Ground Hog

Ground Hog is a Decepticon Micromaster from the Generation 1 continuity family.

Phil? Phil Conners?

Ground Hog is, unusually for a Decepticon, a team player. He spends as much time as possible in the shop, fixing up his teammates in the Race Track Patrol, and finding new ways for them to dominate the battlefield. And by "dominate", he means "loud, fast, and chaotic".^[1]

Oh, and he steals parts from Autobots. While they're using them.

Fiction

Japanese Generation 1 cartoon continuity

Ground Hog Lost In Translation.

Zone story pages

The Autobot Race Track Patrol defected to the side of the Decepticons, becoming rivals to their former Micromaster comrades. Zone Part 9

Legends comic

In the aftermath of Trypticon's destruction at the hands of Dai Atlas, the Race Track Patrol recovered Full-Tilt's personality component and brought it to the Metrosquad. LG-43 Trypticon Project Chapter

Dreamwave Generation One continuity

Ground Hog was a loud, but otherwise relatively friendly Micromaster. He and Greaser apparently knew each other in the early days, and shared a larcenous past knocking over guzzlers and stealing their energon. Ground Hog joined up with Barricade after the Meltdown Riots and became a member of the Decepticon Race Track Patrol. After a fellow Micromaster named Crunch was inadvertently killed on a mission, though, the Race Track Patrol started to question their position in the Decepticon hierarchy. Ground Hog followed Barricade and the patrol when they quit the Decepticon army and made off for Little Iacon. Destined for Nothing After a dust-up in the Wastelands, they made their way to The Burn Outs. Ground Hog tried selling some of his own special blend of energon, but nobody seemed to be buying. They met up with the Hot Rod Patrol, their counterpart who had just cut loose the Autobots as well. Ground Hog started chatting with his old pal Greaser, asking if he was ready to start rolling Autobots again for fuel, but Greaser just didn't seem into it anymore. The Gray Race

When Venom and his buddies invaded Little Iacon for Shockwave, the Race Track Patrol stayed loyal to the Decepticon cause in the hopes of coming out on top. The power games kept coming, though, when Skystalker overthrew Shockwave and sent the rest of the bulk-sized Decepticons into a suicidal battle with Ultra Magnus and the Autobots. Recipe for Hate The whole situation turned out to be a royal mess, and Ground Hog and the Decepticon Micromasters ended up joining forces with Countdown and the Autobot Micros in order to bring an end to the guzzlers' battle, at least for the moment. Victims of the Revolution

2005 IDW continuity

If you gotta shoot, aim high, I don't want to hit the Ground Hog.

Ground Hog was one of the denizens of Gorlam Prime who accosted Hardhead and Nightbeat when they arrived on the planet. Spotlight: Hardhead

Beast Wars: Uprising

Ground Hog and the rest of the Race Track Patrol were among the Builders guarding Fortress Maximus when the Resistance attacked, and all four were killed in combat with Corahda. Head Games

Of Masters and Mayhem

Ground Hog was the younger brother of Ruckus.^[2]

War for Cybertron Trilogy marketing material

With Cybertron's fate sealed and the Autobots gone, the Decepticons followed them closely through space aboard the Nemesis in pursuit of the AllSpark. Earthrise webpage^[3] Ground Hog was a Ground Force Medical Raider. Earthrise toy packaging

Games

Transformers: Bumblebee Overdrive

Ground Hog was among the Decepticons defending their multiple bases against Autobot invaders. Transformers: Bumblebee Overdrive

Toys

The Transformers

Don't drive angry. Don't drive angry!

• Race Track Patrol (Micromaster Patrol, 1990)

• Takara name: Race Track Patrol Team
• Takara ID number: D-341

Released in the seventh (and final) year of Hasbro's US Transformers toyline (sixth and not-final year in European markets), Ground Hog transforms into a tricked-out Dodge Shelby Charger funny car. Ground Hog is gang-molded with his teammate Motorhead, sharing the same plastic colors.

He was only available in a four-pack with his teammates Motorhead, Barricade, and Roller Force.

In Takara's markets, the Team was released as the "Race Track Patrol Team", released in the Zone portion of Takara's Fight! Super Robot Lifeform Transformers toyline. They are physically identical to their Hasbro counterparts. They are one of a whopping two Decepticon regular-retail releases in the entire Zone toyline, the other being Metrotitan. This makes them the only Hasbro Micromaster team to keep their Decepticon faction in Japan.

• More information on Ground Hog at TFU.info

War for Cybertron: Earthrise

Hey, hey! Now, don't you tell me you don't remember me because I sure as heckfire remember you.

• Roller Force & Decepticon Ground Hog (Micromaster 2-pack, 2020)

• Hasbro ID number: WFC-E15
• TakaraTomy ID number: ER EX-09
• TakaraTomy release date: September 26, 2020

Part of the second wave of Earthrise Micromaster two-packs, Ground Hog transforms from robot into a "Cybertronian" low-riding vehicle. Sure.

He comes with his partner Roller Force as the Race Car Patrol. The two can also combine into something vaguely resembling a blaster rifle, with Ground Hog as the back half; technically they both can form individual weapon modes if you like.

The instructions and back of the packaging erroneously swaps Ground Hog's and Roller Force's names around.

This figure was redecoed into fellow Race Track Patrol member Motorhead.

Notes

• The original Ground Hog toy was colored in a shade of violet that, in the early age of digital cameras, photographed as blue. Perhaps because of this, Ground Hog's profile art in Dreamwave Productions' More than Meets the Eye #3 featured a blue color scheme, even though he was purple during his actual on-panel appearances in Transformers: Micromasters. These off-color Ground Hogs may go some way to explaining why his eventual Earthrise toy was blue as well.

Foreign names

• Japanese: Ground Hog (グランドホッグ Gurando Hoggu)
• French: Marmotte (Canada)
• Italian: Fury

References