ALLEGIANCE: AUTOBOT
FUNCTION: MILITARY STRATEGIST AND ANALYST
FIRST APPEARANCE: TRANSFORMERS # 1

“Logic is the ultimate weapon.”

Profile: He is quiet, competent, and very loyal, but perhaps his most
valuable trait is his almost endless patience. Once Prowl is assigned a task,
he will keep at it until it is accomplished. He works with proven facts, not
imagination or guesses. If he has any doubts, he will radio Optimus Prime, his
commander, before proceeding. He hates doubts in any form, and he strives to
make everything he encounters reasonable and logical. He believes it only when
he can explain it. On a personal level he is friendly, but not too sociable.
He’s a listener, not a talker, unless someone says something unreasonable. Then
he will demand an explanation.

Abilities: Prowl has the most sophisticated logic center of all the
Autobots, giving him the ability to analyze any combat situation almost instantaneously
and then advise on the optimal course of action. For example, Prowl can observe
800 moving objects, compute their probable paths of movement, and determine
the proper countermove in .05 seconds. From his shoulder cannons he can shoot
wire-guided incendiary missiles that reach temperatures of 12,000 degrees Centigrade
upon explosion. He also carries a semi-automatic rifle that shoots pellets filled
with a highly corrosive acid. Its range is 300 yards.

Weaknesses: His dedication to logic and reason makes Prowl particularly
vulnerable to the unexpected. Irrational and inexplicable situations can really
scramble his circuits, sometimes to the point of total shutdown of his mechano-cortex
center, leaving him temporarily dysfunctional.

ALLEGIANCE: AUTOBOT

FUNCTION: TRANSPORT & RECONNAISSANCE
FIRST APPEARANCE: TRANSFORMERS # 1

“Earth stinks, but Decepticons stink worse.”

Profile: Gears is the complainer in the group. He absolutely hates the
Earth and everything about it and he is eager to let the others know this. He
is a self-proclaimed misfit, the type who finds fault in everything and everyone,
even himself. That is one of the reasons Optimus Prime finds him useful: Gears
is so sour-tempered that the rest of the Autobots cheer themselves up by trying
to cheer him up. Only Optimus knows that Gears’ complaining is an act. Gears
realizes his function is to force his companions to see what’s good about a
situation, and he performs accordingly.

Abilities: Gears has tremendous strength and endurance. He is often
used to tote heavy loads for long distances. He will even carry several of his
comrades to conserve fuel. He can launch himself to a height of 20 miles and
then float back down to the ground by creating a compressed air cushion under
his feet. This makes him an excellent reconnaissance agent and his ability to
detect infrared wavelengths allows him to work night or day.

Weaknesses: Since Gears has limited maneuverability when launched, he
makes an easy target if spotted. Although his sour personality is mostly an
act, a reminder of his home planet, Cybertron, can often depress him and negatively
affect his performance.

ALLEGIANCE: DECEPTICON
SUB-GROUP: POWERMASTER
HUMAN COMPONENT: THROTTLE

FUNCTION: AERIAL ASSAULT
FIRST APPEARANCE: TRANSFORMERS # 42

“Things are never as bad as they seem – usually they’re worse.”

Profile: If Dreadwind is the ultimate pessimist, Darkwing completes
the equation by being a manic-depressive. He believes that life is one long
ordeal of pain and suffering, and that it’s pointless struggling against it.
However, where his brother-in-arms just sits back and lets this bleak outlook
get him down, Darkwing is no passive bystander. If he’s destined to suffer,
then by Primus he’s going to make others share it… only more so! His avowed
purpose in life is to make the lives of others worse than he believes his to
be! To him, death is getting off lightly. Better to leave a foe still alive,
in terrible pain. He somehow feels better knowing that others are suffering
more than he is. But there is a side to Darkwing that’s every bit as gloomy
as Dreadwind. No matter how well things are going for him, he’s convinced that
it’s not going to last. To Darkwing, the next personal disaster is always just
around the corner. If nothing else, this attitude keeps him alert to impending
attack. He’s partnered to Throttle, a (self-admittedly) low-life thief. He revels
in his chosen profession and loves mixing with society’s dregs. Throttle sees
this as simple honesty and appreciates that in others. If he doesn’t like you,
he’ll tell you in no uncertain terms. With Throttle, what you see is what you
get. In a way, that’s why he gets on okay with Darkwing (though Darkwing might
have something to say about that), because at least Darkwing doesn’t pretend
to be anything he’s not. So he’s a pessimist – so what?

Abilities: Darkwing’s jet mode abilities mirror Dreadwind’s almost exactly.
Darkwing combines with Dreadwind to form the vehicle Dreadwing, so they are
not so much two jets as two halves of the same jet. Fast and deadly, Darkwing
is similarly laden with weaponry, the most deadly of which are his two laser-guided
electro-kinetic blasters, which turn an enemy’s power against its owner. The
more powerful the foe, the more Darkwing can hurt him. Unlike Dreadwind, he
is mobile and lethal in robot mode, specializing in hand-to-hand combat.

Weaknesses: If he weren’t teamed with such a reckless hothead, Darkwing
could probably claim to have no weaknesses. As it is, Throttle is so keen to
prove himself that he over-exerts himself in engine mode, desperately trying
to outdo Dreadwind, and overheats. When this happens in the heat of battle,
it can have disastrous consequences, leaving Darkwing high and dry and a sitting
duck. Darkwing hates combining to form Dreadwing, and is often distracted by
continually bickering with Dreadwind.