One & Done - TORPEDO

S.E.A.L.  (Sea, Air and Land) - TORPEDO

    In the first wave of G.I. Joe figures in 1982, there was a lot of green!  The vehicles, the weapon systems and most of the figures all shared a similar shade of olive drab.  That was good for our first introduction to this new elite fighting force!  

    When we got to the second wave, however, we needed to branch out and get a little more variety in there... and that's what we got!  By 1983, we were getting more specialized troops, different branches of the military and more color!!  One of those figures was Torpedo!

    Torpedo was the G.I. Joe Team's first S.E.A.L. (Sea, Air and Land).  A soldier like Torpedo was specialized to fight in any environment, but this figure was specifically made as a diver.  His file card explained how he was a scuba instructor before he joined the military.  It also makes mention of his various martial arts abilities and his skill with a Filipino butterfly knife.  

    Something I always found interesting on the file card was that his training after SEAL School is CLASSIFIED!  That's a fun element to have in there!  It was something never explored further, so as a kid you could fill in that blank with whatever your imagination could come up with!

    The figure for Torpedo was unique among the other Joes as he was the first to be outfitted for operating underwater.  He was decked out, head to toe, in a black and grey wetsuit.  His head was even sculpted with his goggles and breathing gear on.  There was some cool sculpted on details like a knife on one leg and what I thought appeared to be explosive charges on the other. 

    Torpedo came with several unique accessories as well!  He came with two grey swim fins, a spear gun and a backpack.  The backpack was grey with his air-tanks highlighted in orange.  It also had what looked like a little missile on each side of the backpack.  While it is probably something that propels him through the water faster, as a kid I thought they were small torpedoes to shoot at underwater Cobra adversaries!

    This was a great figure!  When I got him, he was an instant favorite!  A friend of mine explained that as a Warrant Officer, he was also qualified to fly helicopters.  Well, I just happened to get the Dragonfly shortly after this figure, so for a time, he ended up being Wild Bill's co-pilot!!  I never had the SHARC, but he is also the prime candidate to ride on that flying submarine as well.

    He does have his limitations though.  As a diver, he can go places most Joes can't... however, when he is in the Dragonfly, or G.I. Joe HQ or manning a gun-tub on the WHALE... he is STILL wearing his underwater gear.  That can look a little awkward!  There is still enough awesomeness here, for him to snag a rating of 4 out of 5 Snorkels!!!

    Unfortunately, this is the only version of Torpedo we got, which is a little strange!  Other underwater experts came into the fold and many of them saw multiple versions.  With his martial arts background and CLASSIFIED information, it's a surprise he didn't end up in Ninja Force!?!?!  If that would be the case, maybe it's a good thing this is all we got...  Neon wouldn't look right on Torpedo!

    Behind-the-Scenes and Other Nonsense:

--- I forgot I even had Torpedo!?!?  His o-ring had broke, so he was just a jumble of parts in a bag I just tossed aside.  I was happily surprised to find he was in such good shape when I replaced it!

--- The second pic was taken in a creek near an Inn my wife and I were staying at during our yearly solo trip in beautiful Nashville, Ind.  I'm sure any other residents around wondered what I was doing frolicking in the creek with my action figures!!!  ha ha!