Mattel - New for 2023

[Eatmycar]

One Brachiosaurus was enough for me. I'm waiting to see the final one for the color palette, but I don't need a second, child-sized sauropod for my apartment.

It feels like a massive waste of plastic when we could have the trailers from TLW or another play set for the price of this thing, but. whatever. I'd rather see Mattel spend its resources toward such a gigantic thing than BoTM wasting money on a figure that is, frankly, unrealistic for most people to own long-term.

[Pachyrhinosaurus]

That seismosaurus  is tempting, though I don't know if I'll have room for it, already having the Legacy brachiosaurus, and Horizon brachiosaurus (that I'd like to repaint someday), not to mention next year's Hammond collection brachiosaurus if it's good. It's great that they're doing new film species, though.

It's been brought up before, but I believe the animal in the film was based on seismosaurus (hence the diplodocid head), and the mamenchisaurus name comes from an earlier draft of the script where it had a larger role.

[Gwangi]

One Brachiosaurus was enough for me. I'm waiting to see the final one for the color palette, but I don't need a second, child-sized sauropod for my apartment.

It feels like a massive waste of plastic when we could have the trailers from TLW or another play set for the price of this thing, but. whatever. I'd rather see Mattel spend its resources toward such a gigantic thing than BoTM wasting money on a figure that is, frankly, unrealistic for most people to own long-term.

Could you elaborate on this, please?

[EmperorDinobot]

I too would have preferred playsets, but playsets can be just as big. And there's a good chance we are getting those anyways. Ok, well, there is an ok chance that we will get them.


What am I going to do with an already screwed up room? I do not even own the Dreadnoughtus yet.

[Giganotosaurus]

As somebody who just cares for the dinosaurs, I'd much rather have all the film dinos than human characters or sets. I hope we get a cory also.

[Faelrin]

@Pachyrhinosaurus Isn't Seismosaurus just Diplodocus hallorum these days? I guess that explains it though. Nice bit of trivia I've strangely not come across yet, but well it can happen.

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

Jurassic Park/World is dinosaurs/people/technology ( playsets and vehicles).  It's the chaos that ensues between the two. I'm game for all of it, though space is getting to be an issue for sure.  Kids just want the newest big dino and I'm happy to see Mattel doing that.  If they would crowdfund a Raptor Pen , A TREX capture truck, or even an entire VC playset..I'll be there.

[Pachyrhinosaurus]

@Pachyrhinosaurus Isn't Seismosaurus just Diplodocus hallorum these days? I guess that explains it though. Nice bit of trivia I've strangely not come across yet, but well it can happen.

Yep, but at the time the film came out seismosaurus was its own genus.

[Eatmycar]

One Brachiosaurus was enough for me. I'm waiting to see the final one for the color palette, but I don't need a second, child-sized sauropod for my apartment.

It feels like a massive waste of plastic when we could have the trailers from TLW or another play set for the price of this thing, but. whatever. I'd rather see Mattel spend its resources toward such a gigantic thing than BoTM wasting money on a figure that is, frankly, unrealistic for most people to own long-term.

Could you elaborate on this, please?

Happily.

Sauropods are big creatures.

At 1:18 scale, they're space hogs. Mattel's dreadnoughtus is as big as many of the children that drag it around by the neck. They pose serious logistical problems for a parent. Now, let's talk BoTM, since that's what you're driving at. BoTM is a premium line with a premium price. The rex is 230 or so USD. The Hammond rex, of a similar size, is only 50.

Now imagine how much a five-foot-long dinosaur is going to come up to? And one that, unlike its Mattel counterpart, can not be subject to rough conditions without taking some damage. It also will likely suffer from being unable to be disassembled for the same reasons Mattel makes theirs a one-time assembly.

Most consumers will blink at the price alone. Many more will balk at the idea of storing a BoTM sauropod.They will sell to a small, niche group if they move at all, and take up a lot of real estate in shipping warehouses. A lot of people are going to not want to constantly have to re-arrange their living room around a giant sauropod... and it'll become a lot harder when it's a 500 dollar BoTM one they can't just chuck in the attic easily like a Mattel one that will easily take the abuse and storage conditions.

[EmperorDinobot]

BOTM is already having warehouse issues, which is why some of their older stuff are constantly on sale.

[Faelrin]

E @Eatmycar I agree with you on the logistical problems, but remember parents aren't the only demographic it could pose problematic to. Collectors without children (such as myself, and others here) can still find themselves in situations where they run out of space (short of storing or selling), or do not have long term living arrangements, or perhaps need to move in the foreseeable future. Hence why I'm probably not going to pick up either of the two newest Mattel sauropods (despite wanting the Dreadnoughtus at least).

I think your other points are why I think David's been hesitant to support the possibility of doing 1:18 big sauropods if I recall correctly (short of Amargasaurus which I do recall him expressing interest in an interview last year). Likewise there would probably not be enough demand to justify the costs of production. I imagine something like that would need a kickstarter, like the others previously, and the costs would probably be too high for most casual collectors, if not some serious ones. The ceratopsian kickstarter was successful, but not all the stretch goals ended up met by the time it ended. Thankfully there was a way to gather more funds through the backerkit pre-order store to unlock the later ones that didn't make the earlier deadline, and they did. Regardless if something like them just barely had enough padding to get a few stretch goals unlocked initially, I imagine a series of much larger, and expensive sauropods would do worse. But it's possible he could find support if he were go the route he did with the Tyrannosaurus figures. 1:18 and 1:35 concurrently. But he was also able to do that because of Tyrannosaurus mass appeal.

Something the Mattel figures do, is often times have the neck and tails needing assembled to cut down on the already massive box sizes, so if some BotM sauropods were made, something of the like would need to be done. I know the BotM ceratopsians needed their tails attached separately, as well as the raptors. I don't know about the ceratopsians, but I do know the raptors can have their tails safely removed (with two options for positions) so can safely be stored back in the box at a later date.

[Gwangi]

One Brachiosaurus was enough for me. I'm waiting to see the final one for the color palette, but I don't need a second, child-sized sauropod for my apartment.

It feels like a massive waste of plastic when we could have the trailers from TLW or another play set for the price of this thing, but. whatever. I'd rather see Mattel spend its resources toward such a gigantic thing than BoTM wasting money on a figure that is, frankly, unrealistic for most people to own long-term.

Could you elaborate on this, please?

Happily.

Sauropods are big creatures.

At 1:18 scale, they're space hogs. Mattel's dreadnoughtus is as big as many of the children that drag it around by the neck. They pose serious logistical problems for a parent. Now, let's talk BoTM, since that's what you're driving at. BoTM is a premium line with a premium price. The rex is 230 or so USD. The Hammond rex, of a similar size, is only 50.

Now imagine how much a five-foot-long dinosaur is going to come up to? And one that, unlike its Mattel counterpart, can not be subject to rough conditions without taking some damage. It also will likely suffer from being unable to be disassembled for the same reasons Mattel makes theirs a one-time assembly.

Most consumers will blink at the price alone. Many more will balk at the idea of storing a BoTM sauropod.They will sell to a small, niche group if they move at all, and take up a lot of real estate in shipping warehouses. A lot of people are going to not want to constantly have to re-arrange their living room around a giant sauropod... and it'll become a lot harder when it's a 500 dollar BoTM one they can't just chuck in the attic easily like a Mattel one that will easily take the abuse and storage conditions.

That's a reasonable take. And one of several reasons that I do not collect BoTM. But I do have the Mattel sauropods, including the Dreadnoughtus and I have to say, it's not as difficult to display in a dedicated space as its size might suggest. Case in point, my own display...



I've got it on a shelf roughly 30" X 11" with a few other gigantic figures, the only real space it takes up is where its feet rest on the shelf, and smaller figures can stand comfortably around it. Now this might not work for everyone but, uh, life finds a way. I assume most collectors have a space to display their collection. 

I have to wonder how many parents are willing to buy these gigantic sauropods for their kids. For anyone that's reluctant to get one new, wait a few years for today's kids to grow out of their dinosaurs and I'm sure you'll find these toys at many second hand shops and yard sales. Once a kid stops playing with them I'm sure most parents won't want a 5' toy dinosaur sitting around.

With regards to BoTM, I do agree with you. Price + Needed Space + Lack of Durability all keep me from even casually collecting the brand and although I'm happy it exists for those that want them, I do wonder how sustainable BoTM is as a business or how sustainable collecting them is as a hobby.  Even Mattel I've grown somewhat weary of lately. I'm already very selective about what I buy from Mattel but as space shrinks I've grown more picky about what I buy.

[andrewsaurus rex]

well, i'll be down for the Mamench if it gets made.   Although it seems a bit puny at only 1.3m long.   

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

One Brachiosaurus was enough for me. I'm waiting to see the final one for the color palette, but I don't need a second, child-sized sauropod for my apartment.

It feels like a massive waste of plastic when we could have the trailers from TLW or another play set for the price of this thing, but. whatever. I'd rather see Mattel spend its resources toward such a gigantic thing than BoTM wasting money on a figure that is, frankly, unrealistic for most people to own long-term.

Could you elaborate on this, please?

Happily.

Sauropods are big creatures.

At 1:18 scale, they're space hogs. Mattel's dreadnoughtus is as big as many of the children that drag it around by the neck. They pose serious logistical problems for a parent. Now, let's talk BoTM, since that's what you're driving at. BoTM is a premium line with a premium price. The rex is 230 or so USD. The Hammond rex, of a similar size, is only 50.

Now imagine how much a five-foot-long dinosaur is going to come up to? And one that, unlike its Mattel counterpart, can not be subject to rough conditions without taking some damage. It also will likely suffer from being unable to be disassembled for the same reasons Mattel makes theirs a one-time assembly.

Most consumers will blink at the price alone. Many more will balk at the idea of storing a BoTM sauropod.They will sell to a small, niche group if they move at all, and take up a lot of real estate in shipping warehouses. A lot of people are going to not want to constantly have to re-arrange their living room around a giant sauropod... and it'll become a lot harder when it's a 500 dollar BoTM one they can't just chuck in the attic easily like a Mattel one that will easily take the abuse and storage conditions.

That's a reasonable take. And one of several reasons that I do not collect BoTM. But I do have the Mattel sauropods, including the Dreadnoughtus and I have to say, it's not as difficult to display in a dedicated space as its size might suggest. Case in point, my own display...



I've got it on a shelf roughly 30" X 11" with a few other gigantic figures, the only real space it takes up is where its feet rest on the shelf, and smaller figures can stand comfortably around it. Now this might not work for everyone but, uh, life finds a way. I assume most collectors have a space to display their collection. 

I have to wonder how many parents are willing to buy these gigantic sauropods for their kids. For anyone that's reluctant to get one new, wait a few years for today's kids to grow out of their dinosaurs and I'm sure you'll find these toys at many second hand shops and yard sales. Once a kid stops playing with them I'm sure most parents won't want a 5' toy dinosaur sitting around.

With regards to BoTM, I do agree with you. Price + Needed Space + Lack of Durability all keep me from even casually collecting the brand and although I'm happy it exists for those that want them, I do wonder how sustainable BoTM is as a business or how sustainable collecting them is as a hobby.  Even Mattel I've grown somewhat weary of lately. I'm already very selective about what I buy from Mattel but as space shrinks I've grown more picky about what I buy.

So far  I own all of the Super Colossals and the big Mattel sauropods, mostly they sit in the floor around my house and just need moved to sweep around.  I often wonder if it would be worth building a small greenhouse to put them in.

I see a lot of these already up for sale on fb marketplace, most parents just see them as toys and when a kid isn't interested anymore it vanishes to a goodwill or yardsale.  Oddly they still seem to sell.  Mattel is even planning the new Indoraptor SC for this year.  Kids want BIG dinosaurs and this is the best parents can do without spending thousands. I recall just a few years ago many of us lamented that no company would bother making big sauropod toys anymore that those days were over. Whether we buy them or not I'm glad to see a return to a market that thinks they are worthwhile.

I did buy a couple of the BotM raptors, not all to be sure and most of them are still in their boxes. Ceratopsians I bought a set but I'm no getting all those exclusives even if I like the paint more on some. I got the DinoRider paints for nostalgia. They are big, pricey and more like a poseable resin kit. It's a niche market to be sure but David does seem to be doing well in it. I'll get more choosy I'm sure as the line progresses.  I to already second guess my Mattel purchases, even just doing loose toys has become a bit of an issue.

[Eatmycar]

I've pruned my Mattel collection twice. Once to go into Amber Collection... (but something told me to keep the legacy stuff thankfully) and once again when I realized Amber was doomed.

Now my focus is on the Hammond collection and like, weirdly enough picking up some of the vehicles for the humans? It's strange but I like 'em.

That said... I'm easily finding myself passing on figures I would've loved years ago. Diabloceratops for instance is one of my favorite ceratopsians. I just can't bring myself to add a Mattel one to my collection.

Honestly, if I didn't enjoy articulation so much, I'd prefer 1/35, but for toy photography all of those start to look the same because of the pre-posed nature of most of that scale...

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

I've pruned my Mattel collection twice. Once to go into Amber Collection... (but something told me to keep the legacy stuff thankfully) and once again when I realized Amber was doomed.

Now my focus is on the Hammond collection and like, weirdly enough picking up some of the vehicles for the humans? It's strange but I like 'em.

That said... I'm easily finding myself passing on figures I would've loved years ago. Diabloceratops for instance is one of my favorite ceratopsians. I just can't bring myself to add a Mattel one to my collection.

Honestly, if I didn't enjoy articulation so much, I'd prefer 1/35, but for toy photography all of those start to look the same because of the pre-posed nature of most of that scale...

If you like Diabloceratops that much I would get it, it's once of their nicer ceratopsians.

I'm a bit concerned the Hammond Collection may not last is the only reason I haven't really sorted through more of my standard line figures.  I don't see the need for the human figures really, they have a bit more accessories a couple more points of articulation but I just don't see why I need to replace perfectly good ones for that.

[Dilophosaurus_8o]

Does anyone know if anything became of the rumours for the hammond collection irritator and metriacanthosaurus, or were they just rumours?

[Blade-of-the-Moon]

Does anyone know if anything became of the rumours for the hammond collection irritator and metriacanthosaurus, or were they just rumours?

haven't seen anything yet.

[EmperorDinobot]

Looks interesting!

[Carnoking]

Still the best looking infant rex yet imo