Later on Monday, Ajla Tomljanovic stumbled early but recovered to beat Ukrainian qualifier Yuliia Starodubtseva 4-6 7-6 (7-3) 6-1.
Hon overcame a poor first set to overpower Marina Stakusic with the Canadian qualifier forced to withdrew with severe leg cramps while trailing 1-6 6-4 5-3.
It was the 27-year-old Hon's first victory at her home grand slam in six years.
Hunter made her own triumphant return to centre stage at Melbourne Park, powering into the second round with a straight-sets win over Spaniard Jessica Bouzas Maneiro.
Youngster Talia Gibson had begun the local women's challenge with a flying start on Sunday in a straight-sets demolition job on Anna Blinkova.
For Hon, it was a welcome change of fortune at Melbourne Park, with her only previous singles win coming in 2020.
But she did make a career-best grand slam run to the third round at last year's US Open.
"Just having that experience from the US Open definitely helped me in a lot of ways," said Hon.
With the temperature rising in the final set, Hon first had treatment for a sore shoulder before Stakusic was struck down by leg cramps.
She conceded the final point of the seventh game to receive medical treatment, only to retire soon afterwards before leaving ANZ Arena in a wheelchair, with Hon lending her assistance.
"Obviously I didn't want to win like that, but I do feel very relieved that I'm through to the second round," said Hon.
"I really hope she does feel better because that was quite a scene out there."
Hunter, 31, missed last year's Open due to a ruptured achilles tendon and had to come through qualifying this time around.
She fell behind early in both sets but recovered strongly to win 6-4 6-4, setting up a second-round clash with American Hailey Baptiste.
"It means everything to be winning singles matches here in Melbourne," said Hunter.
"I feel like I have had a very up-and-down career, a lot of injuries in my career from when I was 18.
"When I made the third round in 2024, I finally felt like that was my time. I was sitting at career-high ranking, really thought I was going to crack the top 100.
"Then obviously with my achilles, that was the most heartbreaking thing I've ever gone through in my life, missing Olympics, missing the chance.
"To come back from an achilles rupture, I don't know anyone who has done it in tennis."
Hunter enjoyed a career-best run to the third round at Melbourne Park in 2024 before bowing out in a tight three-setter to two-time major winner Barbora Krejcikova.
Tomljanovic, 32, lost the first set against world No.110 Starodubtseva but regrouped.
She served for the second set at 5-4 but was broken, before composing herself to win in the tiebreak - then streaked away in the third.
"I'm just so happy to have won that," Tomljanovic said.
"I was a little worried. It was such a high level and I feel like I had a bit of a slow start but even though I lost and it was really tight in the second I felt like I was playing well."
Men's No.6 seed Alex de Minaur was all business on Monday as he put American lucky loser Mackenzie McDonald to the sword 6-2 6-2 6-3.
The good news kept coming for the home contingent as Jordan Thompson hit back hard after dropping the first set to Argentina's Juan Manuel Cerondolo to triumph 6-7 (3-7) 7-5 6-1 6-1.
While at least five Australians advanced on day two, Aleksandar Vukic bowed out to 7-5 6-2 6-2 to another Argentinian, Thiago Agustin Tirante, while teenage wildcard Emerson Jones suffered a 6-4 6-1 loss to 17th seed Victoria Mboke.
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