Stegosaurus (Biber & Rook) (Dinosaurs Museum by PNSO)

The Jurassic period is often called the time of the titans for good reasons; this is the time when dinosaurs really took off and grew to enormous sizes. This is also the time when some of the most famous dinosaurs roamed the planet. In a land dominated by icons, ones stood out from the crowd: Stegosaurus. While fellow icons and contemporaries like the enormous sauropods such as Brachiosaurus, Diplodocus, Brontosaurus, Camarasaurus, and Apatosaurus, and the apex predators Allosaurus and Ceratosaurus; Stegosaurus’s unique appearance made it easily the most eye-catching and easily recognizable of them all.

Its popularity made it a staple in the toy model world since first appearing in the Marx set,  and today almost every company surely have one in their respective line. Today, we take a look at one of the latest versions to hit the market: Biber and Rook from PNSO as they embark on an epic journey.

A lone Stegosaurus is making its way through a narrow-forested corridor at the foothills of the coastal range that separated the vast interior from the cooler coastal plains. As it navigates its huge body through the dense vegetation, it is clear that the animal is moving at an urgent pace. But something unseen kept on stopping the animal in its tracks and it constantly is looking back behind. Is something staking it, a predator perhaps?

A rustling among the tall vegetation would soon reveal the source of the Stegosaurus’s odd behavior. Stumbling out of the thickets is a baby, just a few days old, trying its best to keep up with its mother. This is Rook and his mother Biber on their epic journey towards the coastal plains.

PNSO first introduced Biber the Stegosaurus in their collection back in 2019 as part of the first wave of non-museum line figures. Two years later, they followed up with an updated version, keeping the same name, that was added to their Museum line, this figure. PNSO relaunched the Museum line late last year with the release of Wilson (AKA Winter Wilson), This new Biber is the second addition, and like Wilson, it, too, was a far cry from its predecessor. It was a wise move to follow up Wilson with another icon especially given how much attention it received, and Stegosaurus has enough star power to not be overshadowed by the king.

Unlike Wilson, this new version of Biber came with a sidekick, a little baby! I’m sure I wasn’t the only one who had hoped that in doing without bases for their museum line, that PNSO perhaps have opted instead to include a baby for their Museum line figures(that hope would quickly evaporate). Now baby dinosaur is nothing new, what is new is how they are no longer depicted as just a small cartoony caricature version of an adult, and little Rook is a testament to that.

Little Rook finally caught up with his mother and the two make their way through the corridor. Biber, like what her mother had done, has decided to rear her offspring far away from the inland plains where predators are plenty. Instead, she has chosen to embark on a journey towards the coastal plains where there are fewer large predators making it safer for her youngster. But first, they must make the difficult crossing.

The dappled forest is a dangerous place for it could be hiding predators in its shadows and the thick vegetation makes it harder for Biber to navigate due to her large size. But they soon make it out safely, and there in front of them is wide open coastal plains.

Stegosaurus is so well known that no introduction is need, but there are a few changes that are worth noting. The biggest change in Stegosaurus as we know today versus a few decades ago is how the legs are proportioned. There was a time when Stegosaurus is restored with its back legs so high that it raised the entire hip region in such an unnatural way that it resulted in an animal that looked like a hunchback. We now know that the legs are not that extreme, so the new image of Stegosaurus is much more natural with its back in a gentler slope than we were used to seeing. 

This new version of Biber has everything we have come to expect from a PNSO model. Compared to the original version this model is lightyears away in almost everything. The amount of detail is phenomenal, and one truly can appreciate just how much work PNSO have put in; each detail from small to big are all individually sculpted, you can tell because they are all slightly different in shape and size. At this point, going over every detail would be redundant, so, I will leave it up to the photographs to do all of that unless it’s worth noting.

The color is different from the original version which was given the standard green stegosaurus colors we all are so used to seeing by now. This Museum line version of Biber is given an earth tone palette that looks natural and pleasing. Although first impression may look brown, the color is actually more complex and lean more towards an olive green. The final color result was one area that got a lot of complaint for not living up to its glossy promo pictures, but it does look very close to the box cover photo.

It’s true that the final mass-produced version has lost some of the vibrance and bright splashes that we all saw in the promo pics, which is a shame, but the final look still has the same complexity of colors that we have come to expect from PNSO. The orange, golds, and yellows are colors are all there just more subtle but the transition and blending of these colors are top notch as always, and what shortcoming it may have in the final color it more than makes up with the exquisite details.

Biber and Rook finally make it to the beach after their final crossing. For Biber, this is like a homecoming, she has spent her early childhood in this place many years ago and this is her first time back as an adult. She welcomes the familiar sight and smell of the salty air and crashing waves.For little Rook, all of these is new, and he eagerly run and explore his new surroundings with curiosity. Despite the relative safety of the coastal plains, Biber is still on the alert for she knows that there are predators here.

Sure enough, a Tarvosaurus comes into view in the distance. He has been silently watching the pair like a shadow since they emerged from the corridor. This is his territory, and he knows that many dinosaurs use this corridor to move back and forth between the inland and coastal plains. He also knows that Adult Stegosaurus are formidable opponent especially mothers with very young babies to defend so he keeps a safe distance for now but watching closely for any signs of weakness or exhaustion or any opportunity to make a move.

But Biber is alert and upon noticing the Torvosaurus, made it clear that she is aware of him and made an exaggerated effort to warn him with a quick yet forceful swing of her impressive thagomizer.This subtle yet unmistakable warning is enough to ward off the Torvosaurus, there are other, much easier prey around, and just like that he quickly vanishes leaving the pair in peace.

Little Rook is a welcome addition PNSO’s expansive line and despite his small size, barely 2” inches long and an inch tall, he is packed with impressive number of details.What sets him apart from other so called “baby” figures is the way he truly looks like a very young animal and not just a shrunken version of an adult.Every detail, big and small, are delicate yet crisp and rivals those of the much larger models. His row of plates is small and not yet showing the triangular shape. His thagomizer are also small yet already is needle sharp and would be effective deterrent for any predator that gets a mouthful of it.Both his back plates and thagomizer are given convincing shade of pinkish tone that successfully convey the looks of something that is not yet fully developed, something still soft, which is really visually appealing.

Rook’s main body color is light green with various shades of brown and yellows which makes sense for a small animal that perhaps rely somewhat on camouflage to avoid being detected. It is also reminiscent of the original Biber’s colors. The paint application is every bit as clean and well blended as that of much larger models.Also worth noting is his pose; he is given a unique biped stance with both his front legs up in the air and his head turned to one side. He balances very well on his tiny back feet which is surprising given how small they are. PNSO perfectly captured that inquisitive essence of a young animal in Rook; from his colors, his unique biped pose, and delicate details, dark big eyes, have all blended together in harmony.

Biber and Rook are the latest addition to PNSO’s impressive and diverse herd of Stegosaurus joining Xiaobei the Chungkingosuarus, Quichuan the Tuojiangosaurus, and Rosana the Miragaia. Only CollectA is ahead when it comes to Stegosaurus diversity in their collection. It would be interesting to see what future member of this fascinating group PNSO will add in the future.

Based on this model and others that were released under the Museum Line after it, looks like PNSO is still in the process of trying to figure out how exactly to “elevate” the museum line figures without the addition of bases.Personally, I find it disappointing that they are doing without the bases on the museum line models. These bases were a nice way to really elevate the models and make them distinctive from their other cheaper line models especially when the quality of the two are so close that it blurred the lines making it hard to tell which one belongs to which series. It would also help justify the price differences.

As novel and cool as it is to have a small young individual to accompany an adult, I don’t think it’s enough to really give the Museum Line models that extra something that truly elevate them to a whole new level. Hopefully, PNSO would find a way soon so that the Museum Line series will once again have that distinct look and cohesiveness that a series needs to truly be a stunning collection, similar to what we saw in their original lineup from a few years back that captured our attention.Until then, all of the models released in their newly launched Museum Line to date,  will look disjointed and random with nothing tying them all together into one series.

Despite some of the shortcomings in production, I still find this version of Biber to be one, if not the best version of Stegosaurus in my collection and makes a stunning addition to any collection. Although more subdued, the colors are still striking and have that organic look that I really like to see especially against a natural backdrop.

As another day comes to a close, Biber and Rook makes their way back towards the plains after a long day exploring the beach. The pair may stay in this place for up to a year in which at that time little Rook would have grown in size and strength to be able to make the long journey back into the interior. With one last glance towards the ocean and the setting sun that has set the sky above ablaze with color, little Rook scamper and catch up with is mom as they settle for the night.

Hope you all enjoyed the review and thanks for reading. Until the next one, stay healthy and keep safe! Cheers.