Night Creeper Leader (1993)
While the name doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue, Night Creeper Leader is one of the more memorable looking late Real American Hero line Cobras. There’s no mistaking just what part of the venerable vintage small Joe line he hails from. The man apparently likes the color orange.
Night Creeper Leader appeared first in the infamous DIC produced animated series. He was, naturally, the leader of the Cobra Night Creepers themselves, a high-tech band of covert ops ninjas. I quite enjoyed his portrayal, as he had a strong sense of self importance and was quite the quipster to boot. It didn’t hurt that he was also voiced by Maurice LaMarche, the voice actor famous for his role as the Brain, everyone’s favorite mouse out to take over the world.
The figure bears no resemblance to its animated counterpart, who simply wore a Night Creeper uniform with an open face mask.
The following year, he was repainted with an eye-achingly wild color scheme of yellow, gold and purple. Sadly, though prototype pictures showed them, the tiger stripes on his pants didn’t make the transition.
Oh, and by the way, that’s not a blindfold he’s wearing. According to his file card, it’s an eye-masking bandana. Nice. Just when you’d thought ninjas had come up with every conceivable goofy accoutrement.
It was actually Josh Andrew Koenig (the late son of Star Trek’s Walter Koenig) who voiced the Night Creeper Leader. You might know him better as Richard “Boner” Stabone, best friend to Kirk Cameron’s character Mike Seaver in the first four seasons of the ABC sitcom Growing Pains. He also played the Joker in the critically successful 2003 fan film Batman: Dead End.
I used this figure so much as a kid. I had no problem at the time with Joes and ninjas. I really liked his mini-crossbow. I know he assassinated his way into the Joe base a lot of times with that. I will admit, however, to wondering why he didn’t look much like a Night Creeper even though he was their leader.
I’ll also freely admit, having recently acquired the whole run of the original Joe comics in tradepaper form, I really did love how quickly Snake-Eyes beat this ridiculous looking schmuck. Kind of a fitting end to this guy’s career if you ask me.
Andrew Koenig left us way to young. I understand he also voiced Ambush in the DIC series.
This figure showed up after I had stopped collecting Joes but it’s certainly one of the better sculpts from the neon era. Given the proper colors, it could have been a contender.
He could almost join tiger force in those colours.
I wonder if he was made because of demand or Hasbro thought the night creepers needed a different figure to lead them?
Maybe he’s wearing the blindfold because he’s practicing “the swaying flower” [also known as “The headband thingy”]
What’s not to like about a tiger-striped ninja? I always thought this was a really cool figure. I never saw the Night Creepers as being quite as elite as the Arishikage, but they could be fun to have around. I tend to think of them as ninjas who have a very inflated opinion of themselves, but get their asses handed to them when they mess with Storm Shadow, Snake Eyes, Jinx, etc.
That’s pretty much how Night Creeper Leader behaved in the one (maybe two) issues of the comic he showed up in. Snake-Eyes beat him down pretty embarrassingly.
This is one of my baddest if the bad guys here. He operates in the dark, so the orange is not that big of an issue, the knife and grenades are the only parts that I want to change the color on the most.
The guy is huge here and unlike the cartoon NIght Creeper persona (which I think is completely unrelated to this figure) and the short-lived comic appearance, my NIght Creeper Leader is the top dog out of all the Night Creepers.
He’s the best of the accountants-turned-assassins band of high-tech ninjas. Where most Night Creepers seem to rely on modern technology, and body armor, the Night Creeper Leader does not need such things.
I think the almost Tiger stripe look gives Night Creeper leader an almost tribal look, too. This guy, to me, did the studying and work and is very skilled…., that’s why he’s on of the my baddest of the bad guys.
I think I’d like this figure a lot more if he’s been painted in the Night Creeper v1 purple & grey colour scheme. In fact, I might just try that…
As far as the bandana goes, I like to think of it more as a psychological ploy against his enemies. Make them think he’s blindfolded so they do something careless against him, but in reality, he can see right through. I mean, this dude ain’t Jinx, after all. And of course, it wouldn’t work against the real ninjas.
Ridiculous figure, but good for a Tiger Force custom.
@Jeremy
Funny you should mention that:
http://www.joecustoms.com/customs/customs_specific_item.php?kind=figure&page=1&uid=1352&id=9944
Terrific colors!
@ Skymate
I agree. It looks like he took his clothes and gear from other parts of the GI Joe line. Pants from Tiger Force, arm guard & crossbow from Road Pig, the thunderbolt dagger from Hydro-Viper. Did he get everything from 1988?
Night Creeper Leader is a mildly interesting figure. He seemed to be a figure waiting to be created. The DIC character left a bit of an impression (not hard to do in so lackluster a show), so he crossed the bridge crossed previously by the likes of Orko in He-Man. He’s on the louder side of 1993 Battle Corps, outdone by just Leatherneck’s giraffe pants, and the lime green H.E.A.T. Viper. I don’t know about this one being ‘louder’ than the 1994 one. The purple kind of absorbs some of the ‘loudness’ of the yellow, whereas a ninja with a blindfold in safety orange is kind of more absurd in some ways.
You’re both right. Josh Andrew Koenig voiced the Night Creeper Leader in season 1, and Maurice LaMarche took over in season 2. If you listen hard enough, there is a subtle difference to their voices of the character, as Mr. LaMarche in particular made him go a little over-the-top.
@ Acer.Wow ,that’s a cool custom. Not sure why he had to replace the lower Zartan arems-was it for the molded on watch? Thanks for the link!
Fine addition to the ranks of the shirtless enemy characters. There’s like one Shirtless Joe (Quick Kick) and a dozen Cobras.
Oops…I forgot about Banzai and T’Jbang.
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