Quetzalcoatlus (TNG)

When news of the discovery of Quetzalcoatlus first began breaking back in the late 1970s, it inspired a wave of paleoart depicting a rather bizarre and somewhat unnerving creature that ended up bearing very little resemblance to the mighty azhdarchid. The very first rendition appears to have been by Giovanni Caselli in 1975. A similar portrait was created by Bob Hersey in 1980. And even by 1984, the tiny-headed look was still a thing, as shown in this piece by David Orr. The real Quetzalcoatlus may be far removed, but it would be kind of neat if such a freaky pterosaur like that actually did exist!

My second TNG review is their second version of Quetzalcoatlus, released in 2023. The first one, released in 2022, was the exact same sculpt with a very different colour scheme, being mostly brown with a yellow bill and a blue crest. This one here is all done up in shades of grey. The wings are dark grey with pink airbrushing, very dark grey scutes on the hands and feet, and glossy black claws. The back of the torso is grey-blue while the front is painted over with beige. The neck is light grey with a few blue spots and a pink throat. The yellow eyes are surrounded by brilliant blue patches and the crest is yellow with light brown stripes. Finally, the bill is dark grey with darker stripes and light pink for the inside of the mouth. I think this looks way better than the previous version. 

The Quetzalcoatlus is sculpted in a decidedly majestic walking pose with its wings folded up and the left foot extended back. The head is raised high, angled upwards, and turned to the right. This makes it slightly more than 20 cm tall, 11 cm wide, and 12.5 cm long. Granted, it’s not as colossal as CollectA’s Deluxe pterosaurs, but it is one of the largest PVC Quetzalcoatlus figures to come along in recent years. Its official scale is listed as 1:35, but it actually seems closer to 1:32 or so.

The upper bill is mostly smooth, but the lower one is covered in faint grooves. The head crest also has faint grooves and there are visible wrinkles around the eyes. The mouth has a grooved palate and a wrinkled tongue. The neck, torso, and limbs are covered in small pycnofibres while the hands and feet are scaly like a theropod dinosaur’s. And finally, the wings have a crisscrossing texture to them, along with plenty of thick folds and wrinkles. It really is all quite superb craftsmanship, easily on par with anything from CollectA, Haolonggood, PNSO, or Schleich.

And as you’ve noticed by now, the lower bill is hinged, allowing the mouth to open to 30 degrees. And if you have any small baby dinosaur toys handy, they can indeed be gripped in said mouth!

Few collectors if any would fail to recognise this toy as a Quetzalcoatlus. The skull features eyes that are set far back and an enormous, sword-like bill with precisely zero dentition. The crest is smaller than in certain other depictions, but that’s fine given that its precise shape and size is still uncertain. The folded wings are also very impressive. All the joints are bent in the correct manner and the three-fingered hands are oriented outward. The propatagium, which extends from the shoulder joints to the carpals, and the uropatagium, extending from the hips to the ankles, are present and clearly visible. The four digit feet are relatively small, much like pterosaur expert Mark Witton’s skeletal restoration.

But as you can see from that same restoration, there’s definitely something off with this toy. The torso is just plain too big. Too deep in the chest and too long in the spine to be in proper proportion to the head. And while the bill and the neck are long, they aren’t quite long enough, particularly the latter. Indeed, the more I look at this toy, the more I feel that it almost seems like a new species of azhdarchid altogether, one that is too hefty to fly. Say, maybe it’s a transitional form between Quetzalcoatlus and the lank? 

Overall, while the TNG Quetzalcoatlus has its share of anatomical flaws, it still ends up being one of the best renditions of this species currently available thanks to its imposing size, magnificent sculpting detail, and pleasing colouration. Plus that articulated lower bill increases its fun factor. TNG seems just like Mojo Fun in that they make rather frobly-mobly dinosaurs, but very good non-dinosaurs. I look forward to seeing what they have in store next.