Now here’s a new one for the blog, and another dinosaur I had never heard of until Mattel made a toy of one… Guaibasaurus. Guaibasaurus is a genus of basal saurischian from the Late Triassic Caturrita Formation, in southern Brazil. It was described in 1999 by José Bonaparte and was classified as a basal theropod.
Author: Gwangi
My name is Arthur but I go by Gwangi on the blogs and forums, as homage to the old dinosaur and monster movies I love so much. In addition to writing about and collecting toy animals (extinct and extant) I also share my home with a variety of living animals, mostly reptiles but a little bit of everything. I have a lifelong interest in all things nature and natural history and most of my hobbies can be linked to those things in some way. I currently live in Maryland with my wife and daughters. In addition to writing on here I also write magazine articles, typically about local wildlife and aquarium fishes.All reviews by this author
Review: Triceratops (Jurassic World Dino-Trackers, Habitat Defender by Mattel)
4.5 (43 votes)
Ever since Mattel started making Jurassic World toys collectors have been vocal about wanting a large-scale Triceratops. Of course they would, Triceratops was the largest ceratopsian to ever exist and yet, Mattel’s various Triceratops toys were all woefully undersized.
Review: Velociraptor (Jurassic World Epic Evolution, Danger Pack by Mattel)
3.6 (18 votes)
Thanks to my handy clicker-counter and the DinoToyCollector website I was able to tally up 114 Velociraptor toys by Mattel. This includes various repaints, repacks, and toys outside the mainline but not the minis (I forgot them). It’s a rough estimate but it still gives you an idea of how many raptors Mattel has put out there.
Review: Alamosaurus (Samuel) (Prehistoric Animal Models by PNSO)
4.7 (67 votes)
Jurassic North America was home to an astonishingly diverse assemblage of sauropod dinosaurs, roughly 20 species have been recovered from the Morrison Formation, including iconic genera such as Brontosaurus, Diplodocus, Apatosaurus, Camarasaurus, and Brachiosaurus.
Review: Tyrannosaurus (Bite Club by Mattel)
4.1 (21 votes)
Despite being the most popular of all dinosaurs, with multiple figures to its name released per year, everyone is still on the hunt for what they consider the “definitive” T. rex. Companies have tried to deliver it with mixed success. At various points over the last several years the title has been held by Safari, PNSO, Rebor, Beasts of the Mesozoic, PNSO again, and this year we have the long awaited Eofauna Tyrannosaurus hitting the scene.
Review: Chasmosaurus (Haolonggood)
4.9 (41 votes)
Haolonggood has once again given us another high demand dinosaur that’s been mostly ignored by other toy companies. In doing so, they’ve helped me complete my decade long quest to own my favorite ceratopsids: Pachyrhinosaurus, Nasutoceratops, Einiosaurus, Centrosaurus, Pentaceratops and now finally, Chasmosaurus.
Review: Velociraptor (Blue) (Bite Club by Mattel)
3.2 (19 votes)
It’s Blue the Velociraptor, as you’ve never seen her before! Mattel has taken the sleek, aerodynamic, and menacing Jurassic World Velociraptor design and flipped it on its head. What we have here is a version of Blue that has embraced domestication and spends her days lounging around Owen’s cabin, chowing down on dino-kibble.
Review: Tuojiangosaurus (Jurassic World Epic Evolution, Strike Attack by Mattel)
3.6 (32 votes)
Mattel really likes the Shaximiao Formation, a middle to late Jurassic formation located in China. They’ve released many dinosaurs known from the Shaximiao, including Chialingosaurus, Gigantspinosaurus, Mamenchisaurus, Gasosaurus, and Yangchuanosaurus. Today we’re looking at their latest addition to this assortment, the Tuojiangosaurus, part of Mattel’s Epic Evolution line.
Review: Triceratops (Bite Club by Mattel)
3.9 (26 votes)
Without much fanfare, late 2023 saw the release of a whole new line of Jurassic World products from Mattel. Dubbed Bite Club (Get it? Like Fight Club?), these figures are sculpted in the chibi style that is common in anime and manga. The chibi art style originates in Japan.
Review: Gryposuchus (Jurassic World Epic Evolution, Wild Roar by Mattel)
4.4 (34 votes)
Now here’s something unprecedented from Mattel. No, not a prehistoric pseudosuchian most people have never heard of. Mattel likes those, and this is that too. What makes this one unique is that it represents an animal that lived during the Cenozoic. The era immediately following the Mesozoic and the one in which we’re currently living.
Review: Yangchuanosaurus (Dapeng) (Prehistoric Animal Models by PNSO)
4.8 (46 votes)
With 47 votes the PNSO Saurophaganax is poised to win the prestigious title of figure of the year on the Dinosaur Toy Forum’s Top 10 of 2023 poll. And rightly so, it’s a fantastic figure. One of the best theropod models I’ve ever seen, and quite possibly the best “Allosaurus” ever.
Review: Mamenchisaurus (Jurassic World, Legacy Collection by Mattel)
3.9 (36 votes)
Mattel’s previous large sauropods made sense. Brachiosaurus, Apatosaurus, and Dreadnoughtus all had significant screen time in the Jurassic franchise. And even though Mattel dutifully, and shockingly, made toys of them all, fans wanted more. Yes, among the Jurassic fanbase there was a subset of collectors yearning for the Mamenchisaurus, which featured briefly enough in The Lost World to allow a motorcyclist to drive between its legs.