In my last review, for the PNSO Centrosaurus, I stated that “paintjobs seldom make or break a figure for me, and if the paint is well applied, I’m usually still happy with the product.” Generally speaking, that statement is true, but there are exceptions. With Mattel in particular the paintjob a toy receives really can make or break a figure....
Interview by Scrat, edited and photos by Bokisaurus Hiiiiieee blog readers, Scrat here! Yes, I’m filling in for Bokisaurus! He begged me claiming he is suffering from writers block and needed a break. Before he left, he went on and on and on about me having to be on brand blah blah blah until I finally hit him in the...
What makes this particular release stand out is its coloration, which contrasts starkly with the plainer pattern of the figure’s first release. The 1990s were a stirring time for big theropod news: the crocodile-snouted spinosaur Suchomimus from Niger was described in 1998, new fragments of the now-(in)famous Spinosaurus itself were discovered in 1996 and 1998, and the gigantic Giganotosaurus was officially named in 1995. Another notable discovery...
Mattel’s Amber Collection has had a rocky release history, but before the line ground to a halt, Mattel decided to go out on a bang with the highly anticipated male Velociraptor design from Jurassic Park III. Fans were both excited and cautious: would this fan-favorite design be done the justice it deserved? Although Jurassic Park III remains a...
For many years, the Triassic period has been the most overlooked part of the Mesozoic in toy form, usually Coelophysis or Postosuchus. More recently, however, more and more species are coming to the forefront and being made available in plastic. Even the Jurassic World toyline has jumped to this, as we see here in a recent figure of Shringasaurus, an...
The Amber Collection Pteranodon is actually quite a mixed bag, with great coloration and good sculpting, but noticeable flaws in articulation. Say what you will about the film as a whole, but Jurassic Park III had arguably some of the best creature designs in the Jurassic franchise (scientific [in]accuracies notwithstanding). Among the newcomers to the regular...
There aren’t a lot of dinosaur toys on the market that specialize in articulation (David Silva’s Beasts of the Mesozoic line being the main shining exception right now), so the announcement of Mattel’s Amber Collection for their ongoing Jurassic World line was reason for excitement. Beginning in 2019, Mattel began select releases of dinosaurs, and later human characters, in the...
Every year, starting with the release of their misnamed Pachyrhinosaurus in 2018, Mattel has released a ceratopsian that I’ve absolutely adored. In 2019 it was the Nasutoceratops, in 2020 it was the Sinoceratops, and it looked like this year it would be the Pentaceratops. Since seeing the early release images of this toy it has been on my must-buy list,...
With the addition of a re-sculpted Stegosaurus, Chialingosaurus, and now this Kentrosaurus to the line, Mattel has given the stegosauria clade much love this year. Until now the only member of this group represented in the line was the 2018 Stegosaurus and its re-paint. The Kentrosaurus we’re looking at is also significant in that it’s the first action figure of...
Chialingosaurus kuani was a stegosaurian that lived 160 million years ago in China. It is one of the oldest species of stegosaurs known and would have resembled Kentrosaurus in appearance. You would be forgiven for having never heard of it, not many have. It is an obscure dinosaur known only from fragmentary remains and its inclusion in the Mattel Jurassic ...
It has now been two years since Mattel released their Legacy Collection Brachiosaurus, a highly anticipated toy that fans had been pining for since 1993. During much of that time between then and now people had wondered, “will we get an Apatosaurus too?” In my mind the likelihood of Mattel making an Apatosaurus was directly tied to how well the...
With its tall neural spines similar to those of Spinosaurus, Ouranosaurus is one of the most unique and visually distinct species of ornithopods, and yet has remained relatively obscure. Many figures of the genus do exist with notable ones by Recur, CollectA, Schleich, and Starlux but they aren’t of particularly high quality or accuracy. PNSO has one too but it’s...
