Ninjago

Fire Fang

A snake with real venom in its personality, and a rattle you actually hear.

Brick Rated Score

4.0/5

Set 70674 · 2019

Pieces469

Minifigs4

Year2019

Set number70674

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The verdict

The first time I turned that little gear under the hood and heard the tail rattle, I laughed out loud, it is such a small mechanism doing such a satisfying job.

Fire Fang is a serpent that feels alive, with a translucent orange and red hood, two stud shooters tucked into its sides, and a build method for that hood I have not seen done quite this way before. I will be straight with you though, at 469 pieces and forty dollars, some builders feel the model comes up a little short and stumpy for the money. If you love creature builds or you are chasing Aspheera and the Forbidden Spinjitzu Kai for your minifig shelf, this one earns its place.

Best for: Ninjago fans who want a snake villain with real play features, not just a display piece

The full review

What it is

Fire Fang caught me off guard in the best way. I went in expecting another generic Ninjago snake and got a creature with a genuine mechanism inside it, turn the black gear tucked beneath the hood and the tail swings side to side, rattling a hidden stash of white round tiles like a real rattlesnake. That is the kind of detail that tells me the designers were having fun, not just filling a parts list. The hood itself is built from two big sheets of translucent plastic in orange, red and black, and it is one of those construction choices that should not work as well as it does, but here it genuinely does.

The catch

Now, the honest caveats. Several reviewers, myself included after digging through the build, noticed the model reads a little shorter and stumpier than you would hope, mostly because the tail only gives you three points of articulation rather than a long sinuous chain of them. At $39.99 for 469 pieces, that price per piece is on the high side for the theme, and a few builders felt the four minifigures were doing a lot of the heavy lifting to justify the cost. The flag staffs on the little side turrets are also fussy, their crossbars come loose if you look at them wrong, so do not expect this to survive rough toy-box play unscathed.

Who it's for

I would point this one at collectors who care about the minifigure lineup as much as the model itself. Aspheera and the Forbidden Spinjitzu Kai are both exclusive here, and that alone makes this set worth tracking down for anyone building out a Ninjago villain shelf. If you want a long, elegant serpent build or you are pinching pennies per piece, I understand the hesitation, but as a display piece with a working rattle gimmick, Fire Fang delivers more personality than its price tag suggests.

The parts story

What the build is actually like, and the pieces worth knowing about.

Building Fire Fang is mostly straightforward Technic-and-brick construction, though there is a fair bit of repetition since so many side panels mirror each other, adults will see the 'now build the other side' instructions coming a mile away, which can make the middle stretch feel a little padded for a builder who already gets the pattern.

The standout here is that hood. Two large, partially translucent plastic sheets in orange, red and black snap onto the frame to form Fire Fang's flared head, and it is a construction technique that photographs beautifully once it clicks into place. The hidden rattle mechanism, a gear that swings the tail and shakes loose 1x1 round tiles, is a small piece of engineering that rewards a closer look. Add in the exclusive Aspheera and Forbidden Spinjitzu Kai minifigures, plus Pyro Slayer and Pyro Destroyer, and this set punches above its piece count for anyone chasing the full Ninjago cast.

Fun facts

01Fire Fang released internationally on June 1, 2019 but did not reach the US and Canada until August 1, 2019 that same year.
02Aspheera only appears in one other set, 70677 The Land Bounty, making Fire Fang one of just two ways to get her as a minifigure.
03The set was retired around December 2020, and sealed copies have climbed well past their original $39.99 price on the secondary market since.
04The tail rattle is not just for show, turning the hidden gear beneath the hood causes loose white 1x1 round tiles concealed inside the tail to shake and click like a real rattlesnake.