European Exclusive Rock Viper - Spring Loaded Accessories

Back in 2017, I published one of the most popular posts in the history of the site.  It was a write up on a series of late run European Exclusive Spring Loaded Accessory figures.  The figures in the set are incredibly obscure.  And, most of the interest in them stems from carded samples.  You rarely see loose figures offered for sale: mostly because they're not easy to find and sellers usually don't get interest in them since few collectors know of their existence.  The figures are the same as the more common, North American versions.  But, they include many exclusive accessories.  My personal favorites, though, are the lime green and maroon versions of the 1991 Snake Eyes' accessories that were included with the European Exclusive Rock Viper.

We don't really know why these alternate weapon figures exist.  There's no real reason for Hasbro to have mixed up the gear in low production run colors and release them only in Europe.   Later releases of the figures in the set all featured their original gear.  So, the molds weren't even all that mixed up.  But, the existence of these exclusive accessories gives collectors another obscure and sometimes mundane obsession to seek.  

Rock Vipers have three major flaws.  The most commonly known is that their crotch is insanely brittle.  Even in the early days of collecting when mint and complete figures were a dime a dozen, it was well known that Rock Viper crotches were a ticking timebomb that would snap with even one poorly planned movement.  The second is that the standard Rock Viper's comically large rifle was a thumb breaker.  And, Rock Vipers from the US and Canada would often have snapped thumbs from usage of that weapon.  The third flaw has become more apparent in recent years.  And, that is that the cream colored base color of the Rock Viper's body is very susceptible to yellowing and other discoloration.  You will see the yellowing form from heat and light exposure.  And, it's now so ubiquitous that many newer collectors don't have a good idea of the cream colored base that is necessary for a mint Rock Viper figure.

Personally, I've always been fond of the Rock Viper.  In the late 1990s, when I built the bulk of my collection, they weren't easy to find.  They became more ubiquitous in later years.  But, by the time I was ready to build up my army of them, they had gotten pricier than I was willing to go.  If you look back at some photos taken on  the site between 2000 and 2003, you'll see the American Rock Viper appear rather frequently.  After the Python Patrol release, though, my 1990 figures seldom came out of their drawer.  And, the photos I took of the figure for this profile were my first Rock Viper photos since 2003.  The combination of specific specialty, fragile parts and intricate gear setup made for a figure that simply didn't appear all that often when I was putting together a scene.  

For some, the figure's mustache is an issue.  It makes the figure's face too distinctive for him to really be an army builder.  I don't much mind it, though.  But, I've never had more than two high quality Rock Vipers in my collection at any given time.  So, I never had a dozen mustachioed faces staring blankly at me when I open the 1990 Cobra drawer.  Had I a larger army, my opinion of his distinctive visage might be different.  But, I do like that Cobra had at least a bit of differences in the looks of their rank and file.  While the comic quickly moved on from the very Nazi-esque Cobra origin of the first 9 issues or so, the figures released remained very true to those darker comic book roots.

When it comes to my preferred gear for the figure, though, I have to go with the North American release.  The Rock Viper's backpack with the grappling hook holster and rope spindle is one of the better designs in the line.  While I get the appeal of a spring loaded firing mechanism for a larger grappling hook, the reality is that the smaller, more realistic gear from the 1990 figure is superior.  For weapons, though, the green Uzi wins.  The Rock Viper's rifle is too large.  (Though, it fitting into the figure's backpack is a cool looking feature.)  The pistol is nice, though.  The Uzi is bizarre and a far cry from that of the 1988 Iron Grenadier or, even, the original Snake Eyes.  But, it's still a fun weapon.  And, the green is a far superior color to the North American red from Snake Eyes.  I enjoy using the green weapon with 1991 Bats and both the Desert Snake Eyes from 2004 and his similar cousin from the 2005 HAS set.  

I've been on a weird accessory kick for a couple of years.  I've been looking for oddball, alternate coloring of Joe accessories that were released in other lines.  I've picked up outlandish amalgamations that appeared in knock off releases.  I've even explored working gear from the Action Force precursor to Joe repaints.  All of these have given me ways to expand my collection.  But, also, they offer more depth to photos.  The gear works well with Joe figures.  And, that is something that's not always easy to do.  I don't find even the Hasbro gear from the JvC or Anniversary era to really match vintage figures.  So, having an opportunity to find offbeat gear that works with many vintage molds is great.  It's only been in the past couple of years that this gear has gotten expensive.  Prior to this, you could get the Joe adjacent gear for cheap.  But, this Euro gear has always been pricier than things like Lucky Bell.  And, it's not easy to find...especially as the market has exploded.

The Rock Viper figure was just made by Hasbro.  The 1990 figures didn't seem to make their way to India (while the 1991 molds did) and Hasbro released just two Rock Vipers, the 1990 and the 2003 Python Patrol repaint.  The head was used on another European exclusive: the alternate head Crimson Guard Immortal.  The 1991 Snake Eyes gear was released with that figure and in exclusive colors with 2 European releases.  Both the Rock Viper and Undertow feature the backpack and hook in exclusive colors.  The gun, though, was also available in gold and was included with the Night Fighter Guile figure.  The Rock Viper legs were, for some reason, used on the 2008 Headhunter Stormtrooper and are part of the reason that figure isn't much cared for today.  (And, also, the legs were used on  the 1994 Metal Head - thanks to bc barnes 11 in the comments!)

These European Rock Viper figures are not cheap.  But, at the same time, they are vastly cheaper than other European exclusives like the Action Force repaints or the Tiger Force figures.  There may be small differences between the actual Hasbro figures released in North America and those released in Europe.  But, they are so small that few would even notice if they did exist.  This green and maroon gear isn't common.  European collectors will often have a couple.  But, you don't see them for sale with the frequency of other European exclusive figures.  You'll probably pay over $100 for a mint and complete figure.  The value, though, is all in the gear.  If you can find just the gear, you might be able to get it in  the $70 range.  It's a lot for obscure colors on gear that isn't usually considered among the line's best offerings.  If you ask among forums frequented by European collectors, you'll probably find this gear much more quickly than looking on for sale sites.  For most collectors, that's not something that's worth their time.  I, though, love oddball color variants on obscure items.  So, this Rock Viper gear is right up my alley.