Cobra Industries is a billion dollar international corporation with its fingers in pretty much every part of daily American life. Big Box stores, shipping and receiving, pharmaceuticals, and many other industries fall under the Cobra umbrella.
Because of their wide-ranging specialties, Cobra Industries employs a wide range of Cobra operatives, from their frontline troopers to the well-dressed security guards. They even enlist arctic specialists and Air-Viper pilots. From the ground pounders to the operations specialists, find all sorts of Cobra Troopers listed here.
Administrative
Often seen sitting at a computer terminal or office desk, these ball-capped and sunglass wearing Cobra support personnel appear to be more technical or administrative in nature.
Screenshot Gallery (Courtesy of HissTank.com)
Important Episodes:
- Episode 9 – The Enemy of my Enemy – Administrative staff halts Tunnel Rat and Roadblock, and then attack Duke and Scarlett on the rooftop
- Episode 11 – Homecoming (Part 1) – Manning the Cobra Industries computer system, the Joes infiltrate and appropriate the hard drive to reveal Adam DeCobray’s secret
Officers & Secret Service
While perhaps not traditional Officers, the three-piece suit wearing staff members appear to be leaders of the infantry squads and also double as apparent Secret Service operatives.
Screenshot Gallery (Courtesy of HissTank.com)
Important Episodes:
- Episode 1 – The Descent (Part 1) – When the Joes first get into Cobra Industries, these officers order a group of Infantry to take them out
- Episode 11 – Homecoming (Part 1) – Acting as Secret Service guarding a Cobra Christmas Party, the Joes infiltrate and send them scattering
Infantry
The backbone of the Cobra Industries security staff, these traditional ground-pounding Infantry staff wear helmets and body armor, and do things with weapons instead of intimidation and computer terminals. Often seeing flanking The Baroness on field operations, or running down enemies of Cobra Industries, the traditional Infantry Cobra Troopers are an important cog in the Cobra Industries machine.
Screenshot Gallery (Courtesy of HissTank.com)
Important Episodes:
- Episode 1 – The Descent (Part 1) – First appearance of the traditional Cobra Troopers, they attack the Joe team, but are victimized by G.I. Joe ninja commando Snake Eyes
- Episode 10 – Firefight – Cobra Troopers accompany The Baroness to Greenville, a small town that Cobra is using to further their Bio-Viper research
- Episode 14 – Knockoffs – Cobra Troopers back up The Baroness on escort duty when she picks up the Chameleon Suit, and they end up face-to-face with the G.I. Joe team and Snake Eyes
Heavy Troopers
One step up from the traditional Cobra Infantry, the heavy troopers have bulked up armor, though they’ve only been seen in ball caps and sunglasses. Perhaps just armored up versions of the Secret Service or Officer operatives, they pack a much larger punch than traditional troopers.
Screenshot Gallery (Courtesy of HissTank.com)
Important Episodes:
- Episode 11 – Homecoming (Part 1) – The Joe team infiltrates the Cobra Christmas Party, but once they grab the hard drive, a Heavy Trooper squad breaks in and chases them through the mansion and out into the winter weather.
Arctic Specialists
Cobra needs troopers to operate in any different climates, so Cobra enlists in arctic specialists for cold-weather operations.
Screenshot Gallery (Courtesy of HissTank.com)
Important Episodes:
- Episode 11 – Homecoming (Part 1) – Operating snowmobiles and battling against the Joe team, these Cobra Troopers use their cold-weather skills to try and retrieve a stolen hard drive from Cobra Industries.
- Episode 16 – Shipwrecked – A pair of arctic specialists guard a Bio-Viper containment facility, but the Joes make quick work of them and steal the material
Pilots/Air Specialists
With a fleet of Black Dragon VTOL’s and other Cobra aircraft, Cobra Industries need pilots and airborne specialists to fly these vehicles.
Screenshot Gallery (Courtesy of HissTank.com)
Important Episodes:
- Episode 12 – Homecoming (Part 2) – An Air-Viper pilots The Baroness to the U.S. Prison Train, where she infiltrates the train and attempts to retrieve the stolen Cobra property.
- Episode 17 – Castle Destro – Duke breaks into a Black Dragon VTOL and knocks out the pilot, stealing the aircraft to attempt an escape.
Exo-Armor
James McCullen works with Cobra to create a state of the art “Exo-Armor” system that allows human operatives to pilot powerful suits of armor for assault and defensive purposes.
Screenshot Gallery (Courtesy of HissTank.com)
Important Episodes:
- Episode 3 – Rage – The Exo-Armor is introduced as McCullen begins testing with captured military veterans
- Episode 9 – The Enemy of my Enemy – McCullen presents the Exo-Armor to Cobra Industries, but is upstaged by Mindbender’s Bio-Vipers, who end up taking over the Exo-Armor and creating the Mecha-Vipers.
- Episode 17 – Castle: Destro – Destro uses the Exo-Armor to fight back against a Joe team who ends up in his backyard.
Video
Nice catalogue of differences! The only thing I’d suggest is with the Arctic Specialists. The episode starts with the two bantering over their past failures that resulted in being relegated to guard duty, including “letting some uninvited guests into the Christmas party” and “I was guarding this dam, and…” It sounds like they’re not exactly “specialists.”