Images of Playmobil’s 2023 Dino Rise line have appeared online, but disappointingly, all the prehistoric animals are repaints of previously released moulds, most of which have been in production since 2007. They still look like they’ll be fun to play with, however!
Tyrannosaurus rex.
Review and photos by Prehistory Resurrection, edited by Suspsy
Back in 1994, Schleich released its now-discontinued Replica-Saurus line of dinosaur figures, which included perhaps the goofiest, ugliest, and most hideous dinosaur figure ever manufactured, their first Ceratosaurus sculpt, in a quadrupedal stance.
Over the last 3 years CollectA has produced FIVE extinct cephalopods spanning the geologic ages between the Ordovician and the Cretaceous. A magnificent achievement that appears to have come to an end, for alas, no cephalopod has been announced for 2023. But do not despair, with figures of Koolasuchus and Anomalocaris on the horizon CollectA is continuing their streak of releasing the most diverse and interesting assortment of prehistoric critters of any mainstream company.
“Ho, ho, ho there, fellow dinosaur lovers! Yes, it is I, Dr. Bella Claus, at your service once again! And where would I be without my loyal and trusty steed, Bethdolf?”
“I told you not to call me that, Doc!”
“Oh, come along, Beth, you were the one who refused to wear the elf hat again.
Most paleontology enthusiasts are familiar with ammonites, the predatory mollusks with muscular arms and calcium carbonate shells. Most ammonites’ shells were disc-shaped coils (planispiral) that contained chambers, some of which afforded buoyancy, and one of which housed the squishy parts of the animal.
Schleich can be seen as the equivalent of McDonald’s in that, despite the sometimes lacklustre quality of their products, they are still the most globally successful of all the companies specializing in PVC scale models of extinct and extant fauna. Take for example their 2012 Tyrannosaurus rex mould.
As a person of Polish decent with a love for Triassic fauna I was elated to see that CollectA was producing a figure of Smok wawelski, a Triassic archosaur found near Lisowice village in Poland. And hot on the heels of their excellent Lisowicia too, another Triassic animal from the same fossil site.
Nearly 60 years after Mold-A-Rama imprinted itself as an icon of American toy memorabilia, The Field Museum of Chicago collaborated with Mold-A-Rama to produce a brand-new prehistoric creature in classic plastic form.
Mold-A-Rama figures have been an icon of dinosaur toy collecting for decades.
Review and photos by EmperorDinobot, edited by Suspsy
Being a completist, I, Emperor Dinobot have to make some difficult choices once in a while. You see, in my yet-to-be-finished display, I am building a sort of aviary, where all pterosaurs big and small can roam around my room’s ceiling.
