One & Done - BIO-VIPER (Cobra Convergence 6)

"Blehhhhhh, rahhhhhhhh, growl, snort!" - Bio-Viper, 1993.

GENETICALLY ENHANCED UNDERSEA MONSTER - BIO-VIPER

    By the time the Joe Toy-line reached 1993, some of the happenings were a bit mind-boggling to those of us that were on board towards the beginning in 1982.  The sub-group, the Mega-Marines, was a Joe Unit tasked with tracking down and stopping large mutant beasts known as the Mega-Monsters.

    These vicious creatures were former Cobra Troops that had been "volunteered" by Cobra Commander to take part in Dr. Minbender's genetic experiments.  In the past, Mindbender had "surgically altered" different troops like the Star-Viper or Hydro-Viper, but what he was doing here was on a whole different level!  Now he was toying with DNA Alteration.  The result was two different breeds of Mega-Monsters - one of them was called - the Bio-Viper!

    The file card says the Bio-Vipers were at one time, Eels (Cobra Frogmen), but had now been cross-mutated with several other animal's DNA.  Now they were hulking beasts with the eyes of a moray eel, the teeth from a piranha, the skin of a shark, the strength and tentacles of a squid, and the feet of a platypus.  Now, it's possible you are thinking the same thing I was thinking... "A platypus??  That doesn't sound very dangerous."  A little research reveals that a platypus does have a venomous hook on it's hind feet.  Who knew?

There was even a live action Bio-Viper for the commercials back in 1993!!!

    As a Mega-Monster, the figure for Bio-Viper was much larger than a standard G.I. Joe figure.  The size was probably more comparable to that of a figure from the Masters of the Universe line.  He wore a red torso-suit with bare arms and legs which showed his blue-scaled skin.  On his chest he had some large black grenades and some other black details.  Attached to his upper leg and wrist he had red electronic devices that that file cards describes as "Bio-Genetic, computer-integrated over-ride processors".  This must be how Mindbender controls the Bio-Vipers when they get wild and unruly.

    His head had the same blue-scale skin with a bright green stripe down the middle.  He had vicious white teeth and big, off-white bulging eyes.  From his shoulders and sides, he had 4 long, light green tentacles.  There was a lever on the figure's back that when pushed down - would cause all four tentacles to "grab".

    The only accessories the Bio-Viper came was a red, spring-loaded missile launcher and a black missile.  He is the only figure in the Mega-Marines group that does NOT include the "moldable bio-armor compound" (aka playdoh).  Instead, his features are the grabbing tentacles and the "monster smell".  Yes, the figure was scented, but not like the old school Strawberry Shortcake dolls.  I'm not sure what he smelled like, but I'm sure it wasn't a "low-tide scent" like the packaging said. 

    So... the good, the bad and the ugly on Bio-Viper...  Well, he's certainly an interesting figure and way different then anything we had seen in G.I. Joe before.  Where the Bio-Viper truly shines is in his features.  The tentacle grab is great and the added monster smell is a nice touch!  The colors are good, I wish they were shaded a little darker though.  The weapon is fine, it's really all he needs, his action feature is enough to tackle his adversaries.

    Bio-Viper's problem is that he is simply too big!  I understand the need to have him tower over a normal Joe figure, but this is just too much.  The character was to have come from a normal Cobra Eel and this guy is way larger than that.

    Rating this guy is tough... the concept is pretty bizarre and again - he's quite oversized.  Yet, there is something I find interesting about this figure.  He's not horrible, but he's not fantastic either.  This is a tough call, but I'm going to give him a rating of 2 out of 5 cans of Starkist Chunk Light Tuna!!  

    So that's my thoughts on Mr. Bio-Viper...  Where are YOU at on this guy?  Did you like him?  Did you prefer the Monstro-Viper?  Loathe the entire Mega-Marine line?  Let me know your thoughts on Bio-Viper below!

More thoughts and considerations on that lumbering slob we call - the Bio-Viper...

--- Why didn't this guy have a quote on his file card?  I think we are all curious what this guy would have to say!  I took the time to add one to the beginning of this write-up.  Your welcome!

--- The file card claims that he has glow-in-the-dark eyes?  Mine don't glow...?  This would have been another nice addition.

--- My figure lost his "monster scent" long ago.  What did he smell like?  What was it comparable to?  Does anyone know?

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This has been another brand, new creation for Cobra Convergence 6.  Check out the other awesome Cobra contributions happening all month - July 2022!  For a complete calendar check www.hcc788.com.