PRODIGY

Prodigy

Real Name: Richard "Ritchie" Gilmore

Identity/Class: Human technology user; identity known to S.H.I.E.L.D. authorities

Occupation: Government employee, adventurer;
    former student

Group Membership: Initiative;
formerly Heavy Hitters (Nonstop, Outback/Fred Myers, Telemetry), Initiative (Annex, Ant-Man/Eric O'Grady, Batwing, Bengal, Cloud 9, Constrictor, Crusader/Z'Reg, Diamondback/Rachel Leighton, Gauntlet/Joseph Green, Geiger, Gorilla Girl, Hardball, Hellcat, Komodo, Melee, Proton, Red Nine, Reptil, Speedball (monkey), Stature, Stingray, Sunstreak/Andrea Roarke, Taskmaster, 3-D Man/Delroy Garrett, Tigra, Trauma, War Machine/James Rhodes, others), Anti-Registration Act Resistance, the Slingers (Dusk (St. Commons), Hornet (McDonough), Ricochet (Gallo)) (see comments)

Affiliations: Avengers Resistance (Debrii, Gauntlet/Joseph Green, Justice/Vance Astrovik, Night Thrasher/Donyell Taylor, Rage, Scarlet Spider, Slapstick, Tigra, Ultragirl), Justin Baldwin, Maddy Baldwin, Battlestar, Jeremy Briggs, Butterball (Emery Schaub), Black Crow, Captain America (Steve Rogers), Coldblood-7, Valerie Cooper, Sally Floyd, Gladiatrix, Gravity (Greg Willis), Lectronn, Lightbright, Living Mummy, Network (Valerie Martin), New Warriors (Debrii, Justice, Night Thrasher, Rage, Scarlet Spiders, Slapstick), Prowler (Hobie Brown), "Secret Avengers" (Captain America/Steve Rogers, Asp /Cleo Nefertiti, Black Mamba, Black Panther/T'Challa, Luke Cage, Cloak/Tyrone Johnson, Dagger/Tandy Bowen, Daredevil/Danny Rand, Diamondback/Rachel Leighton, Falcon/Sam Wilson, Hawkeye/Kate Bishop, Hercules, Hulkling, Human Torch/Johnny Storm, Invisible Woman, Patriot/Eli Bradley, Spider-Man/Peter Parker, Spider-Woman/Jessica Drew, Storm, Wiccan), Secret Warriors (Druid, Nick Fury, Hellfire, Phobos, Quake, Stonewall, Yo-Yo), Shadow Initiative (Badd Axe, Ringer, Warbow), SHIELD, Shroud, Skrull Kill Krew (Catwalk, Dice, Moonstomp, Riot, Ryder), Solo, Typeface, Wasp (Janet Van Dyne), Young Avengers (Hawkeye/Kate Bishop, Hulkling, Patriot/Eli Bradley, Speed, Vision/Jonas, Wiccan);
    formerly the Black Marvel (Dan Lyons), Thor Girl (Tarene)

Enemies:  Badoon, Brood, Brood Imperiatrix, Brother Royal, Brother Grimm, the Designate (Tarene), Iron Man (Tony Stark), Jimmy Eyes, Firebrand, Force of Nature (Aqueduct, Skybreaker, Sunstreak, Terraformer), Freedom Force (Challenger, Cloud 9, Equinox, Think Tank), Griffin, King Cobra, Maggia, MAULER, Mephisto, Mr. Hyde, New Warriors (Aegis (Rollins), Bolt (Bradley), Namorita, Nova (Rider), Speedball (Baldwin), Turbo (Musashi)), Pro-Registration forces (Araņa, Bishop, Black Widow (Romanova), Doc Samson, Iron Man (Stark), Ms. Marvel (Danvers), Mr. Fantastic, Nighthawk, Razor-Fist, Sabra, Sentry (Reynolds), She-Hulk, SHIELD, Stature, Thunderbolts (Blizzard, Bullseye, Fixer, Lady Deathstrike, Radioactive Man, Songbird, Taskmaster, Venom), Tigra, Wasp, Wonder Man, others), Ragnarok (Thor clone), Scorcher, Skrulls, Stegron, Yellowjacket (Skrull imposter, Criti Noll)

Known Relatives: "Nanna" (grandmother)

Aliases: None

Place of Birth: Staten Island, New York City, USA

Base of Operations: Manhattan, New York City, USA;
    formerly Somewhere in the North Bronx, New York City, USA;
    formerly a "Welcome to New York" billboard

First Appearance: Slingers#0 (December, 1998)

Powers/Abilities: An aggressive member of the Empire State University wrestling team, Ritchie Gilmore was given a re-creation of the armor previously worn by Spider-Man. Powered by a mystically-created cape, the suit granted its wearer enhanced strength (class 25), durability, and limited flight abilities. Following its loss, the cape was recreated and the armor repowered via technological means.

Height: 5'11" (6'1" in armor)
Weight: 185 lbs. (255 lbs. in armor)
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Black

History: 

(Slingers#11 (fb) - BTS) - Ritchie Gilmore grew up in the North Bronx.

(Slingers#2 (fb) - BTS) - As an Empire State University student and member of the wrestling team, Ritchie was selected by the Black Marvel to become the new Prodigy. They soon began training.

(Slingers#6 (fb)) - Black Marvel introduced Ritchie to Johnny Gallo, who had been selected by the Black Marvel to be his Ricochet.

(Slingers#0) - Donning the Prodigy suit given to him by the Black Marvel, Ritchie began training with Johnny (as Ricochet), Eddie McDonough (as Hornet) and Cassie St. Commons (as Dusk).

(Slingers#0) - Prodigy led the others in another training session, leaping across rooftops. Acting all business and cold toward his partners, Prodigy silently left after Dusk stepped off the roof to her death.

(Slingers#1 (Prodigy variant)) - Prodigy confronted a drug dealer he'd been tracking. Beating information on his supplier out of him, Prodigy went down to the Fulton Fish Market, tearing through armed goons to reach their Maggia-connected boss, "Jimmy Eyes".

(Slingers#1) - Prodigy joined Hornet and Ricochet at their billboard hangout, telling them to get in line and focus on their job or that they would wind up like Dusk (who had, unaware to her former teammates, mysteriously come back to life). After winning a wrestling match the following day, giving his pinned opponent an extra squeeze to remember him by, Prodigy found Hornet and Ricochet on the ESU campus, taking them to rescue a crazed man from the path of two runaway trains.

(Slingers#1 (Prodigy variant)) - Prodigy leapt in front of the path of one of the runaway trains, planting his feet and lifting the train to slow it. Stopping the train and tearing a hole for passengers to escape, Prodigy saw the second train about to fall off the elevated platform. Swooping in, Prodigy saved several onlookers and continued on his way.

(Slingers#1) - Prodigy leapt across the George Washington Bridge to the derelict Atlas Films movie studios where his benefactor, the Black Marvel, was waiting for him.

(Slingers#2) - After leading Hornet and Ricochet to the drain pipes under the newly rebuilt Grand Royale hotel, Prodigy went above ground, skulking around Jimmy Eyes, who was overseeing the construction. Patiently following Jimmy Eyes through the site, Prodigy's cover was blown when Ricochet called for help over their radios. Prodigy left, destroying the communicator despite Ricochet's cries for help.

(Slingers#3) - Returning to the Atlas Films studio, Prodigy told the Black Marvel of Ricochet and Hornet's apparent deaths in the tunnels under the Grand Royale. Lauded by the Black Marvel for his apparent lack of emotion toward his inadequate teammates, Prodigy leapt away to prepare for the tasks ahead of him.

(Slingers#4) - Prodigy arrived on the roof of the new Grand Royale hotel on its opening night. Waiting for the Black Marvel's signal to leap into action, he was confronted by Ricochet and Hornet. Prodigy attacked them, threatening to teach them how to be heroes while beating them senseless. Throwing Ricochet off the roof, Prodigy tossed Hornet through a dining room window, following him in. Recalling what he'd seen in the tunnels, a weakened Hornet told Prodigy he should be looking in the basement. Prodigy left for the basement, soon confronting Jimmy Eyes and wondering if this was why the Black Marvel told him to watch the hotel.

(Slingers#5) - As the explosives that the Black Marvel had planted throughout the Grand Royale detonated, Prodigy stood firm against Jimmy Eyes. Hearing the screams of trapped Grand Royale patrons, Prodigy reluctantly left Jimmy in the basement, arriving just as Ricochet, Dusk and Hornet confronted the Black Marvel over his plans to destroy the rebuilt hotel and redeem his greatest failure as the hero. While the others set about rescuing civilians, Prodigy kept the hotel from collapsing on itself, giving his cape to Hornet to protect a child from the flames. Overwhelmed by the increasing weight, Prodigy apologized to Dusk who told him she wasn't strong enough to teleport him out. As he began to fall, Prodigy felt stronger than he'd ever felt before.

(Slingers#6 (fb) - BTS) - Protected by his suit, Prodigy miraculously survived the destruction of the Grand Royale.

(Slingers#6) - Prodigy emerged from the rubble, wondering where to go next.

(Slingers#7) - Prodigy arrived back at his grandmother's apartment, reflecting on how the days he spent digging himself out of the rubble felt like years, and how he now saw things clearly.

(Slingers#8) - Prodigy confronted four young gang members, dispatching them easily. Believing himself at the top of his game, Prodigy saw that a stray bullet hit one of the gang. Choosing to help her over apprehending the other members, Prodigy vowed to be a hero the right way.

(Slingers#9) - Prodigy entered Ricochet's bedroom window, asking for his help.

(Slingers#10 (fb) - BTS) - Prodigy recovered his cape from Hornet's dorm room with Ricochet's help.

(Slingers#10) - Joining a meeting at the billboard, Prodigy revealed his survival to Hornet and Dusk.

(New Warriors II#1) - Prodigy and the others turned down Speedball's offer to join a relaunched New Warriors. Hornet and Ricochet laughed in his face at the offer.

(Slingers#10) - The superhero-themed billboard they were on came to life, with various superheroes emerging from it and attacking Prodigy and the others. Prodigy fought a giant Mr. Fantastic, holding his own until he was grabbed by a giant Thing and pulled into the billboard. Prodigy and the others found themselves before an imprisoned Black Marvel and Mephisto.

(Slingers#11) - Mephisto trapped Prodigy and the others, and told them about the deal he made with an ailing Dan Lyons to reclaim his heroic identity of the Black Marvel. Offering to free the Black Marvel's soul if the four could forgive him for using them to further his own ambitions, they argued over what to do. Sent to face separate trials, Prodigy arrived outside the house he grew up in, now in flames. Rushing in, he was confronted by a younger version of himself and unable to move, bound by his cape. Tearing the cape apart, Prodigy arrived back before Mephisto just as he called for his horde to test them as a team.

(Slingers#12) - After Dusk cleared the battlefield, Prodigy and the others were given the choice to leave Mephisto's realm. Urging the others to leave while they had the chance, Prodigy stood by while his teammates set about rescuing the Black Marvel. Returning to save Ricochet from a false vision of his late mother, Prodigy removed his cape, telling Mephisto that he'd given up his hatred of the Black Marvel. With the others making similar statements, the Black Marvel's soul was saved and they returned to New York. Prodigy apologized to Dusk, Hornet and Ricochet, and thanked them for everything, returning home since his grandmother was probably worrying about him.

(Civil War: Battle Damage Report) - Prodigy acquired a replica of his cape and a "technological upgrade" to his suit to recreate its powers.

(Contest of Champions II#1/All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #10 (Slingers)) - Prodigy was among the group of heroes teleported off Earth to compete in a "contest of champions."

(Contest of Champions II#3) - Prodigy, Dusk, Hornet and Ricochet, collectively referred to as "The Slingers", were reunited to compete against the New Warriors in a game of basketball. After a heated match, the Warriors were crowned the victors and the Slingers were teleported away.

(Contest of Champions II#5/All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #10 (Slingers)) - The heroes, including the Slingers, were separately returned to Earth.

(GLA I#2) - Prodigy turned down an offer to join the Great Lakes Avengers.

(Civil War: Frontline#2) - Unable to deal with the looming deadline for superhuman registration, Prodigy got drunk on a rooftop, drawing a crowd. Eventually getting Iron Man's attention, Prodigy told him that the Act was fine for him since he had the money to take care of his loved ones, but that he'd be putting his family at risk if he unmasked. Iron Man tried to sway Prodigy to his opinion, but the young hero attacked, leaping on to Iron Man and pushing him into a billboard.

(Civil War: Frontline#2/Civil War: Battle Damage Report) - Iron Man hit Prodigy to the ground with an electromagnetic pulse beam, shorting out his armor.

(Civil War: Frontline#2) - A team quickly covered Prodigy with immobilizing foam and loaded him into their vehicle.

(Amazing Spider-Man II#535 (fb) - BTS) - Prodigy was taken to the Negative Zone Prison -- 42 -- created to hold superhumans refusing to comply with the registration act.

(Amazing Spider-Man II#535) - Seeing Peter Parker through the slot on his cell door, Prodigy called for his help, telling him he shouldn't have been imprisoned because he didn't do anything.

(Civil War#6) - Prodigy was among the prisoners freed from their cells by the Secret Avengers and the Superhuman Registration Act resistance.

(Civil War#7/Amazing Spider-Man II#538 - BTS) - Prodigy took part in the battle between the pro and anti-registration heroes, spanning from the Negative Zone prison to the streets of New York. Prodigy's status following the battle is unknown, as is whether he made the jump from the prison to New York.

(Avengers: The Initiative#13 (fb) - BTS) - Prodigy was released from jail if he agreed to join the Initiative and issue a public apology for his drunken battle against Iron Man.

(Avengers: The Initiative#13) - On the bus ride to Camp Hammond, new recruits Annex, Batwing, Gorilla Girl, Prodigy, and Sunstreak were embarrassed by the enthusiastic Emery Schaub, and surprised by the lack of enthusiasm of the residents of Stamford, Connecticut. They were soon greeted at base by Yellowjacket (secretly the Skrull Criti Noll) and Taskmaster, who code-named Schaub Butterball. Over the following weeks they were constantly embarrassed by Schaub, who forced them to undergo extra punishments constantly with his naivety. They even tried hazing him, but his invulnerability allowed him to sleep through it. At his press conference, Prodigy gave an unconvincing speech about his change of mind, putting off questions by reporter Sally Floyd; he punched a wall in frustration as he walked off-stage only to be chastised by Yellowjacket. Bored one night, the six trainees decided to sneak off-base, convincing Schaub to use his powers to help them sneak off the base in a jeep. They drove to a local beach, built a fire, had beer (except Batwing, who was too young), and went skinny-dipping (Gorilla Girl in her gorilla form, disappointing the others). When Sunstreak made a pass at Schaub on the beach because he couldn't be burned by her, he got upset and drove away with the others in quick pursuit. They all felt bad when the learned he was willing to take the rap for them, after Yellowjacket, War Machine, Taskmaster, and Constrictor tracked them down. Suddenly, King Cobra, Firebrand, MAULER, and Mr. Hyde attacked, seeking to kill Taskmaster. The recruits leapt into battle despite the warnings of their instructors and the villains quickly escaped; during the battle, Hyde tossed Prodigy into Annex. Back at base, Schaub was kicked out of the Initiative, making his fellow recruits jealous.

(Marvel Apes: Speedball Special#1) - Gorilla Girl woke up new recruit Speedball, (from the ape universe) when he was having a bad dream. Taskmaster announced an early training, annoying Ant-Man, who ridiculed Speedball for waking them all up. Gorilla Girl defended Speedball, who couldn't hit Ant-Man due to his size-changing powers. She grew defensive when Ant-Man called her Speedball's girlfriend. As Prodigy scoffed at the fight, Speedball offended Gorilla Girl by yelling at her and saying they were nothing alike, provoking her into changing into a gorilla and punching him, which inadvertently allowed him to crash into Ant-Man. Prodigy continued wondering how a monkey ever belonged among them, and Speedball knocked Prodigy through the wall just as Red-9 was showing in Maddy and Justin Baldwin. The Baldwins soon left, disappointed that Speedball wasn't their true son. As the cadets went to train, Speedball was kicked out of the Initiative.

(Avengers: The Initiative#14) - 3-D Man showed up at the Initiative base, claiming there was an invasion of shape-shifters.

(Avengers: The Initiative#15) - 3-D Man panicked and made a hasty retreat.

(Avengers: The Initiative#15/Secret Invasion#3/Secret Invasion: Runaways/Young Avengers#1)- Soon, the Stark technology in the base was rendered inert and Yellowjacket announced the Skrulls had attacked  New York. The recruits, under Gauntlet's command, were thrown into action. The recruits fought a deadly battle, alongside the Young Avengers, against the Skrulls in New York City and were quickly overwhelmed.

(Avengers: The Initiative#16/Secret Invasion#4) - The Skrulls killed Proton before the Secret Warriors (Druid, Nick Fury, Hellfire, Phobos, Quake, Stonewall, Yo-Yo) attacked.

(Avengers: The Initiative#17/Secret Invasion#5) - The cadets and their allies, in Nick Fury's safehouse while regrouping, heard "Yellowjacket" announce the Skrull invasion to the world on the television.

(Avengers: The Initiative#18/Secret Invasion#6) - Prodigy nearly came to blows with Wiccan when he feared Hulkling might be a sleeper agent, but Crusader inspired them to put aside their differences. Fury then moved them in to final battle, joining dozens of other heroes and villains in the final battle for New York City.

(Avengers: The Initiative#19/Secret Invasion#7-8) - The massive battle continued. As the battle ended, Crusader rushed after the Yellowjacket Skrull back to Camp Hammond, where he was killed along with the other Skrulls by the Skrull Kill Krew. The Wasp was killed in the battle.

(Avengers: The Initiative#20) - Gorilla Girl and the others watched as 3-D Man left, angry with him for killing Crusader.

(Avengers: The Initiative featuring Reptil#1) - Batwing was put onto a team led by Tigra to catch Stegron, who was attacking SHIELD bases all over the United States. After picking up and helping train Reptil, the team failed in their first attempt to catch Stegron in South Dakota. They later caught him in Wyoming.

(Avengers: The Initiative#21) - Prodigy was disgusted to open his graduation papers and learn he was to remain for further training, alongside Sunstreak, due to his criminal record.

(Avengers: The Initiative#22) - When the evil Thor clone, Ragnarok, attacked, Batwing aided in the battle alongside his fellow recruits and the New Warriors (Debrii, Justice, Night Thrasher, Rage, Scarlet Spiders, Slapstick).

(Avengers: The Initiative#23) - Prodigy helped with the cleanup at Camp Hammond after the battle with Ragnarok. He was later present when Norman Osborn arrived to shut down Camp Hammond forever.

(Avengers: The Initiative#25) - Osborn took Prodigy to the Nevada Initiative headquarters of the Heavy Hitters. He offered him leadership of the team if, and only if, Prodigy would answer directly to him and follow all orders without question. Prodigy met his new teammates, Nonstop and Telemetry, and heard Gravity, the former team leader, get moved to another team.

(Avengers: The Initiative#28 (fb) - BTS) - When Osborn put assassin-for-hire Boomerang on the team disguised as the hero Outback, and Outback started stealing from the Heavy Hitters Casino, Nonstop complained about the Initiative's direction to the media and then made a run for it.

(Avengers: The Initiative#28) - The Heavy Hitters pursued Nonstop across the desert and Prodigy did his best to resolve things without violence, but Outback started a fight even as the media gathered around them. They apprehended Nonstop, but Prodigy couldn't let her take the fall. He outed Outback and Osborn, and announced to the news that the Heavy Hitters were succeeding from the Initiative. When the Force of Nature (Aqueduct, Skybreaker, Sunstreak, Terraformer) attacked, Prodigy thought Sunstreak would be on his side, but she proved her loyalty to Osborn by firing multiple flame bursts at Prodigy. The Heavy Hitters quickly defeated the Force of Nature, but then the U-Foes (Ironclad, Vapor, Vector, X-Ray), Freedom Force (Challenger, Cloud-9, Equinox, Think Tank), members of the Shadow Initiative (Badd Axe, Ringer (Keith Kraft), Warbow), and other trainees (Brother Grimm, Griffin, Scorcher, Razor-Fist) attacked. Within seconds, the Avengers Resistance (Debrii, Gauntlet (Joseph Green), Justice (Vance Astrovik), Night Thrasher (Donyell Taylor), Rage, Scarlet Spider, Slapstick, Tigra, Ultragirl) arrived, briefly battled, and swiftly departed with Nonstop and Telemetry, though Night Thrasher was captured. Prodigy, initially angry at Justice's team for trying to intervene, chose to remain behind and make a final stand for himself...and was defeated and captured.

(Avengers: The Initiative#35 (fb) - BTS) - Prodigy ended up in prison for turning on the Initiative.

(Avengers: The Initiative#35) - After Osborn was arrested and the Superhuman Registration Act repealed Prodigy was released from prison and honored for his resistance to Norman Osborn. He became a motivational speaker and explored the option to reunite the Slingers.

(Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt#1 (fb) - BTS) - Gilmore received a government job at the Department of Justice Paper File Archive 42-D to work on SHRA files. Though he considered it boring work he felt comfort everytime he received a memo that decomissioned another part of the SHRA.

(Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt#1) - While putting another SHRA file away in his sub-basement office Gilmore was approached by Lt. General Charlie Stokes, who delivered an urgent communique from Commander Rogers to Gilmore. As a result of the Serpent (Cul)'s reign of terror on Earth, Steve Rogers commissioned Prodigy to reassemble the Initiative to handle the fear-induced rioting that was spreading across the country. Knowing Gilmore wasn't a fan of the SHRA he asked him to coordinate the Initiative.

(Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt#1 - BTS) - Prodigy contacted as many heroes as possible and asked them to meet him in Washington DC.

(Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt#1) - In front of the press in Washington DC Prodigy asked the assembled heroes to rejoin the Initiative voluntarily to help civilians during the chaos caused by Cul and his Worthy. He needed teams with strong leaders and hundreds joined. Prodigy personally asked Gravity to lead a team and Firestar suggested to co-lead a team with Gravity, which Prodigy agreed to.

   During the riots Prodigy personally went to the streets in Georgetown to dissuade students from attacking the riot police. He stopped what he was doing when he heard the thunder from a nearby attack by Skadi (Sinthea Shmidt)'s forces.

(Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt#2 (fb) - BTS) - Prodigy called the press for an announcement regarding the status of Thor Girl after a bullet she deflected hit a police officer.

(Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt#2) - When Thor Girl and Ultragirl arrived in Virginia Prodigy was already there with the press. He told a surprised Ultragirl that he had tipped off the press and asked Thor Girl to stay calm because making a scene would only worsen her situation. While Thor Girl silently stood by Prodigy told the press that Thor Girl was a hero and not one of the hammer-wielders attacking the US, but that due to the unfortunate events in Atlanta she would turn herself in. Thor Girl didn't make a scene when she was led away in handcuffs.

   Later Prodigy showed Ultragirl footage from all over the US of attacks by the hammer-wielders and that many feared this was the end of the world. When an update from New Jersey came in about a terrorist attack by Crossbones Prodigy told Ultragirl that Gravity's team was already there and sent her there as well to aid them.

(Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt#3) - Prodigy called Gravity and asked him to return the Initiative's effort to help during the current crisis. He understood that Gravity didn't want to return to New Jersey and suggeted he would join the Great Lakes team, but Gravity didn't want to go back out there anymore, which Prodigy didn't understand at all. Gravity hung up on Prodigy. Shortly after Prodigy confronted the two secret agents, who had been torturing Thor Girl, until she was broken out by Cloud 9. He wanted to know who they were working for and they threatened to charge him with treason for detaining them. When they told him he didn't have another choice then to release them he left without releasing them.

   Prodigy watched several heroes fighting hammer-wielder Kuurth (Juggernaut/Cain Marko) in Las Vegas, Nevada until the cameras present at the scene were destroyed when Kuurth attacked Hardball.

(Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt#4) - When he received live footage again from Las Vegas he saw Gravity fighting Hardball, which he considered unacceptable. Asked for advice to deal with the nationwide riots after Captain America (Barnes)'s death and the massacre in Paris and at the same confronted by a guard, who was asked by the federal agents to release them because they had jurisdiction over Prodigy, the current leader of the Initiative felt overwhelmed and after telling the guard to stop listening to the agents stepped out for a minute to clear his thoughts.

(Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt#5 (fb) - BTS) - Prodigy called in an old favor and teleported to Las Vegas with some backup.

(Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt#5) - After arriving in Las Vegas Prodigy ordered Firestar to revive Hardball and Gravity, who had knocked each other out and told Telemetry to travel down the fault matrix with the others to stop the earthquakes caused by the fight between Gravity and Hardball. Unable to keep it together anymore when nobody was listening to his commands Prodigy went to a liquor store, but decided not to get drunk and instead called Telemetry to congratulate her and her team for stopping the earthquakes, but he couldn't reach her. Prodigy then approached Cloud 9 to ask her if there were any survivors in the building only to be attacked by Thor Girl for imprisoning and torturing her. She hit him hard when he wasn't sorry at all after all he had done for everyone else during all this chaos.

(Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt#6) - Prodigy told Debrii and Supermax to aid him in stopping Thor Girl by any means necessary. Komodo and Cloud 9 asked Thor Girl to give Prodigy a chance to explain himself. She told Debrii and Supermax to back away and gave Prodigy a shot. He explained that her imprisonment was good P.R. and that he had nothing to do with her torture. Thor Girl transformed into the Designate and while the others attacked her Prodigy realized that she was not fighting back and told everyone to stop. The Designate left Earth after telling the Initiative that humans were unworthy. After she was gone Prodigy told the others that people still needed their help and that they would prove Tarene wrong about them.

   Days later in Washington DC Captain America (Rogers) thanked Prodigy for his service and told him that many lives had been saved due to his leadership skills. He then told Prodigy that the federal agents he had imprisoned would look the other way and wanted to see Prodigy to talk to him about a promotion. The next day Gilmore met them and accompanied him to his new filing job, which was even worse than the one he had before.

(Avengers Academy#26 (fb) - BTS) - Briggs offered Prodigy a chance to make a difference in the world and got him a job at his corporation. Cloud 9, Hardball and Komodo also joined Briggs.

(Avengers Academy#26) - Prodigy visited Avengers Academy alongside Briggs and his Initiative friends. He told the students how Briggs had given him a shot to make a difference after he wrecked Las Vegas and the government tried to hide him away and that the students should join Briggs as well. Some agreed while others like Prodigy's former teammate Ricochet, who reprimanded Prodigy for not even attending their friend Eddie McDonough's funeral, who they had both abandoned and rather stayed wih the Avengers Academy than to join Briggs' egoistical cause. Prodigy left with Briggs, his friends and their new recruits Veil, Rocket Racer and Machine Teen.

Comments: Created by Joseph Harris (writer), Adam Pollina (pencils) and Jimmy Palmiotti (inks)

Slingers#0 was released as an insert in Wizard Magazine#88.

Slingers#1 shipped with four different covers, each spotlighting one of the four leads. More than just a cover gimmick, each variant included different story pages, eight near the beginning of the issue giving a different interlude with each character plus eight near the end of the issue with a different view of their actions during the train disaster. The pages specific to the Prodigy variant are noted as they appeared along with the pages carried in each version.

Prodigy received a brief profile in the Civil War: Battle Damage Report handbook, and as a member of the "Slingers" in the All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #10.

It's possible, although unconfirmed, that Prodigy's second cape was created by Hornet, who created new armaments for himself and Ricochet following their encounter with Mephisto.

One final note about "The Slingers": Although the team has been referred to as "The Slingers" in several Marvel titles (including both Civil War handbooks) and by several Marvel characters, at no point in the actual Slingers comic did Dusk or the others refer to themselves by this name. Johnny Gallo (Ricochet) affirmed this in Runaways II#1. It's obvious why the name is used for the characters (writers mistakingly assuming it was the group name), but there's been no in-story explanation for its use. The only incident where the name was used as a title for Dusk and company in their presence was in Contest of Champions (as noted in the Group Membership listing), and since the characters did not refer to themselves as such, it is used loosely as a name for the group (at least by those of us who remember it was never supposed to be the team name and stubbornly hold to that).

Profile by G Morrow.

CLARIFICATIONS:
Prodigy has no known connections to:

Prodigy should not be mistaken for:

"Nanna"

Sickly and bound to her wheelchair, Prodigy's grandmother heard that her grandson had returned home after crawling from the wreckage of the Grand Royale hotel. Prodigy was likewise concerned his grandmother would be worried about his frequent absences.

 

 

 

--Slingers#7 (Slingers#12 (fb) - BTS

images: (without ads)
Slingers #1, p17, pan1 (main image)
Slingers #11, p10, pan8 (as a Pre-teen)
Slingers #12, p19, pan2 (Ritchie Gilmore)
Civil War: Frontline #2, p11, pan4 (vs. Iron Man)
Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt#1, p2, pan5 (Agent of Department of Justice)
Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt#6, p4, pan1 (with Debrii and Supermax)
Slingers #7, p13, pan3 ("Nanna")

Other Appearances:
Slingers#0 (December, 1998) - Joseph Harris (writer), Adam Pollina (pencils), Jimmy Palmiotti (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
Slingers#1 (December, 1998) - Joseph Harris (writer), Chris Cross (pencils), Rob Stull (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
Slingers#2 (January, 1999) - Joseph Harris (writer), Chris Cross (pencils), Rob Stull (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
Slingers#3 (February, 1999) - Joseph Harris (writer), Chris Cross (pencils), Rob Stull (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
Slingers#4 (March, 1999) - Joseph Harris (writer), Oscar Jimenez (pencils), Felix Alpuente (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
Slingers#5 (April, 1999) - Joseph Harris (writer), Chris Cross (pencils), Rob Stull (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
Slingers#6 (May, 1999) - Joseph Harris (writer), Chris Cross (pencils), Rob Stull (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
Slingers#7 (June, 1999) - Joseph Harris (writer), Greg Luzniak (pencils), Bob Almond with Jimmy & Peter Palmiotti (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
Slingers#8 (July, 1999) - Joseph Harris (writer), Greg Luzniak (pencils), Bob Almond with Candelario & Minor (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
Slingers#9 (August, 1999) - Joseph Harris (writer), Chris Cross (pencils), Rob Stull (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
Contest of Champions II#1 (September, 1999) - Chris Claremont (writer), Oscar Jimenez (pencils), Eduardo Alpuente (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
Slingers#10 (September, 1999) - Joseph Harris (writer), Chris Cross (pencils), Don Hillsman & Rob Stull (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
Contest of Champions II#3 (October, 1999) - Chris Claremont (writer), Oscar Jimenez (pencils), Eduardo Alpuente (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
New Warriors II#1 (October, 1999) - Jay Faerber (writer), Steve Scott (pencils), Walden Wong (inks), Bobbie Chase (editor)
Slingers#11 (October, 1999) - Joseph Harris (writer), Javier Saltares (pencils), Perrotta, Mahlstedt (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
Contest of Champions II#5 (November, 1999) - Chris Claremont (writer), Oscar Jimenez & Michael Ryan (pencils), Eduardo Alpuente & Livesay (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
Slingers#12 (November, 1999) - Joseph Harris (writer), Javier Saltares (pencils), Minor, Perrotta, Ramos and Rubenstein (inks), Ruben Diaz (editor)
GLA I#2 (July, 2005) - Dan Slott (writer), Paul Pelletier (pencils), Rick Magyar (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Civil War: Frontline#2 (August, 2006) - Paul Jenkins (writer), Ramon Bachs and Kano (pencils), John Lucas and Kano (inks), Cory Sedlmeier (editor)
Amazing Spider-Man II#535 (October, 2006) - J. Michael Straczynski (writer), Ron Garney (pencils), Bill Reinhold (inks), Axel Alonso (editor)
All-New Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe #10 (October, 2006) - Jeff Christiansen (head writer/coordinator)
Civil War#6 (December, 2006) - Mark Millar (writer), Steve McNiven (pencils), Dexter Vines (inks), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Civil War: Battle Damage Report (2007) - Anthony Flamini (head writer), Ronald Byrd (writer), Jeff Youngquist (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#13 (July, 2008) - Christos Gage (writer), Steve Uy (penciler/inker), Tom Brevoort  Dan Slott, Christos Gage (writers), Harvey Talibao (penciler/inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#14 (August, 2008) - Dan Slott, Christos Gage (writers), Stefano Caselli (penciler/inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Secret Invasion#3 (August, 2008) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Leinil Francis Yu (penciler), Mark Morales (inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Secret Invasion: Runaways/Young Avengers#1 (August, 2008) - Chris Yost (writer), Takeshi Miyazawa (artist), Nick Lowe (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#15 (September, 2008) - Dan Slott, Christos Gage (writers), Harvey Talibao (penciler/inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#16 (October, 2008) - Dan Slott, Christos Gage (writers), Stefano Caselli (penciler/inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Secret Invasion#4 (September, 2008) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Leinil Francis Yu (penciler), Mark Morales (inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#17 (November, 2008) - Dan Slott, Christos Gage (writers), Harvey Talibao (penciler/inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Secret Invasion#5 (October, 2008) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Leinil Francis Yu (penciler), Mark Morales (inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#18 (December, 2008) - Dan Slott, Christos Gage (writers), Steve Kurth (penciler), Drew Hennessey (inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Secret Invasion#6 (November, 2008) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Leinil Francis Yu (penciler), Mark Morales (inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#19 (January, 2009) - Dan Slott, Christos Gage (writers), Harvey Talibao, Bong Dazo (pencilers/inkers), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Secret Invasion#7-8 (December, 2008-January, 2009) - Brian Michael Bendis (writer), Leinil Francis Yu (penciler), Mark Morales (inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#20 (February, 2009) - Dan Slott (writer), Steve Kurth (penciler), Drew Hennessy (inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#21-22 (March-April, 2009) - Christos N. Gage (writer), Humberto Ramos (penciler/inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Marvel Apes: Speedball Special (May, 2009) - Karl Kesel (writer), Ramon Bachs (penciler/inker), Tom Brennan (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative featuring Reptil#1 (May, 2009) - Christos N. Gage (writer), Steve Uy (artist), Jeanine Schaefer (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#23 (June, 2009) - Christos N. Gage (writer), Humberto Ramos (penciler/inker), Tom Brevoort (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#25 (August, 2009) - Christos Gage (writer), Humberto Ramos (penciler/inker), Jeannine Schaefer (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#28 (November, 2009) - Christos Gage (writer), Rafa Sandoval (penciler), Roger Bonet (inker), Bill Rosemann (editor)
Avengers: The Initiative#35 (June, 2010) - Christos Gage (writer), Jorge Molina (penciler), Andrew Hennessy (inker), Bill Rosemann (editor)
Fear Itself: Youth in Revolt#1-6 (July-December, 2011) - Sean McKeever (writer), Mike Norton (artist), Lauren Sankovitch (editor)
Avengers Academy#26 (April, 2012) - Christos Gage (writer), Tom Grummett (pencils), Cory Hamscher (inks), Bill Rosemann (editor)

First Posted: 01/27/2008
Last updated: 06/09/2016

Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

Non-Marvel Copyright info
All other characters mentioned or pictured are ™  and © 1941-2099 Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved. If you like this stuff, you should check out the real thing!
Please visit The Marvel Official Site at: http://www.marvel.com

Special Thanks to www.g-mart.com for hosting the Appendix, Master List, etc.!

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