The various Ankylosaurus toys that have been reviewed here on the DTB over the years range from the truly superb to the decidedly subpar. But the one I’ve got to review today may well be the most hideous of them all.
This here is the Mini Ankylosaurus from Chap Mei. It measures about 10.5 cm long and is 6.5 cm high at the tip of its raised tail club. The main colours are olive green and dark grey with white accents on the osteoderms and red accents on the club. A splash of black is on top of the head and the teeth and mouth are white and red respectively. The eyes are supposed to be yellow, but the left one on mine has not been painted. The claws are also unpainted, but as with all Chap Mei toys, that’s an intentional corner-cutter.
The skin textures on this Ankylosaurus range from large scales on the head to wrinkles on the underbelly and legs to pebbles on the back and tail and grooves on the osteoderms. The animal is sculpted in a defensive stance with its right front limb forward, its head turned to the left, and its tail raised high. While this is unquestionably a dramatic pose, it’s impossible for any ankylosaurid to achieve without breaking some of the vertebrae in its tail.
Which brings us to the issue of accuracy, or woeful lack of it. The limbs are too long for an Ankylosaurus, although the feet surprisingly have the proper number of toes. The armour is way too spiky. And ye gods, that head. That ridiculous head. Just look at that long muzzle, those sharp teeth, and the fact that there are no horns projecting out from behind the orbits. It looks like a rauisuchid head attached to a generic ankylosaur’s body!
This is one of those toys that is arguably so lame, it’s funny. Unless you’re fond of oddities (which is perfectly cool), you can definitely give this Ankylosaurus toy a pass.
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This Ankylosaurus toy is very cute, because my nephew particularly likes dinosaur toys.
First, grrrrrr. second it shouldn’t be in ceratopsian
That was a mistake with the mouse; thanks for letting me know.
Nice review. Not an exact match but it reminds me of Anguirus from Godzilla.
Heh. Wish I’d thought of that when I was writing the review.
To be honest, I love innacurate dinosaur figures and oddities like this little fella. I love accurate dinosaur figures also, but in my opinion, innacurate ones also deserve a place on a collector’s shelf. They may not be accurate and have mistakes to point out, especially if they are from your childhood,but they deserve a special place in our hearts and mind. Thank you for letting us discover this toy, I may get it if I see it. You are a completist Chap Mai collector.
As always, reader friendly and simple but detailed review!☺
My dad says it looks like a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle lol