Jackal

Jackal Post-Upgrade

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

History

Jackal Pre-Upgrade

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 City, but were defeated by Goliath and Lexington. 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 David Xanatos. ("The Thrill of the Hunt", "Her Brother's Keeper")

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's service; Jackal and Hyena were intended to fail all along.) This time, they were captured and sent to prison on Rikers Island, alongside Fox and Wolf. ("Her Brother's Keeper", "Leader of the Pack")

They and Wolf were broken out afterwards by Dingo and Coyote 1.0, and proceeded to battle the gargoyles again, and met defeat once more. Following this latest setback, 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. ("Leader of the Pack", "Upgrade")

Jackal and the rest of the Pack (minus Dingo) eventually escaped to Egypt, with help from Xanatos. Xanatos employed the Pack there to help the Emir summon up Anubis. Anubis's 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 once more to become Anubis's avatar in Jackal's place. ("Grief")

After surviving the destruction of the temple complex in the Sphinx, 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. ("Grief", "The Green")

In 1997, Jackal helped Wolf and Hyena escape from prison and the three caused mayhem in Times Square before being driven off by the new Manhattan Clan. ("Phoenix", "Mayday")

Wolf then led Jackal and Hyena to an assault on Rikers Island, where he and Jackal broke into the prison while Hyena planted pipe bombs to distract the guards. But before they could kill Brod (and Dracon, Renqvist, and Goliath), Renqvist freed Goliath who quickly and soundly defeated the Pack before locking them in an adjacent cell. ("Mayday")

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]

While Jackal himself won't be alive by 2198, someone else may operate under his name.[6]

Characteristics

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. [7] Not only was he ready to destroy all life on the planet during the time that he was Anubis's avatar, but he also entertained 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. [8]

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. [9] Although, it is probably worth mentioning that storyboard artist, Vic Cook's kids are named Jack and Hannah. [10]

List of Cybernetic Upgrades

Jackal shows off his retractable claws.

Jackal's telescoping torso

Retractable forearm particle beam... a trademark of Xanatos Enterprises

Back-mounted jetpack for flight

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

"A waterproof sealant was included with our last upgrade" and he's putting it to good use.

Forearm-mounted buzzsaws

AND HE TELLS TIME!!!!

Piledriver

Jackal's telescoping legs

ROCKET CLAW!!!

Razor blades!

Projectile net

Well that's sicker than usual...

His built-in blow dryer... gotta keep those locks flowing

Jackal's flamethrower

Arm-mounted taser

• Retractable claws (First appeared in "Upgrade")
• Cybernetic limbs (First appeared in "Upgrade")
• Telescoping legs (First appeared in "Upgrade")
• Telescoping torso (First appeared in "Upgrade")
• Firing claw missiles, with backup claws in the hands (First appeared in "Upgrade")
• Retractable, forearm-mounted particle beam (First appeared in "Grief")
• Retractable razors in the fingertips (First appeared in "Grief")
• Back-mounted rockets capable of flight (First appeared in "The Green")
• Rocket-Net fired out of wrist (First appeared in "The Green")
• Retractable, cabled "glass eye" (First appeared in "The Green")
• Water-proof sealant... specifically included with "last upgrade." (First appeared in "The Green")
• Blow-dryer stored in lower torso (First appeared in "The Green")
• Arm-mounted buzz-saws (First appeared in "The Green")
• Flamethrower (First appeared in "The Green")
• Digital watch built into left wrist (First appeared in "The Green")
• Retractable forearm taser (First appeared in "The Green")
• Piledriver (First appeared in "The Green")

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)
• "Mayday"
• "Your Witness" (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