Prowl/Cartoon continuity

The Transformers cartoon
Prowl was part of the crew of the Ark, the Autobot starship that left Cybertron looking for alternate sources of energy. While enroute he monitored the Viewtrex and detected the Decepticons pursuing them. The Decepticons boarded and the ensuing conflict caused the Ark to crashland on Earth. Four million years later, the Transformers were reawakened by the eruption of the volcano the Ark had crashed in and reformatted by Teletraan I. Prowl was reformatted as a Datsun 280Z police car. When the Autobots first fought the Decepticons on Earth, aboard an oceanic oil refinery, Prowl teamed with Jazz in shooting up the Decepticons' supply of energon cubes.

The two Autobots worked together again when Soundwave invaded the Ark for information. The crafty Decepticon got away, but Prowl and Jazz managed to capture his pet, Ravage, in a solid energy net. Prowl joined the Autobots for their subsequent battles at Sherman Dam and the ruby crystal mines of Burma. During the final fight at the Decepticon space cruiser, Prowl ran over Starscream's null-ray before he could "activate" it.

Prowl and the Autobots next battled the Decepticons at a solar power station. Prowl and Ratchet attempted to stop Starscream and Skywarp from escaping with the energon cubes, but Starscream started launching concussive blasts, knocking aside their lasers and driving them back. Later that day, Prowl zapped Megatron during a cave fight, but was then clubbed from behind by Skywarp. That's snow fair.

While Prowl and his twin brother Bluestreak battled the Decepticons, Prowl's battle computer was knocked offline by a particularly fierce blow. Crippled, Prowl extended his antenna to seek out an online computer that he could patch into. He found Chip Chase's desktop terminal, and the young human ally momentarily took control of Prowl, animating the Autobot warrior with his computer. Chip and Prowl handily defeated the Decepticons, and the Autobot remarked that Chip was a human after his own central processor. After Optimus Prime suffered some brief but severe injuries, Prowl was present with the other Autobots in defending the Ark, as the Decepticons attempted to press their advantage.

Prowl was also among the Autobots who took an unpleasant number of hits trying to calm down the rampaging Dinobots. He held no grudges, though, and participated in the construction of two new Dinobots a few months later, using laser bursts to cut up raw materials for the design. Still, he showed a bit more caution than his fellow Autobots during the "play fighting" tests of Snarl and Swoop. While Ironhide, Bluestreak and Sideswipe went in for close quarters combat with the Dinos (and subsequently got bashed around quite a bit), Prowl stuck to long-range laser fire, and managed to avoid getting his head handed to him.

After Sparkplug Witwicky was kidnapped, Prowl was shown acting as a strategist for once, constructing battle-plans using Hound's holographic maps for reference. He coordinated a two-pronged rescue mission on the Decepticon's sunken space cruiser, from above and below. While he and the main Autobot force dropped in on the Decepticons from above and drew their fire, Cliffjumper, Brawn and Windcharger used their special abilities to tunnel right underneath the base, breaking in and freeing Sparkplug before the Decepticons got wind of it. He remained active with the Autobot forces as they dealt with Cybertron's newfound proximity to Earth. Prowl later surfed into battle against the Decepticons, but the resulting tidal wave allowed Megatron to escape before the fight even started. A small contingent of Autobots eventually tracked the Decepticon energon shuttle to a tropical coast, and engaged them in battle. The fully charged Decepticons soon began to overpower the Autobots, however, driving them back to the safety of some convenient trenches. Prowl attempted to suggest a strategic regrouping, but Prime wouldn't hear of it. Luckily, Skyfire arrived with reinforcements from Cybertron to even the odds. As Megatron retreated, the Autobots were left to deal with a tidal wave large enough to wipe out all life on Earth. Prowl calculated they would need an explosion equivalent to 10 billion astro-liters of energy to knock Cybertron out of Earth's orbit and reverse the tidal wave. At Spike's suggestion, the Autobots took aim at Megatron's fleeing starship, igniting the energon cubes inside to expel Cybertron from orbit and save the Earth. After the devastation, Prowl was seen helping repair human civilization, and hunting down the loose ends left by the Decepticons' schemes. Prowl also bore witness to the gladiatorial combat between Megatron and Optimus Prime.

After Sparkplug Witwicky created a metallic Frankenstein called Autobot X, to the abject surprise of no one it suddenly ran amok. Prowl, Ironhide and Trailbreaker stood up to the crazed creation, and Prowl used his acid pellets to incapacitate Autobot X. Later that day, Spike Witwicky was injured during a battle with the Decepticons at a rocket base. Prowl provided a "police escort" for Ratchet to get Spike to a hospital as quickly as possible. As the Decepticons staged a daring raid at the Ark's front door, Prowl drove out to meet them in combat. He had to dodge and transform in mid-air to avoid Thundercracker's missiles, and ended up being divebombed by Laserbeak anyhow. Prowl got back at the tinfoil turkey by strapping a wire-guided bola onto his rifle, and lassoing the Decepticon bird as he swooped by for another pass. Despite the laser blasts hurled his way, Prowl held tight to his catch until Laserbeak severed the rope and fled. When he went back to recharge at headquarters, a ploy by Megatron altered his personality components and he went on an angry red-eyed rampage with the rest of the altered Autobots until their circumstances were overturned.

Prowl overheard Cliffjumper's infamous accusations about Mirage's loyalty, but neglected to participate in the retrieval of the missing electro-cells. He also played a minor role in recovering the Immobilizer, and joined his fellow Autobots in a race for charity, which Spike and Chip had arranged for them. Prowl was part of the Autobot strike unit dispatched to Washington, D.C. when it came under attack by the Decepticons and Sub-Atlanticans. He, Hound and Brawn engaged the Decepticons near the Washington Monument, until King Nergill zapped them with his paralyzing ray. Prowl remained inactive until the Dinobots joined the party, and Grimlock destroyed the ray, freeing the incapacitated Autobots.

Next, the Autobots responded to an SOS when the super-computer called TORQ III ran amok. Unfortunately, they discovered TORQ was capable of controlling other simple machines in the area, and so Prowl and the others found themselves facing a horde of angry droids. Prowl was nearly swallowed whole by a mechanical scoop, until he fired an acid pellet down its gullet and corroded its inner workings. Prowl was among the Autobots who failed to prevent the Decepticons from stealing the female ninja robot called Nightbird. While discussing the Decepticons' possible plans for Nightbird with Spike, Prowl was unaware the ninja herself was right above them on the Ark's elevator.

Prowl charged the Decepticon flank when the Transformers were fighting over korlonium crystals. Prowl and Sunstreaker were part of a group of Autobots patrolling a riverbed... until they discovered the riverbed wasn't there anymore. Tracing the diverted water, they came across the Constructicons and a Decepticon scheme to drill down to Earth's core. Megatron sicced Devastator on Prowl's team, forcing them to retreat for reinforcements. Back at the Ark, the Autobots cooked up a plot to use dominator discs and gain control over the Constructicons whenever they formed Devastator. As part of a commando raiding party, Prowl and the others lured the Constructicons out into the open. Under the cover of night, Prowl slipped a disk on Scrapper, and soon all the Constructicons had disks planted on them. Although the Autobots temporarily gained control of Devastator, Megatron soon negated their control and retrieved his giant warrior.

Prowl was present in the Ark during yet another display of the Dinobots' talent for chaos. After the Dinobots moved to a mysterious prehistoric island, time portals began opening all over North America. Prowl led Red Alert, Inferno and Jazz to deal with a portal from the wild west. Prowl defeated the cattle rustlers by melting their guns with his acid pellets. Like all the Autobots, Prowl was temporarily banished into space by the citizens of Central City, thanks to Megatron's carefully orchestrated smear campaign. He eventually returned with the others for an all-out assault on the Decepticons and re-established the Autobots' good name. Prowl was also subject to cybertonium depletion, although he was ultimately revived when Spike and Carly brought a fresh supply back from Cybertron.

When Megatron used the Voltronic Galaxer to scramble Earth's communications, the humans were left in a state of confusion. Prowl took a team of Autobots on the road to help motorists who missed the message about an incoming blizzard. Unfortunately, Thundercracker and Ramjet got involved and nearly turned the rescue mission into a catastrophe. Prowl and the Autobots were buried in snow for a time until they could dig themselves and the humans out. He was among the Autobots temporarily rendered invulnerable by electrum, and fought the Decepticons for control of the golden lagoon. He also helped stop Megatron from taking over New York City with an army of robot car drones. Prowl was on hand as Perceptor analyzed the robotic plant-life Bumblebee and Cosmos brought back to Earth. They determined the plants were Morphobots, and extremely hazardous to all robot lifeforms.

When the Triple Changers overthrew Megatron and began vying for Decepticon command themselves, Blitzwing took over a football stadium and began launching "long bombs" into the city beyond. Optimus Prime sent Prowl to investigate, alongside Bluestreak, Skids and Tracks, but they were stymied by Blitzwing's "zone defense". At his command, the Constructicons had created an elaborate and confusing maze of passages outside the stadium, leaving the Autobots racing around blindly inside its tight corridors. Using his flight and tank modes for maneuverability and power, Blitzwing easily overwhelmed the Autobot invaders. Prowl and Skids plowed into each other on a blind junction, and were then mowed over by the Decepticon's massive treads. The crazed Scrapper had them rebuilt into a throne for him inside the zone, until Smokescreen and Hoist rescued their comrades. Although he did absolutely nothing to save the missing Autobots or stop Lord Chumley's antics, Prowl was allowed a heroic drive into the sunset along with Optimus Prime and the rest of the Autobots.

After the government concocted a new super-fuel, they decided to offer it to the Autobots for testing. Fearing a Decepticon attack, Prowl arranged a series of security measures to protect the cargo, and keep the Decepticons from learning about the fuel. Unfortunately, those measures failed, and Megatron attacked the tanker convoy with his Seekers. Despite the breach, the Autobots' superior driving abilities enabled them to outmaneuver the Decepticons.

Prowl stood gawking mutely when Prime explained his plan to infiltrate the Decepticons disguised as Motormaster and the Stunticons. It's possible he didn't think the plan was strategically sound. Prowl was also seen applying Corrostop to the Statue of Liberty, and later helped rescue Perceptor from Fox Creek Canyon.

When Jazz and Cliffjumper were kidnapped by Starscream's Combaticons, Prowl traveled to the Amalgamated Water & Power Plant with the other Autobots to rescue them. Wisely, the Autobots completely avoided the war between the Decepticons and Combaticons taking place immediately to their left — they just grabbed their pals and split. Prowl, Tracks, and Sideswipe went with Optimus Prime to clear the Insecticons out of a human settlement. They were aided in evacuating the neighborhood by the Protectobots, leaving the Autobots clear to fire at will at the Insecticon clones. This relatively routine mission turned sour, however, when Spike and Perceptor reported that Earth's orbit had been altered, sending it towards the sun. Learning the effect originated from Cybertron, Prowl and the others attempted to hijack the space bridge, but Shrapnel stole the bridge's control panel before they could board the transporter. The Autobots searched the area for signs of the control panel with sensor beams from their chests, but all Prowl managed to turn up was an old wrecked television. The panel was later recovered and repaired, and Prowl joined both Autobots and Decepticons alike in traveling to Cybertron to stop the Combaticons' plot. Prowl also helped defend the Ark when it was later attacked by Bruticus and the Decepticons.