Cobra Commander

Latest revision as of 05:53, 28 April 2024

Cobra Commander is a male character who features in G.I. Joe.

Biography

Origin

Cobra Commander

It was said that he personally led uprisings in the Middle East, Southeast Asia and other trouble spots around the world. In addition, he was responsible for kidnapping scientists, businessmen and military leaders in order to steal top level secrets from them.

Marvel Comics

While struggling to keep his business afloat, he learned that a car crash had taken the life of his older brother, Dan, who had been driving drunk. Embittered by this tragedy, Cobra Commander became obsessed with vindicating his brother's death. He took specific interest in the surviving son of the family killed in the accident with Dan. That man was the soldier better known as Snake Eyes. Cobra Commander managed to track Snake Eyes to Japan, where he was training to become a member of the Arashikage ninja clan. The Commander hired a mercenary called Firefly to kill him, but Firefly soon realized he was no match for his target, instead referring Cobra Commander to another assassin, Zartan, who infiltrated the clan and shot at Snake Eyes with an arrow stolen earlier from another ninja, Storm Shadow. However, it was not Snake Eyes who was hit, but the clan's leader and Storm Shadow's uncle, Hard Master. Storm Shadow was blamed for the murder and fled in search of the killer. Cobra Commander returned to his domestic life, but after his wife gave birth to a son, Billy, she found out about what had happened in Japan. He took the child and left his wife, becoming increasingly paranoid and blaming all his problems on "the system". He traveled across America with Billy, seeking out people who shared his desire to topple big business and the government, using the money he had earned from pyramid schemes to attract followers. He then moved to the town of Springfield, where the businesses were struggling and the population had become disillusioned with existing policy. He applied his influence to corrupt the township and eventually took control of it. Within the town, he established a clandestine terrorist group called Cobra. For reasons and in ways unknown, Billy left his father and joined the anti-Cobra underground organization. Storm Shadow's search for his uncle's killer eventually led him to Cobra, which Storm Shadow joined, pledging loyalty to Cobra Commander as his personal bodyguard.

IDW

Xamot attempts to set up Cobra Commander to be killed and Chuckles to be blamed, only to learn the Commander knew about this and has outmaneuvered him, giving Chuckles the chance to kill him. Ironically, Chuckles does kill the Commander instead, shooting him through the head. A competition erupted in Cobra to find who will be the replacement, directed by the Cobra Council.

The contest turned out to be who could kill the most Joes: Cobra agents Baroness, Dr. Vargas, Major Bludd, Oda Satori, Tomax, Krake, and Raja Khallikhan were all in the running. Baroness, however, doesn't believe the Council would make her the Commander as she's a woman - not that this stops her killing Joes. In the end, Krake wins the competition, largely by revealing that he had killed and replaced one of his rivals with Zartan, doubling his kill score and showing the initiative to break the rules to win.

Skybound Entertainment

Overview

Personality and attributes

The objective of the Cobra Commander was to attain absolute power and gain total control of the world which included its people, its wealth as well as all its resources. He was noted for being totally ruthless and completely devoid of any conscience. The Cobra Commander was dedicated to dominating the world and was able to use a variety of means to achieve this goal that included terrorism, social tyranny and economic slavery. The Cobra Commander was said to be hatred and evil personified who was a man without scruples as well as considered the most dangerous man alive.

His battle plans for world conquest often relied on revolution and chaos.

He was noted for being a fanatical leader who ruled his subordinates with an iron fist. The Commander demanded completely loyalty and allegiance from his followers.

It was said that no Cobra Viper or even officer had ever seen his face though all were familiar with the nasty sound of his voice as he often screeched the Cobra battle cry to the Viper Legions or issued dire threats.

Unlike figures such as Napoleon, the Cobra Commander was said to not be hampered by any need to pretend to be pursing a noble and just cause. Instead, he simply engaged in any act that ultimately provided him money and power.

Powers and abilities

He could operate any Cobra vehicle within the arsenal of the organisation though he was especially fond of the Rat and Parasite that he named himself.

Cobra Commander was known to sometimes wear a special suit of body armour that combined a flexible bullet-proof polymer fabrics with beryllium steel plate components. The suit was air-conditioned, solvent-resistant and ray shielded thus protecting the Cobra leader in the heat of battle. In addition, it was equipped with an integrated commo-system along with internal read-outs for environmental quality and a miniaturised computer display. Each of these suits was expensive and cost as much as a et fighter with the plate parts able to withstand a direct hit from heavy machine-guns and the flexible parts could stop a .357 magnum round. It was believed that the helmet had an anti-tamper device with a direct hook to a half-pound of plastic explosive to prevent anyone from seeing the Cobra Commander's face.

He was the supreme commander of the Cobra Legions where he operated as a contraband arms merchant, international terrorist and real estate swindler. This allowed him access to legions of Cobra Vipers, a small air force and a navy amongst his forces.

The Commander was known to keep track of his most remote Vipers with a radio-controlled buzz-bomb that was a flying surveillance weapon which was equipped with wide-scan view monitors and thermal image enhancements.

Notes

• Cobra Commander was created by Hasbro and featured in the setting of G.I. Joe.

In other media

Television

• In G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, Cobra Commander appeared in the 1985 Sunbow animated television series where he was voiced by actor Chris Latta.
• In Transformers, a character resembling Cobra Commander though not named as such appeared in the animated television series where he appeared in the episode "Only Human" and was voiced by actor Chris Latta. This version was simply referred to as Old Snake where he was an arms dealer.
• In G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero, Cobra Commander appeared in the 1989 DiC animated television series where he was once again voiced by actor Chris Latta but credited as Christopher Collins.
• In G.I. Joe: Renegades, Cobra Commander appeared in the setting of the animated television series where he was voiced by actor Charlie Adler. This version was re-invented as a businessman named Adam DeCobray who was the CEO of Cobra Industries that was a multinational conglomerate that served as a front for the terrorist Cobra organization.

Films

• In G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, Cobra Commander appeared in the setting of the live-action film where he was portrayed by actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Rexford G. "Rex" Lewis was the younger brother of Ana Lewis where he was once a military science officer alongside Duke, his friend and mentor. When an enemy East African location is destroyed prematurely by an air strike, Rex is presumed dead. However, just prior to the explosion, Rex witnessed McCullen's experimental research on nanomites, conducted by Doctor Mindbender. Surviving the incident, scarred & requiring a special mask to breathe, Rex learns from Mindbender and perfects the nanomites. He uses his own sister as a test subject in creating the Neo-Vipers, making her the Cobra agent known as the Baroness. Rex holds a grudge against Duke for leaving him to die. When Duke is captured, Rex reveals himself, as he attempts to inject Duke with the nanomites, the Baroness overcomes her programming and saves Duke, while Rex escapes with a badly burned McCullen. Rex uses specially made nanomites to heal McCullen's face, which also encases it in a living, silver-like metal. Dubbing him "Destro", Rex puts on a new breathing mask and tells McCullen to call him Commander. Although he is arrested and placed in a high security prison aboard the USS Flagg, Cobra Commander's master plan has only begun, with Zartan disguised as the President of the United States.

Video games

Appearances

• G.I. Joe:

External Links

• G.I. Joe Wiki Entry
• Wikipedia Entry

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