Ah, another Dimetrodon! This Permian synapsid belongs to the group of usual suspects in the competition for the most popular prehistoric animal. It is well-known, highly popular and long ago iconic. So nothing has to be written about the species itself here anymore, I guess.
Still there are many surprising figures of it out there, and this Kellog´s cereal freebie is one of them. Back in 1994, grain company Kellogg´s put little monochrome plastic goodies into their cereal packagingses, one in each packaging.
From these one could build landscapes with volcanoes and mountain caves in which the figures could be placed or played with. All in all six prehistoric animals belonged to this series, as you can see on the picture, one more iconic than the other. These are your stereotype prehistoric anmal outlines, looking woodcut like, lacking any kind of detail or scientific accuracy. I am still wondering why Stegosaurus is missing in this line. Maybe it is because its molds were too laborious or expensive to produce due to the many spikes.
You clearly see that these figures were not been thought of as highly detailed showcase models.They just simply fulfilled their purpose as little critters for the breakfast tables and nurserys of the nineties.
This Dimetrodon looks very clumsy, like it had been carved out of a block with a dull axe, albeit the head looks surprisingly detailed with ist eyes and even pupils, nostrils and the many teeth overlapping the lower jaw.
This figure is monochrome dark grey, but I know there are green ones out there, too. The figures came in four colours, shades of green and grey and black.
It is 6,5 cm (2,5 inches) long, stands 4 cm (1,7 inches) tall and is 2 cm ( 0,9 inches) wide. The sculpt really is nothing to tell home about. I think these figures were hastily released while the hype for “Jurassic Park” was still fresh and to market easily.
There are many other Dimetrodon figures of this size out there, most of which I recommend more than this sloppily molded behemoth. Yet, if you are a completist or into cereal giveaways, these figures might be your cup of tea.
The Invicta Dimetrodon, although from a very similar material, plays in another league for sure. The Marx one, much older, outdoes the Kellogg´s one by lengths, too, due to its nostalgic charme.
They occasionally pop up on Ebay. In Germany they are common flea market goods in grabber boxes.
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That thing is adorable! Undeniably crude, but that’s a large part of its charm!
Interesting little figure that goes well with the others from the past.
Nice little figure, but I prefer the earlier Nabisco cereal premium.
Neat, a new vintage review! This figurine might not be as well-detailed as the other figures mentioned, but I think I like its simplicity.
You’re on a roll lately!