G.I. JOE INSIDE THE FILECARDS TAKES AN EXPANDED LOOK AT COBRA’S FROGMAN ‘EEL’
Story by Staff Writer Shaft
As a continuation of the arctic branch of the G.I. Joe Cobra Eels, the Snow Serpents, I want to take a look at the entire Eel organization as a whole. So basically Eels are elite frogmen of Cobra Command so a person would assume one would not start their career in Cobra as an Eel (much like a US Navy SEAL). Their file cards mention about Cobra having naval vessels so they obviously have some sort of navy. Who these standard Navy sailors is anyone’s guess but I highly doubt elite sailors such as Eels would be manning ships. This would be akin to SEALS manning all manner of US Navy ships. So if Cobra has sailors what is their standard dress uniform? Do they share the same one as a Cobra Trooper or do they wear something different? I would not think a sailor would wear battle harnesses and vest but could look like a Cobra Trooper and Officer sans that equipment. With that in mind would a Cobra Trooper from Cobra’s ground force (army) be eligible to attend Eel training or is it strictly only open to those in the Cobra Navy?
As I stated in my take on the Snow Serpents they are still Eels (and still perform combat diver missions) but have additional training in cold weather (and possibly mountaineering). They are similar to SEAL Team 2, which is more geared towards cold-weather environments (but do not spend all of their time in snow). In addition to Snow Serpents there are also Lamprey’s, Para-Viper’s, Sea Slugs, and Ice Vipers. Let’s break them down.
Lamprey’s operate small fast attack boats (the Moray’s) but it indicates they are Eels who need to be operational as an Eel for at least a year. If this was truly the case I would assume Lamprey’s would be a very minute force due to the attrition and the length of time to take to get someone to become a Lamprey (a few years as a Cobra sailor, then at least a year of being an Eel, then Lamprey training). I feel a better option is a Lamprey is equivalent to a US NAVY SWCC (Special Warfare Combat Crewman) who also operate small and fast attack boats. Typically they transport SEALS (and other tier 1 and tier 2 personnel) to objectives accessible by shore. However it is not required to become a SEAL first (as it would take forever to fill one SWCC boat, which is usually a crew of four). Also if I recall Lamprey’s hold the rank of an officer which seems far-fetched (much like the HISS driver). There are probably officers in the Lamprey ranks but it would not be every member. So with the Lamprey’s I think they are a separate elite unit alongside the Eels. Sea Slug’s also fall into this category as well and seem redundant over a Lamprey.
Para-Viper’s are Eels with military free-fall (HALO and HAHO) training. Much like the Snow Serpent’s I feel they still partake in combat diver missions (especially since the figure comes with swimming fins) but have additional training in MFF. If I recall not every SEAL is MFF-trained (but all are static-line trained). I envision Para-Viper’s being able to insert in a mission via combat diving and/or MFF whereas standard Eels will insert via static-line jumping and/or combat diving.
Ice Vipers are described as the mechanized branch of the Snow Serpents and have to be Eels first, then Snow Serpents before they can qualify as Ice Vipers. To me they run into the same issue as Lamprey’s, harder to fill all positions due to attrition and the length of time for training. Special ops units such as SEALS (and even Special Forces, Delta, DEVGRU, Marine Recon and MARSOC) do not have mechanized branches within their own units so not sure why Snow Serpent’s would. If their missions entail stealthfully inserting into a mission (whether it be MFF, combat diving, etc) then something similar to a light tank would not be ideal. I feel ice Vipers would be just an arctic branch of HISS drivers or even Track Vipers.
So did I miss any other variant of the Eels? Let me know.
