1992 Eel - Random Photos of the Day

The 1985 Eel is one of the most iconic army builders in the history of the Joe line.  And, it just might be a perfect action figure.  Which, pretty much guaranteed that any follow up to  the Eel was going to be overly criticized and would never get a fair shake against the original.  It is through that backdrop that the 1992 Eel was always viewed.  Which, never allowed the 1992 figure to really be viewed on its own merits.  Really, the Hydro Viper and Undertow were both pale imitations of the 1985 Eel.  But, by virtue of not sharing a name, they have never been as harshly judged.

The 1992 Eel figure can stand on it's own.  The design is sleeker and  more self contained that the 1985.  The colors pop, but also work in water.  And, the figure includes the robo-shark.  If you can't get behind that, I'm not sure I can ever help you.  But, sharing the Eel name has forever doomed this figure to second status in the collecting world.  

Through that malaise, though, comes opportunity.  And, over the years, I've been able to acquire a decent army of the 1992 Eels for very cheap prices.  As people don't really care for them, they can be had for a pittance.  And, even with the low production runs of the 1992 single carded figures in general, the Eels are attainable and even amassable.

If you don't have the figure, you owe it to yourself to get one.  And, if you have the figure, you should get more...especially if you have a Bugg as the Eel is a near perfect match for it.  So, enjoy the photos below and let me know about your best work featuring this figure.

1993 Eel

I have written many times of my experiences relating to 1993 and 1994 Joes at retail.  My late arrival to the hunt coupled with the dawn of adult collectors left me interesting finds at retail.  While Joe characters were relatively easy to find, Cobra characters were a rarer find.  The rarest find of all, though, was an army builder.  In the standard carded series of Joes. I only found the 1993 Crimson Guard Commander and 1994 Viper at retail.  (I didn't look for Armor Tech figures.  And, you could get various Ninja Force Night Creepers, too.)  The remainder of the Cobra army builders were long gone by the time I realized that I needed to buy every Joe at retail that I could find.  

The 1992 basic carded line of Joes was only 12 figures.  That's incredibly small.  But, a lot of the volume was made up for by the 19 figures released in the DEF, Eco Warriors, Ninja Force and Talking Battle Commanders series of figures.  Of those 12 standard carded figures, though, 8 of them were remakes of classic characters.  General Flagg was the first figure using a popular name from the comics.  So, there were just three new character released that year.  This rehash was, likely, a response to various market forces as well as a way to keep familiar character names on shelves as the line sputtered a bit towards its ultimate demise.  Among the re-imagined characters is the classic Cobra Eel.  This character, who debuted in 1985, was the de facto Cobra Frogman and remained popular in the comics.  It was also one of the best figures Hasbro ever created.  So, any new design had a high bar to clear.

The 1992 mold, though, didn't quite deliver.  Bright colors aside, the general design simply wasn't up to par with the 1985.  The figure had a lot of potential.  But, many of the design points didn't translate into the actual toy.  In 1993, the Eel was among 9 of the 12 1992 figures who got an repaint in the initial Battle Corps line.  (Big Bear, the 10th 1992 to repainted, was only available as a mail away.  Destro and Duke didn't get the repaint treatment (likely because they both had new figure molds for 1993) but would both make up for it in the repaint era (1997-2006) as each mold was used multiple times.)  The 1993 Eel is neither better nor worse than the 1992.  In fact, they are incredibly similar in appearance with the main difference being a purple body suit instead of a blue from 1992.  Both figures, though, suffer from differences between design and production that make a big difference.

In looking at the Eel card art, you can see that the figure was originally intended to be wearing a yellow vest with exposed wet suit appearing under it on the figure's stomach.  The production figure is a wall of yellow from the neck to below the belt.  Had the stomach been painted to match the wetsuit colors, the Eel would have a visual break on his torso that would have given him more depth.  The omission of this paint application makes the figure seem two tone and more fits with cheaper brands than the paint depth that was the hallmark of Hasbro's G.I. Joe line.  The artwork also features bare hands.  In this case, I'm glad the designers went with gloved hands.  I was never a fan of characters who are completely covered save their hands.  It's odd that you'd go to the lengths to protect your eyes and face, but not your hands.  So, in this case, the figure is better for the change.  

The final two details are different.  In looking at the figure's head in the card art, you see that he was planned to have black fangs descending from the figure's visor.  This would have been a great way to bring some additional color to the figure and break up the sea of yellow.  These were dropped, though, and the figure seems a bit unfinished without them.  The final aesthetic are the protruding fins on the figure's arms and legs.  These rigid plastic details were meant to both be pliable wet suit fins, but also "hull slashing" weapons that were capable of ripping steel.  On the figure, the hard plastic works for the latter purpose.  But, it also gives the figure a bit of bulk that can be limiting when using him in Cobra aquatic vehicles.

I use 1992 and 1993 Eels interchangeably  They are a bright and fun way to give Cobra's underwater force a bit of super villain menace.  The 1985 Eel is the militaristic appearance for the specialty.  The 1992/1993 figure is just another way for Cobra to instill fear in their enemies.  My main usage for them is as a crew for the 1988 Cobra Bugg.  The yellows, blues and purple fit with the colors on the Bugg.  And, that vehicle's oddball appearance is a great match for the futuristic, sleek look of this Eel mold.

There are also notable differences in the 1992 and 1993 Eel filecards.  The 1992 Eel calls back to the 1985 figure and the training described on the original filecard.  For 1993, though, that bit of history is gone.  It's replaced with a line about the newly released DEF Shark DF-1.  (Which would be renamed to the Shark 9000 for retail release, an odd continuity gaffe.)  The 1992 Eel filecard also refers to the mechanical shark that was included with that release.  As that accessory was omitted from the 1993 figure, all references to it have also been wiped away.

The 1992 Eel included an array of accessories that both made sense and were totally ridiculous in a 1990's G.I. Joe way.  He included flippers and a spear gun.  The calling card, though, was a silver "robotic" shark that shot missiles.  This was a clever way to include an odd spring loaded launcher.  The 1993 figure, though, was stripped down and includes a common array of generic weapons on a red tree.  The 1993 figure does include flippers...which were kind of necessary.  But, after that, the weapon tree includes a red version of Rock Viper's rifle, Voltar's gun, the Toxo Viper "sniffer" and the Incinerator flame thrower.  None of these really make sense for an underwater trooper.  And, aside from the flamethrower (which can kind of function as a super villainesque rifle) don't have much usefulness.  The 1993 Eel also included a yellow spring loaded launcher that was also included with the Crimson Guard Commander and Cyber Viper.  While the launcher was common among a few figures, the red version of this weapon tree was unique to the 1993 Eel.  

The 1992 Eel mold got three uses.  Hasbro released the 1992 and 1993 figures.  The mold then showed up in India.  Funskool produced an Eel that was based on the 1992 coloring for many years.  He is one of the few Funskool army builders who remains relatively cheap and available today.  But, that figure badly discolors and it's getting harder and harder to find Funskool figures that remain mint.  Hasbro did not get the Eel back in 2003.  This is too bad as a repainted 1992 Eel mold in 1985 colors would have been a solid entry in a Toys R Us set.  That didn't happen, though, as Hasbro was still afraid of '90's molds at the time.  There are lots of customs of this Eel out there in various color schemes (Copperhead, Secto Viper, '85 Eel, etc.) that show the mold still had some potential.  But, it was never fulfilled.

1993 Eels are kind of hard to find.  All of the 1992 repaints that appeared in 1993 seem to exist in lower quantities than the rest of the figures from that year.  And, even back in the days when collectors disdained neon figures, it was hard to come by a 1993 Eel in a lot or collection.  These days, mint and complete 1993 Eels will run you between $17 and $20.  You'll see a couple of them shoot up in price when sold by "elite" dealers.  But, there's enough available at the market rate to fill out a nice squad at any given time.  With carded figures running in the $30 range, it doesn't make sense to overpay due to impatience.  Just the figures, though, will run you under $10.  And, in the right lots, can still be had cheaply.  As the figure doesn't include any real gear that's essential, building armies of incomplete figures is a viable way to get a fun group of figures.  

Top 10 Spring Loaded Accessories

Starting in 1991, Hasbro began to move the standard Joe accessories in a different direction.  Instead of leaving them the static pieces from 1982, they began to incorporate more action into the toys.  At first, it was simple kid interaction where you could flick a missile.  But, soon, it evolved into a series of spring loaded action features that allowed for kids to have their figures interact through propulsion.  While I title this article spring loaded accessories, that's just because the spring loaded pieces dominate Hasbro's offerings.  But, there are a few other gimmicks in the 1990's that are worthy of inclusion as they added interactive elements to G.I. Joe action figures without forcing the figures to be something incompatible with what came before.

So, you will not see Ninja Force on this list as those features were limited to the figures.  You won't see Sky Patrol, either, as the parachutes only worked with proper preparation and was designed as a stand alone toy that was commandeered for Sky Patrol.  This list covers 1991 through 1994 as those were the years when the action feature accessories were dominate.  And, while older collectors tend to revile this gear, the reality is that there are some amazing toys in here that are both tons of fun to play with while also being in line with the look and feel of the Joe line from the decade prior.

10. 1994 Lifeline Grappling Hook

I'm a sucker for grappling hooks.  As a kid, I loved them.  But, I never got any that actually worked.  So, things like Alpine's grappling gun were left to imagination.  Which, was fine.  But, there were times it would have been cool to have actual hooks that could shoot up and grip something.  Enter the 1994 Lifeline.  His grappling launcher is huge and his two pronged hook is, too.  But, you can tie a rope to it and shoot it at rocks, walls or plants and it might actually stick: just like the real thing.  That's  enough for me to view it as an essential accessory.

09. 1991 Eco Warriors Squirt Guns

Among the first of the action feature weapons are the Eco Warriors squirt packs and guns.  Instead of using a spring for their action, these packs can draw up and hold water that is then expelled from the nozzle of the gun when you press on the soft plastic container that is held in place by a harder plastic frame.  For Eco Warriors, this made perfect sense.  And, the water was used in conjunction with the figures as they would change colors when water of hot or cold temperature hit the special paint on the bodies.  The self contained squirt gun was a solid design.  The guns are pretty large, but not so much that they aren't usable.  But, the weapons are very useful and a lot of fun to have around.

08. 1992 Duke Bronco Launcher

So, this toy is dumb, stupid, lame and incredibly fun for any kid in 1992.  Who wouldn't want a missile launcher that a figure can ride?!?  This piece is an integral part of the 1992 Duke's card artwork.  And, it translates very well into the actual toy.  The only downside is that the brown tripod is made of plastic that has turned to glass.  I literally had one crumble to dust, yes, dust, in a box of other launcher parts.  I didn't know what all the dirt was until I found one intact foot.  The one in the photo below spidered all those while lines just from me gently trying to insert the peg into it.  So, using it today isn't overly practical.  But, man, this is just a stupid idea that made for an iconic piece for Duke.

07. 1992 Destro Disc Launcher

The 1992 Destro disc launcher is another one of those ideas that actually kind of works as a toy.  It's similar to Scrap Iron's missile table.  But, this one shoots discs.  The fact that they actually shoot, though, helps sell the idea of the weapon.  The disc launcher looks like something a comic book supervillain would use.  And, Destro is as close to that trope as the G.I. Joe line tends to get.  So, it's a perfect match of character and weapon.

06. 1992 Firefly Top Spinner

This spinner is also ridiculous.  But, as a toy, it works well.  You can set up a bunch of figures on a hard floor and let the ripcord fly.  The top can then knock over the figures.  Hours of fun!

05. 1991 Cobra Commander Drone

So, this thing is either a radio controlled surveillance drone or a buzz bomb depending on which part of the card you read.  But, any way you look at it, this is a little drone with a spring loaded launcher.  The drone is laminated plastic with cardboard pieces.  It's a neat little idea that worked out.  The launcher features a powerful spring.  It is mounted on a bi-pod and is meant as a stationary weapon.  The idea of a drone was rather innovative back in 1991.  So, it's inclusion is akin to things like the JUMP showing up in 1982.  

04. 1992 Eel Robo Shark

Full disclosure: I don't much care for the robo-shark.  In general, I think robots are dumb.  And these things are a pain in the ass for anyone who, like me, tends to army build 1992 or Funskool Eels.  The sharks are huge, sharp and just a pain to store away.  With that Andy Rooney moment past me, though, what kid in 1992 would not have loved a robot shark with a moving tail that shoots a missile out of its mouth?!?  This is the exact type of over the top ridiculousness that Cobra would have created in their descent into super-villainy.  

And, to top it off, the toy is amazing.  It's full of detail.  The tail moves and the mouth opens.  And, it can then shoot a spring loaded missile out of the creature's mouth.  To top it all off, the shark is also a backpack that affixes to the Eel to be used underwater!  Really, this has a case to be number 1.  But, what's a list without some controversy?  And, personally, I find the Flak Viper's missile backpack to be much more useful than the robo-shark.  But, I'm an adult who was in college when this came out.  If I'd have gotten it when I was 9, there's a good chance this is my favorite toy ever created.  So, if you're going to refute me in the placement of this piece, come with some good anecdotes of how it fit into your play and was a major part of your childhood. :)

03. 1992 Cutter Grappling Hook

I'm kind of cheating as there are two grappling hooks on this list.  But, as I said for Lifeline, I'm a sucker for grappling hooks.  As a kid, I used them not just as tools used to scale mountains, walls or buildings.  They were also Batarang type weapons that could be used to apprehend and tie up villains.  I'd use them between vehicles to either tether boats or even just capture an enemy vehicle that was about to outrun the good guys.  For me, the grappling hook was my irrational childhood dream toy because I got one when I was about 9 and it locked in the idea of a hook on a rope that could be used as a tool in most any situation.

I rank Cutter's hook higher for a couple of reasons.  It came first.  So, it has that going for it.  But, more importantly, Cutter's hook has four prongs.  This made it much more likely to actually catch onto something.  I have memories of being a kid and tossing Alpine's grappling hooks into a pile of rocks.  When the figure went to use it, the hook wouldn't catch anything and it would slip out, sending Alpine to his doom.  I had weird rules where if a rope didn't catch, then the Joes couldn't use it.  (I actually had a little, metal four pronged hook that was attached to a long length of white string.  I used this since it worked more often than the Hasbro toys.)  Cutter's hook is comically large.  But, that's what makes it fun.  If the hook hit anyone, it would kill them.  But, honestly, that's a plus in my book.  

In doing this article, I noticed that the tripod for Cutter's launcher looks the same as that included with the 1992 Duke.  The white plastic isn't nearly as brittle as the brown, though.  

02. 1994 Star Brigade Cobra Commander Suction Cup Walker

The 1994 Star Brigade Cobra Commander includes this oddball harness that's attached to a suction cup walker.  It actually works, though.  And, that alone makes it the 2nd best action accessory in the line.  It's a marvel of engineering and also a fun toy.  It's like those old wall walkers you got for birthday prizes except that it's high quality and a lot of fun.  Everyone should have one of these.

01. 1992 DEF Mutt Net Launcher

You really can't go wrong with this contraption.  It is a massive net launcher.  The launcher is fairly large.  But, it stands by itself and looks like something that would launch nets.  The best part is that the included net is massive.  It's large enough to cover an entire figure with plenty left over.  The four corners of the net are anchored.  The top two are attached to the firing missiles and the bottom two corners have weighted balls to hold down the net.  The net is perfect as a stand alone toy and the launcher just adds more play value.  The only downside is that the weight of the four anchors limits how far the launcher can shoot the net.  But, of all the action play features that Hasbro released, this is the best.

Here is a video from corpscommandercody showing the net in action.

This list is my own.  And, while all of these have their merits, I'm sure you have opinions of ones I overlooked, deliberately omitted or just plain ignored.  So, please let me know your favorites.  These were not the toys of my childhood.  So, my appreciation of them is based on what I think I would have liked as a kid and, more importantly, what I really like now.  So, seeing how kids of the day actually felt about them and which were their favorites is definitely something I'd like to hear about.  

Rarities - Funskool Halibna Promotional Figures

Funskool did a lot of promotional cross overs.  (There are the Maltova, Pepsodent, Calcium Sandoz, Complan and even one with Kentucky Fried Chicken!)  One such synergy project was with Halibna.  Funskool released a set of, likely, 15 unique figures in Jordan and Lebanon.  (There may be a different number of figures or additional release locations.  Info is super spotty on these guys.)  I've been able to find photos of 4 of the figures and have seen info on at least two others.  So, there's much more to learn about these releases. 

The big difference with the Halibna figure is that they are swivel arm figures.  Gone are the weird straight arms from the Calcium Sandoz and Maltova figures.  That alone makes these figures far more worthwhile to track down and open up. These figures also included accessories.  Sometimes, they match the gear for the figure mold.  Sometimes the gear appears to have been randomly applied.

Budo:

This unique release features an all brown body.  The highlight is the bizarre white boots.  But, overall, not a bad looking figure at all.

Eel:

The Eel doesn't appear to be all that different from the production Funskool Eel.  The gear is different, though, with the inclusion of a General Hawk rifle.  

Psyche Out:

We've seen this Psyche Out before.  Similar figures have appeared as bagged Funskool vehicle drivers.  And, the figure is available with straight arms in other Funskool promotional series.  He also includes the recolored Dodger rifle that was available with the Funskool Incinerator.

Big Brawler:

Brawler is pretty similar to his common carded release.  The lower arms are different and he's not as polished.  So, it's different enough to frustrate the completist collector.  He has a Deep Six rifle instead of his Brawling Sword.

There are additional Halibna figures beyond the ones shown above.  There is a red Toxo Viper that was also available in the Calcium Sandoz series.  There is also a red and black Ozone figure that is unlike any other Ozone ever released.  It's likely that there are more figures in the series that will come to light in coming years.  We're really still uncovering a great many Funskool mysteries and obscure offerings like these Halibna figures will prove to be a source of interesting new items in the future.

1992 Eel - Around The Web

I've grown to enjoy the 1992 Eel.  It's bright, ludicrous and the complete antithesis of the original 1985 figure.  But, the neon is something I find fun and the design has some merit.  Hasbro could have gotten this mold back in the 2000's and a repaint in 1985 colors would have been awesome.  But, it didn't happen and we're left with the super bright figure seen below.  Here's the best of him from around the web.

1992 Eel Profile

1992 Eel by Slipstream80

1992 Eel at JoeADay.com

1992 Eel by Toysandtomfoolery

1992 Eel at 3DJoes.com

1985 Eel - Around the Web

The 1985 Eel is about as classic a Cobra army builder as there is.  Hasbro never released a Cobra diver that came close to the immortal grey original.  The fact that he wasn't repainted ad naseum has helped keep the figure undiluted and left him as pertinent today as he was in 1985.  Through the years, I've had tons of content regarding the figure.  Here's all of that plus some other content from around the web.

1985 Eel Profile

Eel Diorama 1 - The Landing

Eel Diorama 2 - Eels in Training

Eel on Instagram

Hombre Rana - Plastirama Eel from Argentina

Eel Diorama 3 - Helping Hand

Eel Video Review

Eel Diorama 4 - Through the Looking Grass

Eel at 3DJoes.com

Diorama - Through the Looking Grass

Eels on patrol.

Diorama - Swamp Base

At my old house in Indiana, there was a ditch behind the fence that would pool water after rainstorms.  In the early spring, one of the rains left a nice puddle of clear water.  It was there for a couple of days, so the grass got waterlogged and the leftover fall leaves gave the whole scene a swampy look.  I went out for a pretty elaborate set up.  But, it was very cold that day.  My fingers froze in the cold water as I set up the figures.

I had plans for this to be the beginning of a dio story.  But, I didn't get all the photos I wanted due to the temperature and I never had another chance to get out before I moved that fall.  This was one of the few times that I was able to get the Mega and Cyber Viper out and into dios.  The focal point was supposed to be the Bronze Bombers Firebomb figure (a Secto Viper repaint) but I ended up looking at the Secto Viper instead.

This General shell was really beat up.  I ended up throwing it into the trash rather than moving it.  I did strip all the pieces, which I still have.  I kind of wish I had kept the body.  But, it was massive and broken in ways that couldn't be fixed.  The Moray in the pics below got pretty beat up through my various moves and is in nowhere as good of condition as you see below.  In all, it was a fun setup with lots of obscure and bright Cobras.

Diorama - The Landing

One rainy night after work, I saw the water collecting in the ditch behind my house.  I had a few spare minutes and had been sorting my Eels earlier in the week.  So, I quickly decided to get them out into the water.  The plan was for Big Brawler to be witnessing the scene.  This photo set was going to be for his profile.  But, I ultimately decided to not profile Big Brawler until the Funskool version was released: mainly due to the fact that the Big Brawler photos from this set didn't turn out.  The Eel photos did, though.

This was one of my most popular dioramas from the old site.  I used it in banner ads and the like back when such a thing was popular.  The photos seem quaint today.  But, for 2001, posting a bunch of Eels in action was something you didn't see every day.

Diorama - Walk the Plank

Some Eels leading Beach Head to a watery doom.

This was the waterfall I had at one of my houses.  It wasn't very deep and had a side pool which hid the filter and pump.  It was OK for photos and you can see it often in my 2005 - 2012 photos.  It was a nice part of the yard.  But, the control box tended to leak a little bit of water and was always full of scorpions.  So, doing any work on it was a pain as you never knew what would crawl out when you started moving rocks around.

Diorama - Eel In Training

We had a bit of early winter rain.  Overnight, it turned cold and the ground water froze.  We then got a light dusting of snow.  I liked the idea of Arctic training for the Eels and thought of having them break through the ice.  Rather than attacking the Joes, I turned the table and had the Joe surprise the trainees.  I was hoping to get some better photos of Airborne.  But, none of those turned out.  The plan was to use the pics for a Duke profile, too.  But, I only ended up getting his back.  Still, this was a fun set to set up and take as the weather wasn't too bad, but the setting made it look like it was.