I really want to like Hound's sculpt, but I have some hesitations. In his vehicle mode, things are mostly positive. It has a good shape with enough realistic elements to make it look like someone could ride in it such as the seats and steering wheel. It's just a little cartoonish, looking basic and blocky. There are some nice details, like the door handles, grill grooves, and lights at the top of the windshield. His robot form is where my doubts start to rise to the surface. I do like his upper body quite a bit, with its nice bulky chest, head that's not too low on the torso, and standard square stubby arms. It's his lower body that ruins this sculpt for me. His legs are absolutely monstrous in size, with feet as big as his whole upper body. This is just a product of the transformation, but I wish they could have found a more efficient way to make these legs natural looking. I even like huge lower legs, just not humongous feet like these that make it awkward to pose him, also making him look a bit wonky from most angles. His thighs are way too short in proportion to his calves too, which makes poses look funny a lot of the time too. Autobot Hound's backside is pretty barren, just empty hollow shells of the front, so seeing some more form back there would've been a pleasant addition. His face is surprisingly full of robot expression; it seems like he almost has a smile, though I may be crazy. Either way it's a nice sculpt with a detailed mouth, chin, and eyes. I can't leave out Hound's little enemy, Ravage, that is packed in with him. He's a cassette tape that transforms into a small cat. The tape looks surprisingly good, without being too thick or broken up as you might expect. His cat form is much weaker, not really looking like anything, with a particularly ugly head and really short tail. He does include some details, with plating on his legs, teeth, and rockets on his rear thighs. The sculpting isn't super crisp, but it gets the job done. He's a nice throwback and I'm sure a lot of people will appreciate it as a bonus, but Ravage is not much on his own. All of the sculpting work pretty well with the transformations of both figures, and all the pieces fit well together when locked in. There is an annoyingly obvious and ugly mold number on his right foot, which normally wouldn't be a problem, but this one got messed up and is much bigger/bold than usual. 

Sculpt Score: 6 / 10

 Hound is mostly just cast in green, white, and black plastic, with some blue transparent pieces as well. The green is a shade too bright. I'd like to see a more muted, or even darker, green that meshes up with past appearances and takes away from the cartoonish look Hound is putting out. Just to clarify, I understand he is a cartoon character, but he looks toyish and childlike compared to the other figures in the same line, partially because of the sculpt, but mostly because of this very vibrant green color. The white at his hips just pops out of nowhere in robot mode and looks kind of silly; it's just a necessary evil to make his seats look right in vehicle form. I don't think anyone would have complained with black seats though, just to bring his design into a tighter accord. The actual applications on Hound don't seem like a lot, and yet they add up fast. He has yellow stripes on his arms that are well done, straight with good coverage. The yellow on other spots doesn't fare as well, not quite thick enough to hide the colors underneath, and also sloppy around the edges, especially at his knees. The various silver spots, including his face, all look good with clean lines and solid coverage. His autobot and star decals are clean and straight. Ravage is molded in a basic black but includes silver paint on all four of his legs, which is a good color and well applied. 

Paint Score: 7 / 10

 Hound actually has some articulation in his vehicle mode. His seats move up and down! I wish his doors opened too, but we have to settle for rolling wheels. He rolls quite naturally, although his front-right wheel sticks occasionally. Once transformer, Autobot Hound still offers quite a few points of articulation, especially in his lower body. He has hinges at the knees, ankles, and elbows; balls at the hips, shoulders, and neck; swivels at the bicep and thigh, and finally his feet turn side to side, so you can keep him flat footed even when his legs are extended diagonally, which helps a ton with cool poses. None of the articulation is broken or particularly restricted in its movement, but both of his hips are really loose, one unbearably so. Ravage has a surprising amount of articulation despite his small stature, with hinges for all four legs, as well as a moving tail and neck. It all works smoothly, but none of it has a large range of motion, just limited by his size and sculpt. The articulation all looks fine for both figures, even augmenting their already robotic looks. 

Articulation Score: 8 / 10

 

 Transformers are fun. Hound is a Transformer. Therefore, Hound is fun. It's not quite that simple, but this is a really enjoyable action figure. Hound's articulation is good enough that you can pose him in a lot of fun ways, more than most of the figures in this line, and you can take him off the shelf and play with him too. His transformation isn't too frustrating, and being able to switch him from a fun car to a fun giant robot is enjoyable in itself. He includes an accessory, which is frustrating, because it's supposed to fit on his shoulder in robot mode as well as the back of his seat in jeep mode, and I couldn't get it to hook on in either. Maybe I missed something, but I think my Hound is stuck holding the gun. Another element making Hound interesting is that he includes his own enemy, Ravage. While the little cat isn't much fun on his own, when paired with Hound you've got an automatic play scenario set up. Nothing was broken and disappointing and even his packaging includes fun components like a biography and statistics. There's not much more you could expect to get out of a figure from a fun standpoint; he may not have a perfect sculpt or paint, he's just a blast to play around with. 

Fun Score: 10 / 10

 At the current price of $10-$12, it's hard to classify just how worth your money Hound is. He's very well made and exudes class with high production values. It's obvious that he isn't a ripoff, you're looking at the real deal here. Of course he's not perfect, with paint missteps and a less than perfect design and sculpt, but he still offers a lot to a potential buyer. Not only does he include his own small accessory, in fact he also has his own enemy packed in. Hound is an average size figure and feels great in your hands, plus it's almost like you're getting two toys, a car and a robot. A lot of time was spent on designing this figure, and it sort of makes him feel like a couple extra dollars is reasonable. If you're a fan of the line, the character, or just think he looks like a fun toy, then he really is a great value, otherwise just watch your step, because $12 isn't chump change for a mid-sized action figure.  

Value Score: 8 / 10 

Summary

 6 - Vehicle mode has strong elements and details but still looks a shade cartoony, some ugly proportions for lower legs, back is empty and boring, good upper body, great face sculpt, ravage looks weird in robot mode and good in cassette, mold issues on Hound's foot.  

 7 - Looks toyish, green is too bright, white sticks out too much, some messy applications, some good ones, decals are clean, face is good. 

 8 - Really loose hips, everything else works well, lots of articulation on Hound, enough on Ravage, limited range on Ravage, looks great with sculpt, fun to display or play.  

 10 - Articulation model offers options for play or display, great packaging, includes an accessory, he transforms!, includes his own enemy. 

 8  - Nothing's broken and he feels sturdy and durable, includes accessory and another character, normal sized figure, a little pricey, paint and sculpt could be better and more nicely designed. 

Overall Score: 79 / 100 - This is a Good Toy

Hound just barely misses the cut because of a weak sculpt and only average paint. He does offer a lot of fun at a decent value. 

P.S. This could be the figure I'm giving away this month, just leave a comment for a chance to win (if it's the one).

-The Articulated One