The Amber Collection Pteranodon is actually quite a mixed bag, with great coloration and good sculpting, but noticeable flaws in articulation.
Say what you will about the film as a whole, but Jurassic Park III had arguably some of the best creature designs in the Jurassic franchise (scientific [in]accuracies notwithstanding). Among the newcomers to the regular cast of creatures was the iconic pterosaur Pteranodon, who had previously only cameoed at the end of the second film. JPIII offered the great “toothless wing” a chance in the limelight before the film’s climax, and the design Stan Winston and his studio team created for the movie is perhaps one of the most iconic of the franchise now. One of the more exciting announcements from Mattel in 2021 was for the release of a 6″-scale Pteranodon in the articulated Amber Collection, a series mostly dominated by raptors but with more detail and poseability than the standard Mattel dinosaurs. How would the pterosaur fare in this sub-line?
The Legacy Pteranodon measures just over 6.5″ (17 cm) long from beak to tail and 18.5″ (47 cm) across in wingspan. Amber Collection figures are generally scaled in the fixed 6.5″ size range, rather than scaled to life, so the Pteranodon might not scale perfectly with other Amber figures (although it comes pretty close); regardless, it’s a decently large figure with good shelf presence. The figure is big enough that, regrettably, it struggles to fit inside the standard Amber Collection packaging. Mattel chose to fit the figure by opening the mouth as wide as possible so as not to push past the box dimensions; the result not only looks awkward in-package, but seems to have produced a common issue where the jaw hinge gets stressed before the toy is even opened and struggles to close properly out of the box. Although my figure was able to close its mouth firmly initially, since re-boxing and unboxing it again it has lost that capability, and the beak hangs slightly open in most poses. I can’t help wondering if Mattel could have conceived the housing for the figure in-box just a little bit better, or just put in the expense for a slightly bigger box.
Once opened and on display, the Pteranodon does indeed look lovely. Paint applications can be hit or miss in Mattel’s general toy line, but the Pteranodon is a definite hit going on a home run. The figure is decked out in patterns of chocolate brown and sandy yellow, with reddish-orange and yellow decals highlighting the textures of the skin along the arms and wings, as well as enhancing the markings on the crest and beak. A light cream wash is applied to the belly. Irregular veins of brown streak across the yellow patches on the top and bottom of the wings; the application looks a little discordant, but the overall effect is very good. The facial patterns are given a finer level of attention, with splotches and stripes of yellow and orange crisscrossing and flowing down the crest and beak in naturalistic shapes that are almost the spitting image of the original Stan Winston models and suits. The coloration isn’t perfectly accurate – there should be more yellow than brown on the wings, and the orange highlights appear generous – but the overall result is highly pleasing all the same.
Sculptural detail is less stand-out, but still satisfactory. The figure has a wrinkled texture to its skin that matches the bare skin of the creatures in-film. Scaly scutes adorn the fingers and toes, and the crest has a ridged surface like that of growing bone or keratin. Proportionally, the figure matches the on-screen creatures quite closely; the beak is straight and robust, with orbital ridges to give a subtle “frowning” appearance to the face. The neck is somewhat short and straight, more like the conceptual models than the final film design; this is one choice I’ll be coming back to. While the main body is made of hard plastic, the wings have been molded in rubber to imitate the leathery wing membrane and assist in the figure’s unique articulation. The membrane doesn’t reach down to the knees like on-screen, but the dimensions of the wingspan are otherwise accurate and impressive.
Regrettably, there is one area where the figure is significantly less impressive, and that is the articulation. The Pteranodon features 14 points of articulation, as well as a bendy wire in each wing finger. On paper, this is a perfectly good range of joints, but there are a number of problems in the figure. As mentioned earlier in this review, the jaw hinge tends to be loose out of the package, resulting in it hanging open noticeably unless one wants to display it even wider. A joint at the waist offers some range up and down for the torso, and the head and neck joints have a decent range of motion, but it’s honestly hard to tell if there is an intended right-side up on the neck piece. Had the neck been sculpted a bit longer and curved, I suspect the joints could offer even more flexibility and range for the figure.
The wrists have swivels and hinges to wiggle the hands around for flying or walking positions, however, the main wings have their own share of problems. The joints at the shoulders struggle to support the weight of the heavy rubber wings, so they end up sagging easily depending on the angle they’re posed in. There are no elbow or upper wrist joints in the upper arms, which restricts options when positioned on all fours; the wires in the wing fingers can only fold the latter half of the wings crudely. Another odd issue is that the figure is so front-heavy, it doesn’t like to rest squarely on all fours; instead, the hindquarters end up lifting off the ground. Adding to these quirks is the downright awkward design of the hindlimbs: it’s nearly impossible to display the legs in anything less than a splayed posture, and harder still to affirm which ways the segments are intended to pivot. Are the knees backwards?? I don’t know. Articulation aficionados may have their work cut out for them on this one.
The Amber Collection Pteranodon is quite the mixed bag of features, so your mileage may vary on the result. If you’re looking for a highly poseable action figure, you will probably be disappointed. But if you want a striking likeness of a fan-favorite creature design, this legacy figure will deliver. I’m pretty pleased with my figure, albeit with some reservations; hopefully, Mattel will be able to learn from the hiccups in this design and produce even better big pterosaurs in the Amber Collection down the line. Pteranodon can be purchased online primarily through the Target retail chain’s official website.
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I’ve hated the JP3 Pteranodon design since I first saw it on the big screen in 2001. I wished they would have used the same design as in The Lost World. All well, it’s still better than the Jurassic World Pteranodon. Great review and photographs, as always.