Line #36 WesternAnimation/TheHoundcats


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.]]
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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.
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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.
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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	----
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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.

Context WesternAnimation / TheHoundcats