G.I. Joe Convention 2013 - Nocturnal Fire Letal

Best known as a Brazilian Frag-Viper repaint, Letal seems like a no-brainer for inclusion in a convention set, especially one featuring Frag-Vipers as a central Cobra trooper. Letal is one of those crazy awesome, almost ridiculous foreign repaints that takes an already goofy looking figure and slaps some bright green paint on it. The result is a fascinating new character that gives the Collectors Club a relatively blank slate to build upon.

With Letal, they went sort of the obvious route, making him a South American Frag Viper commander who leads the Frag Viper team against Night Force.

From a figure design perspective, this figure is the same as the Frag Viper. The (so far) unproduced Ultimate Snake Eyes from the neck down, and a newly tooled Frag Viper head. Yes, the figure is a little bit skinny, but as I said in the Frag Viper review, I don't think that's a deal breaker.

The colors are obviously quite bright, which might turn some fans away, but personally I really like it. It does match the original South American variant, after all. The bright green and blue trim compliment themselves nicely, and the black is a great dark contrast to all of the brightness throughout.

ACCESSORIES

Unlike the Frag Viper, Letal does not come with the traditional grenade launcher. Instead his main weapon is a bazooka, with a great backpack and replacement missiles. These are all the same accessories that came with 25th Anniversary Zap. It separates Letal slightly from his trooper counterparts, which I think is great. Along with the bazooka, he has the same pistol and knife as the trooper, but also has a different submachine gun. Like the Frag Viper, his sash is simulated by a Crimson Twin removable one, blue again to match the old school paint scheme.

With the same construction as the Frag Viper, Letal is a nice homage to a past foreign exclusive. The Collectors' Club did a good job translated that old design to a new figure, and I think it works nicely within the context of this set. The normal Frag Viper's more muted colors make me prefer those, but the fact that Letal is a new and unique Cobra character matches that edge. I'm glad the Club is dipping their toes into International waters.

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