Anatosaurus AKA Edmontosaurus (Wendy’s Exclusive from Definitely Dinosaurs by Playskool)

Review and photographs by Charles Peckham, edited by Suspsy

Before we get into talking about this toy, I think it’s worthwhile to discuss the history of the genus that we’re calling Anatosaurus, especially since this is the first review of a toy labeled with that genus on this website.

In 1942, the classification of hadrosaurs was a mess. Trachodon, Claosaurus, Thespesius, and Edmontosaurus were all being used more or less interchangeably, and it wasn’t clear that the distinctions between the genera warranted their separation, so Yale’s Richard Swann Lull took it upon himself to sort things out. He took the Latin word for duck and the Greek word for lizard and came up with Anatosaurus. Within this new genus, the species Anatosaurus annectens replaced Claosaurus and some Thespesius. Several Trachodon fossils that didn’t quite fit in with the others were reclassified as Anatosaurus copei, which was kind of Lull’s wastebasket taxon. Eventually, A. copei was given its own genus, Anatotitan, and A. annectens was placed within Edmontosaurus as E. annectens. Finally, a 2011 study concluded that Anatotitan is a synonym of E. annectens as well.This is not particularly relevant for the toy we’re discussing today, but I thought it was worth mentioning. This is the short retelling of a very confusing taxonomic history, so if you want the Paul Harvey version, bone wars and all, I suggest doing some further research.

Hey, wasn’t I supposed to be talking about a toy or something? Oh yes, now I remember. American fast food chain Wendy’s got on the Definitely Dinosaurs bandwagon in 1988, and among the genre it featured at first was an Anatosaurus. This is a little surprising, because the non-Wendy’s Definitely Dinosaurs had already put out an Anatosaurus the year prior. The non-Wendy’s one was larger and had a more hunched, almost quadrupedal stance, which leads me to believe that the larger is intended as an adult and the Wendy’s is intended as a subadult. Definitely Dinosaurs also released a third Anatosaurus in 1991, which I believe is the same sculpt with different colors. Today we’re looking only at the Wendy’s version.

Despite the endearing aesthetic that we’ve all come to know and love from Playskool, the Wendy’s Anatosaurus has trouble making itself look fun. When one looks at it, one is immediately given the impression that dinosaurs were sluggish, ineffective, evolutionary mistakes that the Quaternary was considerate enough to put out of their misery. This is a bit surprising, coming from Definitely Dinosaurs, which was usually pretty good at making dinosaurs look at the very least dynamic. This one looks like it’s too depressed to be played with.

The kangaroo lizard stance of the toy really doesn’t do it any favors, and this motif is completed by the dimwitted expression that the dinosaur has, looking like it can’t remember what it just got up to do. The toy has one joint, at the neck, which allows the head to turn 360°, so it can look confused at anything around it. Its arms droop lifelessly in front of it, as if being bipedal left them vestigial appendages.

And yet, maybe this is the nostalgia talking, but the figure is easy to like. Perhaps it’s because it has a level of detail that most dinosaur toys at the time didn’t. Perhaps it’s because the bright orange coloring, complete with countershading, gives the toy panache that was lacking from other dinosaur toy coloration at the time (and often still is). It’s not without its issues, but there was clearly some research that went into this toy. There’s a bump where the ischium bone would jut out right beneath the little sauropod logo, and the ridge along the back of the toy gives it at least a little distinguishment from other hadrosaurs.

Somehow, in spite of its derpy look, I kind of adore this silly little toy, and good news! If you want to adore it as well, it came with a kids’ meal, so it’s much easier to find and much less expensive than other toys from the same era. Unfortunately though, most sellers no longer have the kids meal that the toy came with, so you’ll have to do something else for lunch.