I love how the D.I.R.E. line walks that fine line between aliens and the supernatural, and D.I.R.E. Hawk may be one of its coolest figures yet. D.I.R.E. Hawk is built entirely from previously released G.I. Joe Classified Series parts, but this is one of those rare reuse-heavy figures where everything comes together naturally. The Rattler Gunner body, Raptor wings, and Ghost Viper helmet and alternate hands do not feel like a random assortment of old tooling. The matching gray and black across the different pieces helps enormously, while the gold accents and translucent green elements give D.I.R.E. Hawk an identity of his own. Having the figure in hand, I’m especially impressed by the large mechanical wings. They have an excellent range of movement, feel sturdy despite their size, and can completely change his appearance depending on how they are spread or swept back. Between those wings, the helmet, two very different translucent green hand effects, two pistols, and a submachine gun, there are plenty of display options here. My biggest disappointment is that none of the translucent green parts glow in the dark. That would have fit the D.I.R.E. theme beautifully and given an already strange figure an even more distinctive shelf presence. I purchased D.I.R.E. Hawk myself when he was briefly in stock, and you can pick him up at Walmart but check stock status after the jump!

Packaging

D.I.R.E. Hawk comes in the familiar G.I. Joe Classified Series window box, but the Cobra branding and green D.I.R.E. Tech sigil immediately set this release apart. I especially love that skull-and-snake D.I.R.E. Tech emblem, which looks right at home sitting over the classic red Cobra logo. Through the window we can see Hawk along with his alternate helmed head, translucent green hands, and his wing assembly in the background.

The side-panel illustration shows D.I.R.E. Hawk reaching forward with a glowing green hand while the dark mechanical wing rises behind him.

D.I.R.E. Hawk’s other side panel carries the Cobra emblem and four classification abilties.

Turning the box around, D.I.R.E. Hawk is shown in full D.I.R.E. Tech gear with the gold helmet, translucent green arms, mechanical wings, and submachine gun. Along the side are separate looks at his unmasked head, the D.I.R.E. Tech effects on his arms, and the alternate helmeted head.

With everything out of the box, D.I.R.E. Hawk’s weapon loadout comes with two matching pistols and a submachine gun, packed alongside the helmet, alternate translucent green hands/forearm effects, and removable wing assembly.

Figure Details

With D.I.R.E. Hawk out of his plastic prison, we can get our first good look at the figure without any of his D.I.R.E. Tech gear attached. He uses the Rattler Gunner body with a gray and black flight suit, brown harness and matching drop-down holsters, giving us a good look at just how much of that original figure carries over before we start adding all of his gear.

The Cobra Airborne marking on D.I.R.E. Hawk’s upper arm is one obvious remnant of the reused Rattler Gunner tooling.

Taking a look at D.I.R.E. Hawk from the side, you can get a better look at how the gray flight suit sits underneath the thick black chest armor, along with the padded sculpting running down the arms and legs.

Here’s a closer look at the “COBRA AIRBORNE” patch on D.I.R.E. Hawk’s upper arm, another remnant of the Rattler Gunner tooling used for the figure. You can also see the unused hole just above it that would normally be covered by another piece.

Turning D.I.R.E. Hawk around, we get a look at the back of the gray flight suit and the black armor wrapping over his shoulders. There’s also another unused hole right in the center of the upper back, another leftover from the reused Rattler Gunner tooling.

The red emblem centered on D.I.R.E. Hawk’s forehead immediately pulls attention toward his eyes. Those tiny red pupils surrounded by heavy, rough black brushing give him an almost exhausted, inhuman expression.

D.I.R.E. Hawk’s circular shoulder emblem uses fine gold linework over a glossy black center, a small detail that stands out sharply against the gray sleeve.

Putting D.I.R.E. Hawk into an action pose, he looks great holding the submachine gun. The weapon has a removable magazine along with a port at the end of the barrel for attaching blast effects.

Up close, the submachine gun has plenty of sculpted detail beneath that flat gray finish, including layered receiver panels, raised controls, and ribbing around the barrel.

Now let’s gear D.I.R.E. Hawk up with his D.I.R.E. Tech equipment, including the gold helmet, translucent green arm and those enormous mechanical wings. I love how much movement the wings have, with several joints that let you spread them out into a pretty impressive wingspan, and they hold their position really well.

None of D.I.R.E. Hawk’s translucent green components glow in the dark, which is a real disappointment when the hands and mechanical wings already look set up for it. They still look good under normal lighting, but that missing glow would have made this a much more distinctive display.

D.I.R.E. Hawk’s alternate translucent green hand is a ridiculous mass of swirling energy, with long clawed fingers and tendrils curling back around the wrist.

Turning D.I.R.E. Hawk around with all of his D.I.R.E. Tech gear attached gives us a much better look at how those enormous wings connect to the figure. The two wings meet at a large gold mechanical assembly on his back, with multiple joints running through the black sections before opening into those translucent green feathers.

Taking a closer look at the back of the wings, you can really see how much mechanical detail is packed into the gold central assembly and the black articulated sections. I also love the translucent green feathers running along the bottom, with additional green panels worked into the wings themselves.

Moving in for a closer look at D.I.R.E. Hawk’s helmet, I love how much detail Hasbro packed into this thing, even though it’s a reuse of the Ghost Viper Helmet. The metallic gold shell is broken up by all those black mechanical lines and fittings, but the translucent green hoses feeding into the respirator are easily my favorite part. They look fantastic with the gold and tie right into the translucent green used throughout the rest of his D.I.R.E. Tech gear.

Now we can really load D.I.R.E. Hawk up with all of his gear. The mechanical wings are fully articulated, so you can fold them inward like this while still giving the translucent green sections plenty of room around the figure. With both alternate translucent green hands attached, those long energy tendrils create a pretty wild look, especially with the matching green wings surrounding him.

Overall Impressions

D.I.R.E. Hawk is 100% reuse, and I’m completely fine with that when the reuse is handled this well. The Rattler Gunner body, Raptor wings, Ghost Viper parts, and existing weapons do not feel randomly thrown together. The matching grays, blacks, gold accents, and translucent green pieces make the whole thing feel intentional. It is also nice to see parts from different releases match closely enough that swapping heads or experimenting with other combinations does not immediately leave you with mismatched colors.

Those wings do a lot for the figure. They’re huge, sturdy, and have enough movement to completely change the way D.I.R.E. Hawk looks depending on how they’re positioned. You can spread them out, bring them forward around the body, raise them above him, or use them almost like shields. Combined with the helmet, dual pistols, submachine gun, and alternate energy-effect hands, there is quite a bit to play around with despite there being no new tooling here.

My biggest issue is still the lack of glow-in-the-dark parts. With all that translucent green running through the helmet, hands, and wings, it feels like an obvious opportunity that was left on the table. Imagine having several of these D.I.R.E. figures together and seeing all of that green glowing after hitting the display with a UV light. Even without it, though, D.I.R.E. Hawk shows how effective reuse can be when the right pieces and colors are combined. Instead of making me focus on where every part originally came from, I end up enjoying what they created with them.