Status: IN
Prototype's elimination of the parallel Creator class hierarchy required by Factory Method is a specific instance of composition preventing class explosion: Factory Method requires one Creator subclass per Product (inheritance-based, O(n) creator classes), while Prototype replaces this with a registry of cloneable instances (composition-based, O(1) creator infrastructure), recapitulating at the creational level the same explosion prevention that Bridge and Decorator demonstrate at the structural level.
Prototype's hierarchy elimination is a third independent instance of composition preventing class explosion
Depends on (SL): prototype-eliminates-parallel-creator-hierarchy, dual-proof-composition-prevents-explosion