The Characters of G.I. Joe - COBRA TROOPER, part 1

 THESE GUYS LOOK DANGEROUS!

THE CHARACTERS OF G.I. JOE

    "Cobra Troopers swear absolute loyalty to the fanatical leader - Cobra Commander.  Their goal... to conquer the world for their own evil purpose!" - From the Cobra Trooper's file card, 1982.

COBRA COMMAND

Cobra Infantry - COBRA TROOPER

File Name - Various

Birthplace - Various

Specialties - Infantry, Explosives, Sabotage, Martial Arts. 

BACKGROUND INFORMATION...

    In 1982, a new, terrorist organization began to surface - Cobra!  Led by the evil Cobra Commander, the group's ambitions were complete control of the world!  To help accomplish these goals, Cobra Commander was backed by a massive army of nameless and faceless Cobra Troopers.  Each Cobra Trooper has pledged his absolute loyalty to Cobra Commander and will follow him down the darkest of paths.

    Each Cobra Trooper is a formidable enemy as they are all well-trained in the use of explosives, various small arms, and martial arts.  Many of them have received additional training to operate the vehicles in Cobra's arsenal, such as the Viper Glider or the F.A.N.G. gyrocopter.  After some time, Cobra Troopers in good standing can be promoted to Cobra Officers.

    In 1989, several Cobra Troopers were reassigned to Python Patrol.  They were outfitted with special radar-resistant uniforms and gear to go undetected on special missions.

THESE GUYS LOOK DANGEROUS...

    When first seeing the Cobra Trooper figure, I thought they really looked like dangerous adversaries!  That art on the package... these guys didn't look like they were playing around!  They had a more "evil" look then the Stormtroopers of Star Wars!  Don't get me wrong, the Stormtrooper uniforms are awesome and we knew they were bad guys.  But in 1982, we didn't know much about the Empire's soldiers... were they robots under the suits, or clones, or brainwashed people, aliens?  Cobra Troopers on the other hand are "bad guys" that are deliberately joining an evil army to do evil things.  Thank the Lord we have G.I. Joe to stop these guys!

    The Cobra Officer (with swivel arm battle grip) and Trip-Wire were the first 2 figures I bought of the 1983 Wave.  So I guess at the time, I didn't need to rush on the Cobra Trooper because the 2 Cobras looked a lot alike!  Thankfully the Trooper was available a few extra years!  I think I picked him up in 1985.  My Cobra Trooper did it all!  He was a foot soldier, he was a gunner on the HISS and Rattler, he wore the SNAKE battle armor, he rode on the Water Moccasin!  What a great universal figure!  My lone trooper had to cover the job positions of many Cobras, and he did the job well!

    In 2020, Walmart released it's Retro G.I.Joe line and the Cobra Trooper was among the assortment.  This was a fantastic update to the original figure!  He had great sculpting and articulation, not to mention the extra accessories.  I could do without the removeable helmet though.  I don't see the need to take it off other than to LOSE IT!!!  All in all, this figure was a great representation of the original Cobra Trooper.  He will snag a beautiful rating of 5 out of 5 freshly-cleaned facemasks!!  Excellent! 

These Cobras from the original 1982 catalog look very different then the figures we got back then!

    (Information on the character's lore was taken from the Sunbow and DIC cartoon series, including the Movie and the figure's original File Card.)

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