Hosehead is an Autobot Headmaster from the Generation 1 continuity family.

"No, you take off!"

Hosehead (aka Horsehead) ... well, he's got a nice personality. He's a fine guy, kind and well-meaning, courageous and willing to carry out his dangerous search and rescue function. Sometimes he even does it quite well. But he gets very flustered under pressure, to the point that he can do as much damage as good. His binary bond with the Nebulan star athlete Lug seems to be improving this problem.

Fiction

Marvel Comics continuity

Marvel The Transformers comics

"You killed him! He's dead! I'm a witness! Police! Police! My brother's a murderer!"
"I didn't do nothin'- take off!"

Before the war, Hosehead was a low-level microchip counter in a transistor factory. He left to join the Autobots to prove to himself that he could do something more worthwhile. Hosehead's Transformers Universe profile

Under unrevealed circumstances, Hosehead was binary-bonded to the Nebulan named Lug, and then taken prisoner by the Decepticons on Cybertron. As a field test for the new Decepticon lord Thunderwing, Hosehead was released free on Earth alongside his fellow prisoners Playback and Horsepower. Thunderwing was to hunt down and execute them in an uncontrolled environment. The Decepticon made the mistake of toying with his prey, however, killing Playback and then leisurely pursuing the others. Playback's death caught the attention of two Autobots from the Ark, Nightbeat and Siren. The latter chased Hosehead and Horsepower down, learning after cornering them that they were all on the same side. But while Siren and Hosehead squabbled over the misunderstanding, Horsepower was killed by Thunderwing. Upon rejoining Nightbeat, Hosehead was knocked aside by one of the Decepticon's blasts. Thankfully, Nightbeat managed to best Thunderwing with his wits, and the remaining three Autobots became inseparable from then on as Hosehead joined the Ark's crew. The Big Shutdown! Rage!

We found this mouse in a bottle of YOUR BEER, eh. Like, we was at a party and a friend of ours - a COP - had some, and HE PUKED. And he said, come here and get free beer, or he'll press charges.

When the Autobots received a distress call from Earth's surface, Nightbeat assembled a combat team that included Hosehead, Siren, Landmine, Getaway, and himself. Under Optimus Prime's command, they rushed to Earth to help their fallen comrades, but there they found the Deathbringer, who had come to cleanse the planet of life. Ironically, Deathbringer was powered by the energies of the Creation Matrix, rendering it seemingly invulnerable to all attacks! Hosehead and the others fought valiantly, but were getting slaughtered. Using a plan hatched by Nightbeat, Optimus used the Deathbringer's own programming against it, and caused it to self-destruct, removing Hosehead and the others from danger. Deathbringer

The Chaos-Bringer, Unicron was awakened and was headed towards Cybertron, but only the Creation Matrix could stop him! Even worse, the Matrix was fired into space inside the body of Optimus Prime and was presumed lost. To this end, Hosehead joined Siren and Nightbeat on a mission to Pz-Zazz, a planet in a star system where the Matrix might have landed. On the seedy, crime-ridden planet, he and Siren acted as Nightbeat's less-than-eager backup as the brazen detective interrogated some unsavory types on the street. The pair carried out a rather undiginified retreat after finding themselves caught in a gangster crossfire, part of a gang war between Gutt and B'hgdad. The trio stopped in at a low-life bar, where they encountered the dubiously motivated Ms. Fatale. Hosehead and Siren accompanied Fatale to the former location of the planet's missing "font of life", only to be held at gunpoint by Gutt and his men. When Nightbeat arrived shortly afterwards with the missing artifact, Hosehead and Siren were able to turn the tables on Gutt's men with some quick reflexes and weapons set to stun. Hosehead was witness to the planet's rebirth after Nightbeat returned the artifact to its rightful place... only to be blasted in the back and captured by Thunderwing. Bird of Prey!

"My brother and I used to say that drownin' in beer was like heaven, eh? Now he's not here, and I've got two soakers... this isn't heaven; this sucks!"

Hosehead proved able to resist Thunderwing's Mind Leech device, revealing nothing about the Matrix Quest, but Nightbeat wasn't as stalwart. Kings of the Wild Frontier. Hosehead and the others were freed when the device's equipment was damaged after Thunderwing lashed out against one of his insubordinate troops, and violently knocked him into a control panel. Dark Creation Learning that Thunderwing had successfully found the Matrix in their absence and was planning to sneak aboard the Ark in a stolen Autobot shuttle, Hosehead and pals stowed away on the shuttle in the hopes of disrupting the Decepticons' schemes somehow. Upon arriving at the Ark, Thunderwing went on a Matrix-fueled rampage, easily overpowering all those who opposed him. Hosehead, Nightbeat, and Siren worked together to stop Thunderwing when all others failed; Hosehead deactivated the Ark's artificial gravity per Nightbeat's order, while Nightbeat himself harpooned the Decepticon to an Autobot shuttle and released its landing-clamps. With the hangar bay's door opened, Thunderwing was dragged out of the ship, and into the void of space, where the shuttle self-destructed. All Fall Down

There wasn't much to do. All the bowling alleys had been wrecked. So's I spent most of my time looking for beer.

In the aftermath of this showdown, Siren and Hosehead relaxed by watching televised murder mysteries. Later, Siren told Hosehead a joke he'd already heard. Eye of the Storm

Hosehead and the rest of the Earthbound Transformers were warped to Cybertron by Primus to do battle with Unicron, where their creator explained to them the history of their race. The Void! At Optimus Prime's orders, he manned a building-sized cannon, which he fired at the Chaos Bringer. On the Edge of Extinction! However, Hosehead was ultimately among the casualties of the battle; his wrecked vehicle form was shown among the dead. Still Life!

Marvel UK future timelines

In an alternate 2009, Hosehead was one of the Autobots who had to abandon Cybertron to Galvatron and the Decepticons after the Time Wars rebooted history. To make matters worse, their ship crashed on Earth after their leader, Rodimus Prime, was possessed by Unicron's corrupting influence. Hosehead and Doubleheader were seen taking a shot at the insane Rodimus, but their fire bounced off his "aura of evil" and he blasted right back at them. Shadow of Evil

Transformers Comic-Magazin

Horsehead [sic] was present when Powermaster Optimus Prime led the Autobots against the joint Decepticon leaders Shockwave and Megatron, who had tried to hijack the oil reserves of Alaska. He complained that there were too many Decepticons to fight, and that they needed to be picked off one-by-one. The Autobots drove off the Decepticons, but not before Quickmix shot a minibot because he turned off his targeting computer. Optimus then sat his troops down and explained to them the differences between Autobots and Decepticons. Attack at Dawn

Horsehead was among the Autobots monitoring the Decepticons from a distance when Megatron made peaceful gestures to Humanity in New York City, and had to tell Slapdash to stop shouting at the Decepticons.. The Autobots returned to the Ark and discovered that a statue of Snaptrap that the Decepticons had gifted to New York was actually Snaptrap in disguise. Snaptrap went on a rampage and the Decepticons used this distraction to attack various other targets. Optimus Prime led the Autobots to narrowly defeat this menace. The Troy Principle Those events were recorded on a videotape that was later found and watched by Autobots on Cybertron after a nuclear disaster in Kalis. In Memory of Earth

Horsehead joined an absolutely massive team of Autobots sent to protect the US nuclear arsenal, Nevada Alpha. Under Plan C, he and Nightbeat ganged up on Snarler so he'd have to drop his stolen warhead. The battle caused fires across the bus and he put them out in fire engine mode while moaning about it. Save Nevada Alpha

During an absolutely massive global battle, Horsehead witnessed Bumblebee and Siren fall to laser fire and said their only hope was to force the Decepticons to split up. Nobody seemed to have paid attention until Optimus said it later. He Who Laughs Last ...

Recordings of the attack on Alaska, along with Optimus Prime reviewing Horsehead's characteristics to Bumblebee, were used in a wayward simulation experienced by Goldbug. Memories of Bumblebee

Ask Vector Prime

When Scorponok and Zarak were turned into this giant... raging... THING, it was Horsehead who named it "Majin Zarak" after the ancient Predacon in the Covenant of Primus. Ask Vector Prime, 2015/07/10

Classics

After Hosehead's demise in the battle against Unicron, Lug wound up trapped within the Autobot's remains for three days before he was rescued. Classics Lug profile

Regeneration One

"Fleshy headed mutant! Are you friendly?"
"No way, eh. Radiation has made me an enemy of civilization!"

Following Grimlock's return to Cybertron, the Autobot leader Hot Rod called Hosehead, Grapple, and Siren to the Senate Forum to leave them in charge of Grimlock's incarceration at the Bastion-five lock-up while he went into Cybertron's core to look for the Primus chamber. Shortly afterwards, Grimlock escaped. Natural Selection, Part Two With most of the population under the control of Scorponok's Gene Key, Hosehead, Grapple, Crosshairs, and Blurr found that they were the only Autobots unaffected by its influence. The group reconvened within the deserted Forum Senate, and thanks to Grapple's knowledge on the place's architecture, made their way to a secret passage which allowed them to bypass the chaos taking place outside. Natural Selection, Part Three Alerted by a sudden burst of enemy comm-chatter about taking down Grimlock at the Nursery, they arrived to find the facility on fire so Hosehead transformed to fire engine mode to tackle the blaze, revealing Grimlock and the Dinobots, united once more. Hosehead then tended to Inferno's Nucleon-induced heat-retention issues while Grimlock recruited the others into his near-suicidal effort to stop Scorponok's plans Natural Selection, Part Four in which Hosehead helped storm the Civil Defense Hub. Natural Selection, Part Five

After Bludgeon's attack on Cybertron, Hosehead assisted with the clean-up, putting out fires alongside Hot Spot. The War to End All Wars, Part 1 Having survived Rodimus Prime's assault on Jhiaxus's Hub Network, Hosehead was killed by the Dark Matrix creature's shadow-leeches on his return to Cybertron. The War to End All Wars, Part 5

Ladybird Books continuity

Voice actor: Blain Fairman (English)

After Highbrow was kidnapped, Optimus Prime was forced to submit himself to the Decepticons in exchange. Knowing the Decepticons would never release Highbrow as they promised, Prime recruited Hosehead and Fizzle to help him. Sneaking the two into the area in the back of his trailer, Optimus turned himself over to the Decepticons while Hosehead and Fizzle worked to free the prisoners. Finding Highbrow under the influence of a magnetic immobilizer, Hosehead sent his Headmaster partner in close enough to remove the device. Next, they located Optimus imprisoned behind a wall of electrical fire. In fire truck mode, Hosehead used his water spray to disrupt the field. As the quartet of Autobots made their escape, Fizzle and Cindersaur got into a fire vs. fire fight that reached a stalemate. Hosehead turned it into a fire vs. water fight, once again using his water tanks this time to extinguish the Firecon's breath by spraying right down his throat. Autobot Hostage

Dreamwave Generation One continuity

I was like a one-man army, like Charlton Heston in Omega Man. You ever see it? Beauty.

During the Age of Internment, Hosehead remained free from Decepticon rule under Blaster and Perceptor's resistance cell. He was working with Nightbeat on a strike team to capture a member of the Aerospace Extermination Squadron for study. The Age of Wrath #2 After two drones were destroyed, the final one suddenly reactivated and attacked them. Hosehead prevented the drone from executing Nightbeat with his accelerator rifle, but it retaliated with a sonic pulse that scrambled his circuits. Fortunately, Getaway attached the inhibitor claw onto the Aerospace drone, shutting it down. The Age of Wrath #3

2005 IDW continuity

First appearance: Robots in Disguise #3

There's lots of ideas in here, so listen, and don't get stuck!

Hosehead helped search for survivors (and corpses) in the blast crater left by a mysterious explosion on Cybertron. Stick Together He was later among the forces defending the planet against an army of Ammonites. Black Planet About six months later, he joined the Lost Light on its second departure from Cybertron and was one of many among the crew to try to eavesdrop on Rung's psychiatric examination of its new captain Megatron. Towards Peace

When quantum flux began to cause the Lost Light to disappear, Hosehead was among the crew making their way for the escape ships. Predestination: A Beginner's Guide Later on, Hosehead, Siren, and Nightbeat almost lost their heads thanks to Tailgate's hoverboard antics. Our Steps Will Always Rhyme

Hosehead was one of the Autobots who gathered when Rodimus announced the news about Thunderclash's prewake. The Sensuous Frame He sided with Getaway during the mutiny aboard the Lost Light. Filling in the Blanks

Commercial appearances

"Me and my brother here are nude. So like, imagine us - there he is - there's hosehead, with no clothes on. He's really built, eh."

Hosehead raced across the surface of an unknown planet in alternate mode alongside Nightbeat and Siren. Small Headmasters commercial

Toys

The Transformers

"There's no way I'll crash this! This is a beer truck, eh!"

• Hosehead (Headmaster, 1988)

• Accessories: "Lug" Headmaster driver, seat/helmet, "accelerator rifle", left and right laser pistols

Released in the fifth year of the original Transformers toyline (fourth in Europe), Hosehead transforms into a sweet fire truck of undetermined, likely-made-up model. The area between the cabin and the rear of the truck has a seat that a Headmaster pilot can sit on. (One can fit a small Headmaster inside the cabin itself, but this method isn't as secure, however, meaning they'll rattle around in there.) The ladder base has a ratcheted joint, allowing it to rotate, while the ladder itself can extend out to 22cm in length and also has a movable compound nozzle. His head guns can be stored on the sides of the vehicle while his rifle can be plugged onto the ladder.

In robot mode, Hosehead has a flip-down panel on his chest which covers a spring-loaded mini Tech Spec meter which gives readouts for Speed, Strength and Intelligence. The tumblers are activated when Lug (or any other Headmaster unit) is plugged into his neck socket. As another consequence of being a smaller Headmaster, Hosehead's chest cavity was apparently too small for three individual tumblers. As a result, all Headmaster heads inserted will display Hosehead's pre-molded (and painted) Speed, Strength, and Intelligence readings (5, 8, 6) on one large sliding plate.

This toy was released in Japan with no notable changes as the Headmaster Junior Cab.

• More information on Hosehead at TFU.info

Notes

• For whatever reason, Hosehead's character model treats his "goggles" as a colorless transparent visor covering a pair of standard optic sensors, despite his toy having the same kind of outwardly-opaque visor as numerous other Transformers. Just more small Headmaster Autobot weirdness...

Foreign names

• French: Boyau (Canada)