With its wide muzzle and tiny, leaf-shaped teeth, Ankylosaurus, like the rest of its family, was clearly a herbivore? Or was it? In the summer of 2015, a study of its close Asian relative Pinacosaurus concluded that the animal possessed a long, prehensile tongue that it used to pluck and scoop up not only vegetation, but possibly insects and other invertebrates on occasion. It is therefore plausible that Ankylosaurus possessed such a tongue as well. I would certainly love to see a toy company produce such a rendition someday.
The Ankylosaurus figure we’ll be looking at in this review was made by CollectA way back in 2007, so I’m sad to report that its tongue is quite unremarkable. From nose to tail tip, it measures 16.5 cm long. Its main colour is chocolate brown with dark stripes, black hooves, and grass green eyes. The inside of the mouth is unpainted. Pretty bland compared some of the vivid colour schemes CollectA employs nowadays. The animal is sculpted in a walking pose with its head turned slightly to the left.
The Ankylosaurus‘ back armour appears to have followed paleontologist Ken Carpenter’s restoration very closely, with a series of flat plates protecting the neck, six large, rounded plates on the back, and lots of smaller keeled plates. The heavy tail club has a pitted texture and the skin on the head and back consists of rounded scales. By contrast, the underbelly has only faint wrinkles. The muscles in the limbs are well-defined.
Unfortunately, this Ankylosaurus possesses all the same anatomical flaws as the Deluxe version. The nostrils should be placed on the sides of the muzzle, the muzzle itself should be wider, the skull should be covered in thicker plating, the limbs are too long, and the feet all have five toes. As well, the animal’s body ought to be wider around the hips. I doubt too many children will be bothered by such details, but adult collectors are a different story.
While reasonably well-sculpted and very affordable, this toy is dragged down considerably by its many inaccuracies. It certainly pales in comparison to the Carnegie Collection figure, which remains the best Ankylosaurus toy to date in my humble opinion. Hopefully CollectA will produce a brand new, more accurate version in the future.
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I got mine for Christmas last December, and I was surprised they still even produced these!
The long muscular legs and narrow body really put me off with this model. Shame too because the armor and coloration are both nice. I used to have this one but got rid of it once I got better ankylosaurs like the Carnegie and Favorite.
I actually gave mine away to a friend’s kid who likes dinosaurs. Apparently he loves it. Good. 🙂
I really like the coloration of this guy. Especially how the green eyes contrast the muddy brown. He was actually bigger than I expected. I got this guy and the collectA minmi just a few weeks ago. They are my only thyreophorans.
It’s a shame how rare and expensive the Carnegie Anky is. That one is an absolute gem.
Nice Commentary.
For anyone who might have been hibernating for the past few years, the Favorite “Soft Model series 2” is no slouch either….