Discovered in the Woburn Sands Formation in England and formally described in 1874, Craterosaurus was a relatively small stegosaur that lived during the Early Cretaceous some 113-112 million years ago.
Mattel released the first and so far only Craterosaurus toy in 2024 as part of their Danger Pack series.
In my last Takara Tomy review, I covered the ANIA Styracosaurus, the 17th figure in the AL line and a decent, but admittedly somewhat drab-looking rendition of the horned dinosaur. As if in full awareness of the latter fact, Takara Tomy’s 18th figurine of the AL line features a striking contrast in the elegant and brightly colored Parasaurolophus, the first ornithopod dinosaur featured in the series.
A new Jurassic World movie is on the horizon and regardless of how you feel about the Jurassic franchise it means we’ll be getting a new lineup of toys to accompany it. And what a lineup it is! The Tyrannosaurus, Spinosaurus, and Mosasaurus have all been given a fresh makeover.
Only two years after it showed up in Jurassic World Dominion, the fan favorite Therizinosaurus finally joined Mattel’s Hammond Collection line of highly articulated action figures last year. I’ll be straight to the point in saying that this is easily one of my top favorites in the line, and I think one of the best in terms of articulation, and screen likeness.
I initially wasn’t planning on acquiring either the Mattel Iguanodon or Skorpiovenator for my children’s dinosaur collection, but back in February 2024, Amazon Canada put the Roarin’ Battle Pack on sale for $26.94, which in this country is three dollars less than the retail price of a single toy in the Roarivores/Roar Strikers/Wild Roar size category.
Well, with yet another Jurassic World movie coming out this summer, I figured I had better review this toy now rather than later. Yes, it’s another of the many Tyrannosaurus rex variants that Mattel has churned out since 2018.
What better-suited rival for the “devil-horned face” than the “gore king” tyrant?
Some animals know the dangers of their environment by instinct. Other animals have to learn by experience – provided they can survive it. For young nestling Diabloceratopses exploring life in Late Cretaceous Utah, knowing danger could mean recognizing the difference between the casual bustle of the foraging adults, and the sound of the herd suddenly tensing in fear.
Takara Tomy is a brand stretching a wide range across toy production, from miniature cars to blockbuster IP tie-ins, to wildlife and extinct life replicas. Beginning in the early 2010s, Tomy began releasing the ANIA “Animal Adventure” series, a line of palm-sized action figures featuring extant and extinct animal life.
Imagine yourself for a moment in a swamp. Not just any particular swamp. There’s mangrove trees with many vines hanging off their branches, tall reeds and cattails, and a strange assortment of prehistoric fauna. There’s a herd of ginormous Paraceratherium feeding on the trees, Phiomia fleeing from ravenous Titanoboa, Baryonyx fishing, and Beelzebufo hopping around.
It has gotten to the point where I wince a little whenever Mattel announces a new giant sauropod toy. It wasn’t that long ago that the Legacy Brachiosaurus was released, and I naively thought that such an enormous toy was a one-off release.
Nearly 30 years after Jurassic Park released and had helped reform the general public’s perception of dinosaurs, Jurassic World Dominion released in 2022. It is the first film in the franchise to feature fully feathered dinosaurs (and a pterosaur), another major step moving in line with the science that had been going on for decades.
The Tyrannosaurus Off-road Tracker Pack represents the last set released in the short-lived Jurassic Park 93’ Classic line, which was replaced last year by the (so far) inferior Jurassic World Reimagined line. I suppose it makes sense that the line wouldn’t last too far past the 30th anniversary of Jurassic Park but I think the entire range of toys released under it are some of Mattel’s best and most fun.
