Review and photos by Faelrin, edited by Suspsy
It has been quite some time since I last reviewed something from the Beasts of the Mesozoic Raptor Series, having been caught up with Mattel’s Jurassic World figures. But with the next Beasts of the Mesozoic Kickstarter campaign only a few months away, it is time I come back and give some much needed attention to this precious line of highly articulated, highly detailed, and mostly scientifically accurate figures.
Nasutoceratops was a centrosaurine ceratopsian dinosaur that lived during the late Cretaceous in the south-western United States. Only having been described in 2013 this very unique looking dinosaur has gained a bit of popularity with toys released from both Safari and CollectA in 2015, and now from Mattel for their Jurassic World line.
Described by O. C. Marsh in 1879, Ceolurus is known only from a single skeleton found within the Morrison formation. This benign little theropod dates back to the late Jurassic where it rubbed shoulders with the likes of Allosaurus, Stegososaurus, and Brachiosaurus.
With Mattel taking over the Jurassic World franchise from Hasbro, it has produced better toys when you compare the two lines. As for the Imaginext vs the Playschool Heroes Jurassic World lines they come across much closer in quality and style. With their ridiculous big feet to aid in stability, and the simple, yet overdone accessories the Imaginext series is intended for preschoolers.
Out of all the weird and wonderful pterosaurs, Rhamphorhynchus is arguably the one we know the most about thanks to many gorgeous fossil specimens with preserved soft tissues such as beak tips, crests, and even brains as well as the wing membranes and the tail vane.
Review and photos by Faelrin, edited by Suspsy
The Destruct-A-Saurs line of figures is yet another reminder of how controversial the distribution for Mattel’s Jurassic World figures has been. They were originally to be exclusive to Toys R Us (in the United States at least), and with the stores closing nationwide, it is no surprise these would soon seem hard to get for those in the States, let alone elsewhere.
Review and photos by Faelrin, edited by Suspsy
I ended up picking up this Legacy Collection 6 pack during the 2018 holiday season while it was on clearance at Target, after waiting most of the year being indecisive about it. I’ve decided it’s definitely a nice little set of figures, even if most are repaints.
Review and photographs by dinoguy2, edited by Suspsy.
This toy is a monster. Is this the biggest dinosaur toy ever made? Probably not, but it’s definitely the biggest one I ever had. I still remember the first time I learned this existed. I saw the massive box, which had to be three feet long, on the bottom shelf of my local toy store, sometime back in 1988.
Well, a full year has gone by, and it’s safe to say that the Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom toy line has been a success. So much so that some of the toys have won the Toy Associations best Action Figures award for 2018, which is a lot more than Hasbro’s lazy attempts from back in 2015.
Review and photographs by dinoguy2, edited by Suspsy
One of the larger dinosaurs from Playskool’s Definitely Dinosaurs Series 2, the Parasaurolophus is really nice-looking for a preschool toy. Featuring similar articulation to the other large dinosaurs in the series, it has a hinge jointed neck for up and down head movement, swivel joints at all four limbs, and a rotatable tail .
Review and photographs by dinoguy2, edited by Suspsy
Playskool’s Definitely Dinosaurs line can be broken down into two basic categories: the larger, ride-able toys that came with saddles for their “Cavester” companions, and the smaller toys with minimal accessories. Pachycephalosaurus was part of the smaller assortment, and like the others, it was pretty basic, with only four real points of articulation.
Review and photographs by dinoguy2, edited by Suspsy.
Playskool released several series of individually carded dinosaurs between 1988 and 2000. These were very similar to the small vinyl toys released as Wendy’s kids meal promotions in 1988 and 1989, though the Wendy’s dinosaurs generally had different color schemes and didn’t include some of the carded species.
