>>10489272Doesn't sound like you read the comics, given you thought that they were rarely used. I looked through over a dozen comics after they first appeared and Vipers come out nearly every Cobra appearance (read: not nightcreepers, red ninjas or iron grenadiers, which are all their own organizations) until the very end of the original Marvel run.
They definitely took the place of the normal hanky faced troopers, though those still appeared, probably as officers or whatever logistics roles that they don't need to be wearing heavy armor like Vipers were.
It makes it pretty clear that someone tried to organize to make it make sense, which Hama is known for doing. Take this scene for instance, which is a monitoring room full of hanky faces, Cobra Commander and a single Viper. Vipers appeared everywhere else, getting chopped up as secrurity, and the Ninjas finally got to the upper echelon on this page.
Same with every other Viper appearance, they're front line, like marines/shocktroopers. Whether it's officially named as such or not, they're still used in that capacity in the comics.
Also, Viper 2s show up with normal Vipers. Not sure what comic, but it would have to have been near the end.
