Review and photos by BlueKrono, edited by DinoToyBlog
If I were asked to pick a favorite dinosaur toy it would be a challenging query, but I think the one I’d settle on would be the Marx Kronosaurus. A relic of Marx’s early dinosaur lines, the swan-necked prehistoric reptile has a history going back almost a century.
Whenever a line of toys gets a complete set of reviews on the Dinosaur Toy Blog, I consider it a milestone. This has happened many times over the years and in my opinion, it heightens the value of the blog and its usefulness as a resource.
The DinoToyBlog has evolved over the years, much like the prehistoric creatures we review. Articles here are more substantial now than ever before. The average word count has increased, the number of photographs has gone up, and the scientific rigour has shot through the roof.
Review and photos by Torvosaurus, edited by Suspsy
Howdy from wonderful, windy Wyoming! Today we’ll take a look at the DeeZee (DZ) Liopleurodon. DeeZee figures were incorporated with the Honourable Lead Boiler Suit figures and sold as one line, as additions to HLBS’s Saurian Safari game.
My great thanks to Happy Hen Toys for their generosity in providing this figure for review, which is now available for sale at their website happyhentoys.com.
Two whole years after rumors of its existence first began circulating among dino collectors, Papo’s figurine of the Australian apex predator, Kronosaurus queenslandicus, has finally emerged from the realm of myth and begun landing on the shores of retail shops worldwide.
There’s no real debate about it. The Mattel Jurassic World Mosasaurus is still one of the line’s best toys. Pushing 30” in length and covered in rubbery “real feel” material, it has also been released and re-released consistently over the last 5 years.
Since they first started producing tube sets back in 2015, CollectA has covered a pretty decent variety of prehistoric life, wild animals, sea creatures, and farm stock. In 2021, they went back to the beginning with a third dinosaur (mostly) set consisting of ten figures, all based on previously released toys.
Kronosaurus could easily be called the comeback kid, having the distinction of being one of the first marine reptiles to ever be featured in toy form way back in the Marx sets only to be lost to obscurity for many decades after, then just recently came roaring back into the spotlight.Having fought (or swam) its way back into the top ten, this impressive giant surely is determined to edge out the mighty Mosasaurus.
The titans of Greek myth were beings of great strength and power, so it is no surprise that prehistoric creatures of great size and strength were named after them. The leader of this group during their golden age, according to legend, was Kronos, the father of Zeus, and a mighty marine monster was named after him: Kronosaurus, a 30 ft Pliosaur from the early Cretaceous of Queensland.
There was a time when Kronossaurus was the most famous marine reptile. It was part of the elite group of dinosaurs (and other prehistoric animals), sort of like the Mesozoic version of the Justice League. These assortments would be the core group to be featured in the 1950’s Marx set, the first real toy set to focus on prehistoric animals, This Mesozoic superhero group would feature icons: we see Tyrannosaurus rex, Diplodocus, Allosaurus, Triceratops, Anklyosaurus, Hadrosaur (iguanodon?), Pteranodon, and of course Kronosaurus (representing the marine reptiles).
It is always interesting when a toy of a species is made not by a well-known maker and of a specific species or fossil, and for it to come out fairly decently. For this review, I will be looking at such an example: Pliosaurus carpenteri, a pliosaur from the lower Kimmeridgian of the Westbury Clay pit, and produced for the Bristol city Museum and art gallery.
Although these figures might fall short of Dinotales’ best, they are still delightful and unique representations of the famous Jurassic pliosaur.
Dinotales (in Chocolosaurs) were something of a hidden gem for me; despite an extensive production series, the Japanese capsule toys haven’t ever been marketed much at all overseas, at least that I know of.
