G.I. Joe Convention 2013 - Nocturnal Fire Crimson Asp

I feel pretty certain in saying this particular figure came out of left field for nearly everyone. As someone who thoroughly enjoys getting new characters and bringing new blood into the G.I. Joe universe, I love the fact that the Collectors Club branches out to find ways to get interesting new angles.

At the G.I. Joe Collectors Club round table, Dave Lane specifically mentioned folks have been wanting a new female operative, so they created Crimson Asp as a way to satisfy that need, and made her a saboteur to boot. With Firefly really being the only active Cobra saboteur, it makes a certain amount of sense to bring in other elements, especially for operations south of the border. With the female Doc, the Nightstalkers, Sparta, and in other cases, it's obvious that the Collectors' Club strives to fill in some of the blanks with female figures that Hasbro seems unwilling to do, and I think Crimson Asp serves that purpose as well.

The Collectors Club elected to spend some tooling dollars giving this character a new head sculpt, which works well for me. I like the idea of a past explosive accident costing her an eye, as it gives her a sense of menace and persistence. Even though she's been scarred from her work, she continues to do it.

Using the torso and arms from the final Cobra 5-Pack Baroness (and also the G.I. Joe: Resolute version) Crimson Asp's allegiance is immediately evident. Legs from Agent Helix bring a little more separation from the Baroness character, and I really like the design as well, compared to Anastasia's familiar thigh-top boots. Asp also wears the long jacket from the Resolute Baroness, which looks pretty awesome aesthetically, though it does somewhat limit her articulation from the waist down. Happily, though, with the cut in front, it's not terrible. Crimson Asp is certainly Crimson only in name (and hair color) as the majority of the figure is done in various shades of bright green. I suspect much of that was inspired by her country of origin (Ireland), though looking at her in the theme of the Convention set, she also fits in somewhat with Letal, too.

ACCESSORIES

As a saboteur, one would expect Crimson Asp to be decked out with various explosive tools, and she is. Her primary weapon is a flamethrower and fuel tank, though she also carries around a great grenade launcher, machine gun, and two of the awesome bombs that come with the current 3-Pack Firefly figure. The amount of deco work on the bombs is impressive, with nice little green wires painted across the sticks of dynamite (or whatever they might be).

The Baroness hands are always a little sketchy with how well they hold certain weapons, but she seems able to grasp most of this gear with little difficulty. The flamethrower and backpack don't allow for exceptional freedom of movement because the figure's smaller stature means the fuel connection isn't quite as accomodating, but that's a pretty minor issue.

Whether inspired by the infamous Molotov Cocktease or simply a neat new creation, I find myself fascinated by Crimson Asp. I love it when the Club goes outside of the box to bring us some layered new characters. I love the Baroness parts from an aesthetic sense, though I'll admit they already feel just a little bit dated from their initial release about 4 years ago. The Helix legs are better, though, and even if this figure itself doesn't totally knock me out, she's a decent addition to an International cadre of Cobra evil-doers.

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