[Transformers] Hound (Voyager) from ‘Transformers: The Last Knight’ has great playability

July 20, 2017 marcus goh ., toys, transformers 0

Hound has been one of the surprising favourites of “Transformers: The Last Knight”, with almost everybody remembering who he is and what he looks like. He’s an Autobot who transforms into a Mercedes Unimog tactical vehicle that has no back, although you can create a missile turret by combining all his guns and putting them on the back half of his vehicle. He’s portrayed as an overweight soldier, although he’s much slimmer than his “Transformers: Age of Extinction” figure.

He doesn’t quite have the triple-barrelled Gatling gun in the picture though.

Hound is a Voyager Class figure from the Premier Edition range of the new Transformers: The Last Knight toyline, which means he retails for SGD$59.90 at all good department stores and Toys R Us.

Unlike Megatron, Grimlock and Optimus Prime, Hound has the same artwork on the front and side of his box. This leads me to believe that he might possibly have been planned as a Deluxe figure, who was so detailed that he was upgraded to a Voyager figure. You can do much, much more with his weapons than what the packaging shows you though – he’ll definitely be able to tote a weapons turret when you’re done!

He’s a Munitions Expert! I guess “Weapons Expert” or “Artillery Expert” was taken by Ironhide, and erm… well, Hound sort of fulfills Ironhide’s role when it comes to being the weapons guy.

Alternate Mode

In vehicle mode, you can clearly see the Mercedes logo along with his spoilers. I like that his headlights are distinctly and properly painted here, since it adds a bit of colour to the vehicle. The rest of his vehicle mode is like a military vehicle, fairly nondescript in colour. Also, since he doesn’t have a full behind, he looks a little like a truck, which strengthens the Ironhide connection.

Attaching his weapons behind does give him the missile launcher feel. If you’re worried that he might not be able to aim where you want him to, fret not – he’s got seven ports on his back, so you can position his missile turret any which way.

He also has a small running count of Deceptions that he has despatched, as symbolised by the crossed out Decepticon symbols. I find this an amusing but effective way to convey the idea that Hound is, first and foremost, a military bot.

His wheels run pretty well, and it’s easy to ensure that his parts form a smooth line. He’s pretty solid inside, so there’s no worry about having to fit his plates together.

Robot Mode

Hound is pretty stocky in robot mode. He’s big and broad, as you would expect from a soldier. However (or thankfully, depending on how you see it) he’s not as round as he’s depicted in the movie, nor is he as chubby as his “Transformers: Age of Extinction” figure. In fact, he doesn’t even have a tummy.

Personally I think that’s a good thing. I wasn’t quite sure why Leadfoot (“Transformers: Dark of the Moon”) or Ratchet (“Transformers: Animated”) had tummies – I mean, doesn’t that make the toy less appealing? If female Transformers aren’t as common because they’re less appealing, surely obese Transformers would be too.

So yes! No tummy is a good thing.

He holds together quite nicely as well, in that his kibble isn’t going in every which direction. His feet to be ratcheted to the exact correct position in order to stay put, but that’s the most aesthetic position anyway.

Accessories

Hound comes with multiple guns (five in fact) (one of them is more like a crossbow though) that merge into one massive missile turret, just like how his “Transformers: Age of Extinction” figure had combining weapons. It’s pretty nifty, although his previous figure had more detailed weapons. Then again, his previous figure was fat, so pros and cons.

Hound also comes with a removable helmet that comes off without too much effort. It also stays on no matter how hard you shake it, so I think the mould is pretty solid. It makes quite a bit of difference, since he appears bald without his helmet. I’ll keep it on of course, but if you need to show him in some battle-damaged mode, then you can take his helmet off.

Hound is a pretty good figure to get if you’re intending to assemble an Autobot team. He’s bulky and looks suitably imposing as the Autobots’ Munitions Expert, plus all his removable accessories means you get a lot of playability out of him.

You should definitely get him – after you’ve gotten Optimus Prime and Megatron.

Transformers: The Last Knight

Premier Edition

Optimus Prime (Voyager)

Legion Class

Optimus Prime (Legion)

Drift (Legion)