Jackal

Jackal Post-Upgrade

Jackal Pre-Upgrade

Jackal is a member of the Pack and the twin brother of Hyena.

History

Jackal was born in 1968, slightly before his twin sister Hyena. [1][2]

Jackal and Hyena were mercenaries who were noted for their deadly swiftness and accuracy. They were recruited by Fox into joining the Pack, becoming starring characters in the television show The Pack. [3] With their teammates, they eagerly hunted the gargoyles when they first appeared in New York, but were defeated by Goliath and Lexington. ("The Thrill of the Hunt") Nevertheless, Jackal and Hyena managed to escape arrest at the end of that encounter (unlike Fox and Wolf). They continued to take orders from Fox while she was incarcerated, not realizing that she worked for Xanatos.

On Fox's instructions, they went to the Diamond Exchange to steal the Coyote Diamond. When Xanatos purchased it first, they tried to steal it from him. However, they were foiled, in part by the timely arrival of Elisa and Derek Maza. Fox next ordered them to assassinate Xanatos for interfering, which they attempted to do, but were foiled once more, this time by the gargoyles. (In fact, Fox had been using them without their knowing it as part of a scheme to lure Derek into Xanatos' service; Jackal and Hyena were intended to fail all along.) ("Her Brother's Keeper") This time, they were captured and sent to prison on Rikers Island, alongside Fox and Wolf.

They and Wolf were broken out afterwards by Dingo and Coyote 1.0, and proceeded to battle the gargoyles again, meeting with defeat once more. ("Leader of the Pack") Following this defeat, the Pack was reduced to robbing banks. When Coyote returned and offered them a chance to wreak vengeance on the Manhattan Clan, Jackal voluntarily became a cyborg (as did Hyena). They were both outfitted with mechanical parts, but even this was not enough to defeat the clan, who left the defeated Pack for the police. ("Upgrade")

Jackal and the rest of the Pack (minus Dingo) eventually escaped to Egypt, with some help from Xanatos. Xanatos employed the Pack there to help the Emir summon up Anubis. Anubis' jackal-head intrigued Jackal, as did the Egyptian god's great power, and so when the Emir used the Scroll of Thoth to make himself the avatar of Anubis, Jackal intervened and became the avatar instead. Driven even more insane by the great power he now possessed, he decided to destroy all life on the planet. Fortunately, he was foiled by the Emir, who used the Scroll of Thoth to become Anubis' avatar in Jackal's place. ("Grief")

Afterwards, Jackal and Hyena parted ways with the rest of the Pack, and eventually came to Guatemala, where Cyberbiotics, under the management of Preston Vogel, employed them to deal with the Mayan gargoyles. Using some of his usual cunning, Jackal decided to render these gargoyles vulnerable by sending Hyena to New York to destroy the Mayan Sun Amulet, while he prepared to attack the gargoyles in their ensuing stone sleep. Fortunately, Hyena was thwarted in New York by Lexington and Broadway, and Jackal subsequently routed by the Mayan gargoyles and Bronx. ("The Green")

In 1997, Jackal helped Wolf and Hyena escape from prison and the three caused mayhem in Times Square. ("Phoenix")

Jackal and Hyena will eventually join the Ultra-Pack, and presumably be upgraded in the process again, although we do not know what form that upgrading will take. [4][5]

Characteristics

Hyena's cyber-ear "dish" and Jackal's cyber-eye

One of the more quick-witted members of the Pack (Jackal and Hyena are noted for their wisecracking), Jackal is also a chilling sociopath and one of the most ruthless of them. [6] Not only was he ready to destroy all life on the planet during the time that he was Anubis' avatar, but he also entertains the fantasy (which has fortunately never been fulfilled) of coming upon Goliath in his stone sleep, and reshaping his facial features to make him look like Jackal.

Jackal is Canadian. [7]

When asked what Jackal and Hyena's real names are, Greg Weisman responded with "Jack and Hanna" before admitting he was kidding unless he later decided those names really amused him. [8] Although, it is probably worth mentioning that storyboard artist, Vic Cook's kids are named Jack and Hannah. [9]

Appearances

• "The Thrill of the Hunt" (First Appearance)
• "Temptation" (Pack Mentioned Only)
• "Her Brother's Keeper"
• "Leader of the Pack"
• "Upgrade"
• "Grief"
• "The Green"
• "Strangers" (No Lines)
• "Phoenix" (Mentioned Only)

Apocrypha

The Goliath Chronicles

The Quarrymen hired Jackal and Hyena to ruin Fox's plan to better human-gargoyle relations by taking Broadway to Hollywood. They were ultimately defeated. ("Broadway Goes to Hollywood")

Production Background

Upgraded. Production sketch by Frank Paur.

Voice Actor: Matt Frewer