While many of my fellow dinosaur toy collectors are still excited about the recently funded Beasts of the Mesozoic: Tyrannosaur Series from Creative Beast Studio, the final wave of the Ceratopsian Series is about to ship.
Toy designer David Silva was kind enough to send me an early sample of the wave’s biggest member, Torosaurus. This colossal beast is a very close relative of the Triceratops, but Silva’s decision to go with a beautiful blue paint job put him over his more well-known relative on my must-buy list.
The Packaging
Like all the dinosaurs from this wave, Torosaurus comes in a beautiful box, trimmed with embossed red lettering. It’s so nice, in fact, that I almost didn’t want to take it out of the package. At the end of the day, however, I’m just a regular toy collector — not one of those psychopaths who keeps their plastic treasures sealed away forever.
The back of the box gives us a look at some of the other creatures from this wave. The part blocking the ones on the left can be removed (and will need to be when you open the box).
The box itself can be used as a background, with the beautiful forest portrait on the inside. Unfortunately, I don’t trust my meager photography skills enough to make that work, so we’ll be sticking with the white planks for now.
The figure also comes with a collectible card (which I will inevitably hate myself for losing) and instructions on how to safely snap the Torosaurus’ tail into place.
But enough about the box. Let’s crack this thing open and take a look at what you really came to here to see.
The Figure
As much as I love Beasts of the Mesozoic’s Raptor Series, the actual toys themselves always felt a bit delicate. It’s not because they’re brittle and certainly not due to any quality issues. They just have a lot more small parts, and an uneven center of mass (hence the awesome stand each one comes with).
Torosaurus, on the other hand, is all types of big and chonky. But it’s not just a brick of plastic, either. Silva has done a fantastic job sculpting the large figure in a way that still provides plenty of movement and posing options. I wouldn’t say that all the advertised 20 points of articulation are perfect (the tail is a bit limited), but the figure is still far more posable than one its size has any right to be.
The real beauty of this one is the paint. The minute I opened it, I couldn’t stop raving to my wife about how pretty this giant beast looked. Despite not being a massive dinosaur fan like I am, she was also blown away by the figure’s gorgeous blue paint job.
My favorite paint details are the Torosaurus’ soulful eyes, along with the eye spots adorning its massive frill. I also love how intricately textured every part of the creature is. It’s almost as though you can feel the skeleton through its marbled, leathery skin.
I’m definitely not a snob when it comes to mass market dinosaur toys, but you just aren’t going to find any with craftsmanship like this.
For a bit of a size comparison, here’s the Torosaurus next to my all-time favorite dinosaur toy, the Creative Beasts Velociraptor osmolskae. Despite both of them being my favorite color, I still consider the raptor to be the crown jewel of my dinosaur collection by an extremely slim margin.
That said, I’ve had to go back and forth on that decision a few times already — and I think Ossy is starting to get jealous.
I will never be friends with you…
…and your gigantic ass forced Dad to leave the fireplace in our shot!
The Verdict
This figure is currently available for preorder, with an expected arrival in December. It’s also currently on sale, but will still set you back $130. I know that might seem steep, but believe me when I say that you’re getting every penny back in quality. The Torosaurus is gorgeously painted, exquisitely sculpted, and one of the best dinosaur toys you could ever hope for.
If you want a figure to be the new center of your dinosaur collection — or just a really great figure that’s the size of a tiny dog — then the Beasts of the Mesozoic Torosaurus is absolutely worth the cost, and then some.
AIPT Science is co-presented by AIPT and the New York City Skeptics.
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