Review – G.I. Joe Cobra Para-Viper

“Cobra Para-Viper troopers are the deadliest, most highly trained commandos in the Cobra legions.”
— from the back of the card

The first time I saw the Cobra Para-Viper in person was at a specialty store where they were asking $15 for the figure. Now, I rarely pick up a mass market item from a specialty store — the cost is usually much higher than it would be at Target or Toys’R’Us — but I was very tempted by the Para-Viper. Even in the package I could see that this was a figure with a beautiful look and a lot of sculpted details. It wasn’t until a few weeks later, when reading a review at www.yojoe.com, that I realized that what I thought were sculpted details were in fact accessories. In that review the author, Justin Bell, wrote:

“From head to toe, this figure is by far the most laden with accessories as any figure I have ever seen, but the coolest thing is the actual design and sculpting of these accessories. “

Seriously? That can’t be, I thought to myself. It has to be “today’s hot toy” talk at work.

Well, I now own a Cobra Para-Viper and I can report that Justin is right; this thing is loaded with extras! The rifle has a folding stock, removable clip, and removable bipod. The googles are removable. The flippers strapped to the back of his legs can be pulled off and stuck on his feet. The list keeps going!

And it’s not just the accessories that make the Para-Viper cool. Sculpted details — like the knee pads and forearm guards, add extra style to the toy and set it apart from just about every other Cobra trooper that I’ve seen. Whoever designed this toy definitely loved his job and got into this.

Even the figure’s colors help its style and overall appearance. Purple suit with orange highlights; Cobra uses some unusual color schemes and these colors were an excellent choice since it helps prevent this from being simply a military figure and moves it squarely into the “G.I. Joe styling” column. And it may even be a subconscious response since, as the review at ciscowong.wordpress.com points out:

“While I have read that others are turned off by the purple jump-suit and orange highlights, I think they make this character look very cool even if the color palette is reminiscent of the later waves of the original G.I. Joe line.”

Yeah, some of the later figures in the original series did have some . . . unusual color choices. But I don’t mind, since it’s part of what made G.I. Joe so special in the eighties (especially the 1985-1986 era).

Closing Thoughts

The Cobra Para-Viper is easily one of the coolest new G.I. Joe figures I’ve seen so far. An awesome sculpt, great style, and tons of fantastic accessories make this a figure that stands out from many others on the shelf.

I think Thomas Satcher nails it in his Para-Viper review when he writes:

“This is a new Cobra trooper and he strikes me as totally awesome!”

Agreed, Thomas.

Philip Reed admits that he has a fascination with “evil,” fictional soliders. Stormtroopers, Cobra Vipers . . . they all have such great uniforms and armor designs that they must be collected!