Prowl 2
| The name or term "Prowl" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Prowl (disambiguation). |
- Prowl 2 is an Autobot from the Robots in Disguise continuity family.
Prowl 2 was born out of the Binaltech Project when the original Prowl died.
Fiction
Ask Vector Prime
Prowl 2’s origin is traced back to the Temporal Nexus that is the Binaltech Project. Following the death of Prowl in the OG World, Prowl and Wheeljack returned back to their original timeline. Wheeljack had brought Prowl's Beta BT unit with them even though he was a little wary after the death of his OG World Doppelganger. They eventually transferred their sparks to OG World bodies, leaving their BT bodies in storage. Prowl 2 was created from that Beta BT unit, which is a striking electric blue body created as a BT backup for Prowl but it was never used. Like the primary unit, it was programmed with Prowl's memory engrams and personality.It was locked away for many, many centuries until It was rediscovered when Fire Convoy was beginning preparations to travel to the year 2000 in pursuit of the Destrongers at the request of the Convoy Council. Since the memories contained within that Beta BT unit were invaluable to the Autobots, the body was rebuilt using Spychanger technology and infused with life by Vector Sigma and Prowl 2 was born. He taught the Dimensional Patrol much about life in late 20th century Earth, and although he volunteered to join Fire Convoy's team, Heinrad thought it was too risky to mess with it’s timeline. So Prowl 2 remained in the future, anxiously awaiting word from his teammates about their mission to earth. Ask Vector Prime
Identity
Prowl 2 only exists as a toy in the Robots in Disguise line with no bio or story appearances to explain who he is. A handful of other characters received Spy Changer toys, though most of them looked more like their larger versions and they lacked the anomalous "2" suffix. The "Super" redecoes of the Deluxe RID Car Brothers were listed in store computers with the numeral "2" following their names. The "Prowl 2" Spy Changer's deco is not dissimilar to the redeco of Deluxe Prowl, and it is entirely reasonable to assume that it was intended as a Spy Changer version of that toy. This might have remained simply an odd footnote in Transformers lore, but then the Binaltech fiction used the name "Prowl 2" for its own incarnation of Prowl (who would, in a later retcon, be rolled into a Beast Wars character as "Prowl II").
Some fans pass the Binaltech reference off as merely a nod, since Binaltech takes place in a branch of the original The Transformers cartoon timeline. However, the Generation 1 cartoon and Car Robots (the original Japanese version of Robots in Disguise) are actually in the same universe according to Japanese continuity. On the other hand, Prowl 2 wasn't in Car Robots; he was an American addition. On the other other hand, Binaltech's writer, Hirofumi Ichikawa, is famously knowledgeable of non-Japanese Transformers, and he even worked another anomalous Robots in Disguise suffix into Binaltech terminology. Moreover, even if the series are viewed as separate, Robots in Disguise is no stranger to dimension hoppers.
The upshot of it all was that no one can say who Prowl 2 "really" is. The evidence was too scant and inconclusive until an 2015 entry of Ask Vector Prime rectified things.
Toys
Robots in Disguise (2001)
- Side Swipe & Prowl 2 (Basic 2-pack, 2001)
- Originally an unreleased Generation 2 Go-Bots mold, Prowl transforms into a police car. He has through-axle construction to allow for super-fast rolling in car mode. Like his fellow "new"-mold teammates, his rifle stores under his car mode. He was available in a two-pack with Side Swipe.
- Prowl 2 (Tiny Tins, 2001)
- Prowl 2 was one of several Robots in Disguise toys to be sold as an individual in a Tiny Tins release, with a pocket-sized carrying case. The actual toy is unchanged from the two-pack version.
Notes
- Prowl 2 was the first official release of a mold originally intended to be released as part of the Generation 2 Go-Bots sub-line. Presently, the original identity of the mold is unknown.
