 General Mortifero
Orthrus Commander
Operation: Recall Wave 1 Action Figure
Item No.: Asst. F003 No. Y1W1F4
Manufacturer: Locomotion Media Group
Includes: P55 9MM pistol, spiked ball hammer, ceremonial knife, Figure Display Stand, Art Poster
Action Feature: n/a
Retail: $30.00 Kickstarter, $25.00 on web store
Availability: December 2025
Other: Unmasked variant mail-in figure coming later
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While not working in the Kremlin, fictional bad guy gang Orthrus in Operation Recall's General Mortifero is a two-headed dog. The bad guys have (at least) two major commander characters, and the other one seems to be a mystery - which is good. While I love who's making stuff and how, this particular guy neglected to follow the best way to achieve originality. That is, to conceal your source. Going to G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero figure fans with this particular design is going to make about 100% of them go "I also remember Iron Grenadiers Destro." The colors and silhouette are basically the same, with a different mask, boots, and gloves. The costume elements are very different, but the colors aren't - so it's hard to not make the connection.
According to the Larry Hama-penned file cards, he's an international warlord and according to the makers' YouTube, he wants to take over a country in the EU. To that end, he hires mercenaries from all over the world to help him out. As they move up in rank, they get more and more gold gear to add to their person. For that reason I'm a little surprised this particular character isn't as shiny as C-3PO, given the backstory regarding the various lieutenants' "year two" versions add golden weaponry and masks to their persons. Surely, the baddest bad guy wold be the goldest?
G.I. Joe Vehicles Tested - Does Fit: 6 Wheeled ATV, Funskool MRF Racing VAMP redeco, 2006 DTC Cobra H.I.S.S., Slugger.
Does not fit: Operation Crimson Sabotage HISS Driver's seat, Mole Pod.
Click here to check availability at eBay.
This is a taller figure, standing about 4-inches rather than the traditional 3 3/4-inches. He is indeed taller than Cobra Commander, but serves a similar purpose with a mouth that looks sort of like Baron Karza and a cape that's pure 1988 Destro. The designers did a nice job giving him far more color than the man in the iron mask, with bright red bandoliers, belts, gloves, and boots. The level of detail in the sculpt isn't nearly as impressive as the other figures in the wave (or his inspirations.) The boots in particular are incredibly smooth, as are the pants, but I can kind of understand why they didn't want to follow in Destro's thigh-high fetish boots. These red ones go up to the knee, and aren't as defined as a separate element - they seem thin, tight against the legs.
The sculpt looks good, but I think the shiny clearcoat overpowers the wrinkles in the shirt or the gold-painted buttons. It's distracting - but it looks better here than on other figures. Maybe it's latex, maybe it's shiny leather, but it absolutely sparkles even in a low-light environment. The gold paint on the mask isn't quite as shiny, and I'd say it looks all the better for it. The red eyes pop from behind the mask, and he has a big red diamond-shaped pattern on top of his head. There's a splash of red around his neck, much like the aforementioned Destro, and he gets another splash of gold thanks to a h ole in his belt where you can plug in a sword - like Destro.
The pistol fits in his hands perfectly, and the spiked ball hammer is a nice change of accessory for this kind of figure. Normally, I'd associate a blunt heavy instrument with the Dreadnoks, and it's a nice contrast to a guy who looks like he's trying to present as a regal supervillain. All three gold accessories are painted, and feel cast in a hard (possibly brittle) plastic. There's not much bending here, so I assume they're ABS and I would recommend being very careful with them. I can't help but wonder if they were meant to be vac-metal gold at some point in development, and it just didn't work out. (Confidential to the makers: I'd buy a vac-metal weapons pack.)
I found tiny bits of gold paint flaking off on his hands or belt hole, and that could just be something that happens the first time you play with this. But in case it isn't, be careful with this one.
While the other figures in this wave mostly feel like toys, this feels more like an adult collectible. A big part of that is the texture of plastic on his gear, but also his cape. It's affixed to a pauldron on his right arm, and adds a little bendable wire to the bottom. This gives it some weight, a stroke of brilliance to that it hangs more like real fabric. There's only so much you can do to make a cape look or feel "heavy," and this was probably costly compared to just throwing in a plastic piece. I assume a lot of people will want to pose this in the wind somehow, but I want to leave it as it came. It looks good.
The first wave is good, but this figure just seemed a little less imaginative for the line's first big bad guy. The painted weapons don't really work for me, but they're nicely sculpted. I just hope they last. I give credit to the designer for coming up with a nifty mask that doesn't immediately remind me of anything specific in G.I. Joe, plus the bold color scheme stands out in a world of mostly dull gray military things. It's a figure that stands out, even among his peers in the line. It's quite a feat that it got made, and a lot of the design choices make sense, but I'd go without painted weaponry for the third one. The second one is most likely sitting in a warehouse already, as it's some sort of unmasked, bloody-weapon mail-away figure. If you're a big fan of indie figures, I'd suggest giving this one a look. $25 isn't a lot for a low-run new-sculpt figure.
--Adam Pawlus
Additional Images
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See more Operation: Recall items in Figure of the Day:
Day 3,083: Locomotion Media Group Operation: Recall Mzimu Corps (Pecan) Action Figure
Day 3,093: Locomotion Media Group Operation: Recall Dark Reapers Action Figure
Day 3,103: Locomotion Media Group Operation: Recall Breacher & Hellhound Action Figure
Day 3,123: Locomotion Media Group Operation: Recall Retelo Action Figure
Day 3,128: Locomotion Media Group Operation: Recall Bengal Action Figure
Day 3,143: Locomotion Media Group Operation: Recall Sol Eagle Action Figure
Day 3,163: Locomotion Media Group Operation: Recall General Mortifero Action Figure
