Best PNSO?

[CARN0TAURUS]

I have 46 altogether, 14 of which are minis.

46? Wow, I might not have 46 total dinosaurs, LOL.  That's a lot of PNSO pieces, even the minis go for like $8 a pop!  Congratulations on the collection!  I have 3 of them ATM but I'm interested in picking up at least another 5-6 more that I really really like. My wife must've told family and friends to get me Amazon gift cards for X-mas because I got 5 cards.  So it looks like I'll be picking up a handful of new figures on their next 20% off sale.  On my short list are the Olorotitan, the Lambeosaurus, the corythosaurus, the pachycephalosaurus, the parasaurolophus, and the ankylosaurus.

I'm on the fence about the yutyrannus but I might get that one too.

[Skorpio V.]

Here's mine

Lemme justify my choices:
Ankylosaurus - S: Cute and accurate.
Atopodentatus - S: Great colour scheme, super interesting animal.
Chungkingosaurus (Vinyl) - S: Imposing form factor. Love the blue!
Cretoxyrhina - S: Basic but charming. The kind of rusty gold and the big, round eyes makes it irresistible.
Miragaia - S: Wears orange and yellow with graceful swag. The plates are so captivating.
Pinacosaurus - S: Incredible paint concept that turned out decently. Armour layout is cool too.
Spinosaurus (Latest Essien) - S: The definitive Spino thus far (off-topic but the newer Schleich one is actually my 2nd favourite).
Triceratops (Latest Doyle) - My favourite triceratops specimen! Plus, he has gainz.

Chungkingosaurus (w/ Yangchuanosaurus) - A: Cute! Love the airbrushed look.
Dunkleosteus - A: Looks super fluid, the paint scheme works really well too.
Huanghetitan - A: Hefty boi. The best titanosaur that works in scale with 1:35-1:40.
Huayangosaurus - A: Cute! Pulls off the wolf in sheep's clothing with the plates and shoulder spikes.
Iguanodon - A: Definitely the best iguanodon for bauplan, it's just the head. Also aren't the hands supposed to be pronated the way they are?
Lambeosaurus - A: My favourite hadrosaurid! Legs are kinda spindly though.
Livyatan - A: Would be an S if it weren't for the seamlines. Definitely my top priority in the A tier, though.
Machairoceratops - A: Pretty much the perfect base ceratopsian body outside the tail that leans toward the longer side but that's entirely excusable. The paint is kinda basic in-hand.
Olorotitan - A: Elegant! The neck, tail, and lower legs throw me off a little; not sure why.
Parasaurolophus - A: CHONCCY. I do think I'd like it better if the Olorotitan and this switched each other's bodies past the neck. Speaking of neck, we know it doesn't have enough.
Sinoceratops (Baby) - A: CUTE! Love the airbrushed-looking white-pink bits.
Sinoceratops - A: Doubt this'll ever be topped for another Sinoceratops.
Tyrannosaurus (Baby) - A: CUTE!!! Need I say more?
Tyrannosaurus (Latest Wilson) - A: The bloody scales!!! Still waiting on a definitive rex.
Yangchuanosaurus (w/ Chungkingosaurus) - Again, doubt this'll ever be topped for this genus.
Yutyrannus - A: Legs are kinda wonky and the skull a little deep, but the best Yuty for now.

Borealopelta - B: Paint is kinda lackluster in-hand, really big for this genus.
Ceratosaurus - B: Big-un, a bit unwieldy though.
Carcharodontosaurus - B: Body holds up well despite looking a little saggy. Skull doesn't.
Carnotaurus - B: Complaints we all know of, but still way more dynamic than CollectA's.
Kronosaurus - B: Could be bigger. Taking the tail risk was admirable.
Megalodon (Patton) - B: Cute! Could be bigger.
Microraptors - B: Like both equally.
Shantungosaurus - B: Underrated. Could have better paint.
Triceratops (Vinyl) - B: More appealing outline than the first Doyle.
Tsintaosaurus - B: Great body, headcrest still looks nice in spite of inaccuracy
Tylosaurus - B: Seams are less noticeable than the Livyatan, but this colour scheme is bland.

Tiers C-F

Spoiler

Allosaurus - C: The body and pelvis area looks oddly saggy. Visibly Shrink-wrapped skull.
Basilosaurus - C: Seams and reptilian head hold this back some.
Giganotosaurus - C: Over-elongated skull and unstreamlined outline. Great colours and base, however.
Gigantoraptor - C: That seething smirk. Eek. The neck is on the thin side Could be bigger.
Mamenchisauruses (grouping all three here, in hindsight) - Fairly boring. Vanilla posed, generic paint. Either rough or plastic-y looking.
Mandschurosaurus - C: In need of a power wash and a chiropractor.
Mosasaurus - C: Proportions a little wonky to me, as well as integument that (relative to their Tylo) I would've traded for smoothness at this scale.
Ophthalmosaurus - C: Not a stand-out honestly.
Pachyrhinosaurus - C: Larger scales look too uniform and neat on the body. I like the speculative keratin though!
Sauropelta - C: I prefer the head and feet to the Safari sculpt but the posture and armour layout holds the Safari at the top spot!
Torvosaurus - C: Though still the definitive figure for it's genus, its mouth looks too straight which bothers me more than the crests which I find plausible. In hindsight I would probably bump this one up a tier to B; I think it has the best theropod body sculpt. The shorter legs seem in-line with some skeletals I've seen. Could be bigger.
Tuojiangosaurus - C: I honestly liked this guy at first, but I understand the disdain now. Back definitely not straight enough, with the weird paint apps.
Tyrannosaurus (Vinyl) - C: If only the posture was better and the skull was less stylized, this would be the tyrannosaurus in my eyes. Even with its posture, it stands out on a shelf. In fact I'd probably bump this up to B tier.
Tyrannosaurus (Andrea) - C: Broken legs. Next dinosaur.

Amargasaurus - D: Jar Jar Binks head, rather skinny. Other than that, I like his outline.
Corythosaurus - D: Again, great body ruined by an ugly head.
Eurhinosaurus - D: Went off by others in saying it has wrong proportions. The paint is gorgeous though.
Pachycephalosaurus - D: Very obscured paint in-hand, and needs a lot more beef.
Triceratops (Original Doyle) - D: Very rounded outline. I commend them for going with the filaments even if it's not in-favour any longer.

Dakosaurus - E: Really not a fan of metriorhynchids, but that's just me.
Helicoprion - E: Ugly head, yet again.
Shastasaurus - E: Another unappealing head. Looks like the Pale Lady with a tinge of smurf.
"Nanotyrannus" - E: Needs longer legs, some feathering, and if they're depicting an adult "nanotyrannus" then I'd imagine the eyes (which I've previously complimented for being bigger) would be smaller. If it depicts a juvenile tyrannosaurus. Like the torvosaurus, his mouth is also rather straight.
Qianzhousaurus - E: Integument problems, not only with the scales but feathers, I feel, would've been favourable as they're present on every other PNSO qianzhosaurus reconstruction from their mini to their bust to their artwork to their statues.
Spinops - E: I like the airbrushed look of the paint again as well as the skull, but he looks saggy with vague integument. I do hope they do another ceratopsian in this bowing pose with a forelimb positioned like it is here.
Spinosaurus (Original Essien) - E: Scraggly and old-looking. The light drybrush/wash (I can't really tell) makes him look dry which I dislike given his natural environment.
Stegosauruses - Both seem to have outdated posture from what my eye can see. I like the body paint of the original though. The way the hips jut out on the newest one appeals to me as well.
Yangchuanosaurus - A downgrade relative to their Museum Line version.

Euhelopus - F: I severely hope it's rearing up to get some food because if he's rearing up to ward off predators then he might as well just give up.
Lufengosaurus - F: As much as I hate to dish on a prosauropod figure because of how few there are, this one is a shrink-wrapped paint-app mishap.
Megalodon (Vinyl) - F: It's better than the Safari one, if it's any consolation.
Tarbosaurus - F: With perspective, it's MUCH MUCH MUCH better when viewed from behind. From his right hand-side, it looks like his leg is warping around him weirdly. From the front however... In other news, it's skull is horrendous. Really pointy. I get the love of the bulk, but his gastralia is at a 45 degree angle which I find off-putting. Andrea and Wilson wear the bulky appearance way better, keeping them looking streamlined. Lastly, he has ugly feet. Where most of PNSO's feet are done really well, Chuanzi's look's Papo-esque. Not that Papo's feet are bad per se, but it's off putting here; not as birdlike.
Tyrannosaurus (Original Wilson) - F: Again, not very streamlined and bumpy. Akin to a kid's sandbox.

[close]

That was rather long-winded. Had to air out my scorn for Chuanzi too.

[Duck]

@Skorpio V.  Yeah, I did think the Tarbosaurus looks a bit distorted, especially the head and legs. I am reconsidering adding it to my list.

[Psittacoraptor]

@Duck there's a short comparison between the two versions of the GR Toys Carcharodontosaurus in this video:

https://youtu.be/eb8j7N0oavQ?t=577

One last bit of advice I'd like to add: Listen to your gut and personal taste. While the input of other collectors is valuable, particularly when it comes to narrowing down choices in such a large lineup, we all have our individual biases and tastes. That influences how we judge these models, and you shouldn't base your choices solely on that. Some like lips, others don't. Some place higher value on accuracy over artistic quality (paint application, sculpt detail etc.), and vice versa. There are models that are highly praised by many collectors but I find ugly as sin (e.g. Eofauna Giganotosaurus & Triceratops). I would have almost bought the Giga in the beginning when this hobby was still overwhelming and I was basing most of my purchases on the ratings and reviews of others, but now that I know what I like and look for in a figure, I am very glad I didn't.

Watch reviews, look at photos of the real thing, not promo images, and make up your own mind. The figures are going to sit on your shelf, you have to like them.

[Duna]

Also kinda on topic idk, what color variant should I get for the GR toys Carcharodontosaurus?
I like the blue one, but it looks bruised for some reason.

Though some people say it looks "rotten" or similar, I think it looks incredible. Here you can see how it dwarfs any other company by its side, I spent hours of the first days just handling it and looking at the numerous layers of paint. If I had the money, I would buy both. But personal tastes are as individual as we are. Thankfully there are video reviews and I love watching at them. I chose many figures this way, and if I hadn't seen the comparison between PNSO and GR Toys, I would have gone with the cheaper PNSO (I finally paid almost the same with the sale on the GR) and after the review, I just listed the things I liked from one figure and the other. And the decision was made.
Just have a look at some reviews and you can made up your mind.

This is the place where I display mine on the cabinet:

[Halichoeres]

I have 46 altogether, 14 of which are minis.

46? Wow, I might not have 46 total dinosaurs, LOL.  That's a lot of PNSO pieces, even the minis go for like $8 a pop!  Congratulations on the collection!  I have 3 of them ATM but I'm interested in picking up at least another 5-6 more that I really really like. My wife must've told family and friends to get me Amazon gift cards for X-mas because I got 5 cards.  So it looks like I'll be picking up a handful of new figures on their next 20% off sale.  On my short list are the Olorotitan, the Lambeosaurus, the corythosaurus, the pachycephalosaurus, the parasaurolophus, and the ankylosaurus.

I'm on the fence about the yutyrannus but I might get that one too.

Thanks! I've been collecting for 6 years and buying PNSO for at least 5. I live pretty simply and this is my only expensive hobby. And I live in a city with good transit...not having to own a car frees up a fair amount of disposable income!

@Psittacoraptor that's good advice! We're all going to prioritize different things.

It seems to me that you guys seem to highly disagree.

Case in point! 

[SRF]

Making a tier list is indeed fun. It's also nice to see how varied the opinions on these figures are on this forum.

Here is my tier list. First, I started with only the figures that I own right now, which are only 12 of the ones that are in the tier list (I have the original Wilson v1, but I count the v2/3 option that is available for this tier list as a separate release).

After that I've added the figures that I considered buying, but simply haven't bought yet for whatever reason. For this tier list I skipped any figure that I haven't even considered purchasing, because it wouldn't feel fair to put them below the Nanotyrannus. 



To be in S tier for me, I have to own the figure myself. This could well mean that the new Doyle and the Stegosaurus, which are my highest priorities right now, could well be moved to S tier when I get them. The figures that are in B tier are still on my wish list, everything that is in C or below I probably won't get anymore (except for the Torvosaurus, because I have that one already). But never say never.

[Duna]

Here's mine! I made a bit funnier.

I didn't put all of them because some of them I don't know how to classify (for good or for bad). Love the different opinions!

[Psittacoraptor]

Alright, I'll play.

[Duck]

Also kinda on topic idk, what color variant should I get for the GR toys Carcharodontosaurus?
I like the blue one, but it looks bruised for some reason.

Though some people say it looks "rotten" or similar, I think it looks incredible. Here you can see how it dwarfs any other company by its side, I spent hours of the first days just handling it and looking at the numerous layers of paint. If I had the money, I would buy both. But personal tastes are as individual as we are. Thankfully there are video reviews and I love watching at them. I chose many figures this way, and if I hadn't seen the comparison between PNSO and GR Toys, I would have gone with the cheaper PNSO (I finally paid almost the same with the sale on the GR) and after the review, I just listed the things I liked from one figure and the other. And the decision was made.
Just have a look at some reviews and you can made up your mind.

This is the place where I display mine on the cabinet:

Well that seals it lol. What an incredible piece of art.

[Sim]

Seeing some of you put Domingo very low, why? I get the scales are a bit big and the tail base could be beefier but overall it's way better then Andrea or something.

I find Domingo's scales really ugly.  The base of its tail is also too curved, it should be stiff.  Additionally I find its pose off-putting.  I've owned this figure so I'm not just going off of photos/videos.  It's as bad as Andrea in my opinion.


I found myself not agreeing with a number of things Skorpio V. said but I'm only going to reply to some.

Iguanodon - A: Definitely the best iguanodon for bauplan, it's just the head. Also aren't the hands supposed to be pronated the way they are?

No, as I mentioned earlier footprints show Iguanodon's hands weren't so pronated.

Yutyrannus - A: Legs are kinda wonky and the skull a little deep, but the best Yuty for now.

The legs are fine, and the skull is too when compared to Scott Hartman's restoration of it.

Tylosaurus - B: Seams are less noticeable than the Livyatan, but this colour scheme is bland.

I respect your opinion on the colour scheme but I really like it.   The only thing stopping me from getting the PNSO Tylosaurus is that in a video review I saw its forked tongue isn't painted at the forked end.

Allosaurus - C: The body and pelvis area looks oddly saggy. Visibly Shrink-wrapped skull.

It looks fine in person.  Some shrink-wrapping of the head occurs normally in some reptiles.

Shastasaurus - E: Another unappealing head. Looks like the Pale Lady with a tinge of smurf.

You mean Himalayasaurus instead of Shastasaurus.

"Nanotyrannus" - E: Needs longer legs, some feathering, and if they're depicting an adult "nanotyrannus" then I'd imagine the eyes (which I've previously complimented for being bigger) would be smaller. If it depicts a juvenile tyrannosaurus. Like the torvosaurus, his mouth is also rather straight.
Qianzhousaurus - E: Integument problems, not only with the scales but feathers, I feel, would've been favourable as they're present on every other PNSO qianzhosaurus reconstruction from their mini to their bust to their artwork to their statues.

I disagree about these two needing feathers.  They both existed in warm ecosystems.  For the Nanotyrannus I think you forgot to complete the second last sentence and I'm curious about what you were going to say?

Stegosauruses - Both seem to have outdated posture from what my eye can see. I like the body paint of the original though. The way the hips jut out on the newest one appeals to me as well.

To me their posture looks fine, it doesn't look outdated.

Megalodon (Vinyl) - F: It's better than the Safari one, if it's any consolation.

I don't like this PNSO megalodon or the Safari version, but I will argue the Safari is better as its integument isn't liney nonsense.

[...]
Tarbosaurus - F: With perspective, it's MUCH MUCH MUCH better when viewed from behind. From his right hand-side, it looks like his leg is warping around him weirdly. From the front however... In other news, it's skull is horrendous. Really pointy. I get the love of the bulk, but his gastralia is at a 45 degree angle which I find off-putting. Andrea and Wilson wear the bulky appearance way better, keeping them looking streamlined. Lastly, he has ugly feet. Where most of PNSO's feet are done really well, Chuanzi's look's Papo-esque. Not that Papo's feet are bad per se, but it's off putting here; not as birdlike.
[...]

That was rather long-winded. Had to air out my scorn for Chuanzi too.

Er no, from its right side its leg looks like it should.   Its skull is fine, its head looks beautiful in my opinion.  The gastralia look right on it too.  And I disagree on its feet looking ugly, they look appropriate for a giant reptile predator, they look like they can support and move its massive weight.  To me they look birdlike enough, reminiscent of ratite feet.

[Gothmog the Baryonyx]

This is how my rankings would go:



A few notes.
The first Wilson, (Not the first Tyrannosaurus, that one is better) looks like a hideous zombie to me and always had. I never wanted it. Had no desire to look upon it. The improvement is immense.
I love the Atopodentatus, probably my favourite.
I would have put the Miriagaia in the top category too as I absolutely adore it, but had to deduct a point for having scales larger than that of known Stegosaur integument.
I do not like the Carnotaurus and I'm not sure why I bought it, as it is much too ugly, especially for the price.
The big Chungkingosaurus loses points for hugeness, as does Nick the Ceratosaurus, but I also find Nick too monstrous looking anyway.

[Lynx]

Updated list!

[ZoPteryx]

This looks fun, here's my tier list.  I tried my best to balance accuracy, aesthetic, shelf presence, cost, and stability.  Of course, a lot of it just boils down to personal preference.

[Duck]

Thanks for the help everyone!

[Skorpio V.]

Shastasaurus - E: Another unappealing head. Looks like the Pale Lady with a tinge of smurf.

You mean Himalayasaurus instead of Shastasaurus.

My bad lol.

"Nanotyrannus" - E: Needs longer legs, some feathering, and if they're depicting an adult "nanotyrannus" then I'd imagine the eyes (which I've previously complimented for being bigger) would be smaller. If it depicts a juvenile tyrannosaurus. Like the torvosaurus, his mouth is also rather straight.
Qianzhousaurus - E: Integument problems, not only with the scales but feathers, I feel, would've been favourable as they're present on every other PNSO qianzhosaurus reconstruction from their mini to their bust to their artwork to their statues.

I disagree about these two needing feathers.  They both existed in warm ecosystems.  For the Nanotyrannus I think you forgot to complete the second last sentence and I'm curious about what you were going to say?

Whoops! "If it depicts a juvenile tyrannosaurus..." then I'd be a little more fine with it. I don't have it in-hand, but it seems to have the same-sized eyes as Wilson and Andrea which is a neat touch.

Stegosauruses - Both seem to have outdated posture from what my eye can see. I like the body paint of the original though. The way the hips jut out on the newest one appeals to me as well.

To me their posture looks fine, it doesn't look outdated.

Haven't been keeping up too much with stegosaurus news to be frank, but Matt Dempsey's latest skeletals seem to err closer to the regular, less horizontal posture (with his holotype skeletal being actually very close to PNSO's newest one). These came two months after the revised Biber was announced, and he has the figure and sung its praises!

[...]
Tarbosaurus - F: With perspective, it's MUCH MUCH MUCH better when viewed from behind. From his right hand-side, it looks like his leg is warping around him weirdly. From the front however... In other news, it's skull is horrendous. Really pointy. I get the love of the bulk, but his gastralia is at a 45 degree angle which I find off-putting. Andrea and Wilson wear the bulky appearance way better, keeping them looking streamlined. Lastly, he has ugly feet. Where most of PNSO's feet are done really well, Chuanzi's look's Papo-esque. Not that Papo's feet are bad per se, but it's off putting here; not as birdlike.
[...]

That was rather long-winded. Had to air out my scorn for Chuanzi too.

Er no, from its right side its leg looks like it should.   Its skull is fine, its head looks beautiful in my opinion.  The gastralia look right on it too.  And I disagree on its feet looking ugly, they look appropriate for a giant reptile predator, they look like they can support and move its massive weight.  To me they look birdlike enough, reminiscent of ratite feet.

Chuanzi's skull is... interesting. It gets more wide than most reconstructions, but it doesn't round out, making it triangular. Furthermore, it lacks definition past the eyes, resulting in a direct Y shape. The end result is... decent at some angles, strange at others. As for the right leg, it's difficult to explain myself for that one but it's pretty minor. Gastralia in restorations I've seen typically keep it more or less parallel with the spine; but what I really want to get out of this is something explaining how gastralia works with weight gain.

P.S. Happy New Year to those celebrating now!

[Mellow Stego]

I'm definitely seeing a trend with the ankylosaurus being on everybody's top (or near) of the lists.
Might make for a great figure to start with.

[SRF]

I'm definitely seeing a trend with the ankylosaurus being on everybody's top (or near) of the lists.
Might make for a great figure to start with.

Especially the new repainted version. My Ankylosaurus is the more dusty/grey version, which is much less appealing but still it's in my A tier. The newest one would be in S tier for me.

[Leyster]

Yutyrannus - A: Legs are kinda wonky and the skull a little deep, but the best Yuty for now.

The legs are fine, and the skull is too when compared to Scott Hartman's restoration of it.

It is really not, probably for articulation reasions. It's also too small compared to the body.

The Safari one is better in this regard.

[Sim]

Hmm, as far as I can see the PNSO Yutyrannus looks okay compared to the restored skeletons by well everyone except Ashley Patch.