Siats (Jurassic World: Massive Biters by Mattel)

Review and photos by EmperorDinobot, edited by Suspsy

Hello everyone! Welcome back to yet another quirky review by me, Emperor Dinobot! We shall delve once again into the world made by InGen and discuss one of its more visually striking theme park monsters, the indomitable Siats meekerorum!

You may be wondering the same thing I was when I first saw this work in progress announced. “Woah, are they giving binomial names to all the dinosaurs now?” That would make this the second one after Tyrannosaurus rex, but I am just kidding there. The real question was: why was Mattel suddenly making prehistoric figures not known to plastic at that time, and the second question probably had to do with this figure’s appearance. Just look at the tusk-like teeth on the bottom jaw, the non-allosauroid head, the clown feet, etc. This almost looks like a Chap Mei toy wearing high-end couture. I say that because it does look better than Chap Mei, though it follows a similar aesthetic given the strange choices made here. 

The colors are rather nice, with green eyes, dark blue stripes running across the top of the dinosaur’s head and back, grey stripes on the legs and tail, hind claws in black, and the rest of the body is cast in a shade of goldenrod-to-ochre. It may seem mediocre at first, but I quite like it. The toy measures 14 inches long and 6.5 inches tall.

The action feature is relatively simple. Pushing the button on the base of the tail will close the jaws, and twisting the tail will make the neck turn in a thrashing mechanism. All Massive Biters have this same feature!

Articulation is where this figure does not shine. The lower jaw, neck, and tail move, but the legs are in an uncomfortable ratchet joint and they kind of stay static. The shoulders are on swivel ball joints, so that is something I liked.

I suppose that with a closer inspection, the figure does have an allosauroid or carcharodontosaurid-like head, it just does not look right, possibly due to the proportions. Siats only is known from some postcranial material found at the famous Cedar Hill Formation. This is why Mattel has taken so many artistic liberties on some toys. This one just has some very funny looking tusks on the lower jaw, and this may not be accidental.

Well, this figure is not that rare, and can be found on eBay at various prices. I would say that this Siats deserves to go in your ugly dinosaur collection, right next to the Chap Mei shelf, but it is not a bad toy in the end. The action feature is fun, the jaws hold their own pretty well, not allowing victims to slip out easily, and the detailing is very nice, right down to the quills on the back and all the detailing on the skin.

I do have one condition to report, at least on mine, and for those who do own one, I would like some feedback below. A sticky, gel-like substance seems to be emanating out of my figure’s bottom. Has anyone else been presented with this issue? It will drip and drip and drip, and if accumulated, it will appear as if the figure is constantly excreting this substance, which I hope is non-toxic. Let me know in the comments below!