Thanks for all the insightful responses. They just go to show that in general, in a wide range of manufacturers there's likely to be a 1, 2, or possibly even a 3% defective rate depending on the specific model hook. Personal question - I wonder if smaller hooks, say 12 thru 18 more prone to defects?
Anyway, years ago I tried an experiment. Dry fly hooks from 3 manufacturers all the same size. Attached all to 6# mono and then attached them all to a singular piece of mono so that all were equidistant from a 'pull point'. Embedded each hook point into a a piece of wood so that they would all be pulled down from the wood at the same angle. Slowly began to apply pressure and pull down. First one hook began to bend and then another. One was almost straight, the other was about 1/2 way and the third was beginning to bend. Final;ly the first did straighten, the 2nd was almost there and the 3rd was about 1/2 way. That was just a little test I gave to these hooks. It doesn't mean anything necessarily insofar as other models and has no bearing on malformed hook eyes. The test simply was for that particular type of hook in that particular size.
My bottom line is that if you want a particular shape of hook, in a particular weight, and in a particular length then you should be prepared to pay for each criteria you set.
Arnie's final comment above is about as accurate a statement as you can find: "A final thought, quality and price have a poor correlation."
Allan