1 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_houndcats.jpg]] |
2 | [[caption-width-right:350: Left to right: Rhubarb, Puttypuss and Stutz sit in Sparkplug while Musselmutt and Ding Dog effect repairs.]] |
3 | |
4 | A SaturdayMorningCartoon, created by [[Creator/RubySpears Joe Ruby and Ken Spears]] and made by Creator/DePatieFrelengEnterprises, that aired on Creator/{{NBC}} during the 1972-73 season. |
5 | |
6 | '''The Houndcats''' is a loose, light-hearted take on ''Series/MissionImpossible'', ''Series/TheWildWildWest'' and (especially) the short-lived ''Series/{{Bearcats}}'', in which three canines and two felines traverse the southwestern United States to deal with all manner of high-level national offenders, circa 1914. |
7 | |
8 | The Houndcats are Stutz (Creator/MichaelBell), TheLeader and TheStrategist; Ding Dog (Stu Gilliam), the second-in-command; Puttypuss (Joe Besser), the MasterOfDisguise; Rhubarb (either Arte Johnson or Creator/DawsButler, depending on the episode), the inventor; and Musselmutt (Aldo Ray), the strongman -- er, dog. |
9 | ---- |
10 | |
11 | !!"The New Hope for ''Houndcats'' Tropes Mission"! |
12 | * BaldOfEvil[=/=][[BeardOfEvil Goatee Of Evil]]: Diamond Head. |
13 | * BeardOfEvil: Captain Blight has one. |
14 | * CaninesPrimaryFelinesSecondary: {{Inverted}}. While the dogs do slightly outnumber the cats, the leader is one of the cats rather than one of the dogs. |
15 | * CoolCar: Sparkplug, the team's semi-sentient Stutz Bearcat. |
16 | * DogsAreDumb: Dingdog and [[DumbMuscle Musselmutt]] play this one straight; Rhubarb {{avert|ed}}s this one, [[BunglingInventor for the most part]]. |
17 | * DumbMuscle: As dumb as he is, Musselmutt can throw down. |
18 | * EpisodeTitleCard |
19 | * EvilLaugh: In Captain Blight's first episode, it's a RunningGag that he gets stuck in evil laugh mode, and his {{Sidekick}} has to bring him out of it by hitting him on the back. |
20 | * ExpositoryThemeTune |
21 | * FunnyAnimal: The Houndcats. |
22 | * GadgeteerGenius: Rhubarb's role on the team was to invent devices that would get them out of trouble... |
23 | ** BunglingInventor: ...and occasionally ''into'' trouble when they malfunctioned. |
24 | * GentleGiant: Musselmutt,, a huge, muscular Old English sheepdog, is also the quietest, most affable of the otherwise frenetic and explosive crime-fighting team. And able to bend steel with his bare paws. |
25 | * {{Half Dressed Cartoon Animal}}s: Except for Musselmutt, who's a BarefootCartoonAnimal. Incredibly, Rhubarb manages to be ''both!'' |
26 | * {{Hammerspace}}: Rhubarb’s sombrero holds an assortment of equipment. How it manages to stay in that scrawny space with all their running around is another matter. |
27 | * IdiosyncraticEpisodeNaming: Each episode is titled "The ___ Mission". |
28 | * LaughTrack: The series used one. |
29 | * LegionOfDoom: In "The Call Me Madam X Mission", three villains from previous episodes hire the titular villainess to get rid of the Houndcats. |
30 | * LighterAndSofter: Compared to its live-action inspirations. The show was made when the networks were cutting back on televised violence, especially in childrens' programming, so the Houndcats used {{Zany Scheme}}s to trick the villains into defeat. |
31 | * LionsAndTigersAndHumansOhMy: As far as the series shows, the Houndcats are the only {{Funny Animal}}s in an otherwise human world. No one ever mentions this. |
32 | ** SlidingScaleOfAnimalCast: Level 4. |
33 | * MadScientist[=/=]MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate: Two of the villains, Dr. Greenhouse and Dr. Strangeless. |
34 | * MasterOfDisguise: Puttypuss, The (so-called) Cat of a Thousand Faces. |
35 | * MissionBriefing: OnceAnEpisode, and always as an AffectionateParody of ''Series/MissionImpossible''. One episode has the Chief ''singing'' the info to the tune of "Clementine". |
36 | * PaperThinDisguise: Considering their fur and their builds – especially pint-sized Puttypuss – they don't work very long. |
37 | * RoguesGallery: An extensive one, since none of the villains appeared more than twice. |
38 | * TheSmurfettePrinciple: Madam X was practically the only female character in the entire series. |
39 | * ThemeTuneRollCall: "Puttypuss, Musselmutt, Dingdog, Rhubarb, Sparkplug, and Stutz..." |
40 | * ThisPageWillSelfDestruct: Goes with the MissionBriefing. |
41 | * TheVoice: The Chief, who gives the Houndcats their assignments. |
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