Tyrannosaurus rex (Animal Adventure by Takara Tomy)

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Review and photographs by Takama, edited by Dinotoyblog

Following up on my previous review, now I’ll look at the second Animal Adventure by Takara Tomy toy in my collection: the Tyrannosaurus rex. This dinosaur needs no introduction so let’s just get on with the review!

This model does have some inaccuracies. Firstly, the feet are too big for the animal. Obviously, this a design choice made so that the model can stand, but the legs are made out of a flexible plastic that tends to warp when left unattended for too long. Other issues lie in the head. When I first bought this figure, I thought the model had a decent looking head. However after further examination, I have to say that it is another Jurassic Park clone complete with angry eyebrows.

The jaw on this model is articulated, and can open pretty wide for a toy, although due to the figure’s size, there is not much detail on the inside. The teeth are all uniform in shape, and the entirety of the bottom jaw is taken up by a flat tongue. Thankfully, though, this model does have the creature’s signature binocular vision (the eyes face forward), and the arms are correctly diminutive compared to the rest of the animal.

In my review of the Futabasaurus I mentioned that it had a lot more playability then this Tyrannosaurus. Although this Tyrannosaurus rex model has five points of articulation, the same number as the plesiosaur, this time the ball joints are restricted to the tail of the model, while the limbs can only rotate forwards and backwards, and the jaw opens and closes.

When it comes to detail, the model is decked out with large irregularly shaped scales, and the model is mostly gold at the base, with a dark brown wash over the back. The claws are your standard ‘toy-dinosaur-black’, and the teeth are your standard ‘toy-dinosaur-white’. The interior of the mouth is a dark maroon, while the tongue is a dark red.

Overall, this toy is not going to win many accuracy awards, and as a play thing, it has less value than the Futabasaurus. However, this opinion is subjective, since I do not like to pose the tail in ways that are impossible for the real animal. In case you’re wondering, the model is around 1:80 scale (if you base it on Sue the T. rex), and it does come in an alternate color scheme. Do I recommend this toy? Well that’s a bit hard for me to answer. As a model of Tyrannosaurus rex, it takes too much inspiration from Jurassic Park, but as a toy, it will all depend on a child’s imagination. This toy is available from Amazon.com here.