Genyodectes (Jurassic World: Dominion, Extreme Damage by Mattel)

Genyodectes serus (Greek for “late jaw bite”) is a genus of theropod belonging to the Ceratosauridae family and lived in South America during the early Cretaceous. It is only known from an incomplete snout described by Sir Arthur Woodward in 1901. Genyodectes was the second dinosaur ever discovered in South America and despite its fragmentary nature, would remain the most complete theropod known from South America until the 1970’s. 

As we’ve come to observe over the last couple years, Mattel really likes making obscure dinosaurs known from the scantest of remains. Maybe Mattel just wants a diverse catalogue of dinosaurs that no one else has made, or maybe they pull names from a hat. I think it happens too often to be the latter, but I would love to be a fly on the wall at a Mattel brainstorming session. Mattel’s dinosaur decisions has many people critical of them, but I like it. Let Mattel have their fun, no one else is ever going to make these dinosaurs and given Mattel’s unique aesthetic, does it really matter?  In this case, we’re getting a toy of a historically important dinosaur I otherwise wouldn’t have ever heard of, and that’s alright by me.

The Mattel Genyodectes is part of the Wal-Mart exclusive Extreme Damage line, so its action feature incorporates visible wounds along the side of the toy. A button on the back switches between a skin tone within the gashes or red muscle tissue. The jaw can open and close, and the neck swivels about on a ball joint. The arms rotate around and swing in and out and the legs can rotate back and forth, although not completely around. The tail can also uselessly rotate.

The figure measures about 7.5” long and stands 3” tall at the hips. The actual Genyodectes is estimated to have measured 20’ in length, putting this toy at about 1/32 in scale.

The look of this toy is conservative by Mattel standards. It is clearly meant to be a Ceratosaurus relative, which is appropriate since it’s the only other member of the Ceratosauridae family so far described. There’s a crest above the snout and brow horns over each eye. These are stylized and speculative but not to an extreme degree. The arms are correctly orientated, palms inward with four-fingered hands like Ceratosaurus. Also, like Ceratosaurus, a row of osteoderms runs down the mid-line of the back. 

Make no mistake, this is still a Mattel toy with the typical Mattel features that many of us loathe. Blunt teeth that extend past the maxillary, a small spindly tail, shrink-wrapped skull, and cartoonish features. But for as much as people like to roast Mattel on accuracy, this one isn’t that bad.  

A coating of small pebbly scales covers the entirely of the figure, save for the underside, and rows of osteoderms are present along the back. Vertical grooves can be seen on the nasal crest and brow horns, and a fleshy dewlap is present under the jaw and neck with some skin folds sculpted just past the jaw. Detail work is seldom skimped on with Mattel dinosaurs and this one is no exception.

The paintjob is a particular highlight here. The figure is predominantly a deep gray color with a cream-colored jaw that gradually fades to gray on the neck. The cranium is a vibrant shade of cyan that extends along the neck and gradually fades away on the back. Additional splashes of cyan are present on the thighs.

The crests are painted with a shiny metallic red and the combination of gray, cyan, and the metallic red all work splendidly together. The tongue is pink, but the roof of the mouth is unpainted. The teeth are cream colored, and the eyes are gold with black round pupils. The claws, as usual, are not painted.

As a fan of Ceratosaurus, and paleontological history, I’m pleased to have this little toy in my collection. The only real turn off here are the deep gashes that you get with these Extreme Damage toys. If you don’t like the gashes, a repainted Genyodectes is due to come out in the Dino-Trackers line that doesn’t have them. But that one also doesn’t have the distinctive paintjob we have here, instead being an unattractive combination of fecal brown and puke green. But it will have an action feature that opens the jaw. Whatever your preference, you have choices. The Mattel Genyodectes is currently available and retails for $12.99.