Mojo Fun: New for 2022

[Psittacoraptor]

We're here to discuss a hobby, we don't need to be here. If users don't want to engage in a negative atmosphere, or don't bother to write positive comments when they'd only be drowned out by more negativity, that's completely understandable. I joined because I was looking for a place to discuss a new hobby, and among others, it was the wonderful photos in RobinGoodfellow's collection thread that made me find this forum. So, if he decided to no longer participate, it would be a great loss but also understandable.

I've only been here for a couple of months, but I've already noticed the negative atmosphere impacting my interactions here. My posts have become increasingly snarkier in the thread about a certain brand that some seem to dislike with such intensity that you wonder if it killed their dog or something. The endless negative tirades just become tiresome to read, and you wonder where the joy in this hobby is for collectors when their first instinct seems to be to fervently look for things to complain about. Criticism is part of any hobby where you purchase products, and it's always good to - constructively and within reason - criticize companies that want your money. But to me it appears like some are just waiting for new announcements only so they can search for all the faults and inaccuracies they could possibly find. That's not criticism anymore, it's just complaining. Furthermore, not very rarely is personal bias paraded as absolute fact, and few things annoy me more than that.

In the end, for the problem is that my postings have become influenced by the negativity here. I always try to be positive, I try to see the good in addition to whatever might be divisive or, I shudder typing this word now, inaccurate. We are discussing TOYS here, it's not that serious. No one wants so many (potential) users being driven away that DTF ends up being an echo chamber of the same few users complaining about dinosaur toys to each other, no? A little more balance would do this place good. A bit more positivity in-between the tidal waves of criticism.

[CARN0TAURUS]

I'll be buying this mammoth, I think it compares favorably to the ones currently available from Safari, CollectA, Carnegie, and Papo.  Firstly, it has a very natural, graceful, and believable pose.  The proportions of the figure look really good and the shape of the head looks amazing.  The ears are placed perfectly and are not too small or too big, the lower jaw is spot on, the head properly connects to the body and with the correct angle of inclination for the pose that's being illustrated.  The trunk is also very proportionately done and also in a natural believable pose.  The placement and proportion (thickness vs length) of the legs also looks correct.  I also like the way the fur is sculpted with good texture and not overdone.  The colors also seem to be applied well with a good blend that gives the figure a realistic look. 

I can see justification for the tusk argument.  That said, this figure is so strong in so many areas that it would be a shame not to mention all that it has going for it.  Every single company I mentioned above has some major issue with their mammoth, if it's not one thing it's another or multiple others;  the shape and placement of ears,  shape of the head, placement eyes or bulging oversized eyes, disproportionate bodies, strange unrealistic (not elephant like) poses, legs splayed out at odd angles, overdone texture on the fur, head at odd angle to the body, trunks looking like snakes or with overdone tip that looks like an anaconda getting ready to swallow prey, the list goes on and on.  Even the Carnegie figure which I've preferred over the years has some proportional issues that this mammoth doesn't appear to have.  I love the way this figure looks in the photos and I can't wait to get my hands on one.  I realize I'm probably an exception on this forum because it is a dinosaur forum but I might own almost as many prehistoric mammals as I do dinosaurs.  It has always fascinated me that our ancestors lived amongst these magnificent creatures.  As much as I love dinosaurs, I've never been able to dismiss my connection to prehistoric mammals as a human being. 

I've been praying for Eofauna to make a wolly mammoth ever since they released their magnificent Steppe Mammoth.  It's been what 5-6 years?  This is a very nice consolation prize for me and it'll probably cost a lot less than a new Eofauna wolly mammoth would.  Plus I sincerely agree with the poster that said this tusk thing is a fixable issue, I look forward to seeing this mammoth next to all my other mammoth figures.  I'm confident it's going to displace my beloved Carnegie as number one in the herd.  At the very least until Eofauna decides to make one and even then it'll still be one of the top 3 mammoth figures in my collection.

[Gwangi]

Well said @CARN0TAURUS.

I don't know if I'll get this mammoth or not, because I do have the Carnegie and I'm trying to limit myself to one representative per species, at least as far as prehistoric mammals go. But this one is tempting, it has an expressive face that I've never seen on a mammoth toy before. At the very least it's the first mammoth I've actually wanted in a long time. I'm looking forward to in-hand photos. Hopefully it lives up to the hype that it is generating from these promo pics.

[Fembrogon]

I'll concur that this is one of the nicest-looking mammoths I've seen in a while, enough so that I'd be tempted to get it. The tusk shapes are certainly important and need to be acknowledged, but everything else so far appears superior to most other mammoths currently on the market.

[terrorchicken]

This figure  is the closest Ive seen to looking like the Carnegie mammoth, its too bad about the tusks. Couldn't it stand in for another mammoth species?

I wonder if it would be an easy fix to just swap the tusks for the ones from a cheaper figure with correct tusks?

[The Prehistoric Traveler]

This figure  is the closest Ive seen to looking like the Carnegie mammoth, its too bad about the tusks. Couldn't it stand in for another mammoth species?

I wonder if it would be an easy fix to just swap the tusks for the ones from a cheaper figure with correct tusks?

Boiling water or a blowdryer to softly reshape them will be allot easier, that's what i'm going to do.

[CARN0TAURUS]

This figure  is the closest Ive seen to looking like the Carnegie mammoth, its too bad about the tusks. Couldn't it stand in for another mammoth species?

I wonder if it would be an easy fix to just swap the tusks for the ones from a cheaper figure with correct tusks?

Boiling water or a blowdryer to softly reshape them will be allot easier, that's what i'm going to do.

^^^THIS, just give me half an hour I'll give those tusks the full blown 'Kim Kardashian curve enhancement treatment'

[Duna]

I agree with @CARN0TAURUS That's is one of the best (for me, it's the best no doubt) woolly mammoth figure. The body, head, legs and neck is perfect, looks like it was alive, the coat which is so difficult to do properly is wonderful. I even like the colour a lot. No problem with the tusks, just place them in boiling water and position them as you want. I unpronated the Collecta plateosaurus hands so it looks much better now.
The only reason why I won't buy this mammooth (by the moment at least) is just because I'm waiting for Eofauna to do this species, and I will wait whatever it takes. I even have a place reserved for it.

[CARN0TAURUS]

I agree with @CARN0TAURUS That's is one of the best (for me, it's the best no doubt) woolly mammoth figure. The body, head, legs and neck is perfect, looks like it was alive, the coat which is so difficult to do properly is wonderful. I even like the colour a lot. No problem with the tusks, just place them in boiling water and position them as you want. I unpronated the Collecta plateosaurus hands so it looks much better now.
The only reason why I won't buy this mammooth (by the moment at least) is just because I'm waiting for Eofauna to do this species, and I will wait whatever it takes. I even have a place reserved for it.

I do that too, only buying what I think is the best version of each type of animal.  The exception is giant sized figures, due to space limitations imposed by my wife, LOL.  So even if I really like the look of the PNSO Ceratosaurus, or the Rebor Sabertooth, those figures will never become part of my small collection.

I do make an exception to this rule though but only with the following animals because they were my favorites as a kid.

Allosaurus: I own the safari, the collecta, two different favorite, and the beautiful PNSO

Wolly Mammoth: I own the Carnegie, the safari, the Papo, the Mojo, the favorite, and the collecta, and I would love to buy an invicta at some point.

Smilodon: I own the old Mojo, the safari, the collecta, two different Papos, the favorite, and I'm going to buy the new Mojo plus would love to get the invicta and the old safari one from 1990s. 

So both wolly mammoth and smilodon are my most collected figures.  I might not be an expert on wolly mammoth the animal but I do have many of the figures so when I say that I'm excited about this one, it's not just hot air.  This new mojo looks really really good to me.  I'm going to stop short of saying it's the best one made to date until I see it in hand but I'm very much looking forward to this one!  Hopefully everything dinosaur will get them in soon

EDIT:  Oops, I can't believe I forgot to mention that I own several Carnotaurus figures as well with it being my favorite dinosaur, LOL.  I have the safari, the little Papo, deluxe CollectA, the Rebor version of the movie "Dinosaur" crimson king, I want to eventually get the Carnegie and I so far have refused to buy the PNSO because the skin looks ridiculous.  My favorite is the Rebor because that film is the reason why I fell in love with Carnotaurus.  But, the best one I own is probably the CollectA from an scientifically accurate POV even though the scales are also a bit overdone.  I look forward to getting the Carnegie at some point. 

[terrorchicken]

This figure  is the closest Ive seen to looking like the Carnegie mammoth, its too bad about the tusks. Couldn't it stand in for another mammoth species?

I wonder if it would be an easy fix to just swap the tusks for the ones from a cheaper figure with correct tusks?

Boiling water or a blowdryer to softly reshape them will be allot easier, that's what i'm going to do.

^^^THIS, just give me half an hour I'll give those tusks the full blown 'Kim Kardashian curve enhancement treatment'

yeh but Ive done this with other figures and it doesn't always work. Sometimes it stays in place but other times it eventually goes back to its old shape.  It would be alot less work though.

[TheCambrianCrusader]

Ooh its been awhile since I liked a woolly mammoth sculpt. Shame about the curvature of the tusks, tho like others said its a pretty easy fix and nothing as egregious as a naked velociraptor. Definitely a step up from mojo's usual figures. Interesting how mojo's mammals always pique my interest but their dinosaurs usually end up being a bit of a disappointment.

[CARN0TAURUS]

This figure  is the closest Ive seen to looking like the Carnegie mammoth, its too bad about the tusks. Couldn't it stand in for another mammoth species?

I wonder if it would be an easy fix to just swap the tusks for the ones from a cheaper figure with correct tusks?

Boiling water or a blowdryer to softly reshape them will be allot easier, that's what i'm going to do.

^^^THIS, just give me half an hour I'll give those tusks the full blown 'Kim Kardashian curve enhancement treatment'

yeh but Ive done this with other figures and it doesn't always work. Sometimes it stays in place but other times it eventually goes back to its old shape.  It would be alot less work though.

I do have a back up plan Idea if the hot water doesn't work but I don't plan on using a donor because that still leaves me with a mammoth with straight tusks.  It involves making a small 1/2" long incision on the bottom edge of the tusk, a very small drill bit, and a straightened out heavy duty paper clip.  Once the paper clip is positioned inside the tusk I should be able to permanently shape the tusk the way I want it and then seal the incision with putty and paint over it.  If that doesn't work, I'll cut the tusk clean off bore out the holes and build some new tusks out of wood or plastic sprue. 

[Duna]

I do have a back up plan Idea if the hot water doesn't work but I don't plan on using a donor because that still leaves me with a mammoth with straight tusks.

Don't worry, boiling water usually works very well for such thin amount of plastic. But if you want to leave them absolutely perfect, after softening the plastic in hot water, just wrap the tusks in thick wire, preferably aluminum based (like when fixing bonsai's branches), position them as wanted and leave it to cold. It works perfectly.

[bettashark]

Not gonna lie, I'm very excited for the coelacanth. The scales are in nice rows on this one, which puts it a notch up from Safari, although I have 2 of those already. Probably going to get 2 of these as well and do a similar customization to depict the 2 living species.
It would be nice to get a wider range of coelacanth species, but for a mainstream brand that mostly markets to kids, it's probably not worth producing lots of relatively obscure strange fish, but one fairly famous strange fish will sell decently.

[terrorchicken]

I do have a back up plan Idea if the hot water doesn't work but I don't plan on using a donor because that still leaves me with a mammoth with straight tusks.  It involves making a small 1/2" long incision on the bottom edge of the tusk, a very small drill bit, and a straightened out heavy duty paper clip.  Once the paper clip is positioned inside the tusk I should be able to permanently shape the tusk the way I want it and then seal the incision with putty and paint over it.  If that doesn't work, I'll cut the tusk clean off bore out the holes and build some new tusks out of wood or plastic sprue.

sounds a tad out of my skill level lol but if you do it I hope it works! Duna's method sounds like a good solution as well. Theres also the possibility that if enough of us complain Mojo will correct the tusks in future releases. They've changed the paint apps for many figures so who knows.

[ZoPteryx]

Not bad, not bad at all!  The Woolly Mammoth is definitely one of the better ones on the market in this price range, and the Latimeria is nice too.  That said, I'll probably pass on these as I'm satisfied with my current versions.

[CARN0TAURUS]

I do have a back up plan Idea if the hot water doesn't work but I don't plan on using a donor because that still leaves me with a mammoth with straight tusks.  It involves making a small 1/2" long incision on the bottom edge of the tusk, a very small drill bit, and a straightened out heavy duty paper clip.  Once the paper clip is positioned inside the tusk I should be able to permanently shape the tusk the way I want it and then seal the incision with putty and paint over it.  If that doesn't work, I'll cut the tusk clean off bore out the holes and build some new tusks out of wood or plastic sprue.

sounds a tad out of my skill level lol but if you do it I hope it works! Duna's method sounds like a good solution as well. Theres also the possibility that if enough of us complain Mojo will correct the tusks in future releases. They've changed the paint apps for many figures so who knows.

Do we know if this image is a production version or a prototype? 

[Takama]

I added an important message to the First post.

Basicaly the Coelacanth is not a part of the Prehistoric line up

However, should i leave it included in that post? remove it?

[Shonisaurus]

I understand that the coelacanth should be added, although it exists today, there is news of species of this fish from the Devonian and it has not changed much since then, so it falls within prehistoric animals, in this case fortunately existing to this day , as is the lamprey to give another example.

On the other hand I know that I am late, that woolly mammoth is an achievement of improvement with respect to its counterpart deinotherium, it is very realistic and competes in genius with its counterparts from Safari Carnegie or Eofauna in this case mammoth trogonterii to give two examples. The texture of the hair on the body has made it great Mojo.

On the other hand, the coelacanth is fine but I prefer its Safari or Favorite counterparts, they look better finished.

[TheCambrianCrusader]

I understand that the coelacanth should be added, although it exists today, there is news of species of this fish from the Devonian and it has not changed much since then, so it falls within prehistoric animals, in this case fortunately existing to this day , as is the lamprey to give another example.

On the other hand I know that I am late, that woolly mammoth is an achievement of improvement with respect to its counterpart deinotherium, it is very realistic and competes in genius with its counterparts from Safari Carnegie or Eofauna in this case mammoth trogonterii to give two examples. The texture of the hair on the body has made it great Mojo.

On the other hand, the coelacanth is fine but I prefer its Safari or Favorite counterparts, they look better finished.

I definitely agree, this mammoth looks really good despite the tusks. Honestly it almost rivals the carnegie and I like it even more than the wild safari version.