SCC Figure Spotlight - EELS (Versions 1, 2 and 3) (Cobra Convergence 6)
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COBRA FROGMAN - EELS (Version 1)
The year of 1985 was a big year for Cobra. The year prior, Cobra recruited several individual characters to aid in carrying out their evil plans. Now they were expanding their army and creating more specialized divisions so they could attack their enemies in multiple environments.
Cobra was way behind the curve on this. The Joes already had several experts to operate in the jungle, cold weather or underwater. In 1985, it was time for Cobra to finally start catching up. For Navel warfare or underwater missions, we now had the Eels - the Cobra Frogmen.
The first part of the Eel's file card explains their role in Cobra. Their primary gig is underwater demolitions. In addition, they also serve as crew members to larger Cobra Naval vessels and Marine Outposts that look like offshore drilling rigs. The second part of their file card goes into their training which takes place in both the warm Caribbean (with sharks and pirates) and the freezing North Atlantic. Additionally, their training included marine structural engineering and different styles of underwater fighting. The Eels could tackle a wide range of territory!
It took a lot of skill to be a Eel, but successfully operating in this position in Cobra could open the door to other future possibilities. Cobra Troops that became Eels, could eventually move into other divisions in the evil organization including Snow Serpents, Ice-Vipers, Lampreys, Sea Slugs and Hydro-Vipers.
The figure for the Eel wore a grey and black wetsuit with a red chest piece. He had some excellent details like the knife of his ankle. The figure had a non-removable helmet with some cool extra details like a headlamp and a small antenna on the side. There were 2 posts on the mouth part of the mask for the breather accessory to attach.
The Eel had several accessories including his weapon - a spear-gun with a spear visually loaded into it and some kind of "stinger" point underneath. He had a 2 piece backpack - the top being his oxygen tanks and the bottom piece, a jet pack for moving swiftly underwater. He came with 2 swim fins that pegged onto his feet and also the aforementioned breather hose that pegged onto the mask and into the backpack.
The Cobra Eels were such a great addition to Cobra's forces. They had such an cool, stealthy look with their dark color scheme. They had several great, interesting accessories! The real bonus of the figure, however, was that they were such universal figures! The Eels were perfect to put with vehicles like the Cobra Hydrofoil, the Hydrosled, the Night Landing or the Sea Ray. You could face them off against Deep Six and Torpedo or send them to sabotage your G.I. Joe Tactical Battle Platform! This figure was flat out awesome and I'm hitting it with a rating of 5 out of 5 McDonalds Filet o' Fish Sandwiches!!! Right on Eel! Way to go!!
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COBRA UNDERWATER SPECIALIST - EELS (Ver. 2)
It would be 7 years before Cobra's Frogmen would receive an updated figure and this 1992 version would be a drastic departure from the original. Whereas the original can be seen as utilizing stealth to accomplish their sabotage missions with their black and dark grey wetsuits and gear, now the Eels are loud and proud in yellow (or gold) and light blue!
The file card acknowledges that there has been some changes in the Eels Training Program. One part of the change is the "self-contained breathing system". In other words, his mask is responsible for his ability to breathe underwater. He doesn't carry a large, bulky oxygen tank on his back.
The new uniform for the Eel is a light blue wetsuit. He wears a yellow "coral-proof, anti-spear chest protector" on his upper body. On the side of his arms and legs he has yellow fins that he can use for "hull slashing". To proclaim his faction, he has a small Cobra symbol on his left arm. The Eels new helmet/mask is yellow with raised fins on top and a bright red visor.
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For accessories, the Eel includes a pair of grey flippers and a neon yellow trident spear-gun. He is accompanied by a robot shark that has a spring-loaded mechanism for launching a torpedo out of it's mouth. The shark has a back-peg on it's underside, so he can be attached to the Eel figure.
Okay... let's take a minute to talk about the robotic shark... Nothing is said about it on the file card and it made no media appearances. So this thing is a big question mark on exactly how it operates. So here is my question... Is this a B.A.T. Shark? I mean, does it get sent in with the Eels and do it's own thing? Or is it remote-controlled by the Eel or maybe someone else? For a child's imagination, it's nice to have it open to interpretation. I'm curious though, what was the real thought behind the overall concept?
The second version of the Eel, is WAY different than the first. On the downside, due to the bright yellow, Version 2 unfortunately loses the stealth option and is more likely to be seen by his enemies. He also losses the jetpack attachment on his backpack, so he may not be as fast underwater either.
On the upside, the shark CAN be connected by the back-peg, so perhaps the Eel can catch a ride when he needs to. Once at his destination the Eel and the robo-shark can double-team his opponents! With the loss of the backpack and hoses, he may gain some maneuverability underwater. The blue color probably blends well with his environment but the yellow obviously stands out. The spear-gun could have faired better in silver or black, but I still like it. I think it looks like a pretty wicked weapon!
This second Eel has a look that is a bit more "cartoon-y" then the original and his colors are a bit bright... yet, strangely, I really like this figure! Even if he is easily seen, I don't feel he can be easily defeated! I still think he comes off as a dangerous adversary and now he even has the shark for back-up! So, to the Eel (version 2)... the first version may be the best, but you are not far behind... You are getting a rating of 4 and a half McDonalds Filet o' Fish Sandwiches! As for that missing half... maybe the shark ate it...?
UNDERWATER DEMOLITIONS SPECIALIST - EELS (Version 3)
It only took a year for the Cobra Eel to get another update. In 1993, we got the third version of the Eel figure, however, this was simply Version 2, recolored and with new weaponry. This new Eel has purple where he previously had blue... except the torso piece which is now straight yellow.
The Cobra Eel (v3) gave up the spear-gun and the robotic shark from Version 2 and traded them in for a generic 90's-style weapons tree (yuk). Cast in red plastic, the Eel (v3) now had a very strange assortment of weaponry. He was now outfitted with the gun previously carried by Toxo-Viper, the flamethrower from Incinerator, Voltar's sub-machine gun, the Rock-Viper's rifle and two torpedoes to go with his neon yellow spring-loaded launcher. The only thing he retained from Version 2 was the swim fins, which were now neon yellow instead of grey.
These accessories... they don't fit with the character at all! Why does he have a flamethrower? Why does our underwater operative need this? Or Toxo-Viper's gun... what is the purpose? Both of these weapons previously had a hose that connected to the weapon and then to a backpack. Eel 3 has neither the hose or the backpack. The accessory tree does not work at all for this figure and the red weapons bring too much red to the figure's color palette. Didn't we learn with Heli-Viper in 1992 that purple and red do NOT look good together? I also think the figure would have benefitted from having the bottom part of the torso piece painted like Version 2. Without that paint app and the addition of the big yellow missile launcher, there is way too much yellow!
The change from the awesomeness of Version 1 to the quirkiness of Version 2 was pretty radical... but I accepted it. Unfortunately, Version 3 takes the elements that made V2 cool, and threw them out the window!?!? The shark is gone, the spear gun is gone and I preferred the blue color over the purple.
There were many figures in the 90's that were re-released with some simple color changes, but most of them maintained their original equipment. The Eel 3's "new" accessories, nearly single-handedly, took this figure down! Those weapon trees were just not a winning idea!
I'm just not a big fan of this figure. I'm sorry Eel 3, unfortunately you plummet from the high status of the original in 1985. Your rating ends up as 2 out of 5 McDonalds Filet o' Fish Sandwiches. ...and they forgot the tartar sauce too!
What did you think of the different Eel figures? How did you use them? Which was your favorite? What are YOUR thoughts on what the Robo-Shark is? Let me know in the comments below!!
Continued rambling about the Cobra Eels...
--- There is a unpainted detail on the Eel 2 and 3... underneath the red visor are some sculpted stripes going down. The artwork shows that they should have been painted black.
--- It would have been cool to see a Cobra version of the Tactical Battle Platform to be a Cobra Marine Outpost!!
--- The pictures of the Eels on the beach were taken on beautiful Topsail Island, NC!
--- Seriously, the Robotic Shark actually made more sense then Hydro-Viper's stingray and/or Undertow's barracuda!
--- While there were plenty of vehicles to pair with your Version 1 Eel. In 1992 and 1993, however, there were no vehicles to pair Version 2 or 3 with. I would say the Cobra Rat, but that thing is all about worthless!
--- Two of the Eels made my Top 10 lists!! Version 1 made it in my Top 10 Army Builders and Version 2 made it in my Top 10 Weird Figures I Actually Like list!!!
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| Comparison between Eels Version 2 and Version 3! |
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| I still have the 3 cardbacks to the Eel figures. Version 3 is missing the UPC because I cut it out to order a Joseph Colton figure. |
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| This has been my contribution to Cobra Convergence 6! This event runs all through July 2022! Check out the many other presenters putting out great Cobra content all month! There is a calendar of all featured CC6 presenters at www.HCC788.com. |
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| Remote-Controlled shark or B.A.T.-Shark? What do you think? |
B.A.T. Shark
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