Fembrogon's Bestiary (post-2020)

[Fembrogon]

Haolonggood (2023) - Nasutoceratops
After an underwhelming pair of releases last year, it's great to see Haolonggood back in business with a release that's both high-quality and reasonably affordable. The discrepancies noted about the horn structure are certainly regrettable, but overall it's still a fine-looking sculpt with an excellent pair of paint schemes. This figurine bodes very well for Haolonggood's future (I hope).





PNSO Prehistoric Animals 069 (2023) - Mungo the Meraxes
Another fine release from PNSO; as much as I sympathize with theropod fatigue, this is such a nice figure I have trouble echoing those sentiments sometimes. I haven't finished a thorough review yet, but as far as I can tell PNSO has maintained their diligence in scientific accuracy.
One small issue I have is that this model appears a little more prone to tipping over time, due to the sensitive weight balance and softness of the toe claw plastic. I've generally succeeded in avoiding use of PNSO's stands, but not this time.
(The photos above were taken before this issue surfaced)

[Halichoeres]

Wild that Papo of all companies has easily the nicest Megaloceros. I guess the fact that it's a European company might be a contributing factor.

The Nasutoceratops and Meraxes are lookers, too.

[Fembrogon]

It does seem surprising that Papo, rather than Safari or Collecta, would be the first widespread Western company to produce a Megaloceros; all the others out on the market are either smaller brands or retired. I could see Mojo doing a decent figure as well.

[Fembrogon]

Mattel (2023) Hammond Collection - Concavenator
As odd as this choice feels for the line (though not as weird as the upcoming Irritator), Mattel certainly did a good job on this one. The head & neck articulation is a big improvement over the Baryonyx, and as @Gwangi described in his official blog review, the sculpt and paint work are both very strong. My only big complaint is that - at least on my copy - the jaw hinge is misaligned, resulting in the mouth tissue remaining visible in the corner even when closed. Otherwise, although it's certainly not the most accurate Concavenator toys, it might be one of the most attractive. Not bad, Mattel.

[Fembrogon]

The bestiary is likely going to be running more slowly in the near future, but here's the last acquisition I have to cover for the month:




Haolonggood (2023) - Ouranosaurus
It's great to see another company batting for the "low-price, great quality" niche of collector's figurines, and so far Haolonggood is scoring pretty well! Ouranosaurus never an A-rank dinosaur genus, but I recall seeing it plenty in literature as a kid, always envisioning it alongside famous giants like Carcharodontosaurus, Spinosaurus, and Paralititan; so it's definitely a genus that's been a long time coming for more toys. Haolonggood's version looks pretty great, even with the rather awkward anatomical errors which have been pointed out (no thumb spike, incorrect skull ridges). I've noticed the Ourano and the Nasuto before it have more pronounced scales than the earlier GR collab models; but that's not a complaint, because I enjoy the more tactile sensation when handling the figures. A hint more of a wash might benefit the appearance, but both paint variants look lovely. My preference is leaning a little more towards the contrasts of the green version.



Rockin' the greens (and oranges) in Africa!

[Paleo Flo]

Awsome trio!

[Halichoeres]

They have put out an unusual number of African species (four, I think, if we count Spinosaurus). Great to have the herbivores in particular, which have been ignored for so long!

I also slightly preferred the green Ouranosaurus.

[ceratopsian]

The flame orange with sand colour scheme on the Carcharodontosaurus is even more spectacular than I remembered.  Good to be reminded Haolonggood has covered African dinosaurs well.

[Paleo Flo]

The Carcharadontosaurus is pretty stellar! But I have no idea where I could get it.

[ceratopsian]

There are still a few available on AliExpress, @Paleo Flo.  The cheapest I saw was My Online Toy Store, which was about £40 without box.  I liked it so much after seeing @Fembrogon's photo that I checked it out yesterday!

The Carcharadontosaurus is pretty stellar! But I have no idea where I could get it.

[Paleo Flo]

Ok. I see...I have no personal experience with AliExpress. Naive asked: is it good and trustable? 40 Punds is a good amount. But I live in Germany, so there are a few Euros on top 

[ceratopsian]

@Paleo Flo - I use AliExpress only when I cannot buy the model from Everything Dinosaur or somewhere more local to me then China. This means I use it regularly though not frequently.

I have never had a problem so far. I use PayPal rather than storing my credit card details with them.  I use three or four shops that were originally recommended by others on the forum. I don't buy from random shops that I don't have any experience or reports of. I have bought several times from this particular shop that I mentioned.

One good thing from my point of view is that VAT is charged at source, not when it arrives in the UK, so I avoid the £12.50 handling charge and pay only the actual VAT of 20% due. The handling charge can easily be greater than the VAT!

The Carcharodontosaurus was an expensive model when it was released – nothing like the very reasonable prices of the new Haolonggood models.

Ok. I see...I have no personal experience with AliExpress. Naive asked: is it good and trustable? 40 Punds is a good amount. But I live in Germany, so there are a few Euros on top 

[ceratopsian]

@Fembrogon - you led me well and truly astray.  I've ordered the Carcharodontosaurus today!

[Fembrogon]

Haha, it's my pleasure to be of "service", @ceratopsian! 

@Paleo Flo, I will also vouch for AliExpress; the store pages I've bought from, at least, have always provided reliable service so far. Both my Carcharodontosaurus and my Dicraeosaurus were purchased there (caught them on sale), as well as Haolonggood's Quetzalcoatlus and most of my PNSO figures. Shipping can take a while, but the items have always arrived secure (some minor box damage at worst).
My Online Toy Store, Jurassic Zoo Store, and Model toy Center are good shops to buy from.

[ceratopsian]

Those are the shops I've used too.  Plus I've very occasionally used the PNSO store for the very few items they produce that Everything Dinosaur does not plan to order in.

[Paleo Flo]

Thanks a Lot you guys! I will think about it.

[Fembrogon]

I decided to have some more photoshoot fun with the Ouranosaurs (partly thanks to @Gwangi's fine Blog review):


Green Mattel with Green Haolonggood - and yeah, it does seem strange that both recent figures of this genus struggle with the foot anatomy. "If I had a nickel..."


Orange Ourano with African contemporary predators.
"I'm in danger..."


The Haolonggood gang so far! (one per genera)
Hopefully I'll be able to add Tianzhenousaurus and Pentaceratops sometime soon.

[Gwangi]

The picture of the green Ourano with Mattel's illustrates well why I went with the "red" variant. When taking pictures I really wished I had a Sarcosuchus and Suchomimus to photograph with it but alas, I'm behind on getting those.

[ceratopsian]

Fine photos. I can't help feeling that poor Ourano should be facing the other way in order to hightail it out of there!

[Paleo Flo]

Nice pics! The red Ourano is very tempting. The green one is also fine, but I#M not a fan of eye patches