Guanlong vs. Lystrosaurus (Jurassic World: Chaos Theory, Epic Evolution Danger Pack by Mattel)

Recently, Mattel has started dabbling with small-figure two packs, first with an Eoraptor vs. Stegouros pairing and then with the set we’re looking at today, Guanlong vs. Lystrosaurus. I think these two packs are a fantastic idea and hope that Mattel will produce more of them in the future. With both these sets you’re getting smaller scale toys of some rather obscure animals. The pairings are a bit unusual, but I suppose in the Jurassic World universe they aren’t anachronistic.

The Lystrosaurus in this set is a repack, although it has a different scan code. This figure was included in another set with Beta the Velociraptor and Maisie the human. As such, it already has a review, so I won’t be covering it here. Suffice it to say that I like it enough that I bought the set that included it solely for the Lystrosaurus and I don’t mind having the second copy included in this set. If I thought Mattel would include this figure in another set I wouldn’t have bothered with the first. C’est la vie.

So that leaves us with the Guanlong to focus on, a rather exciting addition to Mattel’s menagerie that by itself makes the set worth purchasing even if you have the Lystrosaurus. There aren’t many figures of Guanlong available, with Toy Animal Wiki listing figures by Capcom, Safari, and GeoWorld but there is also one by Creative Beast Studio.

Guanlong is a genus of late Jurassic tyrannosauroid, and a fine example of the tyrannosauroid clade’s humble beginnings. Guanlong is estimated to have reached a length of 9.8-11.5’ (3-3.5 meters) with a weight of 276 lbs. (125 kg.). Mattel’s figure measures about 6”, including the curves in the neck and tail, and stands 2.75” tall to the top of its head. This puts it between 1/19 and 1/23 in scale, which I consider close enough to the 1/18 scale that Mattel usually aims for.

Perhaps due in part to its small size the Mattel Guanlong doesn’t have any action features, and the articulation is severely limited. The jaw can open, and the arms and legs can rotate around, that’s it. An articulated neck would have been nice but I’m not complaining and like the figure just the way it is. The proportions are acceptable by Mattel standards but there are still proportional inaccuracies here, with a shortening of virtually all its body parts and the typical enlarged feet. It’s still clearly a Guanlong though, and that’s what is most important.

Remarkably, the tiny teeth within the mouth are each individually sculpted and nicely pointed. Mattel has improved drastically when it comes to teeth, as the comparison pictures will prove. Nearly the entire body is also covered in feathers, with only the face, hands, and feet being bare. There is no sculpted detail on the belly, but it gives the illusion of being smooth with feathers. The feathers nicely follow the contours of the animal’s body. There’s a little feather crest on the nape and a few larger feathers on the arms. The feathering is overall conservative, making it appear believable. The face, hands, and feet are scaly.

The paintjob is rather naturalistic too, and perhaps was inspired by artwork by Gabriel Ugueto but not directly copied. The figure is almost entirely gray blue, but the flanks and legs are white with gray blue flecks. The head, crest, and throat are yellow and the gray blue patterning on the face and crest has a metallic sheen. The eyes are orange with unpainted pupils. The teeth are white, and the tongue is pink.

The Mattel Guanlong is a delightful little figure of a dinosaur you don’t see often enough. Its small size, fine details, feathered body, and naturalistic paintjob come together to make this one of the Mattel dinosaurs definitely worth seeking out. The set it comes in has been available for a while, but I only found my copy recently, and it’s only the second one I’ve seen available at all. The first copy I found had a terribly misaligned eye and I refused to buy it. Barring paint defects, if you find this set, don’t pass it up!