Tanystropheus (Jurassic World: Fierce Force by Mattel)

Review and photos by EmperorDinobot, edited by Suspsy

I, Emperor Dinobot, was not very surprised to hear that Mattel would make a Tanystropheus figure. They had already done genera such as Scutosaurus and Postosuchus, along with numerous other non-dinosaur figures. Kenner also made a Tanystropheus toy and a bunch of repaints in the 90s’, so it was only natural that Mattel would follow suit. However, nothing would prepare me for the goofiness that would ensue once the Fierce Force Tanystropheus reached my shorelines.

Standard open packaging is standard for Fierce Force figures, except for the Dilophosaurus, which must accommodate that goofy frill of hers.

This strange creature’s plastic depictions never cease to amaze me. It would be foolish not to feature a hyper-articulated neck, which is why statuesque figures of Tanystropheus bother me. The neck alone here has four double swivel joints, which allow it to look literally everywhere (see picture below). The front limbs have ball joints at the shoulders, whereas the back limbs are swivel joints. The tail can only move up and down because it is engineered to trigger the action mechanism. The sculpt is very nice, quite scaly. The clawed feet are webbed. The body is blue with light cerulean blue splotches along the front end of the body and neck. The back is adorned with an iguana-like crest, which is speculative. The sclera of the eyes is yellow, and the teeth are white.

The articulation here is insane. The seams take away from the look in general, but it is better than the wired, rubber necks we have seen in the past with the Kenner Tanystropheus and Carnegie Collection Tanystropheus.

Out of all the Mattel animals we have gotten thus so far, this Tanystropheus here has the goofiest face. I apologize on behalf of my camera, which cannot zoom in very well sometimes, but as you can see, this fish-eating grin is what dreams are NOT made of. Oh yes, and the inside of the mouth features a pink palate and tongue.

The jaws can open wide, and this is another departure from previous articulated Tanystropheus figures, and I personally think it is an improvement.

Fierce Force figures are different from their similarly sized counterparts (Wild Packs in this case) in that they have action features. Pushing the tail down will cause the neck and head to lunge violently downwards, taking down any unfortunate prey.

At 10 inches long with the neck fully extended, I feel that this Tanystropheus has a good size for a 1:18 scale figure. The biggest Tanystropheus specimen measured up to six meters in length, but I grew up with books telling me they were three meters long. For the sake of my collection, I shall go with that.

This the best Fierce Force figure available in terms of play value, being the most articulated, and it is a vast improvement over its wired predecessors. That goofy smile though, that is something I can live without. But it is so friendly looking, you will get used to it fast, unless . . .

Do not be deceived by its goofy face! This is a gregarious, common, and extremely dangerous animal here in Emperor Dinobot’s Jurassic Park, and will attack without warning!

I found mine at Best Buy as all other retailers failed me. Your best bet is finding one online. I consider it uncommon.

Do not forget to break it out of its cage on the app!