be rebuilt... with some personality sub-routines added in, which would ensure that the iconic elder could be controlled and made to act as a proxy for him. Prowl didn't want attention or glory, he only wanted to do his job, and he had absolutely no ethical qualms about ensuring that "when [Kup] speaks, you won't even see my lips move"...

He ''really'' didn't like Springer either, and was annoyed that the ''Decepticons'' seem to be a more unified body than the Autobots. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 15|Everything in Its Right Place}}

After the [[Expansion]] incident, Optimus Prime reassigned more Autobots to Earth. The Decepticons had been laying low for months, and everyone was starting to get restless. While Prowl recommended a "wait and see" approach to Optimus Prime, Ironhide's calls for action soon drowned out Prowl's reasoning. When Mirage handed them solid intelligence about a possible opportunity to wipe out Starscream and a small group of Decepticons, the Autobots acted on it. It turned out to be an ambush, and the Autobots were soundly defeated by the Decepticons with the aid of [[Devastator (G1)|Devastator]]. Informed that the Decepticons were launching simultaneous attacks across the galaxy on Autobot installations and also that there was a traitor among them, the Autobots' morale was dealt a heavy blow. Through use of a space bridge portal, Megatron planned to send the Autobots to Cybertron to have them devoured by the [[Insecticon swarm|Swarm]]. Optimus Prime managed to sabotage the portal and strand the Autobots on Cybertron before the Decepticons could follow, albeit nearly at the cost of his life. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 7|All Hail Megatron #7}}

[[File:Ironhidepuncheseveryone.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|I'm sensing a pattern emerging.]]
In this unprecedented situation, Jazz's authority superseded Prowl's, and he took overall command of the battered and demoralized Autobots. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 1|All Hail Megatron #1}} Jazz also proved necessary to shore up Prowl's own authority, which was severely disregarded by his men. Jazz's reputation helped keep them in line, particularly the recalcitrant Ironhide, who had taken to striking superior officers, including Prowl himself. After the situation with Ironhide was defused, Prowl got Jazz to admit the energon searches he'd been sending troops out on were just to keep the men busy. Prowl worried that Prime would soon die, and about the details of their commander's condition that they had kept from the troops at large. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 4|All Hail Megatron #4}}

Frustrated at being stranded on Cybertron, he listened to [[Tracks (G1)|Tracks's]] story about how awesome and cool Jazz is to pass the time. {{storylink|Spotlight: Jazz}}

In particular, what Jazz and Prowl were withholding was the fact that the [[Matrix of Leadership]] was not within Prime anymore, but had been absconded with by Megatron. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 5|All Hail Megatron #5}}

Kup arrived on Cybertron shortly thereafter with his own team, and things took a turn for the worse, with the Swarm encroaching on their position. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 6|All Hail Megatron #6}} Sunstreaker was revealed to be the traitor, having made a bargain with Starscream to kill Megatron. He sacrificed his life to buy the other Autobots time to put some distance between them and the Swarm. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 8|All Hail Megatron #8}}

[[File:AHM10 ProwlandJazz.jpg|upright=1.4|thumb|Prick ''and'' nerd.]]
Thankfully, Ratchet finally managed to repair and revive Optimus Prime, and Autobot morale went on the upswing despite their situation. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 9|All Hail Megatron #9}} Under Prime's direction, they immediately began building a defense against the oncoming Swarm horde in a new temporary base. Once everything was nearly in place, Prowl calculated the odds of them succeeding and wound up with quite a dire forecast. Jazz urged him to keep it to himself, which Prowl quickly agreed to do. When the Swarm surged against them, the Autobots fought as hard as they could, but were eventually on the verge of being overwhelmed. Fortunately, [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]] arrived to tilt the odds squarely in the Autobots' favor. Prowl asked Omega how he had survived the galaxy-wide Decepticon attack, speculating that they had probably sent an army against him. Omega simply replied, "I am Omega Supreme". {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 10|All Hail Megatron #10}}

The Autobots eventually boarded Omega's rocket mode and headed for Earth. There, they engaged the Decepticon forces in a fierce battle which ended with Megatron's defeat and Starscream ordering a withdrawal from the planet. {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 11|All Hail Megatron #11}} {{storylink|All Hail Megatron issue 12|All Hail Megatron #12}}

[[File:Prowl Spotlight AdviseAgainstInvolvement.jpg|left|upright=1.4|thumb|"But Prowl, look...teddy bear."]]
Over the next three years, the Autobots remained on Earth at the insistence of Optimus Prime. Optimus believed they could not leave in good conscience while human society was still in disarray from their war and rogue Decepticons still wandered the planet. The humans were not interested in having protectors, however, and soon learned to take care of themselves. [[Skywatch]] reverse-engineered Cybertronian technology to hunt and capture Autobots AND Decepticons left on the planet.

As part of Optimus Prime's belief that the Autobots must help humanity rebuild in whatever way possible, Prowl was assigned to assist the local police whilst in disguise as one of their squad cars. Over the next eight months, Prowl saw humanity at its lowest ebb. Desperate, angry people who would never forgive the Transformers for bringing their war to humanity's homeworld. He watched as some of his driver's fellow police officers set fire to the building that the Decepticon [[Thrust (G1)|Thrust]] was trapped in, a cold execution of what Prowl considered an enemy combatant. He protested to Optimus Prime that humanity was dangerous, they were now killing Transformers, and that there was no strategic purpose for the Autobots to be on this planet or for he to continue this masquerade of being a police car. Prime asked his officer to trust him in his belief to the value of this activity, and that all the Autobots were on a personal journey.

===Lessons from Earth===
[[File:Prowl Spotlight DoneTheNumbers.jpg|130px|thumb|Prowl finally realizes that math is useless.]]
And so Prowl continued to patrol the streets, and while he did so, he calculated. The humans numbered in their swarming billions versus less than ten thousand Cybertronians. Humanity lived brief, petty, frantic lives of comparatively little consequence, their world and its infrastructure inefficient, ramshackle and incompetent. Prowl concluded that not a single human life was worth that of a Cybertronian. However, when he and his police officer driver were overseeing the removable of volatile Cybertronian wreckage from a building, some workers accidentally triggered an abandoned weapon to fire, destroying a damaged building. Without thinking, Prowl transformed and pushed a young girl out of the way, saving her life, but in the process, was trapped under the rubble that would have crushed her. His driver expressed disbelief that the Autobot had been in disguise as his car for the past eight months, and that he had broken cover to save one girl. Prowl confessed that for eight months he had been watching, planning, but unable to do anything. There were so many times he could have assisted if he were able to break cover. He had run the numbers, made calculations on Earth and on humanity, his math was flawless, but they weren't ''right''. And when push came to shove, he couldn't rely on what he thought might happen, he had to act on instinct and do the right thing. The policeman, impressed, remarked that Prowl spoke like a true beat cop, and stated that while he was obligated to call this incident in, it wasn't an emergency and suggested that Prowl had an hour to extricate himself before Skywatch arrived. {{storylink|Ride-Along}}

[[File:Ongoing issue 1-Prowl shot in the back.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.1|Woman makes prick staticky. Hilarity ensues.]]
The Autobots moved west, where Prowl was joined in his undercover police work with new arrival [[Streetwise (G1)|Streetwise]]. They were present at a power installation in New Mexico, which was being ransacked by the ravenous [[Stunticon (G1)|Stunticon]] [[Breakdown (G1)|Breakdown]]. Skywatch deployed its robot-hunting crash-suits and brought down the Decepticon before leveling lethal particle cannons at him. Despite himself, Prowl broke cover to prevent the execution of a helpless Transformer. This left his backside open to the second Skywatch team on site, who used [[Suppressor (device)|mode lock inhibitors]] to capture him as well as the "bait", Breakdown.

Prowl's capture was reported back to Autobase by Streetwise, and Hot Rod assembled a strike team to infiltrate Skywatch and rescue him. These Autobots were outfitted with Wheeljack's new counter-inhibitors to prevent the mode lock from working. Unfortunately, this sudden change in tactical efficiency only caused Skywatch to panic, drawing out their lethal ordnance to protect themselves. Prowl was rescued...but Ironhide died in the assault. Grieving for his friend, Optimus Prime then stepped down as Autobot leader and turned himself over to Skywatch. {{storylink|...For All Mankind}}

With Optimus gone, Hot Rod advocated abandoning his plan and this planet, and Prowl was one of the first to sign up for Hot Rod's splinter group. They failed to convince [[Omega Supreme (G1)|Omega Supreme]] to fly them off-world, but then encountered a group of Decepticons led by Swindle. After a brief scuffle, Hot Rod and Swindle entered into negotiations for a truce. Prowl was uncomfortable with the idea of collaboration, despite his earlier effort on Breakdown's behalf. Ultimately, however, he went along with it. {{storylink|Things Fall Apart, Part 1: "New Arrivals, Old Encounters"|New Arrivals, Old Encounters}}

[[File:Prowl Seasons In Flight.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Prowl always narcs on the cool kids.]]
The united Autobots and Decepticons attempted to construct a space cruiser in order to leave the planet. Their efforts reached a hurdle with the arrival of [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ultra Magnus]], duly appointed enforcer of the [[Tyrest Accord]]. Prowl had summoned Ultra Magnus to Earth as part of standard operating procedure after Ironhide's death, before Prime abdicated his leadership and the faction had split. Things became difficult as Magnus attempted to confiscate Hot Rod's "unlicensed interstellar vehicle". Prowl attempted to weigh in with legalese of his own, citing the line of procedural succession and emergency powers, but it became moot when Magnus discovered their collaboration. {{storylink|Things Fall Apart, Part 3: "Seasons in Flight"|Seasons in Flight}}

Eventually the collaboration ended when the Decepticons betrayed Hot Rod. Prowl and the others survived thanks to the intervention of Optimus Prime and Skywatch leading Bumblebee to form an alliance with humans. {{storylink|Things Fall Apart, Part 5: "Earthworks"|Earthworks}}

[[File:Prowl LSOTW5 Pressure.jpg|left|thumb|100px|To prick...or ''not'' to prick...]]
Sometime after things settled down on Earth, Prowl formed a plan to recapture the [[Garrus-9]] detention facility, which had fallen during Megatron's push three years earlier. Prowl's primary objective on this mission was for the Wreckers to retrieve the data stored on [[Aequitas]], as he feared that if the Decepticons managed to get their hands on politically-damaging information about Autobot war criminals, it would be disastrous to the Autobot cause. When selections for the new Wreckers squad were being made, Prowl learned that [[Ironfist (G1)|Ironfist]] (a weapons researcher at [[Kimia Facility]] who had an obsessive fascination with the Wreckers) had recently suffered a lab accident involving cerebro-centric bullets and only had months to live. Applying pressure on psy-ops specialist [[Rung (G1)|Rung]] (who had judged the researcher unfit for Wreckers duty), Prowl arranged for Ironfist to be placed in Springer's squad on the condition that he would be the one to sacrifice his life to unlock Aequitas. {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 4|Last Stand of the Wreckers #4}} After the surviving Wreckers defeated [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]] and liberated G-9, Prowl was given a [[data slug]] containing the Aequitas' data, the legacy of Ironfist, who had finally succumbed to his lab accident injury. Prowl explained to [[Ultra Magnus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ultra Magnus]] how he regretted using Ironfist in this manner, and he would prefer if the information about trials were never made public, despite what he had agreed to millions of years ago, for fear of what it would do to Autobot morale. As Ultra Magnus left, Prowl started to apply pressure on the data slug... {{storylink|Last Stand of the Wreckers issue 5|Last Stand of the Wreckers #5}}

[[File:Infestation2-Prowl.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|IM IN UR HEAD DRIVING U CRAZY...ER.]]
When [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] crash-landed a spaceship full of [[zombie]]s in [[Las Vegas]], Autobot and Skywatch troops were ready to defend the city. After a brief battle, they learned that the zombies were not on Galvatron's side, but rather a threat to the entire planet, and Prowl had the area quarantined before interrogating Galvatron on what he knew about the creatures. {{storylink|The Transformers: Infestation issue 1|The Transformers: Infestation #1}} The leader of the zombies, an interdimensional vampire in disguise named [[Britt]], soon revealed herself and attacked the Autobots and Decepticons, infecting Kup with the zombie plague and creating a space-time portal to Cybertron's distant past, intending to infect the planet while it was still teeming with life. Prowl, however, had a way to sabotage her plan: using his previously established mind link with Kup, he removed the virus's control over the old warrior and had him change the portal's coordinates, trapping Kup, Britt and the zombie army in the [[Dead Universe]]. {{storylink|The Transformers: Infestation issue 2|The Transformers: Infestation #2}} {{Storylink|Heart of Darkness issue 4|Heart of Darkness #4}}

Prowl was one of the Autobots who participated in the covert mission to take out the [[Combaticon (G1)|Combaticons]], who were working with [[North Korea]] in exchange for energon. {{storylink|International Incident Part 2: "Ranks of Bronze"|Ranks of Bronze}} In order to keep the battle a secret from the world at large, they hacked all spy satellites watch the area, after which Prowl helped defeat [[Brawl (G1)|Brawl]]. {{storylink|International Incident Part 3: "Hawk Among the Sparrows"|Hawk Among the Sparrows}} Then the [[Predacon (G1)|Predacons]] joined the fray. Since Bumblebee and [[Kyle Pennington|Pennington]] back at base were unable to see what was going on, Prowl had to keep them informed, all while calculating the best strategies to avoid casualties. The Autobots were eventually victorious, but at the cost of humanity learning about their alliance with Skywatch. {{storylink|International Incident Part 4: "All My Sins Remembered"|All My Sins Remembered}}

As the Autobots flew home from Korea, the Decepticons returned to Earth with a vengeance and had their plane shot down. Prowl and the others survived, however, and made it to shore. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 3: Woken Furies|Woken Furies}} After their attacker was revealed to be none other than a returning Megatron, they confronted him and learned that he had defeated most of their troops in America and left them to the mercy of armed and angry humans. Prowl sent Jazz to save them, but against his direct orders to not resort to violence, Jazz ended up breaking cover and killing one of the men. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 4: Burning Chrome|Burning Chrome}} The Autobots regrouped at Omega Supreme, and were soon joined by Megatron, having given himself up just to taunt them. Prowl was contemplating how short-sighted it had been to have both their mechanics on the Korea team when Optimus Prime approached him, asking him to investigate Megatron's claims that [[Spike Witwicky (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Spike Witwicky]] had executed a [[Scrapper (G1)|surrendered combatant]]. {{storylink|Revenge of the Decepticons Part 5: Enemy Mine|Enemy Mine}}

[[File:PoliceActionPrologue-Prowl.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.1|Not to prick, apparently.]]
In order to finish his investigation, Prowl remained on Earth with Bumblebee, Ultra Magnus and some other Autobots while the rest of them left to drive Galvatron off of Cybertron. After a last-minute questioning of Megatron revealed nothing new, he tried unsuccessfully to get Decepticon deserter [[Thundercracker (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Thundercracker]] to stay with the Autobots, and lied to Bumblebee and Spike that he would keep them updated on what was going on. {{storylink|Police Action: Prologue}} Appearing via hologram on board Omega Supreme, Prowl participated in the talks on what the Autobots would do with Megatron. He agreed with [[Xaaron]] that they needed a third party to judge the Decepticon leader's trial, but admitted that personally he'd rather just execute the scumbag. {{storylink|Chaos Theory Part 1|Chaos Theory #1}}

[[File:Prowl The Question.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7]]
For a time, Prowl and Bumblebee clashed over command of the Earth-bound Autobots. Prowl co-opted several operatives, such as Street-Wise and Groove, for his own operation, while Bumblebee was left with dealing with a Decepticon situation on his own. When Bumblebee returned to their headquarters with all five Stunticons as his prisoners, he earned a certain degree of respect from Prowl; until then Prowl had doubted Bumblebee's capabilities as a leader. {{storylink|The Question}}

When Spike let slip that he'd be gone from base for 36 hours for secret reasons, Prowl decided to spy on his activities. This proved uninformative as Spike just met with higher-ups and assorted women, but things got heated when Breakdown suddenly showed up for revenge against the human. Prowl defeated him with help from Streetwise, but was forced to break off the mission and was chewed out by Ultra Magnus for the attention attracted by the battle. He mentioned wanting to look into anti-Transformer spokesman [[Ben Simpson]], whom he suspected was providing people with guns made from Megatron's parts, but was ordered to focus on Spike. Searching the site of Scrapper's death, Prowl was sampling some odd chemical residue when he suddenly came under attack. {{storylink|Police Action: Part 1|Police Action #1}}

The assailant was Brawl, though Prowl noticed he had a spotter that got away. Together with Streetwise he defeated the Decepticon and took him in for questioning, but a failsafe in his body caused him to shut down during interrogation. Continuing with the investigation on Spike, Prowl had former Skywatch member [[Sandra (G1)|Sandra]] brought in while he looked into the sample he had found. Just as he figured out that Scrapper had been attacked by a human with a chemical weapon rather than another Decepticon as previously assumed, Spike approached him and shamelessly admitted that it was all true. {{storylink|Police Action Part 2: Only Forward|Only Forward}}

While Spike argued that it was a strategical operation to rid the world of Devastator, Prowl saw it as murder with vengeance for Spike's friend [[Tim Simmons]] as the motive. Spike didn't care for being lectured, calling Prowl out on making his own tough decisions and keeping secrets from his allies for their own sake. Before he could think of what to do next, Prowl got word from Bumblebee that Ultra Magnus had agreed to go after Ben Simpson, and rolled out alongside him and Streetwise. Simpson turned out to be a [[facsimile construct]] created by Swindle to boost anti-Transformer sentiment among humanity for profit. When captured, Swindle not only admitted to being responsible for the situation in North Korea, but also for helping Skywatch by selling Cybertronian technology to... Spike Witwicky. Before the Autobots could do much, Spike had fled while Jazz went off on his own and announced to the world that the Autobots were cutting all ties with Skywatch and humanity. {{storylink|Police Action Part 3: A Second Chance at Eden|A Second Chance at Eden}}

===Schemers never change===
[[File:Prowl DeathofOptimusPrime.jpg|upright=0.85|left|thumb|Emo prick.]]
The few Autobots on Earth returned to Cybertron in the wake of Galvatron and the [[D-Void]]'s defeat. Though the war was over, [[Autobot High Command]] found themselves stuck with the thankless job of governing the many neutral Cybertronians returning home. Prowl coined the term Non-Aligned Indigenous Life-forms, or [[NAIL]]s, for them, and they didn't like being ruled by the people who had ruined their world through war. When a riot took place, the Autobots were outnumbered 20-to-1 and Prowl had no choice but to release the captive Decepticons and have them lend a hand, though [[inhibitor/deterrence chip]]s kept from using lethal force. Things got worse when Rodimus and Ultra Magnus announced that they were leaving Cybertron in search of the [[Knights of Cybertron]] when he needed them to deal with the neutrals. This caused Prowl to blow up in anger towards the neutrals, calling them arrogant and ungrateful cowards who did nothing during the war but now acted like they owned the planet. {{storylink|Transformers: The Death of Optimus Prime|The Death of Optimus Prime}}

Contrary to Prowl's belief that nobody would willingly come with Rodimus, he managed to gather over 200 Autobots for his quest, including his old partner and friend Chromedome. Prowl ended up goading Rodimus {{storylink|The Sound of Breaking Glass}} into installing [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]] on the Lost Light covertly on board the ''[[Lost Light]]'' {{storylink|Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|This Calamitous Life}} and asked Chromdome to perform mnemosurgery on the captive in the hopes of learning the secrets of what made a Phase-Sixer. When Chromedome refused, Prowl attempted to blackmail him with an unsavoury secret from the mnemosurgeon's past, threatening to tell Rewind; Chromedome responded by assaulting Prowl and erasing some of his memory to protect his relationship with Rewind. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} Not to be deterred by his slight amnesia, Prowl still tried to convince Chromedome to stay as he truly needed his special abilities, but Chromedome refused as he'd rather leave his past behind. After a brief fit of anger, Prowl resorted to plan B, contacting his [[Duobot|agents]] on board [[Lost Light|Rodimus's ship]]. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It}} {{storylink|No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases}} He ordered them to place a tracker on its engines, though unfortunate events would lead to them to fail and be killed. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}} Prowl and Bumblebee watched the launch of the ''Lost Light'' be cut short when the ship disappeared in a sudden explosion. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It}}

[[File:Prowl Arcee TheAutomonyLesson.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Prick talking about how he hasn't gone soft.]]
Prowl was left handling the Decepticons, who were very harsh law enforcers and very unhappy about their imprisonment. After arresting [[Needlenose (G1)|Needlenose]] and [[Horri-Bull]] for assaulting [[Tappet|a NAIL]] (and then arresting the NAIL for disturbing the peace), he took them back to the Decepticon pen and was confronted by Decepticon spokesman [[Ratbat (G1)|Ratbat]], who demanded his faction be treated as equals. Believing him to have some sort of plan, Prowl reported his suspicions to Bumblebee and suggested they cancel the memorial service dedicated to Rodimus's crew, what with the large NAIL population being indifferent to the fate of their friends. He later discussed the matter of Ratbat with his secret weapon, [[Arcee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Arcee]], telling her that he was going to preserve the peace even if he had to do things he didn't want to do. {{storylink|The Autonomy Lesson (issue)|The Autonomy Lesson}} He learned the truth soon enough when Starscream came to the Autobots and sold out Ratbat, telling Prowl that he planned to assassinate Bumblebee during the memorial service then stage a coup. Acting on this info, Prowl managed to stop [[Skywarp (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Skywarp]] from sniping Bumblebee and leaving a NAIL to take the blame, and in the meantime sent Arcee to deal with Ratbat. Even though she mercilessly murdered the Decepticon, the two agreed afterwards that she had acted in self-defense and had no other choice. {{storylink|The World & Everything in It}} Prowl later addressed to the Decepticons in the wake of Ratbat's death, claiming that evidence suggested suicide. Starscream stepped in and backed the cover story, much to Prowl's discomfort. Very shortly thereafter, mysterious explosions began striking Cybertron, leading Prowl to believe the Decepticons were responsible. Metalhawk questioned this, adding in some cutting remarks about the war not being over for Prowl yet. Eventually Wheeljack figured out the origin of the explosions and that all parties were innocent in the matter. Much to Prowl's displeasure, Starscream came up with a plan to protect the civilians while Wheeljack ended the threat. When Starscream was granted a place in the new government thanks to his actions, [[Silverbolt (G1)|Silverbolt]] became enraged and struck Prowl, who had tried to calm him down. {{storylink|Stick Together}}

[[File:Prowl Bombshell Devisive.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.1|Reports of this headshot may have been greatly exaggerated.]]
Starscream immediately began undermining Bumblebee's position in the new government, adding to Prowl's growing frustration. When the Decepticon [[Skydive (Predator)|Skydive]] was found murdered, Prowl saw to the investigation. While interrogating the only witness, [[Dirge (G1)|Dirge]], Prowl found a [[cerebro-shell]] implanted on the Decepticon, leading him to the conclusion that [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]] was the murderer. Prowl and Arcee used the entranced Dirge to track Bombshell down, finding the [[Insecticon (G1)|Insecticon]] ensnaring [[Sunstorm (G1)|another victim]]. After a scuffle where Prowl found out that Bombshell's I/D chip wasn't functioning, he ordered [[Blurr (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Blurr]] to pursue the fleeing suspect. Prowl and Arcee soon caught up and found Blurr being accosted by the [[Constructicon (G1)|Constructicons]]. While Arcee was ordered to save Blurr, Prowl kept on with his pursuit of Bombshell, eventually cornering him. When Bombshell refused to give him any information or the identity of any possible collaborators, a fed-up Prowl coldly executed the deranged Insecticon. The cerebro-shell fell off Dirge, and he witnessed the aftermath of Prowl's actions. Dirge managed to escape and Prowl ordered Arcee to pursue him while he dealt with the Constructicons. Utilizing a hidden override code on the I/D chips to overcome whatever was blocking the signal, Prowl activated their chips and disabled all five Constructicons at once. Later, an injured Blurr gave Prowl a piece of his mind for being ordered after Bombshell without backup, calling him "crazy" and "paranoid". Prowl ignored Blurr's concerns, and pointed out that there was something larger at play with the Decepticons, telling Bumblebee that they had to "take control" of this new era. {{storylink|Devisive}}

When the NAIL [[Sky-Byte (RID)|Sky-Byte]] arrived, Prowl kept close tabs with him along with Sideswipe. Later on, he was informed that Sky-Byte was having a secret meeting with the Decepticons and broke into their hiding place with Streetwise and Sideswipe and after a brief fight, managed to capture Sky-Byte and Needlenose. They were about to lynch them in public when Ironhide stopped Prowl after saying that it was a way to have a better future of equality for Autobot and Decepticon. When questioned the next day at [[Maccadam's Old Oil House]] of his new attitude, Ironhide said he had a vision that he and Alpha Trion were telling war stories on Gorlam Prime and that every Autobot and Decepticon by that time, were dead along with their old grudges. {{storylink|A Better Tomorrow}}

[[File:Sideswipe Prowl and Wheeljack vehicle Primus All Good Things.jpg|thumb|upright=1.7]]
When the Decepticon captain [[Turmoil]] landed his ship on Cybertron, Prowl and his security forces were ordered in by Bumblebee to attack if necessary. When the order was given by Metalhawk, the Autobot forces stormed in to capture the Decepticons. {{storylink|Interference Patterns}} Prowl saw the Dinobots, Sky-Lynx and Ironhide off when they headed out into the wilderness in response to a distress signal. After they were out of earshot, Prowl noted that he was uncomfortable with the Dinobots retaining their Earth altmodes, and wish they would return to "normal." Bumblebee responded that things had been far from normal recently. He then joined Metalhawk and Starscream in their criticisms about the free elections being stalled on Cybertron, though Bumblebee insisted that they were forthcoming. He later explained to Bumblebee that he desired the elections to take place because he had confidence that Bumblebee would be elected as the planet's leader. {{storylink|Dinobot Hunt (IDW)|Dinobot Hunt}} When [[Turmoil]]'s ship, containing a sort of time machine, disappeared under Bumblebee's nose, Prowl arrived to assist the investigation. {{storylink|Night and the City}} He was later present when a Metrotitan appeared beneath Cybertron's surface and declared Starscream as the Cybertronian conqueror who would unite the planet. {{storylink|Primus: All Good Things}}

[[File:CityOnFire-NewProwl.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.2|<---o The Verge]]
A short while later, Omega Supreme was bombed in a terror attack, and Prowl used the opportunity as pretense to arrest the Decepticons still working under Soundwave and Shockwave. To allow him to spirit the Decepticons away to secret captivity, Prowl had Arcee infiltrate their hideout, disable them with a special stasis bomb, and then planet explosives throughout the pen. Prowl then lead his public arrest force to the pen, where he purposely tripped the explosives to present the appearance that the Decepticons had booby-trapped their own base and had perished in the blast. {{storylink|The End of the Beginning of the World}} The blast left Prowl in a serious, although stable, condition, but he soon mysteriously disappeared from his [[CR chamber]]. A short while later, when Decepticons had begun rioting in response to Megatron's return, Prowl reappeared in an upgraded body, and shot [[Staxx]] to save Wheeljack, who had been corned by the angry mob. {{storylink|City on Fire}} He subsequently led the Autobot engineer to the [[Black Room]], where the Decepticons Prowl had previously 'killed' were waiting, repaired and upgraded. Wheeljack was taken hostage, and soon the escaped Megatron arrived, with a stunned Starscream in tow. {{storylink|The Verge}}

[[File:IDWRID14 prowlstator.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|Deva-prick? Prick-astator?]]
When a group of Autobots, joined by Metalhawk, Dirge and Swindle arrived at the Black Room, Prowl was holding Starscream and Wheeljack at gunpoint. The engineer tried to remind Bumblebee of what was "most important", but was shot through the head by his captor. Bombshell and Prowl revealed to their audience that the Autobot law enforcer had been taken by one of the Insecticon's mind control devices as he attempted to execute him, and had been a pawn of the Decepticons ever since. Bombshell also noted that Prowl had been easily controlled due to his memories already being damaged in some manner. With that concluded, Megatron declared that the Autobot had outlived his usefulness as a secret pawn, and announced that he would now become part of the next generation of Decepticon warrior. Briefly freed from Bombshell's influence, Prowl collapsed to the ground, aghast that his friends had never suspected his being controlled, but was suddenly wracked with pain as his body transformed against his will... into the head and shoulders of a reborn Devastator! The behemoth proceeded to attack the Autobot command center and snatch [[Sky High (Pretender)|Sky High]] out of the air, before proceeding, under Bombshell's influence, to the med-center, where the highest concentration of Autobots was. {{storylink|Before the Dawn}}

The Prowl-Devastator remained conscious under Bombshell's control, but unable to direct his own actions. He was confronted by Ironhide's newly arrived Autobot gestalt, the former Aerialbots known as [[Superion (G1)|Superion]], and battled the giant. Prowl-Devastator's mind temporarily shut down when Arcee revealed her true colors and executed Bombshell. The gestalt soon started back up again, however, as Prowl's mind interfaced with the Devastator gestalt and began willingly causing vast amounts of destruction. The Devastator-Prowl started rampaging again, completely out of Decepticon control, and tore his way through Superion. {{storylink|Plan for Everything}}

Ironhide managed to get through to Prowl inside Devastator's psyche, convincing him to stop the devastation. Prowl re-exerted control over himself and Devastator long enough to rip the gestalt's head from its shoulders, separating Prowl and the Constructicons back into their component parts. Undeterred, Megatron prepared to enter the Devastator gestalt personally with his new body. Luckily, Bumblebee deciphered Wheeljack's last words in time, and he, Prowl and Ironhide spoke the access code for Wheeljack's system bypass, reactivating the force field bubble the engineer had secretly implanted in Megatron's spark casing. Unfortunately for the Autobot government, however, the NAILs had had enough after this latest outbreak of warfare. Led by Starscream, they cast both Autobots and Decepticons out of new Iacon. {{storylink|Heavy Is the Head}}

===Suffering the consequences===
Almost immediately after departing, the Autobots were confronted by the Constructicons, who wanted to join up with Prowl since their unification had given them a glimpse into Prowl's mind, and they had liked what they had seen. Bumblebee attempted to rationalise that Prowl had only done all the terrible things he had done under Bombshell's influence, but Arcee, thinking she was helping, pointed out that Ratbat's assassination ''had'' been Prowl. She later attempted to apologise for revealing this. {{storylink|Second Exodus}} When Tyrest's [[universal killswitch]] was activated, Prowl was among those affected. {{storylink|Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|Arm the Lonely}} Luckily Prowl was saved thanks to Rodimus and Perceptor. {{storylink|Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|This Calamitous Life}} Later, when a bright light mysteriously appeared, {{storylink|Second Exodus}} Prowl and the other Autobots approached it, only for a [[Necrotitan|Titan]] to emerge from the ground in front of them. {{storylink|Dark Dawn: Dark Cybertron Chapter 1|Dark Dawn}}

As Bumblebee tried to organise an offensive, he asked Prowl if it was that same Titan that had proclaimed Starscream would rule, Prowl admitted he wasn't sure since his memories from his time under Bombshell's control were fuzzy. Despite insisting that attacking immediately was their best course of action, Bumblebee protested, leading Prowl to argue that it was Bumblebee's indecisiveness that led to him losing Iacon, at which point they were suddenly attacked by Soundwave's Decepticons. {{storylink|Black Metal: Dark Cybertron Chapter 2|Black Metal}} However, when Starscream arrived to confront the Titan, Prowl once again became infuriated with Bumblebee's hesitation in allowing Arcee to take him out and with his sudden collaboration with Soundwave on the situation. The final straw came when the Titan unleashed a wave of energy, injuring several of the Autobots, leading Prowl to outright blame Bumblebee for their problems. {{storylink|Winners & Losers: Dark Cybertron Chapter 3|Winners & Losers}}

While Prowl thought they should press the attack Bumblebee favored a more logical approach, which was when Soundwave heard Megatron screaming.{{storylink|Into the Abyss: Dark Cybertron Chapter 4|Into the Abyss}} Following the sound, the combined force found Shockwave's lab, where [[Nova Prime]] and Galvatron were attempting to emerge from the [[Dead Universe]] through a space bridge in Megatron's chest. While battling Shockwave's forces, Prowl tried to order Bumblebee to focus on fighting rather than reaching the resurrected Metalhawk, but when Shockwave called in the Necrotitan, Prowl ordered a retreat. {{storylink|Finest Hour: Dark Cybertron Chapter 5|Finest Hour}} Prowl called for the combined Autobot and Decepticon forces to retreat to Iacon, retorting [[Swoop (G1)|Swoop's]] protest that they wouldn't be leading it there since it was already heading towards the city. {{storylink|No Exit: Dark Cybertron Chapter 6|No Exit}}

They eventually made it back to Iacon, where [[Rattrap (BW)|Rattrap]] led them to the self-pitying Starscream. Prowl, recognizing that Shockwave was relying on them to fight among themselves, decided to play things logically and took charge of the situation, organizing the treatment of the wounded, the evacuation of the survivors, and preparing a counter-strike against the Titan. While coordinating with Soundwave, he questioned whether the Decepticon understood Shockwave's logic, but Soundwave admitted he never understood Shockwave, and as Prowl scoffed at his belief that they could still defeat him, Bumblebee arrived with an injured Megatron. Furious that Bumblebee would rescue their longtime enemy, Prowl was prepared to shoot the Decepticon leader, however as they all argued, Metroplex and the ''Lost Light'' arrived via quantum jump to fight the Necrotitan. {{storylink|Burning Bright: Dark Cybertron Chapter 8|Burning Bright}} After greeting the ''Lost Light'' crew as they disembarked, Prowl smugly reprimanded Bumblebee for allowing Megatron to disappear with a portion of Metroplex's thumb; when Bumblebee aggressively told him to piss off and that he'd made a choice, Prowl looked smug indeed about the little guy having made a decision like he'd wanted. Luckily too, the Decepticon leader did not adandon them as Prowl thought; Megatron teleported into Metroplex's hand to give him the Regenisis ore in the thumb, allowing Metroplex to defeat the Necrotitan. {{storylink|Finis Temporis: Dark Cybertron Chapter 9|Finis Temporis}}

[[File:TheBecoming-throw.jpg|left|thumb|300px|Cybertron's hottest new sport, prick toss.]]
After reluctantly admitting that Bumblebee was right to trust Megatron, Prowl then sought out Chromedome, having realised that the mnemosurgeon had worked on him, which was what had allowed Bombshell to control him. Taunting him on the recent loss of Rewind, the pair fought, and Prowl found himself cheered on by the Constructicons until Ultra Magnus arrived to break up the fight. Magnus then gave Prowl a few choice words, pointing out that Prowl had been indirectly responsible for many problems on the ''Lost Light'', and that he had never suffered through any of his own actions. Prowl was left alone with his admirers after a final remark from Magnus citing that he was the loneliest person he had ever met and was now among like-minded company. Before too long, however, the calm was ended by the arrival of Shockwave's army of [[Ammonite]]s. {{storylink|The Becoming: Dark Cybertron Chapter 10|The Becoming}} Seeing that [[Monstructor (G1)|Monstructor]] was about to harass Metroplex, a hesitant Prowl was convinced by the Constructicons into reforming Devastator, {{storylink|Black Planet: Dark Cybertron Chapter 11|Black Planet}} who managed to defeat the original combiner with help from the ''Lost Light''. After the fighting was over, Prowl was among the crowd who witnessed Optimus and Megatron exit the ''Lost Light'', with the Decepticon leader having defected. {{storylink|...And the Damage Done: Dark Cybertron Finale|...And the Damage Done}}

In a meeting to discuss what to do with Megatron, Prowl urged that they simply move forward with executing him rather than go through the mockery of a trial, however it was decided that a trial would go ahead to show the public that the Autobots didn't operate outside the law. Prowl was pleased to hear Optimus appoint him prosecutor. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 1: Towards Peace|Towards Peace}} As the trial progressed, Prowl had many testimonies against Megatron made, including ones from [[Gripper (G1)|Gripper]] and Starscream. However, when Megatron changed his plea from guilty to not guilty {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 2: Words Hang in the Air|Words Hang in the Air}} and made clear his desire to be tried by the Knights of Cybertron, a legal loophole possible because of the trial taking place on Luna-2 where the laws were different. Prowl insisted that they move the trial back to Cybertron so that it wouldn't be an issue, however Ultra Magnus pointed out that they couldn't do so for their own convenience. As a result, Optimus ended up allowing Megatron to join the ''Lost Light'' in order to have the former Decepticon's fate decided by the Knights. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 3: Predestination: A Beginner's Guide|Predestination: A Beginner's Guide}}

Prowl let his fury at Optimus fly, but when Optimus pointed out that Megatron was accepting his mistakes and the wrongness of his actions, Prowl admitted that he too had been ruthless throughout the course of the war, and that Bumblebee's death was clouding his judgement. Accepting Optimus's offer to join him on another mission to Earth, Prowl hoped that he might learn more from the planet. When the Constructicons, whom Prowl had reluctantly accepted, asked if they were joining the ''Lost Light'' under Megatron, Prowl raged that he would never stand with Megatron, and told them they would be going to Earth, knowing that Optimus was making a mistake and that he would have to be there to fix things. {{storylink|Earthfall Part 2: Detonation Boulevard|Detonation Boulevard}} [[Cosmos (G1)|Cosmos]] attempted to discuss the result of the trial with Prowl, but Prowl instead preferred to vent his frustrations to the lonely Autobot, sarcastically stating that a bold new future awaited them. {{storylink|Earthfall Part 1: Hello Cruel World|Hello Cruel World}} Before they departed, Prowl offered his opinion to Arcee on the difference between her and the Camiens, and was pleased when she asked Optimus permission to join their mission. {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 3: The Mind Bomb|The Mind Bomb}}

===Erratic behavior===

As they approached Earth, Prowl stated it was good to be home, to the confusion of Cosmos, who pointed out how personally Prowl took Spike Witwicky's betrayal. Prowl brushed aside the comment, and asked if Cosmos trusted Prime's leadership, revealing that he asked him to come along because he needed someone he can trust on the mission. {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 5: I Dream of Wires|I Dream of Wires}} Arriving in Earth's orbit, the Ark-7 was immediately attacked by Cybertronian-like weapons, and Prowl protested against falling back to the moon since the humans knew they were coming. As Optimus organised a team to go to the surface aboard [[Sky Lynx (G1)|Sky Lynx]], Prowl was ordered to remain with Arcee and Sky Lynx to investigate who launched the missiles, and Arcee suspected Prowl was unhappy with being sidelined. {{storylink|Earthfall Part 1: Hello Cruel World|Hello Cruel World}} As a battle between Optimus's team and the allied [[Earth Defense Command]] and Galvatron-led Decepticons erupted, Prowl sent Arcee and Sideswipe to back them up while he and Sky Lynx gathered the Constructicons. When the battle moved into the small town of [[Poverty Flat]], Prowl revealed his plan to force the Decepticons into revealing themselves, and combined with the Constructicons into Devastator, {{storylink|Earthfall Part 2: Detonation Boulevard|Detonation Boulevard}} thereby threatening the EDC's attempt to cover up the return of the Cybertronians. Once the EDC pulled the Decepticons out, Prowl dismissed Optimus's concerns about the recklessness of Prowl's plan and his horror at Prowl's expectation that the EDC would have executed the civilians, pointing out that he had exposed the EDC's mind bomb weapon, which was doubtlessly designed thanks to access to a Cybertronian brain, giving them a lead as to the captured Alpha Trion's location. {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 3: The Mind Bomb|The Mind Bomb}}

As the Autobots worked on a way to infiltrate the base, Optimus was unhappy with Prowl's presumption about leading the rescue mission, and ordered him to remain with Sky Lynx. Arcee took a moment to confide in Prowl that she thought that [[Scavenger (G1)|Scavenger]] was a spy, however Prowl wasn't concerned with that, only if she had told Optimus. After asking if she was still loyal to him, Arcee responded that she was loyal to the Autobot cause, a fact that Prowl found highly amusing. As Optimus's team started their attack, Prowl used the distraction to disembark Sky Lynx and infiltrate the base himself, where he caught up with Jazz, who had found Alpha Trion. Holding a gun to his comrade's head, he stated that Trion wasn't going anywhere, {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 4: Full Fathom Five|Full Fathom Five}} and with Jazz's attention on him, pointed out the alarms set up around Alpha Trion. Having realized that the humans couldn't have used Alpha Trion to create their mind bomb in the short time he was their captive, Prowl and Jazz began searching their base for clues. When Prowl was apparently knocked out by the mind bomb, he used the connection to the EDC's mainframe, but lacking time to go through their encrypted files, took control of their weapons and take out the Decepticon worldburner. After Jazz carried him to their teammates, Prowl awoke to reveal that Scavenger's leaking of information to the Decepticons was his plan to make events play out as they did. After forming Devastator to cover the rescue of Alpha Trion, Prowl counted the mission as a complete success. While Optimus was furious about Prowl's actions and secrets, Prowl insisted that it was all justifiable in this dangerous new era.

Meanwhile, Galvatron murdered [[Sparkplug Witwicky|General Witwicky]], and claimed that Prowl had been the culprit, and was believed due [[Marissa Faireborn|Marissa Faireborn's]] awareness of the animosity between Prowl and his son. {{storylink|Earthfall Chapter 5: I Dream of Wires|I Dream of Wires}}

When Optimus and Alpha Trion journeyed to the moon for a private conversation, Prowl used a stealth-painted Cosmos to listen in as Trion explained his role in history, and of the mysterious [[Enigma of Combination]] that could allow Cybertronian's to merge located on Earth. When Alpha Trion asked whether Optimus would share this information with Prowl, due to his control of the only truly successful combiner in eons, Optimus questioned why he wouldn't share what he had learned from his friend. {{storylink|The Crucible}}

As Prowl learned of the resurfacing of Spike Witwicky, Optimus prepared to head back to Cybertron, leaving Prowl in charge, but warned him against taking more unnecessary risks. Overcome with anger over Optimus's weakness and suffering from another nosebleed, which were getting more frequent, Prowl gathered the Constructicons and informed them that they were going after Spike {{storylink|Onyx Interface Part One: Signals, Calls, and Marches|Signals, Calls, and Marches}} Believing that Spike knew of the Enigma of Combination's whereabouts, Prowl and the Constructicons took on a dangerous pursuit through the streets of Tokyo for their target. Momentarily halted in his pursuit by Arcee, who was concerned about him putting innocent humans in danger, Prowl finally managed to capture his quarry just as the Decepticons arrived, also in search of Spike.

Escaping to the cover of a nearby forest, Spike expected to be executed, but Prowl proclaimed that he had forgiven Spike. {{storylink|Onyx Interface Part Two: Vs.|Vs.}} While Spike was quick to assume that it was because he was justified in defending the preservation of his own species, Prowl corrected him by saying he now understood how destructive his own race was and that they needed to be stopped. Requesting Spike's help in recovering the Enigma, Prowl and the Constructicons headed to [[G.B. Blackrock|Garrison Blackrock's]] facility in Wanmu. Using Spike to infiltrate and confirm the Enigma's presence, and upon hearing from Cosmos that the Decepticons were inbound, Prowl then ordered the Constructicons to combine so that they could take the Enigma, and that Spike was only a secondary target, having lied about his forgiveness. {{storylink|Onyx Interface Part Three: ONoffON|ONoffON}} While Devastator did manage to retrieve the Enigma, his components' shared hatred for Spike derailed the combiner's objective, throwing the Enigma away as he attempted to squash Spike. Arcee finally managed to reach Prowl by revealing that the Enigma had been taken by [[Scoop (G1)|Scoop]] during his blind attack. After taking a [[space bridge]] as a bonus prize, Prowl blamed the Constructicons for taking control of Devastator from him, but they pointed out Prowl was as much to blame, and Arcee suggested that Prowl find a way to explain his actions to Optimus. {{storylink|The Onyx Interface Conclusion: The Obliterati|The Obliterati}}

As he showed off the space bridge to Jetfire, Prowl received word from Rattrap about Starscream's recent contact with the colony of [[Caminus]] and his acquisition and use of the Enigma of Combination. Furious, Prowl contacted Optimus, demanding to know what he was thinking in allowing Starscream access to colonies, accusing Prime of not seeing the bigger picture. As Optimus terminated the call, omitting the fact that Starscream had combiners, Prowl seethed with rage at not being trusted, and decided to act himself. Having Rattrap use Metroplex's space bridge to provide a connection to Cybertron, Prowl and the Constructicons traveled through. Seeking to prevent Starscream from achieving an empire, Prowl stated that Caminus and the other colonies would need to be cut off, ensuring the safety of the universe, even if it came at the cost of Cybertron and everyone on it. {{storylink|The Possible Light}}

Interrupting the clean-up on Caminus, Prowl and Constructicons formed Devastator and ordered all Cybertronians to return through the space bridge, but [[Chromia (G1)|Chromia's]] protest and [[Sparkstalker|Sparkstalker's]] refusal led to Devastator opening fire. After besting Superion once again and dragging him through the space bridge to Cybertron, the Prowl-controlled-Devastator stated that he was doing what was necessary and began destroying the space bridge. Optimus tried to convince Starscream and [[Windblade (G1)|Windblade]] that Prowl could be reasoned with, but Starscream used the Enigma of Combination to heal Superion and force the "[[Protectobot (G1)|Protectobots]]" to merge into [[Defensor (G1)|Defensor]], and together both combiners defeated Devastator. While Starscream sought Prowl's death, Optimus and Windblade managed to convince him other, but as Prowl was arrested and dragged off, Prowl raged that Starscream would never change and Optimus was playing with fire. {{storylink|Mistakes and Mayhem}}

When Optimus visited the imprisoned Prowl to talk over recent events, Prowl was unconvinced by Prime's attempts to put a system in place to curb Starscream's ambition, and pointed out that Starscream still needed the combiners on his side since Superion and Defensor were likely more loyal to Optimus, and would likely recruit Devastator. Believing that Prowl had been twisted by numerous betrayals he feels he has suffered, Prowl retorted that Optimus could include himself in that list. As Prowl insisted that he has always been the one to make the tough calls Optimus couldn't, the [[Stunticon (G1)|Stunticons]] broke free and formed [[Menasor (G1)|Menasor]], starting a battle between him, Superion, Defensor and a Scoop-included Devastator. When Rattrap arrived with the Enigma of Combination, Prowl ordered him to use it, forcing Prowl, Optimus, Ironhide, Mirage and Sunstreaker to form [[Optimus Maximus (G1)|a new combiner]], who quickly confronted the other combiners and stated that it was time for him to take control. {{storylink|You, Me, and the Universe}}

Devastator recognized that Prowl was in control of the new combiner, due to his previous experience in combining, and was furious that he had been rejected by his former component for an upgrade. Suddenly the combiner collapsed as Prowl began fighting his fellow components for control within the combiner's psyche. One by one, Optimus, Ironhide, Sunstreaker, and Mirage rallied, refusing to look at the world only as numbers and statistics the way Prowl does, instead sharing their belief in the power of people that can change and be there to help one another. Synchronized by this shared belief, their minds slowly came together, and while Prowl refused to accept their way of thinking, his refusal was what allowed him to finally understand them, and in that understanding, all five were unified and Optimus Maximus was truly born. Alongside Superion and Defensor, Optimus Maximus defeated the other combiners, and then willingly separated himself so that Prowl could be arrested, knowing they could not be above the law. {{storylink|All That Remains}}

With Prowl now in custody, Optimus hoped that he could talk some sense into his old ally. Prowl simply replied that he had no place for morality, and that spending time as Devastator meant that he could no longer tell the difference between himself and the Decepticons. The two former friends finally came to blows, although Prowl's knowledge that a part of him would always exist within Prime convinced the Autobot leader to spare his life. However while Optimus's back was turned, Rattrap spirited Prowl away; with both their plans having failed, he stated that Prowl owed him a victory. {{storylink|Now and On Earth}} Prowl was branded a fugitive for his actions, and wanted signs were scattered throughout Iacon. {{storylink|The Transgressors}}

=== Gone Too Far ===
Prowl received a message from Verity Carlo, who had a copy of the Aequtias data and threatened to release it. Getting to Earth quickly by utilizing his mind link to Kup, Prowl prepared to confront Verity in Nome, Alaska when he suddenly was attacked and kidnapped. When Prowl woke up, he was in a strange landscape which attacked his sensors, and lost consciousness again as a blurry figure welcomed him to the Noisemaze. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 1|Sins of the Wreckers #1}} After having a dream in which Prowl's recent actions had resulted in peace coming to Cybertron and Optimus thanking him, Prowl awoke to find himself trapped in a giant web. Recognising his captor's voice, Prowl asked what Mesothulas wanted, though the scientist responded that he no longer answered to that name and stated that Prowl had something he wanted, threatening to expose his dirty secrets. Once he was alone, Prowl used his mind-link to Kup to address the recently awakened Springer and the Wreckers, fully exposing his manipulation of the older bot, but explained as much as he could about his situation before being cut off.

Mesothulas then returned, revealing his possession of the Aequitas data Verity had had, resigning Prowl to agree to talk. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 2|Sins of the Wreckers #2}} Mesothulas then fully revealed himself to Prowl, shocking the Autobot with his new form, and his new name, Tarantulas. Prowl suspected that Tarantulas had come to the conclusion that he had pushed him into the Noisemaze, and intended to use the war crimes data from Aequitas to blackmail him as revenge. However, Tarantulas merely wished to work with Prowl again, to recreate the symbiosis of their original relationship. When Prowl refused, he was placed in the company of his would-be rescuers: Verity, Springer, Roadbuster, and Arcee, and forced to watch as their most shameful, damning thoughts were bared to him thanks to Tarantulas's new invention, the guilt-extracting [[Impetus]]. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 3|Sins of the Wreckers #3}}

Prowl tried to reason with [[Hubcap (G1)|Hubcap]], whom Tarantulas had recruited as a mole within the Autobots, but the intelligence analyst had been infuriated by his early-releasing of Roadbuster, and verbally tore into Prowl for his various crimes. At that moment, Verity revealed that she had not intended to release Aequitas, but had only wanted to force Prowl to help treat her for the illness caused by her exposure to Aequitus, and Prowl lamented that he wished she had just asked. Before Tarantulas could hook him up to Impetus, Prowl attempted to make the scientist give up on another partnership by claiming that he had killed Ostaros, though this failed. At that moment, Kup used their connection to inform his that rescue was on its way, but only because of Prowl's value and not because he deserved to be saved. Finally convincing Hubcap not to release the Aequitas data, the analyst freed him and the other captives. Prowl pulled a gun on Hubcap, believing he had too much incriminating data to be allowed to live. Hubcap pleaded for his life, arguing that killing him would only continue the cycle of violence and secrecy that has resulted in their current situation. Though Prowl was swayed by Hubcap's logic, Impactor believed it was too great a risk and shot Hubcap. Insisting that they destroy all of Taratulas' work, Prowl and the others began preparing to collapse the Noisemaze, just as Tarantulas returned. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 4|Sins of the Wreckers #4}}

[[File:SinsOfTheWreckers5-kuppunchesprowl.jpg|left|300px|thumb|YOU punch a car! And YOU punch a car! EVERYBODY PUNCH A CAR!!!]]

After failing once more to convince his former partner to give up, Prowl listened as Impactor revealed the truth of what happened, at which point Tarantulas realised Springer was Ostaros and went after him. Ordered by the Wrecker to get out of the maze, Prowl prepared to force [[Tidal Wave (G1)|Tidal Wave]] to consume the [[Obtenteum]] in order to collapse the Noisemaze. After meeting up with Kup and Guzzle, the former got in a good hit on Prowl's jaw for his manipulations of him, and Guzzle took care of Tidal Wave. However once they escaped into Debris, Guzzle pulled his weapons on Prowl and Kup, determined to take revenge for the friends he had lost because of them, forcing Impactor was forced to put him down. Later, Prowl went back into the remains of the Noisemaze to rescue the still-alive Springer, and severed his link with Kup. Neither Kup nor Arcee wanted to deal with him further, and decided to let Prowl go for the time being, yet not informing Optimus about the crisis either. {{storylink|Sins of the Wreckers issue 5|Sins of the Wreckers #5}}

When Optimus annexed Earth into the Council of Worlds and broadcast a message, Prowl watched and refuted his former friend's claim that he was bringing freedom to Earth. {{storylink|All Hail Optimus Part 1: Once Upon a Time on Earth|Once Upon a Time on Earth}}

His time on Earth was remembered by [[Scarlett]] and [[Joe Colton]] as they discussed the threat the Cybertronians posed to Earth. {{storylink|Secret Raiders: A Revolution Prelude|Secret Raiders}}

After [[Sentinel Prime (G1)|Sentinel Prime]] came back to life, casually murdered people and kidnapped Optimus and Soundwave via a [[Space bridge|Space Bridge]], Arcee contacted Prowl, who knew exactly where his old boss would go. {{storylink|White Light}}

That place was [[Moonbase One|Luna 1]] where Prowl suspected Sentinel would try to raise the graveyard of Titans as the former Prime had dreamed of using a Titan army before the Great War began. When Prowl arrived on the moon, he was attacked by [[Fortress Maximus (G1)|Fortress Maximus]] for [[Garrus-9]] before [[Cerebros (G1)|Cerebros]] held back his boss. It was only after that Prowl actually recalled the Garrus-9 fiasco before he warned them and [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]] of great danger to Luna 1. Prowl explained Sentinel's return to life, that Titan plan and that he himself was here to deactivate Luna 1's Space Bridge. The trio, specifically Red Alert, were skeptical of Prowl's words before [[Beak]] arrived with proof of Prowl's claims which led Red to believe he was stalling them and working with Sentinel. Nonetheless, the four Autobots set out to stop the Prime. On the way Prowl spoke to Max about the [[Team Rodimus]] and the fact that the ''[[Lost Light]]'' was non-responsive to hails. Their trail led them to the [[Planetary engine|massive engines]] which prompted Max to question Sentinel's age if he knew exactly where and what they were. When they arrived to confront Sentinel in a Titan's brain module, they found the unwilling [[Sovereign]] strapped to the giant's CPU from which the other Titans rose up. Before any action could be taken, Sentinel took control of Red Alert who shot Prowl into stasis. {{storylink|Ten to Midnight}}

As Sentinel gloated, Cerebros placed a shell on Prowl that allowed the former to control his motor functions. He used this to hit Sentinel over the head with a [[Mobile Autobot Repair Bay|M.A.R.B.]] before the three Autobots escaped. When Prowl awoke, he was dismayed to learn what Cerebros had done and that he was being left out the loop for once. Max and Cerebros planned to use the body of the Titan they were based in to stop Sentinel's army but the [[Transformation cog|T-Cog]] was stuck in place. Prowl casually used his table flipping skills to manually complete the transformation. While Maximus fought off the Titan army, Prowl and Cerebros confronted Sentinel who promptly shot them both down where he tried to force Red Alert to execute Prowl. Red Alert managed to break free and separate Sentinel's [[Titan Master]] self from his true body. Sentinel would have forced Red to kill himself had Beak not pushed the Prime into one of the thrusters. Prowl asked how deep the thrusters were (one and a half miles) before casually noting that Sentinel was dead. Prowl had his missing optic replaced before he took Sovereign back to Earth and then decided to stay on Luna-1, intending to take a long overdue sabbatical. He sympathized with Maximus over his fears of change and endings before an alert came through pertaining to information regarding the ''Lost Light''. However the message seemed to just be gibberish and the quartet ignored it before they resumed cleaning the Titan's T-Cog. {{storylink|Last Light}}

{{charstubfiction|{{storylink|New Cybertron Part 2: A Lonely Pillar on the Plain|A Lonely Pillar on the Plain}}}}

==INSIRT continuity==
Long ago on Cybertron, [[Chromedome (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity#INSIRT continuity|Chromedome]] served in the [[Autobot Police]] and harbored an interest in the field of mnemosurgery. Over time, he was able to use his highly decorated partner Prowl's status to pursue his interest in mnemosurgery, developing the ability to extract information directly from a suspect's mind. {{storylink|Chromedome (G1)#Timelines|''Timelines'' Chromedome bio card}}

==Ask Vector Prime==
[[File:Megatron cam.jpg|left|upright=0.9|thumb|I think this is a killing joke!]]
In [[Primax 708.10-R Lambda]], [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]] cracked the codes to an Autobot forward listening outpost. He walked in, shot Prowl, and then laughed and took a photo of what he had done. Prowl would be unable to transform for many stellar cycles. {{storylink|Ask Vector Prime#Facebook|Ask Vector Prime, 2015/08/06}}
{{--}}

==Notes==
*[[James Roberts]] has said that pre-war Prowl and Chromedome had a, ah, "stronger bond" than just being partners.<ref>[http://theunderbase.libsyn.com/the-underbase-deconstructs-shadowplay "The Underbase Podcast Deconstructs Shadowplay"], 17:17 - 14:58</ref> This would put their tension in the present day as more personal than we thought (and Rewind's constant insults against Prowl as being the new boyfriend having a go at the crappy ex).
*According to IDW story editor [[Andy Schmidt]], ''[[Ride-Along|Spotlight: Prowl]]'' was originally going to be told in [[The Transformers (IDW)|the ongoing series]]. But when fans reacted badly to Prowl's characterization in [[...For All Mankind|the first issue of that series]], IDW decided to jump the gun and publish the story early as a ''Spotlight''.<ref>[http://www.comicscontinuum.com/stories/1002/19/schmidt.htm Comics Continuum video interview with Andy Schmidt]</ref> It is intended to reconcile his new, rashly self-sacrificial portrayal with the methodical, vehemently anti-hotheaded-maverick personality he [[The Transformers: Infiltration|had]] [[The Transformers: Escalation|exhibited]] [[All Hail Megatron issue 15|previously]]. But that reconciliation doesn't actually address the core concern of many of those upset fans, who wanted not just explanation, but ''reversion'' to the subversive schemer that Prowl had recently developed into.<ref>[http://forum.idwpublishing.com/viewtopic.php?t=7345 IDW forum thread practically begging for Prowl's new characterization to be undone.]</ref> John Barber eventually saw fit to explain this snapback in [[Devisive|''Robots in Disguise'' #4]].
*Prowl's design in the first portion of ''[[The Transformers: Robots in Disguise|Robots in Disguise]]'' is based on a [[:File:BluestreakWFCconceptart.jpg|concept drawing of ''War for Cybertron'' Bluestreak]] that never saw its way in to the game.

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Combiners]]
[[Category:IDW Generation 1 Autobots]]
[[Category:Strategists]]

Chromedome (G1)/2005 IDW continuity

2017-01-24T17:41:23Z

AllAreTaken:

{{suite}}
[[File:mtmte 50 chromedome's last wishes.jpg|thumb|upright=1.6|What it's like being IDW Chromedome.]]
An ex-copper and quiet academic with burning passions, '''Chromedome''' falls easily in love and even more easily into really bad ideas and self destructive habits. But he can totally quit [[Mnemosurgery|mnemosurgery]] any time, guys! He just has a ''reason'' why this one time, it's okay.

He's [[Conjunx Endura]] with [[Rewind (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rewind]]. Deep down, Chromedome's sure Rewind would leave him for [[Dominus Ambus|his previous partner]].

{{TOCclear}}

==IDW Generation 1 continuity==
{{ongoing}}
===A scientist before the war===
[[File:MTMTE9 early Chromedome.jpg|right|thumb|upright=1.1|In addition to neuroscience, his other interests include funny cat GIFs and ''[[Sherlock Holmes|Sherlock]]'' slashfic.]]
'''Tumbler of Iacon''' was [[Reproduction|constructed cold]] long before he adopted the name "Chromedome". {{storylink|Remembrance Day}} {{storylink|Remain in Light 1 of 5: The Fecund Moon|The Fecund Moon}} {{storylink|The Not Knowing}}

Before the [[Great War (G1)|war]], during the days of the [[Clampdown (event)|Clampdown]], Tumbler was a mechaforensic scientist in the police force. The poor bugger was nicknamed "Unlucky" because he had to work with [[Prowl (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Prowl]], the most anal, full-autopsy loving officer of all time. Despite Prowl's Prowlness, the two had an ambiguous, more-than-partners relationship. Tumbler had a strong interest in [[mnemosurgery]], the science of hacking into Transformer minds and "reading" their memories, and was fascinated by the conspiracy theories of the [[Institute]], a supposed secret group used by the authorities to brainwash dissidents.

Tumbler and Prowl investigated the assassination of [[Sherma|Senator Sherma]], whose corpse had been marked with a Decepticon insignia, and backtracked his whereabouts to the posh [[Translucentica Heights]]. Unfortunately, the killer had struck again before they arrived, murdering a second senator! {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} Tumbler to attempted to chase down a suspect, who perished in a fiery crash. Investigating the second victim's home, the two police 'bots learned from the warden [[Red Alert (G1)|Red Alert]] that the senator, [[Momus]] was secretly a Decepticon. The group were suddenly set upon a second attacker, but were saved by the timely arrival of [[Optimus Prime (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Orion Pax]], a fellow law enforcement officer. Pax had learned from his senator friend, [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Shockwave]] that Sherma was also a secret Decepticon sympathizer, making it clear that the murders being committed ''against'' Decepticons, rather than ''by'' them.

[[File:Chromedome notices hands Patternism.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.1]]
Pax was able to identify that the killers had been using borrowed bodies, so Prowl and Tumbler set out to investigate the nearest [[Relinquishment Clinic]], passing a Decepticon protest along the way. Although innocuous at first glance, the pair eventually found a secret facility beneath the clinic Tumbler believed to be the Institute. Along with proof that the killers had indeed been using borrowed bodies, Tumbler also discovered a list of citizens organized by threat level. Meeting back up in [[Rodion]], Orion Pax was able to use the list and other evidence he'd gathered to realize the true plot in motion: the Senate had arranged for the pro-Decepticon senators' murders so that the swift solving of the crimes would boost Decepticon faith in the Senate, increasing the turn-out for the recently created [[Decepticon Registration Act]]. The Senate then planned to detonate a bomb at the late [[Nominus Prime]]'s memorial service, hidden inside a fake [[Matrix of Leadership]], and blame it on the Decepticons, giving them an excuse to use the Registration Act list, found by Tumbler, to round up and brainwash the dissidents. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 2: Patternism|Patternism}}

With a plan to stop the bomb plot in place, Tumbler borrowed a replica Matrix from police armorer [[Ironfist (G1)|Ironfist]], to be switched by Pax for the Matrix-bomb. At a concerned Prowl's insistence, Tumbler was left behind during the 'heist' to switch the Matrix, and was instead assigned to guard Shockwave with Pax's colleague [[Roller (IDW)|Roller]] at a safehouse. Unfortunately, the safehouse was attacked by Senate thugs, and whilst Pax arrived back there in time, he was forced to allow the enforcers to take Shockwave in return for Roller's life. Tumbler quickly led Pax to the Institute facility he had found with Prowl, only to find it deserted. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}}

[[File:BeforeandAfter-TheWorseTheDeath.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|right|"Everyone calls me Chromedome, but my real name is MySpace -- wait, wait, no."]]
In the aftermath of the full-scale Decepticon rebellion, the new Prime, [[Zeta Prime (G1)|Zeta]], moved the Institute to a new, remote location, "rebranding" it as the 'New Institute'. Knowing of Tumbler's interest in neuroscience through Prowl, Zeta recruited the forensics officer as an apprentice cerebroscientist under [[Trepan]]. Working at the New Institute, he acquired the nickname "Chromedome" in reference to his prodigious skills as a mnemosurgeon and lobotomist, which he would eventually adopt as his regular name. When [[Overlord (Masterforce)|Overlord]] located and attacked the facility, Chromedome was in the middle of a procedure on the Decepticon [[Soundwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Soundwave]], but was interrupted by a blast through his midsection. Luckily, the medic [[Pharma (G1)|Pharma]] was on hand to save the mnemosurgeon's life. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}}

Over time, after the war had begun proper, Chromedome came to resent his mnenosurgical abilities and became cynical over their use. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}} Many things he had to do during wartime were things that, in hindsight, he would regret. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It}} Eventually, Chromedome was on the verge of suicide due to the immense burden of his abilities and the terrible side-effects they had on his own mental health. {{storylink|Primus: You, Me, and Other Revelations|You, Me, and Other Revelations}} It was then, at his lowest point, that he went to a repurposed Relinquishment Clinic to end it, but found [[Rewind (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rewind]] searching fruitlessly for [[Dominus Ambus]]. {{storylink|Before & After}} He formed a deep friendship with the diminutive archivist. Chromedome credited Rewind's optimism and caring nature as having saved his life, and the two were nearly inseparable since. {{storylink|Primus: You, Me, and Other Revelations|You, Me, and Other Revelations}} Indeed, [[Swerve (G1)|Swerve]] has been known to claim them as being "closer than [[Rack'n'Ruin]]" {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 2: Hangers On|Hangers On}} and Rewind had named Chromedome as his [[Conjunx Endura]]. {{storylink|Before & After}}

[[File:Brainstorm Chromedome infodump.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.55|A little known earlier detonation of the [[Metafictional bomb|meta bomb]].]]
Chromedome was stationed at [[Kimia Facility]] when [[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]] and the [[Sweep (G1)|Sweep]]s invaded. {{storylink|Chaos Part One: Lamentations|Lamentations}} He survived and managed to escape before the facility's destruction, leaving in an escape pod together with Brainstorm and a number of other Autobots. They were soon rescued by, as he put it, [[Arcee (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|a psychopath in pink armor]], and made a joke at Swerve's expense. {{storylink|Chaos Part Three: Kings|Kings}}

As Arcee told the survivors about [[Galvatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Galvatron]] and [[D-Void]]'s master plan to bring the [[Dead Universe]] into the actual universe, Chromedome and [[Brainstorm (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Brainstorm]] felt a bit overwhelmed by the massive "info dump" and wondered if other species ever had to worry about saving the universe. {{storylink|Chaos Part Four: Genesis|Genesis}}

[[File:Chromedome Prowl RemembranceDay.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|right|One prick gets another...or five.]]
Weeks later, after D-Void's threat had ended and Cybertron had been reborn, Prowl summoned Chromedome and revealed to him that Overlord, recently defeated and captured by the [[Wrecker]]s, had not in fact had his spark removed and imprisoned, as the official story had claimed. Instead, he had been rebuilt, as part of an initiative by Prowl to uncover the secret to the immense power and endurance of Overlord and the other [[Phase Sixer]]s. With interrogation and the gift of a new body ineffective in making the Decepticon prisoner talk, Chromedome's former partner now sought for him to interface with Overlord and find the secret in his memories, a complex procedure that would be highly dangerous to the mnemosurgeon. When Chromedome refused, not wanting to break his promise to Rewind to stop interfacing, Prowl attempted to blackmail him with an unsavoury secret from the mnemosurgeon's past. Desperate to avoid Rewind learning this story, Chromedome attacked Prowl and forcibly interfaced with him, erasing from his old friend's memory both the blackmail threat and the knowledge that let him make it. He subsequently left the office, telling Prowl, oblivious to his attack, that he'd consider the proposal to work on Overlord. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}}

Somewhere around that time, Chromedome and Rewind attended the Festival of Lost Light. {{storylink|Twenty Plus One}}

===The ''Lost Light''===
[[File:Chromedome Prowl Liars.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.66|"And another thing! You ''deserved'' that memory wi- aaah... I mean, what memory wipe?"]]

After Optimus Prime's subsequent appearance and departure from Cybertron, Chromedome chose to join the [[Hot Rod/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Rodimus]]'s crew of the ''[[Lost Light]]'', alongside Rewind. Prowl, angry with this decision, tried to persuade him to stay, noting that Chromedome was "gifted" and his talents were still required on Cybertron, with the plan regarding Overlord left unspoken due to Rewind's presence. Eventually, realizing he wouldn't get anywhere with the argument, Chromedome gave up and left with Rewind, leaving Prowl to fume alone in his office.

Not long afterwards, Chromedome, Rewind, and [[Ratchet (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Ratchet]] were headed to the ''Lost Light'', with Chromedome verbally jabbing at Rewind's impractical [[Alternate mode|alt mode]] along the way. Suddenly, a fight between [[Whirl (G1)|Whirl]] and [[Cyclonus (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Cyclonus]] crossed their paths, as well as [[Tailgate (G1)|Tailgate]], who had just escaped being trapped underground for six million years. Chromedome helped Tailgate out of the ground, but the small Cybertronian fainted when he saw that his escape had accidentally injured Whirl. Chromedome and the rest decided to take both Whirl and Tailgate aboard ''Lost Light'' for repairs. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 1: How to Say Goodbye and Mean It|How to Say Goodbye and Mean It}}

After the ''Lost Light'' suffered a premature [[Quantum generator|quantum jump]] and ended up halfway across the galaxy, forty Autobots were sucked out of a hull breach and sent plummeting to the surface of a nearby planetoid. Once the ship had landed there, Chromedome, Rewind, and [[Hoist (G1)|Hoist]] aided in the recovery of missing crew members, pulling the stowaway Cyclonus from a lake. Later, Chromedome and others came across [[Skids (G1)|Skids]], who had also crash-landed on the planet and was being pursued by some unknown [[Legislator|sword-carrying robots]]. After Chromedome removed the "fiddly" [[inhibitor claw]] attached to Skids, the long thought-dead Autobot sprung into action and defeated his one remaining pursuer, much to the amazement of the others. Later, Chromedome was present when Rodimus addressed the crew. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 2: Hangers On|Hangers On}}

[[File:Chromedome mnemosurgery ChaosOfWarmThings.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.66|You know, sometime I'd just like games night NOT to end in me sticking my fingers in a corpse.]]
When a [[Sparkeater (creature)|Sparkeater]] was thought to have been let loose aboard the ''Lost Light'', Rodimus asked Chromedome to use his abilities to help identify it. Despite Rewind's reservations, Chromedome complied, hacking into [[Shock (G1)|Shock]]'s mind to see the deceased Autobot's last memories. They did indeed tell of a violent attack by a Sparkeater, and Chromedome recoiled in pain and collapsed. After Chromedome recovered, he described the Sparkeater's appearance to the others. {{storylink|Liars, A to D Part 3: The Chaos of Warm Things|The Chaos of Warm Things}} After the Sparkeater business had been resolved, Chromedome and Rewind were present for the grand opening of [[Swerve's]]. {{storylink|No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases}} A few days after, he enjoyed a drink with Rewind and a tipsy Skids in [[Swerve's|Swerve's new bar]]. {{storylink|Life After the Big Bang}} When the Lost Light was hit by [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]]'s thumb (disconnected from its owner) Chromedome helped Brainstorm, Highbrow seal the hole while Trailbreaker used his forcefield to prevent them from being sucked out into the vacuum of space. He was presented with a [[Rodimus Star]] for his part in repairing the ship. Chromedome and Highbrow then discussed Rodimus Stars with Tailgate, who noted their shared "head-themed" nicknames. Later, he was paralyzed along with (nearly) everyone else on board of the ship when Brainstorm accidentally activated one of his experimental weapons. He eventually recovered, and was awarded another Rodimus Star "for exceptional endurance in the face of adversity." {{storylink|The Reluctant Specialist}} Curious about Skids's ever-present handgun (and the mental block which seemingly kept Skids from remembering it), Chromedome swiped the gun at the bar and turned it over to Brainstorm for analysis. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement (issue)|Rules of Disengagement}}

Days later, over another round of drinks, Chromedome demonstrated his talent of being able to identify someone by the sound of their transformation alone. He offered some sympathy to Tailgate over the latter's studying under Ultra Magnus and displayed disgust when Tailgate mentioned trying to invite Cyclonus over to the table. However, the casual atmosphere came to a violent end when a mentally-disturbed Fortress Maximus entered the bar and abruptly shot [[Pipes (G1)|Pipes]] at pointblank range. {{storylink|Interiors}}

Chromedome later checked in with Brainstorm to find out what was up with Skids' gun. Brainstorm managed to blow the thing up while examining it, but also named it a "binary gun" after recognizing it could only hold two cartridges. He also noted that its engineering seemed to indicate that the gun came from the Institute. {{storylink|Rules of Disengagement (issue)|Rules of Disengagement}}

[[File:Chromedome mnemosurgery MTMTEAnnual2012.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.4|Existential angst!]]
Chromedome suffered a brief bout of false recall, where he re-experienced the memory of [[Skyfall (G1)|Skyfall]]'s death- one of the unpleasant side-effects of his mnemosurgeries. He attended Tailgate's Autobot initiation ceremony, and he, Rewind, and Brainstorm placed bets with [[Jackpot (G1)|Jackpot]] as to how long it would take for Rodimus to say "[['Til all are one]]" in his speech. After representatives of the [[Galactic Council]] showed up, Chromedome was among the Autobots teleported to the surface of [[Theophany]] to explore the ruins of [[Crystal City]], which had been subject to some unknown siege and left desolate. They discovered an inert [[Titan (IDW)|Titan]] under the city, and Rodimus ordered Chromedome to hack into the giant's [[brain module]] and read its memories, hoping to discover what happened to Crystal City. While preparing to do so, Chromedome and Skids had a brief chat about their similar outlooks on life and its larger meaning. With a disapproving Rewind looking on, Chromedome hacked into the Titan's memory, and discovered it was still alive. Chromedome collapsed in pain, images torn from the Titan's brain reverberating through his mind, as the giant woke with a start and fired an eye-blast that struck the Galactic Council's ship in orbit. Once recovered, Chromedome explained that the Titan was attempting to will its [[spark]] to leave its body, having barely any power left and being totally paralyzed. Chromedome wanted to attempt to re-enter the Titan's mind, as the glimpses he caught indicated that its memories contained much of the information that they were seeking. With the Galactic Council's troops bearing down on them and the ''Lost Light'' under attack, Rodimus chose to set the Titan free instead of pillaging its mind. After some of its mass was shrunk by Brainstorm, the Titan had enough power to teleport the Autobots back to their ship, and the ''Lost Light'' quantum-jumped to safety. {{storylink|Primus: You, Me, and Other Revelations|You, Me, and Other Revelations}}

Days later Skids, inspired by his discussion with Chromedome in Crystal City, wanted to let the mnemosurgeon unlock his missing memories. Chromedome admitted that he himself was curious about the mystery of Skids' past and agreed to do it. After hacking into Skids' mind, Chromedome discovered the memories of the year prior to Skids' joining the crew of the ''Lost Light'' had been replaced by an imperative to escape. Chromedome dug deeper and found the erased memories still locked inside Skids' head, but once he caught a glimpse of them, he quickly withdrew. Chromedome told Skids that the buried memories were so horrifying and traumatic that it was better for everyone, Skids himself included, that they never resurface. Skids reluctantly agreed, but asked Chromedome about a piece of music he kept hearing in his head. Chromedome admitted that he heard it in there too, identified it as "[[The Empyrean Suite]]", and prayed that Skids would never come to understand its significance. {{storylink|Scavengers (Part 2): Who's Afraid of the DJD?|Who's Afraid of the DJD?}}

In order to restore the recovering [[Rung (G1)|Rung]]'s mind, Chromedome and others were assembled by Rewind to tell a story from the Clampdown era. Chromedome explained to the others that the story would help reestablish critical neural connections in Rung's brain. He started off the story, but he and Rewind got briefly distracted trying to figure out how many times Prowl had flipped a table over in their presence. {{storylink|Shadowplay, Part 1: Post Hoc|Post Hoc}} By the end of the story, the ship's alarms were sounding, and Chromedome scrambled for battle stations with the others. {{storylink|Shadowplay (Conclusion): An Intimate Beheading|An Intimate Beheading}}

[[File:BeforeandAfter-SilentTreatment.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|right|Not "''like'' an old married couple," they literally ''are'' an old married couple.]]

As they headed to [[Temptoria]] in the ''[[Leading Light]]'', Chromedome and Rewind argued over the latter's insistence of joining them in battle, despite being technically exempt from combat. Though Chromedome enthusiastically took part in the battle on Temptoria against a small force of Decepticons, when he returned to the shuttle, he found that Rewind had been gravely injured in an explosion. Back on the ''Lost Light'', [[First Aid (G1)|First Aid]] talked Chromedome into performing a jumpstart on Rewind to save the smaller 'Bot's spark. While waiting to hear if the procedure had worked or not, Chromedome got to chatting with Tailgate about how he and Rewind had met, of Rewind’s lost “master”, (a progressive ‘Bot by the name of [[Dominus Ambus]]). Rewind had never stopped looking for the missing Ambus and even made Chromedome promise to continue the search if anything ever happened to him.

The jumpstart procedure failed, as Chromedome's own spark was "low yield". Sent to his quarters to recharge, an emotionally vulnerable Chromedome spoke to Brainstorm through his door. Brainstorm offered to show him something in the basement that would give the Autobots an advantage and prevent any more tragedies like Rewind's from ever happening again. Before Chromedome could answer, however, First Aid contacted him with the news that Whirl had a compatible spark to be used to save Rewind. A happy reunion ensued. {{storylink|Before & After}}

Despite this, Chromedome met with Brainstorm and Drift and learned the secret of Overlord's presence on the ''Lost Light''. Despite his previous refusal to Prowl, the fresh memory of Rewind's near-death was enough for Chromedome to agree to use his talents on the Decepticon, in the hope that "Autobot Phase Sixers" could prevent any such tragedies from happening again. Over the next several days, Chromedome visited Overlord in the [[slow cell]] multiple times, acclimating himself to the Decepticon's mental architecture. As a safeguard in the event of Overlord's escape, he subtly altered the Decepticon's memories so as to make him associate the phrase "'til all are one!" with defeat in combat, knowing that Rodimus would undoubtedly say this in a battle. {{storylink|Under Cold Blue Stars}} In-between visits to Overlord, Chromedome took time to be interviewed for Rewind's documentary about life on the ''Lost Light''. {{storylink|Little Victories}}

[[File:RemembranceDay-Chromedome.jpg|thumb|upright=1.66|left|This is something Rung would also call "a super bad idea."]]
Feeling bold, Chromedome began visiting Overlord's cell without informing his co-conspirators in advance, and confronted Overlord directly in his memories. He compelled Overlord to lead him through his memories to the [[Foundry]], when [[Megatron (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Megatron]], [[Shockwave (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity|Shockwave]], and [[Rossum]] used [[ununtrium]] to reinforce his endoskeleton and transform him into one of the [[Warriors Elite]]. Although Chromedome found his answers, he was taken unawares by Overlord also having mnemosurgical training, allowing the Decepticon to loop them through a shared memory and take control of the mental environment. With Chromedome helpless, Overlord browsed through the Autobot's memories at will until he found the security codes to unlock the slow cell. With this, Overlord escaped, taunting a weakened Chromedome with the knowledge that the five seconds it would take him to cross the cell in pursuit would equal thirty minutes of killin' time for Overlord aboard the ship. {{storylink|Remembrance Day}}

Sure enough, Chromedome exited the slow cell into chaos, as the crew of the ''Lost Light'' battled vainly against the superwarrior. Luckily, a true-to-form Rodimus uttered his catch phrase, causing a sudden nervous attack in Overlord which gave Fortress Maximus an opening to overpower the Decepticon. Per Drift's back-up plan, Overlord was forced back into the slow cell, which was readied to eject into space. Tragically, one of Drift's [[sword]]s, stolen during the battle, blocked the cell door open, and heroically Rewind climbed inside the cell to remove the blade. Once he did, the door closed automatically, severing Chromedome's left arm and trapping Rewind inside with Overlord. Desperately speaking some final words to his partner (which Rewind could not hear through the door), Chromedome watched helplessly as the cell was jettisoned. Unwilling to leave Rewind to Overlord's tender mercies, Chromedome personally manned the weapons array of the ''Lost Light'' and blew the slow cell to pieces, apparently killing Rewind in the process. {{storylink|Under Cold Blue Stars}}

[[File:TheGloaming-iloveyou.jpg|thumb|upright=1.4|right|I love you too, guys!]]
As Rewind and the other victims were laid to rest, Chromedome seemed to hold together remarkably. Only Brainstorm knew what was really going on in his friend's head, and confronted Chromedome in his suite after the funeral. Brainstorm tried to remind Domey of his other Conjunx Endura over the years -- [[Mach (Victory)|Mach]], [[Pivot]], [[Scattergun]]—each of whom Chromedome forcibly removed from his own memories using mnemosurgery once they died, as he couldn't cope with the loss. Brainstorm pleaded with Chromedome not to do it again, and honor Rewind by remembering him. He passed on a final message from Rewind, a memory stick the little bot threw through the cell door as it was closing. These final words and expression of love from Rewind were enough to stop Chromedome from injecting and convince him to hold onto the memory of his lost love. {{storylink|The Gloaming}}

[[File:RemainInLight2-ChromedomeAltMode.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|left]]
Shortly afterwards, Chromedome visited Ratchet in the medibay for reconstruction of his left arm. As he entered, a [[cybercrosis|panicked]] Tailgate barged past him. Before work on the arm was complete, the ''Lost Light'', pursuing the missing Ultra Magnus, arrived at a vast portal in space, and Chromedome watched from the observation deck. Beyond the portal was the long lost [[Moonbase One|Luna 1]], and the mnemosurgeon was recruited by Rodimus for the landing party. The group descended, though not before Chromedome promised Skids to search for answers regarding his amnesia, and on the moon's surface they found an active hot spot of gestating [[spark]]s. Before long, however, the party was set upon by [[Lockdown (G1)|Lockdown]] and his cadre of [[Titan Hunter]]s, {{storylink|Remain in Light 1 of 5: The Fecund Moon|The Fecund Moon}} forcing them to flee into a nearby [[Titan (body-type)|Titan]] "graveyard". Their flight was futile, and the entire group was soon captured, whereupon their gracious host was revealed as [[Tyrest (G1)|Tyrest]], who accused them of crimes against creation. On the way to their cell, Chromedome noticed an apparently immobile Ultra Magnus. The landing party quickly got to chatting with their new cellmate, who revealed himself to be [[Minimus Ambus]], spark brother of Rewind's lost friend [[Dominus Ambus]]. Even though they were all locked up at the behest of Tyrest, Chromedome didn't share Tailgate's impatience to escape their shared prison cell. He quickly chastised the [[Mini Vehicle|Minibot]] for calling him "Domey", the personal nickname that Rewind once used. The group stewed in their prison for some time until an observant Rung deduced something from Minimus's mannerisms—that their cellmate was none other than Ultra Magnus! {{storylink|Remain in Light 2 of 5: House of Ambus|House of Ambus}}

Chromedome listened intently to Minimus's explanation with the others, learning the secret of the [[Magnus Armor]]. When Skids and Swerve were teleported into their holding cell and Skids was revealed by Minimus to be considered a criminal, Chromedome assumed it had something to do with the "binary gun" the theoretician had been carrying. When Tyrest's enforcer [[Star Saber (Victory)|Star Saber]] introduced them to another new cellmate, Chromedome revealed to Skids that he had read his memories wrong. What he had thought was a buried imperative in Skids's mind to "escape", was actually a name- the name of their new cellmate, [[Getaway]]! {{storylink|Remain in Light 3 of 5: The Divided Self|The Divided Self}}

[[File:ArmTheLonely-Chromedome.jpg|thumb|upright=1.6|Sometimes we like to throw a bone to the artists out there looking for a rear-view reference shot.]]
Getaway explained things to Chromedome and the others, formally identifying the binary gun as a [[nudge gun]]. With Getaway's help, Chromedome was able to connect the dots and understand the gaps in Skids's memory. Once everyone found out that Tyrest had gone mad and needed to be stopped, Getaway asked for donated parts from his cellmates to escape their prison. For his part, Chromedome gave Getaway the syringes from his fingers, allowing the escapist to take down the Legislator guarding them. The group armed-up and headed to Tyrest's control room for a confrontation. Unfortunately, the Chief Justice was prepared for them, activating a weapon that paralyzed the Autobots. Tyrest then turned on his [[universal killswitch]], a device intended to kill any Transformers that were [[Reproduction|constructed cold]]. Having been so, Chromedome began dying slowly and painfully. {{storylink|Remain in Light 4 of 5: Arm the Lonely|Arm the Lonely}} Ultimately, the killswitch was deactivated and Tyrest's plans foiled. In the aftermath, Chromedome visited a dying Tailgate, whose [[cybercrosis]] was in its final stages. Noting Cyclonus's bedside vigil, Chromedome respectfully departed to let the two say their goodbyes. {{storylink|Remain in Light 5 of 5: This Calamitous Life|This Calamitous Life}}

After Orion Pax arrived aboard the ''Lost Light'', Chromedome attended the welcome party at Swerve's. {{storylink|Black Metal: Dark Cybertron Chapter 2|Black Metal}} He took part in the underwater battle on [[Hydrophena]], defending [[Metroplex (G1)|Metroplex]] against the [[Ammonite]] forces, {{storylink|Into the Abyss: Dark Cybertron Chapter 4|Into the Abyss}} {{storylink|The Dead Are Not Enough: Dark Cybertron Chapter 7|The Dead Are Not Enough}} and was teleported along with the rest ''Lost Light'' to Cybertron after they managed to get the Titan's space bridge in working order. {{storylink|Burning Bright: Dark Cybertron Chapter 8|Burning Bright}} Crash-landing on the planet's surface, Chromedome disembarked with the rest of the crew and fought in the massive battle against their Ammonite attackers and the undead [[Necrotitan]]. {{storylink|Finis Temporis: Dark Cybertron Chapter 9|Finis Temporis}}

[[File:TheBecoming-throw.jpg|left|thumb|upright=1.6|Prowl just can't BELIEVE someone would throw him off a cliff just for laughing at a widower.]]
In the aftermath of the Necrotitan's defeat, Ultra Magnus tried to convince Chromedome to read Metroplex's mind, a request the mnemosurgeon rebuffed. Feeling depressed, he went to ruminate atop a cliff on the outskirts of New Iacon, where Prowl found him. A bitter argument erupted between the two, with Prowl blaming Chromedome's earlier mnemosurgery on him for leaving his mind vulnerable to [[Bombshell (G1)|Bombshell]]'s control, and Chromedome faulting Prowl for smuggling Overlord aboard the ''Lost Light''. Rage overcame Chromedome when Prowl expressed pleasure that this had indirectly led to Rewind's death, and he attacked the police-bot, hurling him off a cliff and pummeling him until Ultra Magnus intervened. {{storylink|The Becoming: Dark Cybertron Chapter 10|The Becoming}} However, the altercation was cut short by 70 billion more of Shockwave's Ammonites, who Chromedome engaged on the ground alongside Whirl and Arcee. {{storylink|...And the Damage Done: Dark Cybertron Finale|...And the Damage Done}}

===Continuing adventures===
In an attempt to expedite Megatron's trial, Optimus Prime attempted to have him let Chromedome extract his memories for use in court, which the former Decepticon leader vehemently refused to allow, citing his fear that the extraction might be used as a cover for [[Shadowplay]]. After watching the trial play out, Chromedome rejoined the ''Lost Light'' expedition, but eventually fell into a deep depression, shutting himself away in his habitation suite and listening to Rewind's final message over and over in the dark, much to the concern of his friends. Chromedome was startled into action, however, when the last words of his lover's message suddenly changed into an agonized scream. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 1: Towards Peace|Towards Peace}} Deeply perturbed, he sought out [[Nightbeat (G1)|Nightbeat]] for some answers, and while initially angered by the detective's skeptcism, the appearance of Rewind's apparent ghost galvanized Nightbeat into action. The two returned to Nightbeat's quarters to gather more detective equipment, where Chromedome voiced his belief that he was probably being punished for not continuing to search for Dominus Ambus, but their conjecture was interrupted by the discovery that the outside wall of Nightbeat's hab suite had just... disappeared. {{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 2: Words Hang in the Air|Words Hang in the Air}} A few minutes later, Rodimus summoned Chromedome and Nightbeat, but mainly Chromedome, to examine what appeared to be his own corpse, ignoring Chromedome's concerns about injecting into a corpse. All Chromedome was able to find were Rodimus's "red letter" days, which combined with the matching energon caused something of an existential crisis in Rodimus. Then the wall behind everyone vanished.

When it turned out that the ship was slowly and inexplicably vanishing, Chromedome evacuated on the [[Rodpod]].{{storylink|World, Shut Your Mouth Part 3: Predestination: A Beginner's Guide|Predestination: A Beginner's Guide}} Then crewmembers started disappearing as well, Chromedome included. {{storylink|Twenty Plus One}}

As it turned out, the quantum engine failure of the original launch of the ''Lost Light'' had created second ''Lost Light''. This duplicate stayed on the right heading but had been attacked and destroyed by the [[Decepticon Justice Division|DJD]] 18 months prior. The Chromedome on this alternate ship refused to wipe his memories of Rewind even after being threatened by the DJD, so [[Vos (DJD)|the DJD member Vos]] snapped off his finger-needles and stabbed them into his head. {{storylink|slaughterhouse Part 2: The Road Not Taken|The Road Not Taken}} The Necrobot thus added the quantum duplicate Chromedome's name to his list of deceased Transformers. {{storylink|Scavengers (Part 2): Who's Afraid of the DJD?|Who's Afraid of the DJD?}}

[[File:TheRoadNotTaken-ChromedomeRewind.jpg|upright=1.6|thumb|*fart*]]
Once the sole surviving member of the duplicate ''Lost Light''<nowiki>'</nowiki>s crew (Rewind) reset the quantum engines, the main ''Lost Light'' and its original crew members began to return. Chromedome, once he returned, was immediately given a set of magna-clamps by Skids and told to go to the outside of the ship. Out there, he saw Rewind, sitting on the ledge. The two sat side-by-side for a while, and then embraced.
{{storylink|slaughterhouse Part 2: The Road Not Taken|The Road Not Taken}} Upon their return to the ''Lost Light'', Rewind opted to live in his own, separate hab suite, which upset Chromedome. Rewind explained that the two weren't technically each other's actual spouse and that he felt more comfortable starting out again with Chromedome with some degree of separation. {{storylink|The Custom-Made Now - An Elegant Chaos Prologue|The Custom-Made Now}}

Subsequently the pair learned that Brainstorm was revealed to be a Decepticon and, worse, he had traveled back in time to allegedly murder Orion Pax at the beginning of the war. Because the two had a compatible spark type with Brainstorm, they joined a small similarly-sparked team who would time travel after Brainstorm to find and stop him. In the event that the team would inadvertently reveal the future to inhabitants of the past, Chromedome was temporarily augmented with the ability to erase anyone's memory with a simple handshake. The time traveling team first landed in [[1st Cycle 502]], four million years ago, while Optimus Prime's team of [[Outlier]]s protected a [[hot spot]] from Senate-sent raiders. After needing to follow Brainstorm again through another time jump, Chromedome shook hands with everyone, accidentally causing Optimus Prime and the others to forget [[Roller (IDW)|Roller]]'s fate and—to Rodimus's horror—fail to permanently warn Trailbreaker about his death in four million years. {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 1: All Our Parlous Yesterdays|All Our Parlous Yesterdays}} The team's next stop was in [[51st Cycle 500]], where Chromedome confronted the new problem of potentially bumping into himself. Brainstorm timejumped again (to [[4th Cycle 499]]) and the team followed, and this time Chromedome and Rewind staked out the [[Rodion]] police headquarters with Whirl. As they waited, Rewind troubled Chromedome with the suggestion of possibly using time travel to save Rewind's previous spouse, Dominus Ambus. Their discussion of timetravel ethics was interrupted when three Senate thugs arrived at Police HQ, setting off Whirl on a rampage due to his shared history with them. Chromedome and Rewind managed to stop Whirl, but not before they accidentally caused the chain of events that would later lead to Senator Shockwave's capture. {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 2: Stet|Stet}} Brainstorm timejumped a final time, and Chromedome and the others once again followed. They found Brainstorm pointing a gun at Megatron as he was being built, as it had been determined that Brainstorm wasn't trying to kill Orion Pax after all, but attempting to curb the rise of Megatron at various points in his history but Brainstorm ultimately decided on murdering him at his birth when his previous plans went awry thanks to his timetraveling stalkers. As the others talked him down, Rewind decided to kill Megatron himself to thwart Megatron's would-be galaxy-wide genocide, and Chromedome consoled his spouse in the wake of his murder. However, the group did not end up changing history, as they were meant to be there, and Megatron's murder was in fact part of his pre-established history. With Megatron given a second spark, Chromedome's team tied up loose ends and returned to their own time. Chromedome reaching out to Rewind in his vulnerable moment had caused the two to bridge the rift that had been between them, and the pair began to share a hab suite once again. {{storylink|Elegant Chaos Part 3: Predestination: An Expert's Guide|Predestination: An Expert's Guide}}

Sometime after returning, Chromedome spoke to the ship's higher ups, arguing that Rewind's actions were down to trauma from what had happened to him, as a result of which no action was charged against him. A few days later, Chromedome served as Brainstorm's defense, when he was the first 'bot to be brought before the Lost Light Internal Affairs Committee. {{storylink|Our Steps Will Always Rhyme}}

[[File:TheOneWhereTheyGoToEarth-table.jpg|left|thumb|180px|Ultra Magnus was shunned after admitting his favourite season was the fourth.]]

In the aftermath of the ''Lost Light'' attending Thunderclash's pre-wake, the ship held a dance-off, where Chromedome and Rewind attended, dancing together. {{storylink|The Frail Gaze}} Shortly after, it turned out Swerve was dying. The only way to find out why required the crew to travel to a giant projection of Earth he was generating, Chromedome being among them. The reason turned out to be an old injury, inflicted by the secretive Agent 113 as part of his unorthodox method of relaying information. {{storylink|The One Where They Go to Earth}} Among the information was a revelation about the legendary Necrobot. Chromedome was present as Rewind "West Winged" Rodimus about the mysterious being, and when the command crew talked about the situation. It was Chromedome who spoke up in favor of investigating, partly in support of Rewind, who wanted to ask them about the fate of Dominus Ambus. Megatron decided to agree with them.

On the way to the planet in the Rodpod, Chromedome supported a nervous Rewind. On landing, the crew noticed many statues, representing people still living. With help from Mainframe, Chromedome learnt there was a central database all the statues were connected to, and using that it was possible to learn who still had a statue switched on and who didn't, meaning he could figure out whether Dominus was still alive. Rewind was understandably terrified and hesitant, asking Chromedome what to do. He felt it wasn't for him to chose, but if they didn't and spent the next four million years searching, they'd at least be together. Then it turned out Rewind had searched anyway, and Dominus was listed deactivated.

Later, Chromedome tried to comfort Rewind by offering to "smudge" his memories of what happened, only for Nightbeat to show up wanting to show them something. It was a list of unaccounted-for bots, and at the bottom was Dominus's name. {{storylink|The Not Knowing}}

A few days later, Chromedome and Rewind were at Swerve's together, their hand-holding witnessed by a passing Cyclonus. {{storylink|The Lopsided Triangle}} Shortly thereafter, Cyclonus and Tailgate were involved in an altercation. Wondering what had just happened, Rodimus had Chromedome inject into Cyclonus. The injection took a heavy strain on Chromedome. {{storylink|Speak, Memory: Part 1}} A few hours later, the serial killer Sunder went on a rampage through the ''Lost Light'', his first victim being Skids. Chromedome soon turned up, and realized Skids was remembering the events at Grindcore that had caused the amnesia Chromedome had examined the year before. He injected to try and make sure Skids didn't remember what had happened, while Rung and Tailgate went after Sunder. {{storylink|Speak, Memory! (Part 2)}}

Around December of that year, Chromedome was one of many crewmembers who took advantage of "time fissures" present in Swerve's to look back on the past, including "his" Rewind, something Rung warned him against. Afterward he took part in a toast to "surprises". {{storylink|No Guns, No Swords, No Briefcases}}

Some months later, Chromedome was one of several members of the crew who took part in a fight on [[Miliarium]]. Many hours after that, Rewind was subjected to a psychic assault, one of many crewmembers who where. Chromedome was one of those who boarded the Rodpod to track the signal to its source. The Rodpod soon wound up inside a hollow planet, which turned out to be the Necrobot's home. Before anyone could ponder that mystery, they were attacked. The ship managed to get to the Necrobot's fortress before being blasted down. Then they got the news: they'd been lured into a trap by the rest of the crew, who were fed up with Megatron, and those who "supported" him, as well as Rodimus, and they'd let Getaway go as part of their mutiny. And just because things weren't bad enough, the D.J.D. were coming. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light: (1) How Bright Their Frail Deeds|How Bright Their Frail Deeds}} The D.J.D. stuck to their script, and retreated after an initial assault, giving everyone eight hours to prepare. It was Chromedome who summed everything up, no weapons, no defenses, no escape route and no way to call for help. Nightbeat soon discovered a teleport chamber, but Velocity had found something else: A whole basement filled with pods containing organic life-forms. After some debate, it turned out no-one was willing to leave. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 2: The Sun in Flight|The Sun in Flight}} Afterward, Chromedome took a moment to recover from his injecting Cyclonus all those months ago, something he and Rewind argued about, along with them both feeling the other should have used the teleport chamber to escape. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 3: Your Fierce Tears|Your Fierce Tears}} At the same time, a re-appeared Ratchet and Drift had turned up with the D.J.D.'s Pet. Rodimus wanted to interrogate him, something supposedly impossible given it couldn't talk. Then a still-weak Chromedome volunteered. An hour later, after recording his last will and testament, he prepared to operate. Despite Rodimus's orders to just do a quick probe of recent memories, Chromedome began feeling off. Ignoring Ratchet's demand to stop, he went deeper.

[[File:it's not your decision to make.jpg|right|thumb|250px|]]

He found The Pet was actually a "domesticated" beast-former, but he felt confident he could reverse the process, even as Ratchet pointed out the procedure was killing him. 'Dome argued he was too deep into the Pet's brain by that point. Then he got into the memories and made a horrific discovery: The Pet was Dominus Ambus. Even as Ratchet and Rewind yelled at him to stop, he kept going, feeling (and saying) that Rewind couldn't have room for both the people he loved in his life. Rewind sliced off Chromedome's arm, leaving Dominus to die.

Some hours later, with D.J.D.-related death imminent, a repaired Chromedome morosely agreed with Velocity's encasement of the day's proceedings as "torture". {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 4: At Close of Day|At Close of Day}} Then Velocity hit on an idea to get out of things: since extreme trauma to Tailgate had made his quantum-engine radiated spark surge and briefly power up others, doing that now could give them an edge against the enemy. Skids stepped forward and Chromedome, to his dismay, had to help his friend relieve the horrors of Grindcore and all the blotted-out guilt, his last injection being to drive him over the edge.

[[File:mtmte54 KRACK.jpg|left|thumb|250px|Fun? FUN?! How DARE you! How many have to die for you to get your sick jollies?! HOW MANY?]]

Supercharged and charging into battle, Chromedome was sought out by Overlord and mocked with what he'd done to the first Rewind ''so Chromedome punched him hard across the battlefield.'' But too soon, the charge burned out and Chromedome and the others were surrounded on all sides. Only the arrival of Megatron, armed with a new fusion cannon, allowed them to fall back to the fortress. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 5: Rage, Rage|Rage, Rage}} During all of the carnage and high drama of Megatron's obliteraton of the D.J.D., Chromedome stayed at the back, silently looking at Skids' dead body. {{storylink|The Dying of the Light Part 6: Do Not Go Gentle|Do Not Go Gentle}}

{{charstubfiction|{{storylink|The Last Autobot}} {{storylink|Dissolution Part 1: Some Other Cybertron|Some Other Cybertron}}}}

{{-}}

==INSIRT continuity==
[[File:Timeless-EjectChromedomeStylor.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2]]
Long ago on Cybertron, Chromedome served in the [[Autobot Police]] and harbored an interest in the field of mnemosurgery. Over time, he was able to use his highly decorated partner Prowl's status to pursue this interest, developing the ability to extract information directly from a suspect's mind. However, as time passed, Chromedome found himself called upon not only to read minds, but rewrite them, altering a subject's memories and personality. Seeking to escape the burden of these duties, he buried his past and his talents. Eventually, though, he would come to meet Rewind, another Autobot with an interest in memories. Though it took some time, Chromedome eventually let the smaller Autobot into his life. {{storylink|Chromedome (G1)#Timelines|''Timelines'' Chromedome bio card}}

Some time later, Chromedome and Rewind would become crewmembers of the ''Lost Light'', and, along with [[Stylor]] and ex-Decepticon mercenary [[Treadshot (G1)|Treadshot]], formed the [[INSIRT|Intelligence and Notable Surreptitious Information Recovery Team]], a group tasked with uncovering any mysteries that might threaten the ship's quest to find the Knights of Cybertron. {{storylink|INSIRT|INSIRT Tech Spec}} INSIRT's duties took them to the [[Vestigial Cortical Complex]], a Decepticon memory storage facility that Rewind became very excited about. After they located the facility, an impatient Treadshot made a door by way of explosion, allowing Chromedome, Rewind and Stylor to file inside. {{storylink|Timeless}}

At some point Rewind died, and [[Brainstorm (G1)/IDW Generation 1 continuity#Recordicons|Brainstorm]] set Chromedome up on a date with [[Eject (G1)#Recordicons|Eject]]. {{storylink|Recordicons#Recordicons #27|Recordicons #27}}
{{-}}

==Notes==
* "Timeless" co-writer [[Jesse Wittenrich]] would [http://www.allspark.com/forums/topic/99399-post-pictures-of-your-special-arm/page-1044#entry3318823 later reveal] his intention that the Rewind depicted in the story was being projected into Chromedome's mind by Stylor, and that the actual Rewind was deceased. Vestigial remnants of this plot point remain in the published comic, in the form of Stylor's constant physical contact with Chromedome, and Treadshot never acknowledging Rewind. Whether this holds true in the completed comic or is merely [[authorial intent]] is an exercise left to the reader.

[[Category:IDW Generation 1 Autobots]]
[[Category:Lost Light crew]]