ROC Cobra Gunship

So, I have one of these and it's been modified (like most stuff, not finished).

But since Wally World is selling these things a bit cheaper and at least mine is covered up in them, I thought I throw my 2 cents on the table. First off, there are "2 different figures" in the stores. I will find out soon if they are really different or if it's just the helmet. In any case, the vest is a nice near copy of US Navy survival vest, and my first one went to my Will Smith pilot figure (Rip Cord with odds n ends).











I might as well get another in case I ever get the f14 or F18. Moving on, it's just a blah figure.
The biggest issue we have with the gunship is size. In the movie, it's a 2 place bird, with a big enough cabin to hold 5 people. Not real comfortable, but it will do. So the gunship needs to be the size of the Power team Dauphin/ChiComm gunship (in the US , Gunless Ship). BAM!!! perfect repilica!!! They got the look down with Cobra's Gunship (also might be known as a Razor).
And the Dauphin, likely made at the same factory as the Razor, was cheap. And sells out FAST when ever and where ever it shows up. So Hasbro misses the boat by penny pinching and giving us a 1/35th scale toy. But, this is a 46 year old boy review sooooo.....

The Bird looks GOOD. It has 2 working missile launchers that look ok. It comes with a figure (Firefly? huh?) and you generally get your choice, red or black helmet. The thing can carry 3 more figures in the cabin if you're careful. 4 if you're not picky. So an Air Assault is out, unless you buy an armful of these things. I see THIS toy as a scout (cobra has lots of "scouts") vehicle or a small delivery craft of the REAL Firefly. The new Firefly looks really good with this thing what with all the angles and colors,or a recon/commando team.The bomb dropping is ok, better than a Fury/Rage can lay mines in any case.

The 46yr old man, says, well made,solid, will survive most play dates. the 2 rocket pods are solid, will fire most ROC missiles. Awww, wait...Ok, the pods are good, but, the movie pods were multi shots,finer,more aerodynamic affairs...oh well.
The cockpit can be broken easily, but looks good, even if it's 1 man and cut off from the cabin. In the movie, 2 neo vipers are flying it and they can be seen from the rear of the cabin.
The color is off, but uniform and fitting. The landing gear is wrong. but sturdy. This toy is pretty good, especially when compared to the Joes gunship, coming next.

Finally though, as this thing comes from MARS , it of course can fly. It flies, hovers, thrust vectors...HOW??? I think I see nozzles on the sides and it has big intakes.. but dang, Joe needs to up his purchases from MARS, since it seems like everything comes from MARS.

Cobra Flight Pods aka Trouble Bubbles

I may be the last 10yr old on Earth to get one of these. Stands to reason, I'm 46.

So, let's get into the Trouble Bubble. The Flight Pod, a flying machine only a cruel mother could love, was highly influenced by Cobra Commander. Look at his touches....big,ungainly commander replica windscreen...This thing is like flying thru the air with a drag chute open.
On mine, the Target exclusive from Ross, (Thanx Tom!!!!!) the screen is red. clearly a nod to protecting from red L A S E R S......(in my mind, when I type the word "laser" I hear Dr.Evils voice saying L A S E R. Very clear, what you don't?)
But let's look closer. no protection for the pilot. hell he doesn't even get a foot rest. He's zooming along (more later) and his feet are hanging down, so his legs go numb because the seat cuts off the circulation. Distracting....
flex tubing or conduit exposed to , what is it, a L A S E R (did it again) cannon? That begs for a tree limb or something to interfere and disable the gun.
Did I say ZOOMING? ok I'll bite. HOW? At least the Ghost Hawks had pivoting engines.
The bubbles zoom straight up and more likely straight back down. Well, actually they would kinda fall over, maybe spin around like Curly from the 3 Stooges , maybe they strafe in a circle at ground level?
I see the fins on the engine pods, thrust vectoring? In a left or right direction...but fore and aft? Maybe the big helmet acts as a sail when the wind pushes it back? Then, what a bomb load! or are those missiles? Hope it doesn't weigh down the bubble TOO much..

I see these things as scouts....until you realize they look like clowns in their red "star fleet kill me" uniforms. EDIT: Seems the box puts THESE pods in action in "a large asian city" so I figure, lots of neon lights, colored bill boards, etc, so the cammo kinda works...
So now, they are more like giant red clay target pigeons....Good thing they are cheap (in Cobra scale) to make. Bet the learning curve to fly is STEEP.

But, as a 10yr old, these things are GREAT!!! I can see zooming em around blastin everything in sight (whether it needs blasting or not)!!! Kinda like the Speeder bikes in Empire Strikes Back.
I have 2 and I could use 2 more.

Guest Review: the Mom here at the toy farm, LOVES the "Trouble pods, or Flight Bubbles or what ever they're called"...she says the bright red cammo and the red domes, are just the ticket to surviving the low level hell that is a green (well, green-ish) carpet. For comparison, she chucked a Beach head and a Neo-viper to the floor and said "SEE?" (it took 10 minutes to find the mp5 Beachhead had carried....)
So thanks again Tom!!!! I now may get at least 2 more to fill my Cobra hanger bay.But the Vipers are getting a repaint. Say, is it me or do they look like Snake eyes?

Pursuit of Cobra Shock Trooper

During a quick stop at a local Walmart, I got lucky and found two Cobra Shock troopers from the Pursuit of Cobra line. It finally seems like the figures are making it out into retail.

As a Cobra troop builder, this figure is pretty cool. Loads of gear and decent sculpting. There does seem to be a mission overlap between the Shock Troopers and the Alley Vipers. Both seem to be a door-busting, head smacking assault troop, but what would be the mission need for two assault troops?

Perhaps the Shock Troopers could be the "pacification" level of assault, move in, bust some heads, kick ass, take names - that sort of thing. But if the local populace continues to be unruly and unaccepting of Cobra's kind "benevolence", then perhaps the Alley Vipers are called in for a more permanent type of control over those who fail to fall in line with Cobra's "security."

A great set of gear for these guys -

• Large machine gun
• Small machine gun
• Riot shield
• Pistol
• Shotgun
• Sledge Hammer
• Helmet w/ gas mask and goggles
• Radio
• some sort of two-handled attached stick thingy - electric prods for crowd control?

The goggles are pretty useless without the helmet, Best bet is to glue them to the helmet to avoid loss. The radio has a peg on the back, can't figure out where it goes.

The neck seems a bit long, especially without the web gear. I think a couple millimeters could have shaved out of the length of the neck and he would have been perfect. The flare of the hood at the base of the neck needs to stay above the web gear, but the neck length could have been just a little less. Minor point, still a damn cool figure!

Plus the troop has the enhanced wrist articulation. Hasbro really scored big with this new feature. Very nice!

He looks pretty cool all loaded up. More pictures soon when I have a little more time. I need to set up some "action" shots.

I highly recommend this troop. Build up an army of Shock Troopers to keep your local 3 3/4" toy population in line. Just don't go too crazy, I still want a few more!