Controversial opinions on dinosaur toys

[Sim]

To say that Haolonggood only exists to compete with PNSO feels unfair.  You need passion, interest and love to make good prehistoric animal figures, and Haolonggood has that.  Haolonggood has been making prehistoric animal figures with some of the best paintjobs there are with a distinctive style that's their own.  The prices their recent products have are also extremely generous.  Everyone can make mistakes in reconstructing prehistoric animals, Safari, CollectA, Battat, Eofauna, PNSO and especially Schleich, Papo and Mattel have all made mistakes in their figures at certain times.  Also how often is there a giant 1:35 scale sauropod figure, among non-action figures?  Eofauna has refused to make their sauropods that big, and Haolonggood is about to reveal something unique: a 1:35 modern version of Apatosaurus!

[Bread]

I think that PNSO figures have more personality than the Haolongood figures. I think they're very nice, but something about them says "Let's do what PNSO is doing" that feels...eh...soulless? They kind of showed out of nowhere on my radar. I don't know the history behind them or presume to know much except for what I've seen here, but they seem to exist solely to compete for our attention. That's why Ouranosaurus doesn't have the thumb spikes. PNSO would have given them the thumb spikes.

Here we go... Okay, so a company comes out of nowhere and is seen as "they're copying a well-known company favored by many."

Do we not remember the time at which PNSO just exploded out of nowhere to which we received plentiful models?

Gotta disagree about the "Haolonggood didn't get something right but PNSO would." Can't really say that when PNSO have done the same with similar instances.

[EmperorDinobot]

Good point, @Bread . PNSO kind of...popped up too.

Mind you, I only have very few PNSO figures, and no Haolongood. I'm merely assessing you from what y'all have reviewed, and the pictures I have seen in other places.

[ceratopsian]

Not so much "out of nowhere". Vampiredesign mentioned Longgu as a new brand way back in autumn 2020. And of course in general we hear little of what's happening in China where our hobby is concerned. Mostly we just see the resulting releases.

[Remko]

Also how often is there a giant 1:35 scale sauropod figure, among non-action figures?  Eofauna has refused to make their sauropods that big, and Haolonggood is about to reveal something unique: a 1:35 modern version of Apatosaurus!

This is just a weird thing of Eofauna.
I can understand that you won't make sauropods too big. But the difference in size for their Diplodocus in 1/35th and 1/40th is very small.

Standing length of their Diplodocus is now 62 cm (not including curve of the tail).
In 1/40th that is a 24.8 meter animal.
In 1/35th this would have been a 71 cm figure. Not much longer. That being said, it could slso just represent a slightly smaller individual of about 22 meter.

If they don't want to make big sauropod figures for economic or size reasons I can understand that, but they should do what other manufacturers like Collecta has done, and choose a very different scale like 1/70 to 1/100.

But 1/35 and 1/40 are too close together to really stand out. Animals (especially extinct ones) in these scales can easily be shown together as being about the same scale. Just representing smaller or larger individuals of a given species.

[Sim]

It's true that there's not much difference between 1:35 and 1:40, and I don't know what Eofauna's reasoning is for choosing 1:40 for their sauropods.  My point was that 1:35 giant sauropods are rarely made and that Haolonggood making one shows their care for this hobby.

I disagree that companies should choose a very different scale for their sauropods if they aren't going to make them in 1:35.  The closer to 1:35 the better, in my opinion, so the sauropods can be used with other animal types.  And I think CollectA's claims of "1:100" scale are wrong.  According to @Halichoeres, who I trust more than CollectA when it comes to scale, CollectA's Mamenchisaurus is 1:35-1:40 and CollectA's Ruyangosaurus is around 1:50.

[SidB]

It's true that there's not much difference between 1:35 and 1:40, and I don't know what Eofauna's reasoning is for choosing 1:40 for their sauropods.  My point was that 1:35 giant sauropods are rarely made and that Haolonggood making one shows their care for this hobby.

I disagree that companies should choose a very different scale for their sauropods if they aren't going to make them in 1:35.  The closer to 1:35 the better, in my opinion, so the sauropods can be used with other animal types.  And I think CollectA's claims of "1:100" scale are wrong.  According to @Halichoeres, who I trust more than CollectA when it comes to scale, CollectA's Mamenchisaurus is 1:35-1:40 and CollectA's Ruyangosaurus is around 1:50.

I agree, @Sim . I think that electing to issue all big Sauropods in a 1/60-1/70 scale would be a disastrous move, killing the interest in them for most collectors, as 1/35-1/40 catches the majority of dinosaur collectors, and 1/60-1/70 is just far too small for comparative purposes.

[Mellow Stego]

I think I prefer the JW Amber/Hammond collection over BoTM when it comes to poseability.

Don't get me wrong I still really love BoTM, I just think my Amber collection dinosaurs are just more fun to mess around with.

[Concavenator]

Well, Haolonggood has popped out recently. That's a fact. I simply don't understand why that should be any detrimental to the company? Everything "pops up" at some point, isn't that so? If anything, them being an emergent company would only be the more reason to support them. After all, even the greatest companies today are there because a bunch of people decided to support them on their early days. If these new companies don't receive any support whatsoever, what future can they expect? If a new company "pops out" and they make a nice figure of a species you want, why not give it a try? I mean, I'm no one to tell people what to do with their money, of course, but supporting new companies promotes a higher diversity of options in a particular market in the future. I don't think that's too bad. PNSO, Eofauna and BotM "popped up" in recent years too, and a lot of people are fond of them. We also have other brilliant new companies, like Wild Past, Mesozoic Life, Ancestors...

At the end of the day I feel like "popping out" or not feels just irrelevant, at least for me. I'd say the offered quality is what matters. If a new company appears and they are offering brilliant models, they have my attention. If a new company appears and they offer lacklustre models, they (at least initially) don't have my attention. Likewise, if a company I've known for a long time keeps doing a great job or even improves (like Safari and CollectA), they still have my attention. But if a company I've known for a long time gets sloppy (like Schleich and Papo) they will lose my attention, at least until they offer good stuff again (if you like Schleich and Papo that's great, these are just my views).

[Halichoeres]

It's true that there's not much difference between 1:35 and 1:40, and I don't know what Eofauna's reasoning is for choosing 1:40 for their sauropods.  My point was that 1:35 giant sauropods are rarely made and that Haolonggood making one shows their care for this hobby.

I disagree that companies should choose a very different scale for their sauropods if they aren't going to make them in 1:35.  The closer to 1:35 the better, in my opinion, so the sauropods can be used with other animal types.  And I think CollectA's claims of "1:100" scale are wrong.  According to @Halichoeres, who I trust more than CollectA when it comes to scale, CollectA's Mamenchisaurus is 1:35-1:40 and CollectA's Ruyangosaurus is around 1:50.

I appreciate the vote of confidence! I like my sauropods around 1:40, ideally, but I will say they are one of the few lineages where I will consider a smaller scale. I have some sauropods that really are 1:80 or 1:90, but only when no larger version is available.

[Remko]

When you compare the very few figures from Eofauna to the vast production of companies like Haulonggood and PNSO, I think Eofauna puts too much research and science in their creations, taking too long in development and not really standing out as super-fantastic-ultra-realistic.

Don't get me wrong, I love Eofauna's figures, especially their elephants, and have all of them, but despite their amazing effort in making something as scientifically accurate as possible will only speak to a very small portion of collectors.
Most of the collectors will just buy it because the species speaks to them or they like the figure, and it's in their price range.

So, in my opinion the amount of effort Eofauna puts in their figures will be lost on most of the collectors. Which is a shame.

Still hope they will do a proper 1:35th Paraceratherium/Indricotherium in the future. Although I somehow expect TNG might pick that one up soon as well.

[Sim]

I don't think Eofauna puts more research or science into their figures than e.g. Safari, PNSO, I think it's about the same for the three companies.  And the Eofauna Giganotosaurus was not as scientifically accurate as possible.

I find Eofauna figures, except the Giganotosaurus, look very good.  But unlike what I've seen thought, I don't think the very long time before they release a figure is because of production of the figure as Haolonggood has released many highly detailed sculpts with outstanding paintjobs in a small amount of time.  I also don't think it's because of how much science Eofauna puts into their figures because PNSO and Safari can release a greater number of highly accurate figures each year.

I think the reason there's such a long wait for Eofauna figures is because they are a small company and it takes time for them to invest in the production of a figure.  It's the same reason as for Wild Past.  I have to say the huge delay before an Eofauna or a Wild Past is frustrating for me, as is the lack of communication during that time.  But I accept what it is and if they make a figure I want, I get it, like I've just done with the Eofauna Diplodocus.

[SRF]

This one will probably be controversial: I find PNSO's new Tyrannosaurus Cameron an exciting release. And I like it much better than REBOR's Kiss.

[Carnoking]

Cameron is a handsome figure indeed, although perhaps a bit late coming in my book. Ill still probably get it down the line, if anything for that awesome Sue skull inclusion

[Sim]

I agree @SRF!  Cameron is the most anatomically accurate Tyrannosaurus figure I think, along with Andrea.  The lack of lips on it is probably incorrect I think, but it doesn't bother me as much as the dewclaws on Eofauna's Tyrannosaurus being too high up.

[Concavenator]

I'm literally comparing the Eofauna Tyrannosaurus next to Hartman's Sue skeletal and I fail to see how its dewclaws are too high up. I'm comparing them to this new PNSO and they're all in pretty much the same position as far as I can see. I'd say they're both fine in this regard.

When it comes to this new PNSO Tyrannosaurus, I actually think it's a good figure. I'd say it's among the 3 best (anatomically) Tyrannosaurus figures alongside Eofauna's and BotM's. But the latter 2 have lips, and this one doesn't, so in a genus with as much competence as this, even that's enough to place it behind Eofauna's and BotM's imo. I'd say this PNSO is better than Rebor's Kiss though (this might be a controversial opinion of mine). However, I'm not impressed by the paintjob considering its price (the teeth being particularly sloppy). The 2020 Wilson is far more nicely painted than this one I think. I also like its pose more. In any case, good news for those who wanted a new T.rex from them! I'll be waiting for other taxa that have yet to get a good figure instead (yeah, theropods included despite the flood of them from PNSO as of late, though other groups would also be welcome).

[EmperorDinobot]

I think I prefer the JW Amber/Hammond collection over BoTM when it comes to poseability.

Don't get me wrong I still really love BoTM, I just think my Amber collection dinosaurs are just more fun to mess around with.

Because they are a lot less tight. Sometimes the BOTM figures are so tight that it tests your patience. I usually just get my mom to blow-dry them for a  few minutes if I want to play with them.

[Lynx]

Maybe controversial opinion maybe not, but 2021/2020 (I forgot when PNSOs sudden rebirth took place) was the best time for the company. There was pretty fair diversity in the releases and each and every one was high quality. Maybe I'm just being over critical but I feel as if PNSO has degraded in quality since then. From just minor stuff like a lack of diversity in 2022/2023 to just poorer quality with eyes, teeth, claws, etc.

Again, I'm probably just being overly critical, but I do feel as if PNSO just doesn't meet the standards.

Then again, the bar is EXTREMELY high for the company. Same goes for the market in general these days.

[Stegotyranno420]

I agree generally with @Lynx , but I will say 2021-2023 definitely had some far better models, e.g Fergus, Jacque

[Faelrin]

@Lynx I do agree with you. You were also correct. It was 2020-2021. 2021 was also their most diverse year I think. Aside from nearly every major dinosaur group represented in some way, we got 3 fish (two Paleozoic I might add), marine reptiles, and even a Cenozoic whale. I also agree with you @Stegotyranno420. The Deinocheirus is definitely one of my favorites they've done period. The Acrocanthosaurus and others are still high on my wishlist too.