1986 Serpentor: Cobra Emperor

Includes: headdress, cape, dagger, cobra snake

Earlier versions of Serpentor featured a painted yellow neck. You can see the yellow neck on the prototype figure on the back of the box. More than likely Hasbro made a running change and eliminated this extra paint app to lower budget or to address paint rubbing off of the yellow neck. Credit: NAJA EMPIRE from HissTank. Figure courtesy of Dan Carroll. Check out his eBay store for tons of vintage Joes!

​There were several versions of Serpentor's snake. Above you can see brown and gold snakes.

Roll over the images below to find out more, or click the images to enlarge them. Photos courtesy of Phillip Donnelly. 

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Creator Commentary

Ron Rudat (R&D Figure Designer) discusses the inspiration for Serpentor.

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​Mail Order Serpentor

Retail Serpentor (left) is stamped Made in Hong Kong, while mail order Serpentor (right) is stamped Made in China. Retail Serpentor (left) also features longer snake tail curls on his chest than mail order Serpentor (right).

​1988-1993 Hasbro Direct mail order offers

Hasbro Direct offered the Serpentor action figure in several mail order offers from 1988-1993, starting with the 1988 "Special Assignment: North Atlantic" offer and ending with the ​1993 “Terrifying Lasers of Destruction” offer, which expired September 30th 1994. Roll over the images below to find out more, or click the images to enlarge them.

1988 "Special Assignment: North Atlantic" cover

1988 "Special Assignment North Atlantic" front part 4. Special Assignment: North Atlantic was ©1988. Serpentor and His Air Chariot cost $7.00. This offer expired March 1st, 1989.

1988 "Operation Blackout" cover

1988 "Operation Blackout" spread 3. Operation Blackout was ©1988. Serpentor with Air Chariot cost $7.00. This offer expired April 30th, 1989.

1989 "Is This the End of Serpentor?" figure insert front

1989 "Is This the End of Serpentor?" figure insert back. Is This the End of Serpentor? was ©1988. Serpentor with Air Chariot cost 2 Flag points plus $7.00. This offer expired March 1st, 1990.

1990 "Thrills, Chills, Spills, and Excitement!" cover

1990 "Thrills, Chills, Spills, and Excitement!" pages 5-7. Thrills, Chills, Spills, and Excitement (AKA Operation Crude Move) was ©1989. Serpentor with Air Chariot cost 2 Flag points plus $7.50 or $9.00. This offer expired December 31st, 1990.

1991 "The G.I.Joe Bugle" cover

1991 "The G.I.Joe Bugle" booklet cover and back. The G.I.Joe Bugle was ©1990. Serpentor with Air Chariot cost 2 Flag points plus $7.00 or $8.50. This offer expired December 31st, 1991.

1992 "Mission Rescue Code Blue" cover

1992 "Mission Rescue Code Blue" booklet pages 3-4. Mission Rescue Code Blue was ©1992. Serpentor with Air Chariot cost 2 Flag points plus $7.00 or $8.50. This offer expired April 30th, 1993.

1992 “Terror on the Tundra" cover

1992 “Terror on the Tundra" booklet pages 1-2. Terror on the Tundra was ©1991. Serpentor Action Figure cost 2 Flag points plus $7.00 or $8.50. This offer expired September 30th, 1993.

1993 "Terrifying Lasers of Destruction" cover

1993 "Terrifying Lasers of Destruction" booklet pages 3-4. Terrifying Lasers of Destruction was ©1993. Serpentor with Air Chariot cost 2 Flag points plus $7.95 or $9.45. This offer expired September 30th, 1994.