The Joes are a dangerous group of individuals. They have all types of complete badasses in their ranks, from ninja to demolition experts to just tough-as-nails soldiers. But Low-Light always seemed just a little scarier.
Low-Light is an unassuming looking member of the Joe team. He’s not dressed all in black, he’s not the toughest looking or the loudest or anything. But from the moment I first laid eyes on his figure, something about him just jumped out and screamed “this is a guy the rest of the Joes are a little afraid of.”
I think it was the card art that first made that impression. Most Joes on their card art are gritting their teeth in determination, or yelling, or making some kind of overt facial expression that lets you know they’re about to kick ass. Most Joes are not what you would call “shy.”
But Low-Light? He’s just got a tight-lipped, stoic expression on his face. He’s gripping his sniper rifle with a super-sized scope and his eyes are completely hidden by a pair of red goggles. That’s the face of a man whose thoughts are his and his alone. He’s not one to shout “Yo Joe” with all the others. He’s too busy concentrating. He’s picking out the best spots to set up a shot.
This is a guy who will put one in your head before you hear the whizz of the bullet, and that’s terrifying.
Low-Light was an ’86 Joe, which was another in a stellar run of strong Joe characters. While it might not match up to the strength of the previous year, it still wasn’t too shabby. When I first got a look at the new members for the year on the back of that glorious cardback, Low-Light was one of the first figures I wanted. Something about him just jumped out and demanded to be bought. Even the name is evocative. Low-Light. It’s the place where demons dwell.
Low-Light came with his sniper rifle and an Uzi, but I think I had him use his sniper rifle almost exclusively. Low-Light often perched on top of the sofa (which doubled as as a mountain or building or whatever I needed) and capped Cobras from a distance, often before they could take out his fellow Joes. That swivel-arm battle grip meant that you could fake a decent enough looking-through-the-scope effect if you squinted, so that was put to good use.
Low Light was used very sparingly in the cartoon, most notably in a nightmare sequence where it was hinted that his father was abusive. Was that reality, or just a product of the nightmare? While his file card didn’t mention his father’s abusiveness, other bios hinted at it. Either way, he doesn’t want to talk about it, it’s none of your business, leave him alone.
His comic appearances were brief also. I guess a sniper is hard to squeeze into stories, especially on a cartoon. He had more facetime in the spin-off Special Missions book than he did in the regular title. I wasn’t a regular reader of the Special Missions title, so I’m not sure what he did in those issues.
That’s ok, though. A character like Low-Light is better without the baggage of other stories. He’s better without too much explanation or back story or even camaraderie. He’s the quiet guy that spends a little too much time polishing his scope, which is not a euphemism. He’s the guy whose eyes you never see, who can sit behind you in the mess hall and you never even knew he was there. He’s the guy that’s been riding with you the entire time but you forgot he was there. If you hear him say more than three words in a row, he’d almost apologize for talking your ear off.
You might think the Joe team already had a boogieman with Snake Eyes, but he’s practically a Prom queen compared to the way I saw Low-Light.
If I ever saw him at all.
