One hundred and eleven million years ago in a vast river system in Africa, a dance between predator and prey, similar to what we see today was taking place. Off the main river there is a narrow, deep, and murky tributary. Vegetation is thick along the bank except for a patch of muddy dirt that has been worn down by the feet of many thirsty travelers.
Author: Laticauda
My name is Rob but I go by Laticauda (which is a genus of Elapid “Sea” snakes) on both the Dinosaur Toy Blog and Forum. My dinosaur collecting journey began when I discovered the Carnegie line as a kid. They amazed me and I didn’t look at them as toys but as art. By the time I headed off to college I no longer collected prehistoric toys as I had moved on to new collecting pursuits. This all changed the day when my first child was born as it rekindled my passion for the prehistoric world. Now I have two kids and I enjoy sharing the hobby with them.All reviews by this author
Review: Mosasaurus vs. Submarine(Jurassic World by Hasbro)
2 (8 votes)
The sky is clear and boundless blue; it is a beautiful 80 degrees, a nice day to be at the park. The water is a beautiful shade of blue green, there is barely a ripple across the calm lagoon. There is something dangerous roaming in the depth of the waters, but not a trace of it is seen.
Review: Woolly Mammoth baby(Prehistoric Mammals, by Schleich)
3.1 (7 votes)
I have already reviewed the queen of the tundra, the Schleich woolly mammoth adult. Now it is time to look at the complementary baby calf. Its nice to see that many toy makers depict, not just the full grown menacing adults with large curving tusks, but make cute playful babies as well.
Review: Woolly Mammoth(Prehistoric Mammals, by Schleich)
4.2 (10 votes)
When the day began, white flakes hurried down from the grey sky. The snow fell in a horizontal blur and all that could be heard was the mournful cry of the wind. Suddenly, through the gusts and eddies of dancing snow, a dark illusion appears. In this veil of snow a dark shape approaches.
Review: Woolly rhinoceros (Prehistoric World, by Bullyland)
3.9 (7 votes)
It has been a unusually warm winter, but finally this week, winter has assuredly come to my neck of the woods in North America. I know this because the snow is finally falling, the temperature is freezing, the super bowl is done, and the Toronto Maple leafs are making trades to figure out how to improve their team.
Review: Spinosaurus (Soft Model Series 2 by Favorite Co. Ltd.)
4.3 (4 votes)
How do you like your Spinosaurus? The reason why I ask, is that when it comes to Spinosaurus, there is still a lot of speculation and hypothesis about its actual anatomy, posture and gait. It leaves it wide open for interpretation for paleo artists and toy makers.
Review: Shunosaurus (Procon/CollectA)
2.5 (8 votes)
Shunosaurus Lii is a sauropod that lived during the middle Jurassic in what would now be present day China. It has some strange features for a sauropod, such as a relatively short neck, and a tail that has a club at the end. It shared an environment with longer necked sauropods and low browsing stegosaur.
Review: Velociraptor “Charlie” (Jurassic World by Hasbro)
1.4 (9 votes)
I know what your thinking, do we need to see another Jurassic World toy review? Can this toy be any better than its predecessors? Even though I made up my mind not to review anymore toys from Hasbro’s JW line, for some reason I am compelled to give it another try and go down with the ship.
Review: Diplodocus (Starlux)
4.5 (12 votes)
There are many wonderful paintings by Charles Knight, one in particular has a Apatosaurus in the fore-ground, with its head and neck rising out of the swampy water. It looks big and clumsy. In the back ground, grazing on the shore of this prehistoric swamp, there is a Diplodocus, painted in a boring grey color.
Review: Ichthyosaurus-Leptonectes(Stuttgart NHM, by Bullyland)
4.3 (4 votes)
Ichthyosaurs are a well known extinct marine reptile. They first appeared in the Triassic, became very diverse by the Jurassic, and then disappeared during the Cretaceous. The ichthyosaur fossil record is well known and abundant with over 102 valid species. They have been considered a great example of convergent evolution, especially since many people compare them to dolphins and tunas.
Review: Woolly Mammoth (HG Toys)
3 (5 votes)
For many people, the first image they conjure up while thinking of the ice age is a large animal with shaggy fur, long curved tusks, with its trunk lifted, bellowing to its herd while crossing the icy steppe. Of course I am talking of the Woolly Mammoth, and even though there are many other fascinating species of mammoth, its the Woolly Mammoth that tends to be made into toy form.
Review: Tyrannosaurus Rex (Jurassic World Basher and Biters by Hasbro)
1.1 (10 votes)
The basher and biter Tyrannosaurus Rex is an important part of the legacy and impact of the Jurassic World toys that came out in 2015. This was the first toy (brown version) that I saw from this line, and for me, it really set the tone for the rest of the series.
Review: Tyrannosaurus Rex (Chomping)(Jurassic World by Hasbro)
1.2 (13 votes)
When it comes to Jurassic Park, you need to have the king. For the Jurassic World line in 2015 there are three main T-Rex toys. There is the small Basher and Biter, the medium Chomping, and the Large Stomp and Strike. All three look very similar in their basic colors, so there is not much variation, other than their size, and the style of gimmicks they have.
Review: Rajasaurus (CollectA)
4 (13 votes)
Many kings have been released in royal family of dinosaur toys, usually in the form of Tyrannosaurus Rex but, also in the form of Cryolophosaurus, which is jokingly nick named Elvisaurus, the king of the paleo rock and roll. In 2012 CollectA added to the royal family by releasing a prince into their collection.
Review: Apatosaurus baby (Carnegie Collection by Safari Ltd.)
4.4 (10 votes)
Apatosaurus was a large, robust, long-necked, small headed sauropod that lived 152-151 million years ago. When the Safari Carnegie line began in 1989 the adult and baby were part of the original line up, and has been part of the collection until the cancellation of the line in 2015.