Yangchuanosaurus (Dapeng) (Prehistoric Animal Models by PNSO)

With 47 votes the PNSO Saurophaganax is poised to win the prestigious title of figure of the year on the Dinosaur Toy Forum’s Top 10 of 2023 poll. And rightly so, it’s a fantastic figure. One of the best theropod models I’ve ever seen, and quite possibly the best “Allosaurus” ever. The addition of lips certainly helped it rise above the many other theropods produced by PNSO in 2023. But it wasn’t the only lipped theropod we got from PNSO that year. We also got two different models of Yangchuanosaurus, both with lips. Y. magnus (Dapeng) and Y. shangyouensis (Dayong). They have received 22 and 9 votes, so far. I can understand why Dayong got so few votes, while an excellent model it’s greatly overshadowed by the larger Dapeng, never mind that the two species are considered conspecific and Dayong represents a subadult animal. But why Dapeng got so many fewer votes than the Saurophaganax vexes me. It’s every bit as good. I can only assume that it’s because Saurophaganax (let’s be honest, Allosaurus) is more popular than Yangchuanosaurus, even if it’s not as cool looking.

As stated, Dapeng is advertised as Y. magnus, but that species is no longer valid, and the specimen named Y. magnus is now considered an adult Y. shangyouensis while the holotype represents a sub-adult. It should be mentioned that Yangchuanosaurus is a metriacanthosaurid that’s known from the Upper Shaximiao Formation and Suining Formation in China. It lived from the mid-Jurassic to the early Cretaceous.

Dapeng measures about 12” (30.48 cm) long but comes out closer to 13.5” (34.29 cm) when measured along its various curves. The figure stands 4.5” (11.43 cm) to the top of the head. It is estimated that the actual Yangchuanosaurus measured 36’ (11 meters) which puts Dapeng at about 1/32 in scale.

Dapeng stands with an alert, striding posture with the head lifted upwards and left foot stepping ahead of the right. The head is looking rightward while the tail gently bends down and leftward. There is great fluidity of movement here and Dapeng looks great from every angle. He stands sturdily enough but the included support rod should be used anyway, to prevent tipping over or warping. The presentation is naturalistic and even somewhat intimidating. Dapeng has the appearance of an efficient and active animal that would regard you as little more than a snack.

Starting with the head we notice that the skull is deep, short, and laterally compressed. Rather like an abelisaurid. It’s the standout feature of Yangchuanosaurus and I must admit that it’s what makes the genus appealing to me. We don’t have a complete skull for an adult Yangchuanosaurus shangyouensis but what we do have is enough that we can assess PNSO’s as being accurate. Also, we do have a complete skull for the subadult specimen that we can use to fill in the missing gaps. The jaw is articulated and works nicely, with the lips being almost completely sealed when closed. 

The head is appropriately anchored on a short, thick neck. The arms are modestly large and muscular with incredibly sharp claws and an enlarged first claw. The rest of the figure has your typical mega-theropod body plan with a nicely rounded torso, long muscular tail, and powerfully muscular legs with thin and dainty feet and toes. A faint ridge runs down the back with a row of spines running from neck to tail.

Looking closer at the finer details we get PNSO’s typical attention to detail. Large facial scales are sculpted along the snout and shallow crests run along the top of the head with small projections just ahead of the eyes. No tooth slippage or mouth rot here since the teeth are nicely concealed within the mouth. It’s amazing how the simple addition of lips can improve a model so immensely. The inside of the mouth is detailed as well, with texturing on the roof of the mouth and visible nasal passages. Most of the scales on the face are small and pebbly but there are larger scales clustered around the orbits.

Small pebbly scales cover the rest of the body with larger feature scales scattered about. Wrinkles and saggy skin folds are mostly sculpted along the underside and most appreciated around the extremities. Connective tissue is nicely sculpted stretching between the legs and torso and legs and tail. Bird-like tarsal scutes are sculpted on the toes and the feet are padded on the underside. Various bodily orifices are clearly discernable, including a cloaca.

Not surprisingly, the figure is painted brown. Not just that, but it’s darker brown dorsally with patterning bleeding down the sides and a paler underside. It’s a standard PNSO paintjob. But once again, it still looks fantastic, even if repetitive. In this case I particularly like the backward C shapes and almost-hearts that the darker colors create along the tail and torso. It’s more interesting than just stripes at least. And of course, the colors are well blended, and the paint is nicely applied. The teeth are white with a bit of a dirty brown wash over them. The inside of the mouth is glossy pink and red, and the nails are dark gray. The eyes are vivid orange which contrasts nicely with the darker colors on the face.

This Yangchuanosaurus seems to have been lost in the wave of theropod releases from PNSO last year but shouldn’t be overlooked, it’s easily one of the year’s best figures and one of PNSO’s best theropods, and every bit as great as their Saurophaganax. There’s no question about it, PNSO makes the best mega-theropods around, but if they diversified their colors and patterns, they could be better. At least we’re getting lips now. Dapeng is currently in production and retails for about $42.99.