Sub-Teams Part IV: D.I.R.E. Tech

My final installment in this series of G.I. Joe sub-team articles hits today.

The Hasbro team has done such an excellent job creating new characters that fit so well into the lore while also turning out to be outstanding figures. I absolutely love it.

Wolf Spider is my favorite new figure, but there are plenty of great ones.

When it comes to the D.I.R.E. Tech crew, though, there’s also some reuse of older parts and designs—and it works incredibly well.

When Crystal Ball first came out, I was a little on the fence because I didn’t really have much of an attachment to him when I was a kid. But, like so many other Classified Series figures, once I saw him in hand, I absolutely loved him. It’s a gorgeous figure.

And if that wasn’t cool enough, Hasbro decided to give him his own army.

The first release was the D.I.R.E. Viper, which used the Retro Viper buck but added an all-new helmet, D.I.R.E. hands, weapons, and animals.

It’s an absolutely fantastic release that, to this day, still gets a ton of attention and can sell for more than $100 on eBay. It’s that good.

Not to be outdone, they decided to take the Night Creepers and splash some D.I.R.E. Tech onto them.

I think the gray works extremely well with the ninja aesthetic. The weapons are great, and they didn’t go too far with the D.I.R.E. elements. They basically worked them into the arms, and it gives the figures just enough of that distinctive look without overwhelming the original design.

So now Crystal Ball has two different types of soldiers in his army, and they both look fantastic.

But with the third and most recent release from the D.I.R.E. line, they gave us the D.I.R.E. Hawk.

I just grabbed two of them after my brother, C.G. Horror, gave me a link to get them from Walmart.

These are 10-out-of-10 fantastic!

The reuse of the Raptor wings is incredible. The figure has a very strong pilot-suit vibe and uses the same head as the D.I.R.E. Viper, but with different colors that help give it its own identity.

Normally, I don’t spend a lot of time with concepts that stray too far away from the ultra-militaristic side of G.I. Joe, but giving Crystal Ball his own army is just too good. I’m having so much fun with this group.

I don’t think a lot of people necessarily consider D.I.R.E. Tech to be a true sub-team, let alone a viable one, but I sure as hell do.

I have to give credit where credit is due. This sub-team is absolutely up to Castle Destro standards, and I love what Hasbro has done with it.

Now I’m looking forward to seeing what they bring to the team next!