As per the introductory convention, I should probably mention how T. rex is a popular dinosaur rarely done well, and the animal’s pop culture significance, and all that stuff. Sod it, though -  just look at this beauty. That’s some serious tyrannosaur sexiness.

A little background: this model is rather scarce these days, and the specimen shown is not actually mine. Rather, a good friend of whom you might have heard (we shall call him ‘NP’) offered me the chance to review the figure, and also look after it for a while (presumably until he acquires a little more space). Once I’d finished dancing around the room with joy, I politely accepted. This is probably one of the best Tyrannosaurus figures out there, and it’s also huge, easily rivalling the larger Jurassic Park tyrannosaurs in size. As such, it has an awesome presence in a room, which is only helped by that rather showy pose.

What’s most impressive about this figure is how it rights so many of the wrongs that have been perpetuated in tyrannosaur toys and models through the years (which often take their inspiration from Jurassic Park). At a glance, the powerful appearance of the animal is what immediately strikes the viewer – the neck, often made too scrawny on Tyrannosaurus figures (a fault I found with the older Sega vinyl T. rex), is hugely muscular, as are the legs with their enormous drumsticks. Elsewhere, the sculptor hasn’t skimped on making this T. rex very barrel-chested, with muscles bulging from the stout forelimbs – worth contrasting with the spindly twigs affixed to JP-style tyrannosaurs (like this one). Admittedly, the arms are still, alas, a little too long, but they are nevertheless closer to reality than many models.

Overall the huge-hipped, barrel-chested, very toothy creature we are presented with is unmistakably Tyrannosaurus, and this is one of the few models that really gives the impression of just how awesome this elephant-sized predator would have been to behold in life. Of all the plastic tyrannosaurs that I’ve seen, this is probably the only one that really matches just how I’ve imagined this mighty theropod – a real predatory powerhouse. In terms of fine detailing, too, this figure has few equals. While most toys and models naturally make the eyes too large relative to the head (or else, on smaller figures, they’d be impossibly miniscule), the (slightly closed) eyes here are appropriately small relative to the head which, lest we forget, was bloody enormous in life. The animal is covered in very fine scales, and details such as claws and teeth are carefully painted. The row of spines adds to the threatening appearance. The raised tongue in the mouth is superbly pulled off, while the teeth are appropriate sizes, if a little ‘complete’ (although that’s typical).

Some people do have a problem with the colour scheme, which is a little bright for such a large, predatory animal. I’ll concede that an overall duller colour scheme would be more realistic, but the figure is very striking as is. The bright red with a yellow stripe will certainly ensure that it stands out among your Tyrannosaurus figures, particularly if you group them all together as I do.  It’s not entirely perfect anatomically either – for example, the tail musculature could do with a tweak – although that’s being rather demanding (even for me). This figure was released in 2007, which means it predates W Scott Persons’ paper on dinosaur tails (basically, everyone’s been making them far too skinny – see this Archosaur Musings guest post.).

So yes, it’s gorgeous. Finding one is the tricky part, but if you do you will find that, as a hollow plastic figure, they are very reasonably priced – especially given that the level of detail can only really be matched by costly resin figures. Best of luck, and if you manage to nab one be sure to let me know!

Tyrannosaurus rex (Dinosaur King by Sega) is a post from The Dinosaur Toy Blog

A number of dinosaurs in the Wild Safari line have been subject to resculpts, but the most famous dinosaur of all is unique in having been revised twice. The iffy original was replaced by an abysmal Jurassic Park-esque affair back in 2006; it was almost reminiscent of the Papo T. rex, but with none of the high-quality detailing or copyright-infringing charm. This year Safari are back for one more try and – although flawed – the resulting toy is a huge improvement over its predecessors.

This toy caught people’s attention when it was first announced thanks to its bipedal stance, which remains quite unusual in Tyrannosaurus figures. The pose is indeed an uncommonly dynamic one, and the figure is very steady on its feet without any assistance; the feet also look less awkward than in the similarly-posed Favorite model. This has come at a cost, however, as the feet are also noticeably exaggerated in size. That said, it doesn’t detract from the model too much and the attractive stance is probably worth it. Unfortunately, the anatomical flaws don’t end there.

Tyrannosaurus‘ highly specialised mega-head is what often draws people’s attention (and with those arms, it’s hardly surprising). Here a respectable effort’s been made to make the head lifelike, with plenty of scaly detail and all facial features (nostrils, ears etc.) present and correct. However, the mandible appears to be dislocated, as muscles that should attach it to the cranium at the rear just aren’t there. The result is that the skull appears to have just been stuck on the end of the neck without too much thought as to how it would all work. (The eyes are too low down and large too, but I’m more willing to forgive them on that one. Being the lovely man that I am. At least the face is nicely symmetrical.)

As can be seen in the above picture, the arms – while not broken (HURRAH!) – are still far too long. It seems like everyone makes a big deal of T. rex‘s small arms without ever realising how comparatively piddly they actually were – although T. rex could totally have taken an abelisaur in an arm-wrestling contest (or indeed a human), describing its forelimbs as ‘highly atrophied’ is probably not hyperbole.

Still, and in spite of all this, the figure has a lot going for it. The low price is an important factor, but just as with its neo-Wild Safari contemporaries it’s a lovingly detailed and scaly figure, with some well-defined musculature (even if the shoulder area looks a bit bony), a barrel chest and a paint job that is, for the most part, nice and subtle as befits such a huge creature. While the overall paint application is praiseworthy it does seem that the guy who painted the teeth was retiring the next day, as in that area it is rather sloppy. At least it gives Tyrannosaurus the opportunity to star in the next ‘Got Milk?’ ad.

In the end, though, I’m disappointed that this figure didn’t live up to the standard set by the Wild Safari Allosaurus. And that’s not really fair – the Allosaurus is a truly exceptional figure, and given their track record it was unlikely that Safari would produce a T. rex to match it. This is a good figure in its own right, and given its bipedal stance and correctly-positioned arms it’s one of the best in the 1:50 – 1:30 scale range.

Available from eBay stores here

Tyrannosaurus rex (Wild Safari by Safari Ltd. – 2011 sculpt) is a post from The Dinosaur Toy Blog

Back in 2010, Favorite released a re-sculpt of the Tyrannosaurus from their resin ‘Desktop’ range, alongside Triceratops and Allosaurus. Once again, it is a huge improvement over its predecessor anatomically but is likely to strongly divide tastes.

Just as with the Allosaurus, a large, overhanging ‘lip’ covers all of the teeth in the upper jaw, with only the very tips visible on close inspection. This is in marked contrast with the majority of Tyrannosaurus figures, which – by design – appear to emphasise their subject’s huge, intimidating dentition (occasionally to an exaggerated degree, like the teeth are dangling from their roots). On the mandible, the gumline is drawn back to allow space for the upper teeth. On the whole, this is not unlike the Komodo dragon or indeed some modern carnivorous mammals (although the latter, of course, have muscular, mobile lips).

This is bound to be the most divisive aspect of this figure, especially from an aesthetic point of view. Some people are going to be seriously put off by the ‘lip’, believing that it makes  their pet monster look rather, well, toothless. Personally, I must admit to finding the look a little offputting at first. However, it is – for now – actually quite plausible. At the very least, it gives the figure a distinct, even distinguished look. The sculptor hasn’t tried to produce some dragon-like monster that they think will look cool to kids (and big kids) – they’ve done their best to sculpt a restoration of an animal that really existed. The only shame is that the teeth that are visible are somewhat rounded and blunted, presumably to prevent breakage, which detracts from the look somewhat. A little more finesse wouldn’t have gone amiss there.

That said, this is still a sculpt with excellent attention to detail. Thankfully, the ‘prodded with a coffee-stirrer/Biro lid’ look of the Allosaurus is not replicated here – instead, the plausibly bulky and muscular creature has been furnished with well-executed scalation, skin creases and sags. The painting is virtually immaculate, right down to the tiny hand claws and shark-black eyes. In terms of colouration, the model is perhaps best described as being a deep claret red on top, marbled with swirling black, and grey below. It is attractive and stands out while remaining suitably subtle and subdued, again in contrast with the bright blue Allosaurus.

From an anatomical point of view this is one of the best mass-produced Tyrannosaurus figures available, and very difficult to fault. ‘Lips’ aside, the body is near-perfectly proportioned – the arms are, for once, just as miniscule as they should be – while the barrel chest, huge thighs and thick, muscular tail are all true to the real tyrant reptile. Someone has really done their homework here. This somewhat robust rendition of Tyrannosaurus also stands in contrast with a number of rather skinnier models that have been produced down the years, and (although produced in 2010) the look of the figure fits neatly with recent research.

In the end, though – thanks to that ‘lip’ – you’ve probably already decided whether or not this figure is one you’d like to go for. The price is worth mentioning, too – at about 30cm (or a foot) long, this figure can be rather expensive to obtain for its relatively small size (mine was a Christmas present). In spite of such issues, I think this is a well-executed figure and I’d highly recommend it to anyone seriously into collecting up-to-date dinosaurs.

Tyrannosaurus (Desktop model by Favorite Co. Ltd.) is a post from The Dinosaur Toy Blog

So – and forgive me if you’ve heard this already – Papo have a new T. rex out for 2012. And now, finally, we’ve all got the chance to get our greasy paws on one. Although most of you probably decided a long time ago whether or not you were going to grab one of these, hopefully this review will be useful for the very few still sitting on the fence…

There’s one thing always worth remembering about Papo – they’ve never claimed any sort of scientific authority or authenticity. Their prehistoric line isn’t tied in with a museum, and the figures aren’t declared ‘scale replicas’ replete with educational tags. It’s the aesthetic quality of these figures that’s endeared them to adult collectors – and make no mistake, Papo remain absolutely miles ahead of the pack in this regard. Still, given the high production values clearly evident in these figures, it’s difficult not to view them as at least semi-serious attempts at reconstructing extinct animals, and it’s here that they tend to fall short.

The original Papo T. rex was very obviously a straight-up knock-off of the Jurassic Park creature – an excellent one as it happens – and that contributed immensely to its appeal. For their new T. rex, the sculptor has clearly used Jurassic Park as a starting point once again, resulting in some of the inaccuracies of the original being repeated. Most obviously, the arms are far, far too long. Here’s something I’d like all toy designers to remember in future – the arms of T. rex are only mocked for being laughably short because they really were quite laughably short. The torso is also a little shallow. The feet are too large, of course, but that’s in aid of stability – and I think it’s a worthy trade-off (but more about that in a moment). Quite apart from any problems with proportions, though, it’s the head that will probably prove to be the divisive aspect of this figure.

Abandoning their usual neat rows of teeth, Papo have instead opted for a gnarly, snaggle-toothed look. It’s hard to deny that it looks pretty cool – not to mention sinister – but look at any T. rex skull and you can see that it doesn’t really match up (in other words, there’s a reason we don’t see lots of T. rex restorations with croco-teeth). It’s not that some individuals didn’t have the odd tooth protruding in an unusual direction – they almost certainly did – but the way the teeth are arranged here doesn’t really resemble any T. rex specimen yet discovered. But, yes, it does look cool. And that’s Papo for you.

Of course, for all that talk of giant arms and dodgy teeth, there’s an awful lot to be positive about here. The aesthetic quality of this plastic toy is simply astonishing. Other companies may produce tyrannosaurs that are more scientifically sound, but only Papo’s look alive. The highly refined, crisp detailing stands up to the very closest scrutiny, as does the paintwork which is, as always, flawless and highly naturalistic in appearance. Try as hard as you like – you won’t find a single, tiny accidental paint splash, even around the mouth, claws and miniscule, beady eyes. The pose, too, is exciting and looks convincing, which makes the enlarged feet worthwhile. When it comes to aesthetics alone, Papo continue to put to shame ‘serious’ resin models that can cost over three times as much as these toys.

With the original, which has been repainted brown this year

Even if you’re averse to dinosaur figures that deviate significantly from the real deal, it’s difficult to not see this figure as a must-buy. It does seem a shame that Papo won’t consider consulting with scientists to produce a line of toys that are closer to how the real animals would have looked, as they’d then be pretty much untouchable. However, even with things the way they are, Papo deserve credit for raising the dino toy stakes and producing a line of consistently stunning, often very characterful figures. That brachiosaur is looking like a very attractive prospect…!

Now available on eBay here.

Tyrannosaurus rex (Running) (Papo) is a post from The Dinosaur Toy Blog

Review and photos by ‘Tyrantqueen’, edited by ‘Plesiosauria’

Here we have a new figure for 2012 from the company that so many love to hate, German manufacturer Schleich. This new Tyrannosaurus rex is part of Schleich’s new “World of History” line, which contains some familiar looking dinosaur sculpts, but also some brand new ones. Since Papo arrived on the dinosaur toy scene a few years ago, their popularity and success seemed to spur other companies, such as Bullyland and Schleich, to strive for greater detail and quality in their figures. Schleich appear to have heavily been influenced by Papo’s Tyrannosaurus rexes here, which in turn were heavily influenced by Jurassic Park.

Let’s start off with the positives. Although it’s on the short side, the tail is held off the ground, unlike nearly all of Schleich’s past Tyrannosaurus figures. The articulated jaw (another popular trend initiated by Papo and later copied by Bullyland, and now Schleich, is nicely implemented. The figure is a bright emerald green, with yellow-ish brown highlights on the feet, forearms and belly.
The pose is static and unimaginative, but I suppose this makes the toy easy to animate for a young child’s imagination.

The head is well detailed, although the teeth are too uniform in length. The Papo influence here is painfully obvious. Like most Jurassic Park influenced replicas, the crests above the eyes are absurdly large. I like the wrinkling of skin around the neck and shoulder area though. The back of the neck and the front of the knees are covered with small yellow pimples. This could be an attempt at sculpting scutes, but in the end, they just make the Tyrannosaurus look like it’s suffering from a nasty bout of acne. The surface of the skin is covered with small round scales, very much like the detailing on Safari Ltd’s Acrocanthosaurus and Ceratosaurus toys.

The forearms are pronated and rather too long (probably another influence from Papo’s running Tyrannosaurus, which was also sculpted with overly long arms)
The musculature is sculpted well and bulges in the thighs and legs. Much like the Schleich Allosaurus, this figure has oversized feet to ensure it stands on its own. The claws are actually sculpted well, are uniform in length, and show very little sloppiness of paintwork. The ankles and lower legs are probably sculpted too thinly, but at least the sculptors made an attempt to make the feet bird-like.

Is this figure worth considering? It is a step in the right direction for Schleich at least, even if it is a Jurassic Park rip-off. The overall sculpt detail is good, although nowhere near Papo’s level. Unfortunately, at the end of the day the new Schleich Tyrannosaurus rex feels very much like a poor man’s Papo. This figure should be available at most toy retailers within a few months.

"Oh - Nice to see a familiar face!"

Tyrannosaurus rex (World of History by Schleich) is a post from The Dinosaur Toy Blog

Following their excellent Therizinosaurus, Deinocheirus and Triceratops carcass, 2012 was really starting to look like CollectA’s year – a number of superb models and a distinct lack of genuine stinkers. Sadly, this model looks set to break that good run, and even more unfortunate is that it’s yet another dodgy T. rex. Like the world needed any more of those…

Don’t get me wrong – as far as T. rex toys go this is a long way from being among the worst out there, and actually incorporates a few very nice ideas. Above all else, it’s clear that someone really tried to get it right when they were sculpting this, rather than just lazily slapping together some silly Jurassic Park extend-o-arms with a boxy head and having it all stand in a boring, tripodal position. The proportions are basically right (with some important exceptions, but I’m getting to that), the arms are suitably short and face the right way (halle-bloody-lujah!), the tail is aloft and the animal is portrayed as a big, bulky, beefy beast.

The inclusion of prey is a nice touch, too, and prevents this from being Yet Another T. rex Toy. In fact, I’m sure a lot of collectors will be unable to resist picking this figure up simply because of this novel feature – I count myself guilty. Although the Struthiomimus is tiny and as such not terribly detailed, it’s possible to discern a fuzzy covering and that its hands, too, are facing the right way. Unfortunately, it also draws rather unwanted attention to the head.

Unflattering comparison shot with the Favorite T. rex is unflattering.

Simply put, it’s not very good. The teeth are rather small, blunted and uniform, while certain jaw muscles seem to be missing. Even worse, the back of the skull narrows towards the top so that, although the animal’s eyes face forwards, they are also ridiculously close together, and the space where the temporal fenestrae  would be in the top of the skull is squeezed into non-existence.  ‘Derpy’ is perhaps the correct, if rather understated, term. Elsewhere, while it’s commendable that Collecta have managed to avoid the dreaded tripod trope and also avoid giving the toy clownish outsized feet, the weirdly splayed, crouched, highly flexed posture is uncomfortable-looking and not at all attractive. This is especially the case when the ankles have warped, which they have a tendency to.

In the end it’s all a real shame. Collecta were clearly aiming in the right direction with this model, and it’s crisply detailed and well-painted to boot. Given how badly the head has been fudged, though, this isn’t really a figure that I can honestly recommend. Still, given the rapid evolution of their figures I am hopeful that Collecta can learn from what went wrong – and right – with this figure, and apply the lessons to their future figures of giganto-theropods.

Tyrannosaurus rex with prey – Struthiomimus (CollectA) is a post from The Dinosaur Toy Blog

This year’s really all about Tyrannosaurus as far as Papo are concerned, with two brand new sculpts and a repaint/refinement of their original Jurassic Park knock-off. Sure, there’s also that tantalising brachiosaur, but that’s not out yet – and I think we’ll all agree that we’re better off pretending that any disastrous attempts at marine reptiles didn’t happen. So, having already looked at the new ‘big daddy’ T. rex of the line, it’s time to bring on the baby!

This is the first juvenile dinosaur Papo have produced (no matter what they might claim about that Pachycephalosaurus), and it’s very obvious that they’ve decided to capitalise on the cute factor. There are no feathers (of course – it’s Papo), but the animal is depicted in an upright, begging posture and has a rounded little face, complete with huge yellow eyes with wide pupils. It reminds me of nothing more than a cat begging for tidbits at the table.

As such, it’s pretty hard to resist, particularly as it packs the typical Papo attention to detail. It’s hard to tell if the sculpt is based directly on the baby T. rex that appeared in The Lost World: Jurassic Park, or if the sculptor simply based it on Papo’s own JP-aping designs. Whatever the case, it’s a crisply detailed, flawlessly painted figure that fits in perfectly with the rest of the Papo T. rex family, even if not in terms of scale. It even has a tiny articulated jaw (although getting it open more than a little bit requires a little…forcing), revealing a textured tongue inside the mouth.

So it’s certainly aesthetically pleasing, not to mention quite adorable, and it’s tempting to pat it on the head, feed it some chicken scraps and send it skipping on its merry way. However, we here at the Dinosaur Toy Blog are renowned for being cruel, cold-hearted curmudgeons, and it would be amiss to give this toy a free pass without looking at the anatomy. While it has been correctly pointed out that hatchling tyrannosaurs are something of an unknown quantity, young juveniles aren’t, and the reality doesn’t quite square with what we have here. If it were a little more scientifically honest this figure would, quite literally, have a very different face – while the snub-nosed appearance adds a lot of charm, young tyrannosaurs actually had shallower snouts than the adults, while their legs may have been even longer than this figure indicates. Oh, and the arms are broken too, but you knew that.

Still, pointing out such flaws in a Papo figure always seems a little moot – that’s not what they’re here for, and Papo do not claim to be trying to educate anybody. The fact is, you’re going to buy one anyway – either this or the brown version (although I prefer green) – because LOOK AT HIS FACE D’AWWW! And hey, as (almost) always, it’s a well-made toy.

Now available from Amazon in green here, and in brown here.

Tyrannosaurus rex (Baby) (Papo) is a post from The Dinosaur Toy Blog

Over a year ago now (wait, what? What happened!?!) I reviewed a Dinotales-esque miniature Triceratops model from Tomy (aka Takara Tomy), which I was sent in lieu of the Tyrannosaurus from the same range. Happily, Tomy have released a new set for 2012 – to tie in with the Dino Kingdom expo in Japan – and I’ve actually managed to get hold of the T. rex this time. It’s a wonderful little figure that I’m sure, nevertheless, is going to split opinion. I’ll give you three feathers…uh…guesses as to why.

Yes, they’ve given everyone’s favourite hadrosaur-chomping, piddly-armed, birdy-legged monster a flufftastic covering. Actually, it’s not Tomy’s first feathered T. rex – the 2011 sculpt that accompanied the aforementioned Triceratops also boasted a handsome mane – but this iteration shows marked improvements, both in sculpting and painting finesse and in its far more striking pose and imaginative colouration. The punkish green mohawk is probably a step too far, but the bold, almost tribal patterns on the face certainly make it stand out from the gigantic horde of T. rex figures out there. For me, the feathers themselves are most definitely a welcome inclusion, and one that I can only hope will set a precedent for other manufacturers. Not only is at least a smattering of fuzz (if not more) highly plausible (especially in the light of recent discoveries), feathered figures are also so much more interesting than their all-scaly counterparts. Those who don’t like the idea are quite welcome to grumble quietly in the corner, clutching their VHS copies of Jurassic Park – just as long as they don’t get in the way of the Feathery Future™.

Integument aside, the pose of this model also attracts interest. The karate kick action – reminiscent of the Michael Trcic resin T. rex manufactured by Favorite – isn’t going to please everybody, but it’s certainly unusually dynamic and means that the figure commands attention when it’s placed among the usual standing-around-with-their-mouths-agog crowd. It’s worth noting that it’s designed as a companion to the Triceratops from the same series (which I don’t have), and the bases of the two figures slot together – if you’re finding the pose a little odd, it does make more sense in that context. Nevertheless, the sense of action and momentum in this figure, perched as it is on the very tips of the toes of one foot, make it eye-catching and perfectly worthy of proudly displaying even without its pointy-faced adversary.

From an anatomical perspective, the sculptor has done a superb job within the limitations inherent in a very small, mass-produced, snap-together plastic figure. Perhaps most admirable are the arms, which are every bit as tiny as they should be while still retaining a certain robustness. The legs are highly birdlike and muscular – as they should be – with the ‘kicking’ leg swinging in towards the midline, just as it would when the animal took a step. The tail may be a little bit ropey and flattened, and there’s something a little off about the mouth (not to mention that hairdo), but other than that it’s a very nice piece of work.

I’d recommend this figure without hesitation – it’s pleasantly novel, affordable, striking in appearance without being overtly flamboyant, and offers a different take on a species that many thought had been done to death. Oh, and it has an adorably teensy gold plaque on its base making it quite unambiguously clear as to precisely which animal this is meant to be, which is definitely a feature that should be much more widespread. Hunt it down while you can!

Tyrannosaurus rex (Dino Kingdom 2012 by Takara Tomy) is a post from The Dinosaur Toy Blog

Review and photos by Patrick Bate (Pixelboy)

Ah, Japan. A culture that seems to be equal parts tradition and progress. Fortuitously, when it comes to dinosaurs, progress seems to be their strong suit. If you’re looking for accurate, up-to-date dinosaur figures, Japanese companies like Kaiyodo, Kabaya, TakaraTomy, and Kinto/Favorite are often your best bet; and this Tyrannosaurus maquette from the 2012 Tokyo Dinosaur Kingdom Expo is no exception. Sculpted by Takashi Oda and based on an illustration by Raúl Martín, this unorthodox addition to the Favorite Desktop Model series is nothing if not striking.

The tyrant king is here depicted in mid-stride, perched atop a rocky base with its mouth agape in what one might imagine to be a triumphant roar. Not a hugely inventive pose, perhaps, but certainly dramatic. Like all of Favorite’s desktop models, this guy gets a wooden plinth with a metal nameplate. For some reason,the scale isn’t engraved along with the name. At approximately 7 1/4 inches long and 4 1/2 inches tall, I would guess it’s a bit smaller than their usual 1/40 scale.

Probably the first (okay, maybe the second) thing one notices about this figure is the unusual color scheme. It’s much like that of the previously reviewed Takara Tomy version – they were produced for the same event and based on the same artwork. The body is mostly grey, with a nicely subtle fractal pattern of dark stripes on the back and tail, shifting to a pale, almost white shade on the ventral surface and legs. Splotches of bright blue adorn either side of the face, with the characteristic ridges on the skull lined in red. I think the coloration strikes an excellent balance between bright patterns and more “natural”, subdued colors. It’s both interesting and realistic.

Generally, the sculpting detail is quite sharp. The feathers – covering nearly the entire body – are etched intricately into the surface. Longer filaments cover the dorsal surface, transitioning to smaller ones toward the underside of the body and broad, birdlike scales on the feet and hands.

The feet, unfortunately, are somewhat lacking in detail, but it is easy to see what kind of look the sculptor was aiming for. Muscles and tendons are more clearly defined here than in some Tyrannosaurus models, and remind me of the lower portion of the legs on an ostrich.

T. rex’s real claim to fame, of course, is its head – and Favorite clearly spared no expense when bringing it to life on this model. The skull is nicely fleshed out, with the fenestrae as invisible as they should be. There’s an unusual structure along the back of the mouth, a bit like the soft tissue behind the beak of a modern raptor. The feathery “mowhawk” may seem a little ostentatious, but looks a bit less silly here than on the Takara Tomy version, with the blue color limited to the tips of the feathers. The only thing that disappoints with regard to this figure’s head are the teeth – they aren’t sculpted as precisely as I’d have liked, and look slightly blobby on close inspection.

Anatomically, there’s not much to complain about here – the legs are proportioned very well, with excellently birdlike musculature, the arms are correctly tiny yet powerful-looking, and the torso is wide and boxy. However, while I like the elegant look of this rex’s tail, it really should be quite a bit wider and more muscular at the base. It also seems a bit short.

I think it’s safe to say I’m a big fan of this piece, and not only for its forward-thinking design. It has a lot of life to it, and makes a unique and eye-catching addition to any dinosaur collection. Unfortunately, only 500 were made. They’re still available over at Clawmark Toys for a hefty $130.00 USD, but once their stock runs out, it’ll probably be tough to track down this Tokyo Tyrant. And no, you can’t have mine.

Tyrannosaurus rex (Dino Kingdom 2012 by Kinto/Favorite Co. Ltd.) is a post from The Dinosaur Toy Blog

Favorite’s ‘soft models’ have had a complete revamp this year, with an all-new series of sculpts by the renowned Kazunari Araki. With the exception of Pachycephalosaurus and Deinonychus (replaced by Velociraptor), every animal in the original series has an Araki counterpart, and the differences are quite striking and very interesting. Presumably hedging their bets from a scientific standpoint, and also because they sell rather well, Favorite have opted for two different T. rex sculpts this time – one more reptilian and spiny, and the other sporting squint-or-you’ll-miss-’em feathers. But which one’s better? There’s only one way to find out…

As is plain to see, the feathered beast on the left is posed in a manner rather reminiscent of the large Sega Dinosaur King model, its legs spread apart as it bellows to the skies for a reason that only tyrannosaurs and movie makers will ever understand. Meanwhile, its unfeathered counterpart is depicted in a more laid-back walking pose, albeit with its mouth still agog so you’re better able to check out all those amazing awesome teeth. The more straightforward pose is – let us make this clear – indisputably more aesthetically pleasing and altogether significantly less ridiculously over-the-top and awesomebro. That’s 1-0 to Unfeathered, then.

Proportionately, the sculpts are very sound. Of course they are – we’re talking about Araki. As one might expect, the two sculpts are very similar when it comes to soft tissue restoration – somewhat on the slim slide, but still very muscular and bulky-looking, with hugely broad torsos, appropriately tiny-but-stout arms and chunky tail bases (although they might still be not quite chunky enough – I wouldn’t want to call on it, but I’m sure someone will in the comments). Both sculpts show excellent attention to the smaller details, with such lovely touches as pads on the toes and carefully placed, crisp skin folds and creases.

Having a decent head on one’s T. rex figure is very important (as has been amply demonstrated in the recent past), and here I feel that one figure is significantly better than the other. For alas, there’s something a little…off about the head on Feathered. Now, as anyone will tell you, a T. rex skull flares out at the back in such a way that both of its eyes face forwards. Unfeathered captures this perfectly. However, on Feathered, the orbits appear to be too high – up to where the bony bosses would be – and so the eyes appear to be ever-so-slightly on stalks. Subsequently, it takes on a rather comical, one might say derpy, appearance when viewed head-on (as above) – whereas Unfeathered remains dignified. Well, both heads are a little sunken, but we’ll let that slide. I’m nice like that.

Which only leaves one other matter of contention – the feathers! It’s important to establish that if you’re the sort of person who’s bothered by feathers on T. rex figures you’re either kidding yourself or know something we don’t, in which case HURRY UP AND GET IT PUBLISHED. Of course, it’s also important that the feathers are handled in a suitable manner, and it must be noted that those on Feathered here are somewhat less than convincing. While it’s wonderful to see companies experimenting with this sort of thing, a smattering draped over the creature’s back and some jolly old forearm plumes just don’t quite cut it. As an avowed enthusiast for the Feathery Future, it pains me to say that Unfeathered’s more consistent appearance is by far the more pleasing – it’s a little same-old, but that seems better than embracing a new(ish) idea, but only doing so in a half, er, hearted fashion. Also, spines are dashing.

Clearly, then, if you only buy one Araki T. rex from Favorite, make it the brown unfeathered version. However, I’d recommend you get both – each one is an uncommonly good sculpt for the toy market, and is bursting with gorgeous detail and real personality. All this, and I haven’t even mentioned the bases. Hooray for the bases! They’re an entirely sensible answer to the issue of theropod toy stability – the figures can be separated for playtime (if you really want to give such great toys to your undeserving progeny), and/or attached to the bases for ease of display. Marvellous, and very welcome. Top-hole once again for Favorite.

Tyrannosaurus rex – Feathered & Unfeathered (Soft Model Series 2 by Favorite) is a post from The Dinosaur Toy Blog

When it comes to dinosaur lines, Schleich have been a bit of a let down in recent years. Not only have they retired a large proportion of their prehistoric animal figures, their most recent sculpts have been ugly and anatomically incorrect. The sort of toys that wouldn’t seem out of place in a bargain bin of ‘Made in China’ ‘Chinasaurs’. The discrepancy in quality between Schleich’s  living animal figures, which are generally excellent, and their prehistoric animals figures, which aren’t, has been growing year by year. So, how are things shaping up for 2014, have we anything to look forward to for 2014, or are we in for another year of duds? Schleich have four new figures in their World of History dinosaurs line up for next year, as follows:

Velociraptor. A real monster of a figure. If you’re going to get a figure anatomically incorrect in every single way, at least try to make it look superficially good. At first glance, this figure fails on so many levels.

Pentaceratops. A ceratopsian rarely depicted in toy form.

Tyrannosaurus. In the case of both the T. rex and Velociraptor, there seems to be a case of ‘spot the difference’ with last year’s models of these two dinosaurs by Schleich.

Therizinosaurus. An intriguing figure.

For some, this new offering may offer a glimmer of hope for Schleich as a reliable manufacturer of dinosaur figures in the future. For others, it may have just put the final nail in their coffin.

Join in the discussion about these new Schleich dinosaur figures on the dinotoyforum here: http://www.dinotoyblog.com/forum/index.php/topic,1825.0.html

Upcoming releases from Schleich (New for 2014) is a post from The Dinosaur Toy Blog

Review and photos by Raptoress. Versions of this figure available on Amazon.com here.

2014 has brought us many interesting and downright awesome models, including CollectA’s beautiful Carcharodontosaurus and Papo’s somewhat inaccurate, but stunning and incredibly detailed Dilophosaurus. Every company has their new dinosaur models each year, so of course that means Schleich follows suit. A lot of people dislike Schleich’s models for their often blatant disregard of scientific accuracy, though Schleich’s good point, in my personal opinion, is their high aesthetic quality in their textural detailing and the quality of the materials. Today I will be reviewing one of their new models for 2014, the light green re-sculpt of the 2012 ‘World of History’ Tyrannosaurus rex. I received it for my 18th birthday and I like it a lot. But I’m going to be as honest about its flaws as much as I can despite my fondness for it.

Some things have been improved since the last T. rex Schleich made, but unfortunately there’s a lot of things that have gotten worse as well, which I will get to shortly. (See the comparison shots at the end of this review).

Let’s start off with the positives. Firstly, the head is well sculpted and I’d say this is the best aspect of this model along with the textural detail. But the head is nothing new, just exactly the same as the 2012 model. It has a hinged jaw which can be opened and closed to your liking. There are lots of details like small scales and wrinkles. I particularly like how the eye areas are sculpted. It’s very fine and animal-like with purely black, glossy eyes. The crests above the eyes might be a bit big for some, but I personally like the whole head just the way it is. The only thing I dislike about it is the teeth. They’re all the same length, whereas the real Tyrannosaurus had teeth of mixed sizes. When the jaw is opened, inside is a nicely sculpted tongue and the roof of the mouth is reasonably well sculpted, too.

The texture of this model feels similar to the 2012 T. rex with a slightly rubbery or waxy feel, but is still very solid and not flexible (unlike their 2012 Velociraptor). I don’t like the waxy texture much, as I prefer my mass-produced dinosaur toys to have a strong, solid plasticy feel to them. The rest of the body is also covered in small, fine scales and on the underside of the model from the neck are some lovely skin folds and wrinkles to which around where the cloacal area should be turns to square-ish scales ending all the way to the tip of the tail. Also, there is no cloacal opening, so this poor Rexie is constipated.

Jokes aside, the arms, which unfortunately are way too long and pronated, have smaller scales and where the hand starts, the scales are replaced by wrinkles. The hands have two digits, which is correct. The legs are similar, where the knee turns to wrinkles back down to fine scales and to the feet which have bird-like scales.

The 2012 Schleich T. rex model had yellow spots on its neck, which was usually disliked amongst collectors. I didn’t like it either, but in the 2014 model these spots are now gone, and it definitely looks better without them. Instead, you can now see faint little ‘bumps’ on closer inspection.

The colour scheme is decent, but not unique. The paint job is not sloppy at all in my model and the colour scheme is mainly blends of light and darker greens with salmon on the underside. The feet and hands are also salmon coloured.

Now on to the worst flaw of this model. The most glaring issue with this new T. rex is the horribly oversized feet. The 2012 model had oversized feet, too. But not anywhere near as bad as this 2014 T. rex. The feet here are almost as big as its head. This is obviously to keep the model perfectly balanced, which I admit works well in terms of stability, but there’s no excuse for this. CollectA’s Carcharodontosaurus proves that a model can stay with its tail parallel to the ground and still be able to balance without having oversized feet.

Overall, I really like this model despite the flaws, for its lovely textural detail, although I do prefer the 2012 Tyrannosaurus rex. But if you collect models solely based on scientific accuracy, you will probably want to pass on this model. I also received the Schleich Pentaceratops for my birthday, so I will also be reviewing that model as well.

Available on Amazon.com here.

Tyrannosaurus rex (2014 resculpt version) (World of History by Schleich) is a post from The Dinosaur Toy Blog

More than any recent figure, Rebor’s sizeable King Rex seems to embody both the best and worst of the current dinosaur collectible scene. On the one hand, it’s hugely encouraging to see a company produce offerings that bridge the vast gap between the toy and ‘monstro Sideshow wallet-buster’ ends of the market, and produce a line of undeniably high-quality figures to boot. At the same time, it’s a little sad that their contribution to the ever-more-crowded T. rex toy shelf looks so…familiar.

When people inspect a T. rex figure, they’ll be looking at the head first and foremost – after all, it’s the cool-looking business end with the mouth full of spikes and a gnarled, keratinous mass to top things off. Looking at Rebor’s figure, the first two words to spring to mind are ‘Jurassic Park‘. Every small detail of the head – from the jawline to the ‘angry eye’ crests – is almost directly lifted from the JP creature. It’s not as close as the original Papo T. rex, but the similarity is quite unmistakable, all the same. It could’ve been worse, John – a lot worse – but just imagine what the artist could have achieved if they had sculpted a truly original head, based on the real animal’s skull. It’s just all so predictable.

Ol’ angry eyes is back again

If you’re going to stick a JP head on your figure, you might as well make it an exceedingly handsome JP head, and it’s here that Rebor have succeeded with aplomb. The Rebor Rexy is essentially akin to a Papo figure on steroids, and you get what you pay for in terms of fine detailing and a superb paint finish. The head in particular shows a great deal of finesse in the scalation, wrinkling around the eyes, and (like the Papos) an extremely fine set of very pointy dentures. The jaw is also articulated, allowing for a variety of looks ranging from ‘demure coelurosaur’ to ‘raging awesomebro jerk’. It’s a nice touch.

WHEN DINOSAURS RULED THE EARTH

The rest of the body is very well detailed, too (even if not quite to the same standard as the head), and has the believable, organic quality that Papo’s dinosaurs are praised for. The flesh has an extremely gnarled, wrinkly and folded appearance, as if this were some battered old beast; muscles pop from the legs, and there is a weird, sinewy look to the base of the tail which I actually quite like. A lot of thought has gone into making this look like a living animal rather than a statuesque model that just ticks the boxes.

In terms of how it compares with what’s known about the real T. rex – well, it’s a mixed bag, as one might expect given the JP head. Its bodily proportions are certainly much more on the money than any of Papo’s efforts, indicating that at least a modicum of research went into this. The arms and legs are probably a little too long (the strange, almost crouching posture makes it a little tricky to judge), and the arms could also probably do with a minor repositioning. More obviously, the snout is too wide side-to-side, meaning the skull somewhat lacks its distinctive shape. The torso could perhaps do with being broader, but the creature has convincing heft all the same, with obviously massive hips and thighs and a reasonably chunky tail base (a feature often overlooked).

There’s no denying the high production values of this figure, and it’s certainly visually arresting. The sandy colour scheme (with fiery highlights) works very well, and the careful attention to detail outclasses even some resin figures that are notably pricier than the Rebor. The fact that it’s another all-over scaly T. rex is a bit of a shame – given the Yutyrannus that’s also in Rebor’s range, I’d have loved to have seen them stick a little plumage on their King Rex. The scaliness adds to the somewhat ’90s-retro feel of the model as a whole, although at least the integument is still handled with a little flair (the dorsal spines being very reminiscent of a certain sexy Sega).

Alongside the Papo Running Rex.

In all, this is indeed a very well-made piece, but it’s probably also going to split opinion. Having spent some time this evening with the old fella on my desk, I must say that I’ve really warmed to him, in spite of my ongoing reservations. Yes, it’s a bit of a JP monster, and yes, that little rocky prop thing is…odd. However, it’s a charming number with an exceptional degree of artistic polish for a mass-produced figure. For the same reason I’ll normally p-p-p-pick up a Papo (while avoiding equally inaccurate Schleich pap), I’ll recommend the Rebor. A bit pricey and anatomically iffy, but I’ll still hail to the King, baby.

Tyrannosaurus rex (King Rex by Rebor) is a post from The Dinosaur Toy Blog

Tyrannosaurus rex is a dinosaur that needs no introduction from me. Regardless of your knowledge concerning dinosaurs this is one species that everyone is familiar with. Because of its fame it is perhaps the species most reproduced in toy form, for better or worse. This review concerns the treatment of the species by Safari’s Great Dinosaurs Collection; a model that has a lot of misses but a couple surprising hits.

This figure is basically a blown up cheaper version of Wild Safari’s 1996 Tyrannosaurus, they’re virtually identical in every aspect of their form aside from color, size and a few other details. The Wild Safari version is about half the size of this piece which would measure 12” long if not for the curled tail, the size puts this tyrannosaur at 1/40 in scale, the figure measure 6” tall to the top of the head. The figure is hollow with an obvious seam around the mid-section; a feature of several “Great Dinos”. The coloration is rather uninspired, nothing but generic brown all over but an orange version of the toy exists as well. The body is covered with wrinkles rather than scales but there are a few scutes running down the neck. Some of the deeper wrinkles like those on the neck and belly look nice but overall the number of wrinkles on this figure is a bit overkill. The tail is long and laterally compressed with a nice ridge running the entire length of the back. One of the surprising features of the figure is that it can stand fully on two legs, or at least mine can. I don’t know if this was intentional but it is a nice change from the typical Safari tripod posture. I should note that actually getting it to stand on two legs can be a bit challenging; it stands more comfortably with the tail on the ground.

The head of the figure is full of inaccuracies. The snout looks too blunt and tall and similar to something like Carnotaurus. Looking head on the skull is far too narrow, especially at the back of the skull, even the Wild Safari version is a bit wider in this regard. The teeth are all of equal size and white, the inside of the mouth is featureless aside from the pink paint. The eyes are lifeless and black and the bosses atop the skull look over-exaggerated and probably account for the tall appearance of the head. The neck is fairly well done, looking thick and muscular as the neck of such a beast should be.

Tyrannosaurus is famous for its tiny arms and hands but like many other figures the arms on this one are a bit too large. The hands however are correctly positioned with the palms facing each other. The legs and feet are actually quite nice with well sculpted musculature and feet complete with a tiny hallux on each. The toenails are painted black as are the fingernails.

Overall this is not an essential piece to a collection but if you feel compelled to have it you probably won’t have to spend much more than five U.S. dollars as I did. You would be better off with just getting the Wild Safari version unless you find yourself attracted to the size and scale or the toy’s ability to stand on two legs. You could find a lot better Tyrannosaurus figures out there but with that said you could also find a lot worse.

Having previously reviewed the Torosaurus created by Safari for the Chicago Field Museum it only seemed appropriate to review the two tyrants of the same line. These two models represent Sue herself, the largest and most complete Tyrannosaurus ever discovered. These along with the Torosaurus of the last review and an Anatotitan were produced in 2004 specifically for the Field Museum. All are beautifully sculpted figures and despite their small size among the best by Safari. Two Tyrannosaurus were produced, one for each herbivore. Measuring 5.5” long one has her mouth open and the other closed. Their postures are different as well with one looking to the right and the other to the left. Together they make for a delightful pair and two of the best Tyrannosaurus produced by any toy company. Considering the number of T. rex toys out there I suppose I’m making quite the claim but I stand by it; a lot of those other toys are pretty crummy anyway.

Where accuracy is concerned there isn’t much to gripe about, Safari got most of the details right with these two. While Safari is currently producing theropods that can balance without the aid of their tails most of those theropods have to deal with oversized feet. Not these two. Not only can they stand on their two feet but the feet are for the most part in correct proportion to the rest of the body. It is worth mentioning that given the soft material these are made from the legs are prone to warping but it is easy to fix with the hot water or blow-dryer treatment. The arms are a bit too large but not obviously so like so many JP inspired T. rexes. The hands are also correctly facing each other which is always welcomed.

There is a huge amount of detail given the model’s small size. Muscles, skin folds, fenestra, and even some scales are all there. Though I prefer the closed mouth version (because how many closed mouth theropod toys are there?) the open mouth figure has a stunning amount of detail sculpted within the open jaws. Not just the tongue but even a detailed palate which really was not necessary for such a small toy but is certainly appreciated. The posture the two toys are standing in is really fantastic. They truly do look like the kings (or queens) that they are. Their bodies and tails curve in a very fluid, dynamic and graceful motion. Monstrous lizards these are not. The closed mouth individual in particular has a very stoic expression. A sort of gentle but powerful look, she rules and she knows it.

While many Safari models often include sloppy paint application these two, like the other dinosaurs in the Field Museum line, are masterfully painted. There is very little bleeding of the paint and what is there is difficult to detect. The nails are all black, the eyes red with black pupils, the inside of the mouth and nostrils pink and teeth white. Safari’s 2011 Tyrannosaurus seems to suffer from “milk mustaches” where the paint application on the teeth often includes other areas around the mouth. Not so with these two little ladies, surprising, given their small size. The bodies are painted green dorsally which moves down the sides along the legs and arms. The rest is painted yellow. The coloration matches that of the painting of Sue done by John Gurche in 2000 also for the museum. While it is cool that the toys match the painting I’m honestly not a big fan of these color choices but it isn’t completely awful, just not very believable. These toys would be perfect choices for custom paint jobs.

I must confess that I could go on further about these two but at risk of sounding like a fan boy I’ll conclude with the following. If you don’t already own the Safari Sue toys, go out to a place where dinosaur toys are sold and buy them or if need be, borrow them from a friend. Every serious dinosaur toy collector needs this pair of tyrants in their collection. Unfortunately these are becoming difficult to find and in the future will no doubt be highly collectable. They show up on occasion on eBay and are still available over at Dan’s Dinosaurs.

A few years back the Japanese manufacturer of kits and figurines known as Kaiyodo announced the release of their “Capsule Q Museum” series. The various collections that have been released cover everything from anime characters, animals, food and, thankfully, dinosaurs. This was great news because with the discontinuation of their Dinotales line we were all sorely missing the exquisitely made and highly accurate little dinosaurs and prehistoric animals necessary to own for any collector of prehistoric toys, kits and figurines. The first series released was the Tyrannosaurus Collection back in early 2013. The collection consists of 6 figurines; Tyrannosaurus, a feathered Tyrannosaurus, a Tyrannosaurus skull and skeleton, and the recently described feathered Yutyrannus. A special color variation of the feathered Tyrannosaurus is also available but seems to be sold separately from the rest of the set. Each figure comes with a small human for scale. In the case of the T. rex skeleton there is a human skeleton to compliment it and a human skull to go along with the T. rex skull.

If you’re familiar with Kaiyodo you’ll know that these models are very small but don’t assume that because they’re small that these models are inferior to larger models. These are inch for inch some of the most highly detailed and accurate figures that money can buy. These new Capsule Q models even outdo the Dinotales which is really saying something. Anyone in this hobby knows that the Japanese operate on an entirely different level when it comes to the production of dinosaur toys. They’re consistently the most accurate, well detailed and beautiful models available. As one of our forum members pointed out, it really says something when Japan can produce models sold alongside candy and attached to soda caps that outshine “museum quality” models in places like the UK and United States. If someone came to me asking for the most accurate and highest quality Tyrannosaurus money could buy, I would suggest the ones in this Kaiyodo series. But enough of all that lets review these things! As you can imagine though, the reviews will be pretty positive.

So to start with, let’s take a look at the more traditional non-feathered rex. Honestly this one is probably my favorite of all the figures but not due to an aversion for feathered tyrannosaurs. Mostly it is due to the posture, color and patterns. This rex stands perched upon a couple rocks with one foot stepping up on a larger rock. The figure is a mixture of various browns and covered with black speckles which give it a mottled appearance. It’s a believable combination of colors and patterns that are interesting to look at without being too toy-like or garish. Anatomically the figure is sound. Kaiyodo models are actually kind of hard to review; there isn’t anything usually worth complaining about. I suppose the base of the tail could be thicker but that is really a minor complaint, hardly worth mentioning.

The feathered rex is no less impressive in it’s sculpting but some of the paint choices and application I’m not so fond of. Striding forward on a flat base the figure is decked out in black plumage with a red crest of feathers on the head and red streaks down the back and tail along with some white streaks. Blue streaks are painted near the ears. Where the feathers end at the knees they’re painted brown, there is some brown on the lower jaw as well and yellow streaks along the sides. Those comments I made about the garish, toy-like paint job absent from the last figure do apply here. It looks like a child marked it up with some crayons. Luckily there is an alternative paint job for this otherwise stellar figure. It has a mostly brown color with several dark splotches and streaks and white edging in various places. It’s very reminiscent of various modern game birds. Unfortunately, I don’t own this particular variation.

Before we move on to the bony parts of the collection lets take a look at the Yutyrannus; everyone’s favorite recently discovered theropod. Another beautiful model here, standing in a static pose with mouth agape. The figure is covered in frosty blue and white plumage with black streaks over the white portions and white streaks over the blue. A yellow ridge runs along the snout. It’s a beautiful piece, the colors reminiscent of cold climate animals around today. To date only one other Yutyrannus has been produced but this one is by far the better of the two.

Finally, we have the skull and skeleton of our dear Tyrannosaurus. Back in 2010 our own Marc Vincent reviewed the Kaiyodo Dinotales Series 1 Tyrannosaurus skeleton with high praise. Forget about that thing, though impressive in its own right it is in this new T. rex skeleton that Kaiyodo has really shown their growth and commitment to quality. Bone for bone it appears to be an exact copy of a Tyrannosaurus skeleton…only tiny, like 2.3” tiny. It’s dynamically posed with one foot raised high off the ground as if lunging after some unseen prey. It’s actually the most interestingly posed figure of the bunch. The skull is equally impressive and jointed too so it can open and close. Truly these are like little museum pieces you can fit in a capsule. I’m no paleontologist but to my untrained eye these appear flawless. And as if that was not enough, they actually produce a human skull to sit alongside the rex skull!

Looking at these beautiful little figures one might lament them not being larger but while larger models like these would certainly be a wonderful thing it is the small size of Kaiyodo models that give them their charm and makes them so amazing to behold. If you haven’t given Kaiyodo a try for whatever reason I highly suggest you do and hope I’ve convinced you. You can start with this Tyrannosaurus series but there are literally hundreds of obscure and well known prehistoric animals to choose from, most for reasonable prices. If you’re interested in this particular collection eBay is a good place to start. Beware of high prices though, with a little hunting you can find the entire set for a reasonable price. If you’re comfortable with Japanese auction sites you can find them even cheaper still. However you get them, you won’t regret adding these gems to your collection. A Triceratops series has also been released for the Capsule Q Museum as well as a marine reptile series just this year. I promise that if I get around to reviewing them I’ll try not to swoon over them too much but honestly, how can I help it? What are Kaiyodo reviews if not simply singing their praise?

Available on Ebay.com here

Another Dakin review! I know you’ve all been salivating for my next review on the Dakin “Jurassic Park” toys and I didn’t want to keep ya’ll waiting too long. Do I still need to give a back story about these things? You know, these small JP figures put out by Dakin in 1992? Oops, I guess I did anyway! Well this time we’re tackling one of the oddest of the bunch, the Tyrannosaurus. Another little model I can recollect from my childhood this toy takes everything we had learned about Tyrannosaurus and completely disregards it. It doesn’t even manage to capture the essence of the movie creature but still, it has its charming attributes.

Standing about 5” tall this Tyrannosaurus stands in the old tail dragging pose. Kind of ironic considering the lengths “Jurassic Park” went to in order to popularize the Dinosaur Renaissance. But that hardly matters when every other feature of the model is just plain wrong. The oversized arms and pronated hands stick out in front of the creature, as if it’s doing a zombie walk! The toes on the feet are very blunt, large and club shaped. The entire body appears shrink-wrapped and starved and the head tries hard to look like that of the movie dinosaur but looks more like that of a mummified gargoyle skull with the yellow eyes sunken into their black sockets. The body is dull purple in color and it along with the tail dragging pose really make this look more like Barney than the mighty tyrant from the film. In fact, if you take all the characteristics of this model; the skinny shrink-wrapped body, purple color, tail dragging stance, zombie hands and gnarly head what you’re really left with is zombie Barney!

So what’s so charming about this model anyway? Who wants an undead Barney toy? Well it turns out that at least for me those features are what make it so charming. Sure, it’s ugly but it fails so badly at trying to be a “Jurassic Park” Tyrannosaurus that it ends up being a unique and novel character of its own. It may not be accurate or well made but it has character and if you’re a collector with a penchant for weird and offbeat models then I recommend seeking this odd fellow out.

It is with a heavy heart that I write my next review because as most of you are probably aware a dear member of our community and master paleo-artist Dan Lorusso has passed away. Even though this model was sculpted by Greg Wenzel it is Dan Lorusso that we have to thank for many of the old Battat models as well as the resurrection of the Battat series and its new sculpts and new paint jobs. The fact that Dan chose to spend his remaining years doing what he loved and sharing his passion with dinosaur enthusiast like us is a testament to his strength and devotion. May those who knew him and were close to him, take comfort in knowing that he has created a lasting legacy that will never be forgotten, and whose talents and personality will surely be missed.

And speaking of lasting legacies, it’s with open arms that we welcome back one of the most coveted of Battat models and arguably the best Tyrannosaurus ever molded in plastic; the Battat T. rex, now with Dan’s new paint scheme and a place as king in the Battat Terra line. In fact, when our community voted in a poll for the “Top 10 Tyrannosaurus Toys” it was the Battat that took first place, and deservedly so! Even though this model is pushing 20 years old, it’s still everything you would want from an accurate, museum quality model.

Tomhet reviewed the original Boston Museum of Science model and in that review he covered both the second and third versions of the sculpture. It is important to mention that the Terra T. rex is a repaint of the 3rd BMOS T. rex. The 3rd version of the model was originally released in 1998 with the first version released in 1994. The only real concern some picky collectors might take issue with is the lack of feathers, but most modern rex models still lack them. Since feathers are still speculative (but highly likely) for the genus you can’t really take points off for their omission.

Starting at the head we have that classic T. rex skull; a narrow snout that widens towards the back, allowing for the binocular vision we know these animals had. A think beefy neck conveys the power that propelled that enormous bone crushing head. The body is lean, but barrel-chested and muscular. The model is supported by two well-padded feet with strong muscular legs. The hands are properly positioned neutrally and even the tail is of considerable heft when compared to most reconstructions that ignore bulking up the caudofemoralis muscles.

In many ways, this was a model ahead of its time. This is of course true for the Battat line in general but the Tyrannosaurus is a great example of why this is true. This model stands up with not only our modern interpretation of these animals, but with our modern quality of production as well. This model compares well to current models by CollectA or Wild Safari and when you compare it to say, both the older Carnegie T. rex models from its own time, you’ll see that while those models appear heavily dated, this model looks fresh and new. The detail here blows it’s contemporaries out of the water. The bony bosses and bumps that adorn the skull, a ridge of muscle on the back of the neck, jugal bones protruding from the sides of the head, labial scales along the mouth, individually sculpted teeth of various sizes, attachment sites where the legs meet the body, slight visibility of the hips under the skin, tiny scales and wrinkles sculpted all over. All this and more, perfectly sculpted on a model pushing 20 years of age. Need I go on?

Though I’ve never owned the Battat Tyrannosaurus I have long advocated that it’s the best toy T. rex ever produced in the mass market. I even find the paint scheme and patterns on the original appealing. Although I would still love to have an original model for that reason alone the new paint job and patterns are not only naturalistic looking, but cleanly applied and certainly more realistic looking than the original. The color choices suggest this is an ambush predator. Olive drab dorsally and brown on the underside with spots and stripes overlapping both colors these choices certainly give the model a camouflaged appearance. Though greens and browns are usually overdone on dinosaurs the patterning makes this an interesting model to look at, and a convincing one too. The bony bits on the head are red, suggesting a display function for this beast. The nails are painted grey and the eyes yellow. Generally speaking the paint application is clean, but certainly if you look close enough you’ll see some runoff. Inside the mouth the teeth have some pink on their bases, the grey on the nails bleeds onto the feet. And the eyes? Well let’s just try not to look at it head-on.

So it would seem that the reissued Battat Tyrannosaurus gets high marks all around, that or it appears I’m a Battat fanboy. Not so fast, there is one glaring problem with the model that some may have difficultly reconciling with. It cannot stand! Although the tail is bent downwards in order to aid in stability the soft material used on this model coupled with too much weight in the front lead to a figure that tips over without some kind of added support. There are many ways around this of course. A stability rod can be implemented, or if your shelf is crowded like mine you can just lean it on another dinosaur. But perhaps the best way to make this model stand is simply by placing a small wedge under the left foot. A coin does the trick pretty good.

There was a lot to address with this model, what I consider the benchmark of T. rex toys so thanks for bearing with me. Clearly I believe this is a model worth seeking out, and thanks to Dan LoRusso and the folks at Battat you no longer have to spend a small fortune to do so. The Battat Terra Tyrannosaurus is exclusively sold at Target stores in the U.S., and at a price between $9.99 and $14.99 is a steal compared to what the original goes for. If you live outside the United States be sure to stop by the Dinosaur Toy Forum where many of our American members will gladly be willing to sell or trade one to you. This is a must have model for Tyrannosaurus fans so get it while you can and happy hunting!

While Kaiyodo is probably most beloved for their production of more obscure prehistoric critters they made sure not to neglect the classic fan favorites too. In their 7 series run the Dinotales line produced no less than three distinct models of Tyrannosaurus, not counting the Tyrannosaurus skeleton and the slew of repaints produced for each one. This is only the Dinotales line mind you. Kaiyodo also produced a retro Tyrannosaurus for their Dinomania line and an entire set of Tyrannosaurus for their Capsule Q Museum Collection and another Tyrannosaurus for their Cretaceous collection. And those are only the ones I’m aware of; suffice it to say there are a lot of small snap-together Tyrannosaurus that have come out of Japan. Today’s review concerns their very first Tyrannosaurus from their Dinotales series 1, produced all the way back in 2001. Specifically we’ll be discussing their special color variant. In total I believe there are five paint variations including this one.

Measuring 4” long and standing 2” tall this figurine is as small as you would expect the models in this line to be. Given that, it’s fairly dated so not quite as detailed as some of Kaiyodo’s later models but for its time and size it is no less impressive. It is also refreshingly accurate for a time period when most dinosaur collectibles weren’t. I think a lot of us forget that it’s only been in the last 10 years or so that this hobby has truly blossomed.

This rex is completely bipedal and standing horizontally, one foot stepping ahead of the other. The head is large and boxy with forward facing eyes. Triangular horns are set above the eyes, giving it an almost “Jurassic Park” quality but not enough so that I would call it a rip-off of the design. The hands are worth mentioning as they’re appropriately tiny and correctly neutral facing. For this one though you might want to get out your magnifying glass and take a look at the feet; it would seem the hallux toes are missing. Or are they? Again with a magnifying glass you can almost make them out, they are however not individually painted so hard to discern from the rest of the foot. It’s truly amazing that they would even bother, but we appreciate that they did.

The color scheme on this particular variant is unlike anything I’ve ever seen on any other Tyrannosaurus model. It is however relatively similar to some of the other Dinotales figurines, notably the Tarbosaurus and Brachiosaurus. Overall the theropod is just painted in black and white but it’s the patterning that makes it particularly eye catching. Although perhaps not a realistic color choice it certainly helps make this tiny figure stand out in a crowd and you can’t argue that it’s not unique. The small eyes are meticulously painted a striking yellow, the inside of the mouth is pink. If you don’t like this color variant however, you’re in luck. The other color variants got you covered; from brown with black spotting and stripes, to dark brown with light brown stripes, to green with black stripes, and yet another brown with black stripes, there are plenty of color choices for this figurine. Personally, I enjoy this black and white variant.

In a world where countless Tyrannosaurus collectibles have been released since 2001 this little model from Kaiyodo is still a fantastic little piece worth seeking out for any tyrannosaur fan. Exotically painted and accurately sculpted it still stands out as unique among a collection full of the tyrant king. It is not perhaps as well detailed as some of Kaiyodo’s latest offerings but you can’t go wrong with any Dinotales model in your collection. Although long retired this model is still easy to find on eBay. It and its color variants can generally be found for less than ten U.S. dollars.

In the first half of 2016, the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo, Japan, held an event simply named ‘The Dinosaur Expo’ (still ongoing at the time of writing). Though I haven’t been myself, the exhibit seems to focus on recent dinosaur discoveries, with an accompanying set of figures. The set contains four figures, with a good mixture of old and new: Spinosaurus, Tyrannosaurus, Parasaurolophus, and Yi. All figures have a base with an attached name plate, with names written in Japanese on top and English below.

Based on the exhibit’s online promotional material, it seems that a big selling point was the new (2014) Spinosaurus depiction. While this interpretation is still quite controversial  and unsettled (pending the publishing of the long awaited monograph along with future fossil finds), this figure represents it quite faithfully. All the unique traits that shocked the paleontological community upon its reveal, such as the staggered sail, short legs, and long torso, are present. Even the color scheme is virtually identical to the model produced for National Geographic’s exhibition promoting the discovery’s press release. The only accuracy complaint is that the base of the tail is rather thin. As indicated by its unique anatomy, Spinosaurus was largely aquatic, so would have likely had thick tail muscles (like seen in extant crocodilians) for locomotion.

Of course, no discussion of Spinosaurus would be complete without the infamous Tyrannosaurus rex. Kaiyodo is no stranger to fully feathered tyrannosaurs, and this T. rex only has its feet, fingers, and parts of its face bare. The feathering, while extensive, is not overbearing and looks quite realistic. There are even slightly larger tufts along the neck and tail tip. The rest of the anatomy is also correct – even the ears are in the right portion of the skull (T. rex‘s skull bones show its external ear hole would have been positioned more in relative to other theropods, which had it behind the skull). The coloration is fairly monotonous and dull, which is reasonable for an ambush predator but doesn’t make for the most striking aesthetic.

This next figure isn’t something you see everyday – a juvenile dinosaur! The base labels it as Parasaurolophus sp., and it is presumably based off the first juvenile of this genus discovered in 2013 (also referred to Parasaurolophus sp.), estimated to only have been a year old at death. This figure conveys one of the specimen’s most significant aspects – the beginnings of the distinctive tubular head crest. The presence of crest development in such a young individual is one possible reason Parasaurolophus had a crest much larger than other hadrosaurs – it got a head start in terms of growth time. The row of bumps forming a ‘frill’ down the back is known for other hadrosaurs like Brachylophosaurus so is a plausible inclusion. There are even hints of small, regular scales, consistent with findings from hadrosaur ‘mummies’ of various genera. The dark line along the jaw would seem to suggest Kaiyodo is going for a ‘cheekless’ depiction, as they did in their earlier Ceratopsian Collection. Whether or not ornithischians had cheeks is a hotly contested issue, with evidence supporting both sides, so Kaiyodo’s decision to imply their absence is reasonable. Once again, the coloration is rather plain, but in many cases young animals are rather drab compared to their adult counterparts. One can easily imagine the yellow crest becoming much more distinct if this juvenile should survive to adulthood.

Last but not least is Yi qi, one of the hottest dinosaur discoveries of 2015.  It’s actually quite impressive Kaiyodo managed to produce and release a figure of it in under a year! Dinosaurs have often been compared to dragons and played a role in the original folklore, but Yi is as close to the real thing as it gets – it even had membranous wings! This figure presents a well-proportioned, accurate depiction of this theropod’s odd anatomy- the center of gravity is relatively far back as it would have been in life (as opposed to some of the horizontal glider depictions permeating through the media). Actively posed, this Yi is mid-air and making full use of its wings to control its descent to the ground, a use suggested by paleontologists. The only known fossil actually does not include the tail, but it is widely believed that Yi had the long tail feathers depicted based on remains of close relatives like Epidexipteryx. It’s worth noting that the tail piece is the figure’s most fragile – care must be taken not to allow individual feathers to bend or snap off. This figure has one of the set’s more striking colorations – the tail feathers have detailed filament patterns, and the fleshy underside and red markings surrounding the eyes contrast with the back’s dark grey to give the animal a spooky appearance, slightly reminiscent of Halloween.

All in all this is an outstanding set depicting recent paleontological discoveries and advances, with a mix of both classic and new genera. Given that Kaiyodo’s figures have always scored highly in accuracy this is no surprise. In addition to accuracy and scientific progress, these figures also have excellent production values, with fine details and precise paint applications – every claw, tooth, and even pupil is clear. The bases with nameplates are a nice inclusion, giving these figures an appropriate museum-like air. I highly recommend this set to all dinosaur lovers who enjoy keeping up with the latest paleontological developments. The set was originally available from vending machines at the exhibition, but can be obtained through eBay or Japanese sellers. A word of caution though – the Spinosaurus may be harder to track down than the others. It was first sold alongside pre-paid advance tickets to the exhibition (which sold out quickly), and was a rarer chase figure at the exhibition’s machines.