Hello, who’s this?
Takara Tomy is a prolific toy manufacturer which has produced a number of dinosaur-related toys in the past. Most of these toys have been released under the ANIA (sometimes “Animal Adventure”) line, but some have received more unique lines of their own.
Japan has a prolific industry for collectibles and merchandise, although it is a fairly insular market that western collectors might find tricky to break into. There are always new surprises to uncover from riches of new releases each year. One such item which caught my attention in 2022 was a set of minifigures produced by The Access, a company dedicated to planning, manufacturing, and wholesaling a variety of in-house products for multiple age ranges.
“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.
Tolerance and understanding mean little to the bitty brain of a belligerent brawler like Donnybrook. So naturally, when he happened upon a nesting group of edmontosaurs, he thought nothing of blundering directly through their midst instead of diverting around them. The females sitting next to their nests honked in anger and alarm, yet he merely bellowed back at them and waved his menacing head.
Review and images by Pliosaurking, edited by Suspsy
Hello everyone! Welcome to my first DTB review in which I’ll be covering the Beasts of the Mesozoic adult Triceratops horridus by Creative Beast Studio! Triceratops is one of the most iconic and recognizable dinosaurs of all time, and also one of a small number of dinosaurs that the general public can name off the top of their heads.
“This one was always my favorite when I was a kid. And now I’ve seen one, it’s the most beautiful thing I ever saw.”
Those words from Alan Grant resonated with me upon my first viewing of Jurassic Park, because like Alan Grant, Triceratops was my childhood favorite too.
Well, I’ve shown you the worst of this line, let’s waste no time and get straight on to the best of them!
Starting off the top half is everyone’s favourite three horned herbivore Triceratops. This features one of the best poses of the lot (something I haven’t talked at length about as most the figures are in a generic standing pose), an aggressive fight pose, all the better when you have two to joust with.
These six little dinos, sculpted by the Carnegie Collection’s own Forest Rogers, may look pretty dated today; but they manage to blend old and new aspects of science to produce a charming set as a whole.
Safari ltd. stands as one of the giants of educational, scientifically accurate dinosaur & animal toys today; but it’s easy to forget the company didn’t start out this way.
Review and photos by Emperor Dinobot, edited by Suspsy
Hello everyone! Welcome to yet another EmperorDinobot(TM) dinosaur review! Today we are going to give a look at these quirky bendable dinosaurs from Dorda! Made in 1987 (I think I would have to lift up their skirts to make sure it was ’87 or ’88), these dinosaurs look a wee bit like the Playskool Definitely Dinosaur figures from the late 80s, but definitely have their own aesthetic and gimmick in order to keep kids and strange adult dinosaur toy collectors entertained for hours!
Larami’s Museum set is looking pretty dated now, but it’s a charming playset all the same and one of the more memorable imitators out there.
It’s said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery; by that metric the dinosaur toy industry has been incredibly generous towards the leading toy brands.
Paper is usually not the material of choice for collectors of any sort. I anyway want to introduce you to something that may be of interest for a dinosaur collector, though it are probably not the figures….
The introduced cut out model was first released in 1993 under the title “Make these Dinosaurs” and the art of it, especially the dinosaur desgin, certainly represents this time.
Review and photos by Loon, edited by Suspsy
There are a lot of Triceratops figures. A lot. So when I saw that PNSO was planning to release yet another one, and at an incredibly high price, I was pretty sure I’d pass.
