Last year Hasbro released Crystal Ball into the G.I. Joe: Classified Series and he ended up being
my October 31st review for last year's 31 Days of Toy Terror. With his introduction, Hasbro introduced something of a new Cobra sub-team into G.I. Joe as an adversary for Night Force: Cobra troops augmented with
D.I.R.E. tech, or Dread-Inducing Responsive Energy. The D.I.R.E. tech is a mystical energy that can be used to both induce fear in adversaries and to create tangible constructs and it's a rather cool new concept for the G.I. Joe universe. Today I'm looking at the third figure released in this unofficial sub-team, the Night-Creeper (D.I.R.E. Tech). Like all of the D.I.R.E. tech figures released thus far, he's exclusive to Walmart. This guy showed up earlier this summer in rather limited numbers before showing up in September in greater numbers as part of Walmart's fall reset (there's also a new troop, the Cobra D.I.R.E. Hawk who actually started showing up in stores before he was officially announced on October 1st, but as of this writing I haven't procured one yet. Ready to check out the Night-Creeper (D.I.R.E. Tech) figure? Does anyone else, upon picking up a Night-Creeper, find themselves singing "Night-Creeper, Night-Creeper" to the tune of the BeeGee's "Night Fever?" All this and more will be discussed after the break...
The Facts:
Height:6 1/8ths inches
Articulation: Swivel/ hinge ankles, boot swivels, double hinged knees, swivel thighs, ball jointed drop down hips, ball jointed waist, balljointed mid-torso, butterfly pecs, swivel/hinge shoulders w/ ballsockets, bicep swivels, double hinged elbows, swivel/hinge wrists, ball jointed neck base, and a barbell jointed head.
Accessories: Kalis sword, barbed sword, 2 swappable portraits, crossbow, arrow, and 2 daggers.
Non-Scalper Price: $28 dollars
The Positives:
* The D.I.R.E. Tech Night-Creeper (who oddly has a hyphen, while no other Night Creepers have had one as to the best of my memory) is what we used to call a Franken-Joe. He's largely a repaint, sure, but he does have some parts borrowed from other figures. Instead of the standard
Night Creeper arms, he now has the arms from the reptilian
"Once a Man" Cobra Commander, giving him a more supernatural appearance. He's wearing all black, grey, and silver, making him look a bit stealthier than your average Night Creeper. It's a really cool color scheme on its own and the addition of the transparent green arms just makes him look even more unique.
* The standard portrait is basic, but in a good way, adhering to the color scheme of the rest of the figure. The Night-Creeper looks like he's wearing a gray balaclava with dark blue goggles, feeling kind of like a variant of Commando Snake Eyes. He's also sporting an interesting helmet with a silver protective dome and a scarf or cowl around his head. It kind of reminds me of Keshikten helmet.
* To really transform this guy into a fear-inducing warrior, a second portrait is included. This is a very Cthulhu-like visage with long horns and a tentacle covered mouth. Glowing red eyes, transparent skin, and skull-like features really make this a creepy sculpt. Oddly, this is the same exact portrait that was included with Crystal Ball and it felt like something unique to him. I guess it's kind of a standard option for the D.I.R.E. tech crew, though one of the heads from the
Ghost Viper might have been a better choice. Still, if you don't have Crystal Ball or don't care about him being terribly unique, this is a wonderful portrait.
* Here's a closer look at the Night-Creeper's translucent arms with scales and the interesting arcane symbol on his shoulder-pads.
* This is a G.I. Joe: Classified Series figure, so you know the articulation is excellent. This guy has plenty of bladed weapons to play around with and he can take a ton of ninja styled poses. He also can hold his crossbow with both hands, something that just strikes me as incredibly cool. Whether you have him as a sneaky, stealthy operative or a monstrous being wildly flailing around his blades made of necrotic energy, he's a fun figure.
* The Night Crawler's curvy Kalis, a Philippine double-edged sword with a curvy blade, has been remolded with a gray handle and a translucent D.I.R.E. tech infused blade. Does it cover the blade or is the blade made of tangible energy?
* The Night Creeper's second sword is a pretty nasty weapon and it's also glowing green. It's a long, straight blade with barbs down the side. It kind of reminds me of a something I found, a Kiribati blade called a
rere made with shark teeth and other barbs from sea life, but this was probably made up by Hasbro designer back in the day. Do you think the blade hums when the Night Creeper swings it or does he have to provide the sound effects himself?
* The excellent crossbow is included here, now in grey. The vintage Night Creeper's crossbow is a gem from the vintage line and this one is pretty nice, too. It's a larger crossbow than most we've seen and it doesn't fall apart as it's all one piece. There are spare arrows stored below it, too, so the Night Creeper can more quickly make multiple shots. The loaded arrow that's currently ready to fire is a separate piece.
* Here's a shot of the crossbow from the bottom so you can see the cool foregrip on it. I've also removed the little arrow; don't lose it!
* The backpack has two sets of arms to hold both blades and a rack of spare arrows. The loose arrow can pop right on. It's a bit askew, sure, but it's cool that it's an option.
* The crossbow can also pop on to the backpack. There are two pegs that attach to it, keeping it on rather securely.
* These two small, hooked blades are super nasty and look like something that the Night Creeper could really do some damage with up close. They also have glowing green D.I.R.E. tech infused blades.
* Both can be stored in the sheathes on the back of the Night Creeper's belt, keeping them close at hand.
I really like this guy. Maybe not as much as the first release, but then again, translucent green blades go a long way towards adding to the coolness factor. While he doesn't have the extra hands of the original release, the extra D.I.R.E. tech Cthulhu portrait is certainly more detailed than the original alternate Night Creeper head. The green reptilian arms are another nice addition that makes this guy more than just a repaint. Honestly, I still think he's a pretty Epic figure. He's fun, has a few display options, is loaded with weapons, and he can carry all of them. That's a heck of a toy if you ask me.
If you're a fan, also check out the standard Classified Series
Night Creeper.
For more G.I. Joe: Classified Series reviews check out the following:
* To really transform this guy into a fear-inducing warrior, a second portrait is included. This is a very Cthulhu-like visage with long horns and a tentacle covered mouth. Glowing red eyes, transparent skin, and skull-like features really make this a creepy sculpt. Oddly, this is the same exact portrait that was included with Crystal Ball and it felt like something unique to him. I guess it's kind of a standard option for the D.I.R.E. tech crew, though one of the heads from the Ghost Viper might have been a better choice. Still, if you don't have Crystal Ball or don't care about him being terribly unique, this is a wonderful portrait. 
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