Review – G.I. Joe (Pursuit of Cobra) Alley-Viper

One thing that the ongoing Marauder action figure project has done is get me to pay more attention to Hasbro’s G.I. Joe action figures of the last few years. I’m not sure what switched my mind away from really opening and playing with the G.I. Joe action figures a few years ago, but as I watch the Marauder figures come together I decided to go back to the G.I. Joe toys and take another look at the work Hasbro’s done since the launch of the 25th anniversary series in 2007.

Urban Warfare

One of the sublines of the 2010 Pursuit of Cobra series, the “City Strike” line touched on one of the cooler battlefields for G.I. Joe: cities! And what better figure to include in an urban warfare scenario than the Cobra Alley-Viper*? An update of the 1989 action figure, this particular version is itself an update/repaint of the classically-colored Alley-Viper from the earlier Defense Of Cobra Island* box set.

More Subdued Colors

The Alley-Viper review at OAFE shows both the orange 2009 Alley-Viper and this red/gray Cobra Alley-Viper* next to each other, making it very clear that this design isn’t anywhere near as loud or as obnoxious as that orange version of the toy. The review states:

“Right out of the gate this guy subverts the two issues most Joe fans hate about the original AV: he has traded his orange and blue for a much more subdued blend of maroon, black, and dark grey; and he has a few different helmet options for those who don’t enjoy faceplates that obscure your entire field of vision.”

Now I knew that the classic colors aren’t exactly universally loved (I absolutely adore the orange version), but I’d not realized that so many people disliked that original helmet design. I love the look of that older helmet, but it’s also very cool of Hasbro to have packed alternate helmets in with this Pursuit of Cobra Alley-Viper* since it gives all of us so many choices when it comes to displaying the toys. And troop builders? Oh, yeah, troop builders can get a lot of variety out of an army of these figures.

Accessories

Hasbro’s 25th anniversary and later G.I. Joe action figures were really packed with gear, and the Pursuit of Cobra Alley-Viper* is no exception when it comes to being loaded down with lots of equipment. In addition to the three helmets the toy also comes with:

• Stand
  
• Submachine gun
  
• Knives (removable from their sheaths)
  
• Grappling gun (mine fits great on the backpack)
  
• Backpack
  
• Shield
  
• Nightstick

Now that’s an incredible number of accessories, and you don’t want to miss the Pursuit of Cobra Alley-Viper review at Doomkick for several pics showing how the various bits of gear can be used. I personally prefer the original helmet over the other choices, but I can’t deny that the figure looks great regardless of which helmet he’s equipped with.

Closing Thoughts

The Pursuit of Cobra Alley-Viper* is a fantastic action figure with the articulation we expect from modern G.I. Joe action figures, more accessories that the toy can actually carry, and one of my favorite trooper designs of the entire Cobra army. The figure seems to be getting a little tougher to find these days — sales of the entire Pursuit of Cobra series weren’t great, which means some people never even saw this toy at retail — but if you like the look I recommend tracking one down.

There’s also the G.I. Joe Retaliation Alley-Viper* — which isn’t quite identical to this one — but we’ll take a closer look at him later. For now enjoy these pics, and you also won’t want to miss the Retaliation Alley-Viper review at generalsjoes.com.