Action Figure Barbecue: Action Figure Review: Low-Light from G.I. Joe: Classified Series by Hasbro

I looked at a few repaints last week but for this Thanksgiving week there are plenty of new characters two check out. Today is a look at one of my childhood favorites, Low-Light. I had this guy as a kid and have always loved his cool uniform, his red goggles, and his sniper rifle. Low-Light had some great figures over the years in the traditional 1/18th scaled line and he's been a figure I've been looking forward to in the Classified Series. Hasbro did an excellent job with him, drawing inspiration from the vintage figure and the 2011 Pursuit of Cobra figure. Ready to take a look at Low-Light? Then join me after the break...

The Facts:

Height: 6 3/8ths inches

Articulation: Swivel/ hinge ankles, boot swivels, double hinged knees, swivel thighs, ball jointed drop down hips, ball jointed waist, mid-torso hinge, butterfly pecs, swivel/hinge shoulders, bicep swivels, double hinged elbows, swivel/hinge wrists, ball jointed neck base, and a barbell jointed head.

Accessories: Backpack, knife, sheathe, goggles, wind meter, hip pouch, SMG, SMG magazine, rifle, bipod, suppressor, scope, rifle magazine, and case.

Non-Scalper Price: $25 dollars

The Positives:

* Low-Light looks pretty similar to his vintage figure which I'm not disappointed with at all. While some of the outfits from the vintage line seem out of date, Low-Light's looks perfectly fine to me. He's sporting a grey jumpsuit with plenty of padded elements and pockets. There are pockets and zippers and such all over him! He's still carrying a few grenades like his vintage counterpart, too, and they look excellent. He even has a shoulder pad built into his uniform to help steady his rifle. He is absolutely outfitted to slip in undetected and light Cobra up.

* Low-Light has an excellent portrait. He looks quite grim and focused with dark bags under his eyes. I'm not sure if that's eyeliner to help prevent glare or if he's just used to getting little to no sleep from staying up all night watching Cobra installations and gathering intel. The black toboggan completes his look and has an impressive ribbed texture.

* Low-Light's goggles are removable and they fit over his face well or can rest on his forehead.

* Like the rest of the Classified Series Flint has

incredible articulation. There's some seriously well designed articulation that allows for a great range of motion everywhere on this guy. The Classified Series truly makes the classic Joes, the ARAH Joes, and the modern 1/18th scale Joes proud. These are fun, durable figures that are a joy to mess around with. Low-Light looks fantastic in various shooting positions, including prone. I have some sandbags from the Plan B Special Forces line that would go great with him.

* The vintage Low-Light came with an Uzi as a backup weapon but the modern Low-Light comes with a weapon that looks like it's inspired by the Kriss Vector. It's not a 1:1 likeness or anything but the style, shape, and the magazine being angled and adjacent to the handguard is the biggest giveaway. It's a really cool looking SMG and it has a hollow barrel so it can be fitted with the included suppressor from the rifle or so you can place a firing effect inside.

* The magazine slips out for real reloading action!

* Low-Light's massive backpack surely carries lot of goodies and stuff for long assignments. There's nothing removable from it and no real bells and whistles, but it does have a solid sculpt that shows off multiple (non-functioning) attachment points.

* The SMG can fit on the peg on the right side of the backpack, allowing Low-Light to have it at close by if he's carrying his main rifle.

* For outdoor survival, setting traps, cutting wires, or just having to deal with Cobra troops up close and personally, Low-Light has a knife with him. It's a simple blade but the handle has some really nice design.

* The knife fits easily into a sheathe on Low-Light's right thigh.

* Check out this wind meter! Look up a real wind meter and you'll be impressed with the detail on this piece. It's a very neat extra. I just love accessories like this. They add such a cool vibe to the line.

* The wind meter fits very snugly into a removable pouch on Low-Light's left thigh, so you don't have to worry about him losing it.

* Low-Light comes with a very nicely detailed rifle case. It has a peg so he can wear it strapped across his back but there's also a functioning handle. The 2011 Pursuit of Cobra version of Low-Light was the first to come with a rifle case and this one draws a lot of inspiration from it. The case is definitely more detailed, though, with multiple visible pouches and storage areas.

* Inside the case there's a nice bit of detail on some non-removable, simply sculpted details and places for the disassembled rifle. The main body of the rifle fits in the bottom compartment while the bipod, scope, and suppressor fit in the top compartment.

* Low-Light's rifle looks to me to be something like a Remington M2010 Enhanced Sniper Rifle (ESR). Hasbro rarely does 100% direct weapons (sometimes, though) but this one definitely has a very nice real world vibe to it. I imagine that many folks will pick rifles from Gridiron Studios or Valaverse to arm Low-Light with, but this one is definitely a suitable modern rifle that fits in his cool weapons case.

* Like most other Classified Series weapons, the magazine and the suppressor are both removable. The scope is, too, and you can also move the bipod around easily.

The Negatives:

* Low-Light's gun is kind of rubbery. Not quite gummy but still very bendable. It makes the stock weird when he's holding it in some poses and the scope can easily get knocked out of socket.

* There's a peg and hole on the rifle case, so I assume the intention is for Low-Light to hold his rifle like this. With the backpack strapped to the case. That's just awkward, isn't it? It looks like he'd just topple over backwards. You're better to just have him carry the case by the handle.

Low-Light is a Great and a 1/2 figure with my only real issue being that his rifle is a bit rubbery and it tends to make holding some of the parts on it a bit frustrating. Figure wise, he's great, so maybe a simple gun swap might put him at the forefront of your collection, though I'd suppose he's rather be in the dark somewhere hidden. Hasbro did do a nice job on him, though. We are starting to see some rubbery accessories popping up here and there, which are no good. I'm hoping it's a bit of a fluke or something that is rectified quickly. The Joe team at Hasbro seems to be more responsive to issues that pop up and they adapt more quickly than some of the other teams.