Hound (G1)
| This article is about the Generation 1 Autobot. For the movie Autobot from the PSP game, see Hound (Movie). |
- Hound is an Autobot character in the Generation 1 continuity family.
Hound wishes he were human. The dark, barren metalscapes of Cybertron no longer interest him. Now that Hound has been shipwrecked on Earth, he considers this planet his home. He sees humankind as beautiful and wishes he could interact with their ecosphere the same way they do, to feel what they feel and to see what they see.
He treasures his job as an Autobot scout, making good use of his ability to project holograms for added disguise. He uses this opportunity to explore the breathtaking caverns and mountainous expanses that Earth provides. He's a meek, benevolent soul, even compared to his fellow Autobots. He gets along with the more blood-thirsty of their ranks but not the most blood-thirsty of their ranks.
- Nicknames: Sarge, Nose, Sniffer
- Italian name: Canguro
- French-Canadian name: Dépisteur
- Hungarian name: Vadászeb (meaning Hound/Hunter)
Fiction
Marvel Comics continuity
Note: UK-only appearances are in italics.
When the Transformers awoke in 1984, Hound was part of the Autobot contingent allowed by Prime to explore Earth. Consequently, he was one of the first to realize the existence of human lifeforms and was involved in the first battle on Earth at a drive-in theater (which the Autobots thought was a religious gathering for cars). The Transformers (comic issue) Following this, he was present at the Sherman Dam battle. After the Ark was reclaimed, he was one of the Autobots who opposed using the Matrix to create super-warriors, and also assisted Mirage in capturing Ravage (though Ravage was taking a dive). Crisis of Command!
When Galvatron made his time-jump to 1986 and Optimus Prime and Prowl were lost in Limbo, Hound and Jazz were sent to spy on Decepticon activity. This led to Cyclonus taking out Jazz and almost killing Hound, with only the arrival of Ultra Magnus saving him. Following this, he tried several times (unsuccessfully) to get Ultra Magnus to assist the Autobots against Galvatron and also took a critical view of Jetfire's tactics, especially as the Autobots were beaten again and again. Target 2006
Hound was one of the scores slaughtered by the Underbase-powered Starscream. He was presumably revived by the Nucleon infusion Grimlock gave all the Ark's deactivated Autobots, as he was later shown to have joined Grimlock's unit in leaving Cybertron to find new conflicts and fought against the technoforming fleets of the Cybertronian Empire. He was disgusted by the bloodlust shown by Blades, who berated Hound for being a liability. War Without End Following this, he was the only Autobot not infected by the psychic parasites of the K'Tord Nebula, and beyond that continued to fight against the Cybertronians.
Animated continuity
- Voice actor: Ken Sansom (US), Kenyu Horiuchi (Japan)
Hound was one of the original Autobots aboard the Ark when it crash-landed on Earth four million years ago. When awakened in 1984, he was reformatted to have a terrestrial alt-mode, that of a Mitsubishi military jeep.
As the Autobots got their bearings on this strange, new planet, Optimus Prime dispatched Hound on a recon mission to find the Decepticons. The impetuous Cliffjumper tagged along uninvited, itching to start a fight, and took a pot-shot at Megatron once Hound sniffed out the Decepticon base. Cliffjumper missed, and the Decepticons gave chase. Laserbeak pursued the two Autobot eavesdroppers, and Hound took the brunt of the assault, getting blasted by Laserbeak's cannons. Hound spun out of control on the winding mountain roads and crashed into a ravine.
Cliffjumper returned with help: the Autobot medic, Ratchet. Hound was too injured even to transform, so the crane truck Hauler had to lift him out of the gulch so he could be dragged back to the Ark for repairs. Despite the mishap, Hound bore no ill will against Cliffjumper. The scout had heard enough about the Megatron's plans to plunder the Earth's resources that Optimus immediately launched a mission to stop the Decepticons. More Than Meets the Eye, Part 1
Later, when the Autobots attacked Sherman Dam, Hound got into an underwater fight with Rumble. Rumble managed to trap Hound under a pile of boulders so that he couldn't move. Then Spike Witwicky jumped in and removed the boulders, thus saving Hound from death. More Than Meets the Eye, Part 2.
After the Autobots came back from the Ruby Crystal Mine, Hound and Mirage came up with a plan to fool the Decepticons. They would create a hologram of a rocket fuel base. The Decepticons would go there to use the resources to create energon cubes, at which point the trap could be sprung. Optimus Prime agreed, and the then-imprisoned Ravage was allowed to escape with the false information. However, Megatron outsmarted the Autobots, went to the real rocket fuel base and used its resources. More Than Meets the Eye, Part 3.
In the year 2005, Hound was present at the battle of Autobot City. He was first seen as one of the Autobots participating in its construction. During the attack, he was able to escape along with Sunstreaker and get to Optimus Prime in time. Hound was thus one the few Autobots who survived the battle. He was not seen any later in the movie, but it is known that he stayed on Earth to help the other surviving Autobots repair Autobot City.
The Transformer manga
Dreamwave comics continuity
Devil's Due G.I. Joe vs. the Transformers continuity
IDW comics continuity
 Spoiler warning: Plot details follow. of the next episode/issue in the series or 30 days after release, whichever is sooner |
Before the war, Hound was a veteran member of the Autobots, having served under Sentinel Prime with the Security Services force in Kaon. Megatron Origin issue 2 During the mass prison break of Megatron's gladiators and Kaon's most dangerous criminals, Hound and the Autobot security forces struggled to hold the line against the rioting malcontents. After Sentinel Prime returned to the battlefield in his Apex armour, Hound served as his optic lead for Sentinel's heads-up scanners in targeting Megatron. However, Megatron destroyed Sentinel Prime's display helmet by throwing Hound's apparently dead body at the Autobot commander. Megatron Origin issue 4
Except he survived. Much later, he was the current leader of a combat unit consisting of Sideswipe, Leadfoot, Warpath, Road Rocket and Skram. After Jetfire and his forensics team finished retrieving all the relevant data from Bludgeon's hidden base in Thunderhead Pass, Hound's unit moved in and established a permanent guard post on Cybertron at that location. Their duty was to protect the installation from Decepticon hands and watch over the deactivated members of Bludgeon's cult, who were being held in stasis. Unfortunately, this dull and unglamorous assignment didn't sit well with Sideswipe, especially as his brother, Sunstreaker, had gone missing in action on Earth.
The dullness ended rather abruptly when a mysterious and powerful being barged into the base. He killed Leadfoot and seriously damaged Hound's crew before making off with their prize prisoner...the inactive form of Thunderwing himself. Spotlight: Galvatron
After Hound briefed Prime on Thunderwing's theft, Sideswipe interrupted the conversation and suggested that the unit go to Earth and help locate Sunstreaker. Hound started to apologize, but Prime agreed that it was a good idea and ordered them to Earth. Devastation, Part 1
Toys
Generation 1
- Hound (Autobot, 1984/2004)
- Japanese ID number: 02, TFC-14
- Hound was released as part of the initial Autobot assortment in 1984, transforming into a Mitsubishi J59 Jeep. Mounted on the back of the vehicle mode is a large, silver machine gun turret. Other vehicle accessories include a spare tire and a fuel canister.
- In robot mode, Hound is armed with a large, silver "holographic rifle" and a shoulder-mounted, spring-loaded, firing rocket launcher with three silver projectiles. The US version of this launcher had severely weakened springs for safety reasons.
- He was reissued in 2004 by Takara in their Collection reissue series, and this mold was used to make the e-Hobby exclusive Detritus during the same year.
Alternators
- Autobot Hound (2004)
- Alternator ID number: 3
- Japanese ID number: BT-04
- For the Alternators line, Hound's vehicle mode was updated to a Jeep Wrangler, with opening doors, hood (with mock engine bay) and tailgate, and a detailed interior. Hound also features a working suspension system, similar to 20th Anniversary Optimus Prime, but lacks steering.
- In robot mode, he greatly resembles both the original toy in detail and the G1 cartoon model in proportions and personality. In this form, Hound is armed with a holographic projector gun stored inside his spare tire.
Unreleased
- A redeco of the Autoroller Roadblock was planned for release in 1995 as Sgt. Hound, but was one of several redecos and molds that were canceled with the end of the Generation 2 line. This mold was also used for Autocrusher from Beast Wars II.
Trivia
- The Hound toy was originally a Diaclone "J59 Jeep", coming with a blue-and-white pilot figure and several IP-infringing decals.
- Ken Sansom's voice for Hound sounds not unlike famous actor Jimmy Stewart.
- Due to the animation models of the characters being based on box art as much as the actual toy, Hound's holographic rifle was misinterpreted as a small pistol thanks to the foreshortening used. The Alternators toy uses the "pistol", which lead to people more familiar with the original figure's gigantic rifle to quip that his new weapon was "far too small."
- Like those of many Generation 1 characters, Hound's animation model has appeared as an unnamed cameo in the Armada cartoon. He is visible both reacting to the Mini-Con beacon in episode 1, "First Encounter", and in a flashback in episode 12, "Prehistory".
- The Alternators version of Hound was originally planned as a Jeep Rubicon, sporting a slightly different transformation that would have somewhat reduced the back kibble. The change from the Rubicon to the Wrangler model Hound ultimately came out as it did presumably due to Jeep wanting their more common model featured.
- For trademark reasons, the Alternators toy required an additional "Autobot" prefix in front of the name, hence making the official name "Autobot Hound".
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