Jurassic Park 2009/3D: Dino Showdown: Pachyrhinosaurus Clash

Year of release: 2013

Accessories:

-Dino Damage wound patch

-Gunner Gordon figure

-Machine gun with ammo strip

Description: this medium sized quadruped figure stands in a rather static posture, its legs all neutrally posed instead of hinting at movement. All four legs are poseable though, and pulling the right hind leg back makes the bulky neck tilt upward, the big head along with it, as if the creature is giving a head butt. The head is attached by a ball joint, and is thus capable of being posed both side to side and up and down. However, its range is limited due to the shape of the neck, but it still makes for decent poseability. The lower jaw can also move downwards. On the right flank a dino damage wound is located which can be covered up by a skin patch to hide the dark red muscle tissue underneath.

This particular Ceratopsid figure sports a more elaborate paint job than commonly seen on similar figures. The legs, flanks, sides of the neck, most of the tail, back of the head frill and parts of the head are painted simple brown, while its underside (throat, belly and front half of the lower tail section) is coloured yellowish beige. On the flanks this beige is suggested to gradually change into brown, and so appears darker. The Pachyrhinosaurus sports four stripes of the same beige on each upper leg, while most of the head and frill are painted in the same colour. A large, thick blue stripe runs from the neck over the back to the front part of the tail, accompanied by beige lines on each side. On the neck these blue and beige stripes form a swirly leaf like pattern. At the very top of the neck and back a row of bumps is found, which is all coloured dark grey, almost black even. Three similar rows of bumps of the same colour are located on the frill, running down over the nose and ending on the big parrot like beak. The middle row features a number of horns, including two massive ones on the snout. Additional horns of a smaller size and a more curved nature are found on the top and sides of the frill, with one more on each chin. The head and frill are adorned with a number of blue spots surrounded by yellow lines. The eye sockets, containing small golden eyes with black pupils, are also blue. The creature's tongue is brown, while the claws on the feet are painted black and a large white JP logo is located on the right upper leg.

This Dino Showdown set comes with a black human figure named Gunner Gordon. This military looking character too stands in a neutral pose but is fully poseable considering the ball jointed arms and legs and the extra articulation provided by the upper torso, head, knees and elbows, as well as rotatable hands and feet. Gordon's hair style is quite rastafari, with dreadlocks and hair strings extended at the back of his head. This hair is coloured dark brown with lighter brown highlights. Gordon has a rather expressive, agitated look on his face, along with a goatee and eye brows of the same colour as his hair. He has white eyes with black pupils, and carries what appears to be an orange ear ring in his left ear. He wears a predominantly green jump suit, while his torso is protected by a light grey jacket, along with extra pockets up front and a silver zipper in the middle: this jacket hangs a little loose, suggesting it's removable, but it's not unless you care to damage the figure. More detailing can be spotted underneath the jacket, but it's hard to tell without removing it. Around his knees and elbows he has black bands covered with protective pads, light green on the knees and silver on the elbows. He also has a grey belt around his waist, additional silver shoulder pads and black gloves with more silver pads. He wears black boots with light brown covering.

Gunner Gordon lives up to his name thanks to the addition of a machine gun to this set. It's a simple, long black gun, and it comes with a removable support that can be attached to the front so Gordon can use the gun for taking shots at rampaging dinosaurs when lying low. The gun comes with a long silver strip of ammo rounds, that can be attached to its left side, but can't be pulled clean through it. Gordon's accessories do not come with an action feature of their own. A hole in Gordon's back hints at this gun being able to attach to his back, but oddly enough there's no peg located on the gun itself that fits in said hole.

Analysis: Hasbro pleased us all around the time of the 3D re-release of the first Jurassic Park movie when it let loose this awesome set in TRU stores. Not only does this Dino Showdown consists entirely of new figures, the Pachyrhinosaurus also is a new species in terms of Jurassic Park dinosaur toys. And it's quite a tough looking one too, adorned with big horns on its snout and a huge intimidating neck frill. This Ceratopsid definitely looks more aggressive and mean than any of its herbivorous predecessors, making it a solid match for any rampaging carnivores out for a bite of its flesh! Nevertheles, it can be wounded, as indicated by the triumphant return of an age old, well remembered JP toy action feature, the removable dino damage wound. The piece fits in tightly but is easy to remove and to put back. If the creature lets you of course, since it's equipped with a particular powerful head butting action. Of course, this is a rather predictable attack option for any Ceratopsian dinosaur figure, but it works remarkably well, delivering a powerful blow to any antagonist unlucky enough to stand in its path. It's sure to knock over many figures and vehicles, including all human figures, like Gunner Gordon.

Gordon is a less impressive addition to the set but makes for a good victim for this creature's onslaught. Sadly for him, he does not come with any weaponry equipped with decent dinosaur repelling action features, but at least he's fully poseable and might apply that fact to getting out of the animal's path. Gunner's look is quite interesting, as he's one of the few African-American human figures in all of the JP toy lines, as well as the first with such a wild hairdo.

However, it's most likely anyone buying this set will consider the Pachyrhinosaurus the main part, as they ought to. It features a funky paint job, quite colourful but not over the top, and it's more poseable than most dinosaur figures (though not as much as its Allosaurus counterpart). The movements of the head (including the lower jaw) are quite nifty, though it's a shame the shape of the neck is causing the head to almost hit the ground. It makes the animal appear to be grazing peacecully when not in use, but it can also cause paint wear on the beak if the head butting action makes the head swing back with force. Nevertheless, it's a minor complaint in regard to one of the most imaginative and original dinosaur sculpts yet. Hopefully this set won't prove to be the last time Hasbro gave the JP toy community a pleasant surprise in the shape of a fine new sculpt.

Playability: pretty good for a quadruped dinosaur figure. Though the limbs are not nearly as poseable as those of the Allosaurus of the same toy line, all four of them can be posed. The neck can move up and down, while the head can be posed both sidewards and upwards thanks to the ball joint, making for a good range of movement. The lower jaw's additonal poseability is also a blast. Though the attack option is far from unique (basically an obligatory option for Ceratopsian figures), it works as good or better than on any and all previous JP figures that came with the same feature, making for a powerful head butt that can knock down any small and medium figure in its way. As always, having a dino damage wound that can be covered up is the best way to go, as this figure demonstrates. Gunner Gordon also is quite poseable, more so than any previous human figures, but the lack of action options his weaponry provide is a bit of a downer. Against this angry elephantine animal, Gordon would need more than just a lousy machine gun to keep him alive.

Realism: Pachyrhinosaurus was not present in any of the Jurassic Park movies and has not been done as a JP figure before. Scientifically speaking, it's fairly accurate, though its bull like neck is much too thick and muscled. This species of Ceratopsid is notorious for its wide range of wildly diverse takes on the shape of its head, particularly the neck crest and horns. This figure too takes some creative license in that regard, especially looking at the shape and size of the crest and the big horns on the snout. However, they're not as outrageous as some previous Pachyrhinosaurus figures around: Tyco's Dino Riders Pachyrhino still beats them all in terms of rampant creative freedom over established accuracy. The body's size compared to the human figure it comes with is about right.

Repaint: no. For the first time in many years in the history of JP toys, this is an all-new set of figures.

Overall rating: 8/10. A solid new sculpt of an intriguing species never done before in previous JP toy lines. Poseability is a little less compared to its Allosaurus counterpart, but its attack feature works a lot better and the removable dino damage is always a welcome sight. This figure at the time of its release wasn't hard to find in the US, but was only available there. It has since become more scarce because it was so sought after. But it's still certainly worth the effort of tracking down.

Jurassic Park 2009/3D: Dino Showdown: Allosaurus Assault

Year of release: 2013

Accessories:

-Dino Damage wound patch

-Ash Skullstriker figure

-Bow and arrow

-Sword holder with two swords

-Gun

Description: this bipedal carnivore takes on a neutral posture, but this can be remedied since it sports a score of points of articulation not seen before on a JP dinosaur figure. For starters, there is the attack option: moving its right arm up and down causes the neck to swivel left and right (which can also be done without pushing the arm). Furthermore, the lower jaw and head itself can be posed downward, while the head can also swivel left and right. The arms can move up and down and rotate in a full circle thanks to ball joints. The legs can move back and forth, as can the feet: the latter too can rotate thanks to ball joints. On the right flank, a dino damage skin patch can be applied (or removed, depending on where you started): beneath it is found dark red muscle tissue and white ribs. To differentiate this Allosaurus from similar looking big carnivores like T-Rex, it is adorned with typical Allosaur traits: ridges are found above the eyes and nose, a line of feather like appendages runs over the back of the head and neck, and the back and the front half of the tail and various small horny nobs are found on its back. Such features give a rather rugged, savage look to this particular predator.

This theropod sports a fairly colourful paint job. The dominant colour is blue, which can be found anywhere except on the top of the back and head and on its underside (lower part of the belly and tail, throat, hind parts of the arms, legs and feet) which are coloured beige instead. The top of the head and the facial ridges and various protrusions on the neck and back are covered brownish orange, while the spikes on the back are also blue. On the neck, back and front section of the tail, darker orange shapes are found in a symmetrical pattern with smaller white spots and stripes in their center. The front part of the feet sports the same dark orange colouring. Claws on both fingers and toes are painted black. The small eyes are red with yellow irises and black pupils. The creature has white teeth and a dark pink tongue, while a large white JP logo can be spotted on its right upper leg.

Pitted against this Allosaurus is a human character named Ash Skullstriker. This muscular character too stands in a neutral pose but is fully poseable considering the ball jointed arms and legs and the extra articulation provided by the upper torso, head, knees and elbows, as well as rotatable hands and feet. Ash wears dark green pants, a black shirt and black boots and gloves. The pants sport an empty gun holster on the right leg and a big pocket on the left. This guy wears a brown vest around his torso covered with various pockets and even a grenade on the front: the vest appears to be removable, but is attached tighter than it seems, so removing it might damage it or the figure. Ash has dark grey hair and a goatee and eye brows in the same colour, while his white eyes carry black pupils. To top it all, he sports a black tattoo of an Allosaurus skull and two arrows underneath on his lower left arm.

Ash comes with numerous weapons to defend himself against the Allosaurus. He has a black bow and arrow (attached to one another, so no separate arrow that can be fired) a small black gun that can fit in the aforementioned holster, and a brown pouch that carries a black double sword holder, with a pin on it that can be attached to Ash via the hole in his back. Two swords complete his arsenal, both silvery grey with black handles, a long one and a shorter one.

Analysis: we had to wait for good new sculpts for over a decade, but our patience was finally rewarded when the Dino Showdown packs hit TRU stores in 2013. The Allosaurus Assault was one of this pair, and by far the coolest set released by Hasbro since 2001! Prime attractor in this set is the medium sized Allosaurus, a ferocious looking predator with a number of poseable body parts not seen on any JP figure before, making it a definite break in style with the past and a good sign for future releases to come. However, the new is mixed with the old as indicated by the triumphant return of the age old removable dino damage wound! Fans had been clamouring for this particular action feature for many years – mainly because of Hasbro's fervorous fondness of having their dinosaur figures display large wounds that could not be covered up – and it appeared somebody was listening. The piece fits perfectly on the figure's flanks and sticks on pretty solidly, despite not being embedded into soft 'real feel' skin as on the classic Kenner figures, since this theropod is made mostly out of hard plastic instead. Apart from taking wounds the Allosaurus also can give them to antagonists with his head thrashing action, which also is not a new feature. It works less impressively, making the head and neck swivel a little left and right when the right arm is pulled. It looks better if the animal has prey between his jaws, in which case it appears to violently swing its victim around.

Ash could sure fill the part of that victim. Like his prehistoric adversary, he is fully poseable and looks quite butch, definitely not someone to mess around with. However, his weapons carry no action features to back this up, they're mere accessories. They will not help him if the Allosaurus decides to make a snack out of him, grabbing hold of his body with its vicious jaws which can open surprisingly wide. Despite his tough appearance - and funky tattoo!- Ash really doesn't stand a chance against the creature, ready to have his own skull struck, but at least he looks cool when fully armed, reminiscent more of a G.I. Joe soldier than a JP figure, but that's no problem since dinosaurs don't really care much about aesthetic qualities in their food.

Overall, this is a terrific new dinosaur figure, almost redeeming Hasbro for its lack of care over the last decade where the JP franchise is concerned. It looks cool, moves cool and bleeds cool. Like many recent Hasbro figures it has a colourful paintjob but not as ridiculous or excessive as on the JP 2009 repaints. Still, the white/beige could have been toned down a bit, but it's a minor complaint considering we got such a great new figure at all. Hopefully, Hasbro will continue travelling down the road they started with this Allosaurus (and its herbivorous counterpart, the Pachyrhinosaurus) and deliver similarly awesome dinosaurs instead of once again resorting to needless repainting.

Playability: excellent. As stated before, the number of points of articulation on this dinosaur is greater than on any of its predecessors, making it one of the most poseable JP dinosaur figures to date. Especially nifty is the poseability of the head and lower jaw. Its head thrashing option by comparison is rather dull and uninspired, but works fine enough despite being connected to the right arm. The removable dino damage piece is a grand action feature as always. The only real downside to the Allosaurus is an issue of balance: it has an unfortunate tendency to tip over unless standing quite upright. It's also prone to paint wear: rough play will definitely not make this animal look more handsome. Its human companion Ash is also more poseable than any human figure before. However, his accessories sport no action features of their own other than being able to attach themselves to their owner. Too bad, Ash could have used a bow that can actually fire arrows to defend himself from the Allosaurus' eager teeth.

Realism: pretty good actually. Of course no Allosaurus has yet been seen in a JP movie, and so it's not based on anything directly, but this release is a definite step-up from the only other Allosaurus from JP toy history, the one from the TLWS1 Medical Center set. It's roughly the same size, but sleeker, more bird like in design. It's definitely one of the more scientifically accurate JP toys yet released, representing a rather up-to-date look of this late Jurassic hunter. The typical Allosaur facial ridges are present, while the appendages on the neck and back are added to make it look more dastardly. Its size compared to the human figure it comes with is fairly close to the real deal. Overall, dinosaur toy fans may be reminded of the Papo Allosaurus, which could very well have been a genuine inspiration for this particular action figure.

Repaint: no. For the first time in many years in the history of JP toys, this is an all-new set of figures.

Overall rating: 9/10. An excellent new entry into JP toys lore and at the time a grand promise for the future, this Allosaurus is one of the best dinosaur figures released by Hasbro ever. It looks fabulous and quite accurate and is very poseable. Its action feature (and the lack of action features from Skullstriker's accessories) isn't particularly appealing, but the removable dino damage wound patch and overall design of the beastie make up for it in spades. This set was only released at Toys'R'Us in North America and as such can prove hard to find for enthusiasts in other territories, especially a couple of years down the road. However, it's well worth tracking down.

Jurassic Park 2009: Deluxe Electronic Tyrannosaurus Rex

Year of release: 2009

Accessories:

-Forest Hunter General

-Missile Launcher (with missile)

-Off-Road Vehicle cut-out (Note: since this last “accessory” is actually a part of the figure's box, it will not be reviewed here.)

Description: this Tyrannosaurus figure, though heavily retooled, is still the largest of all JP dinosaur toys ever produced. It measures a good 70 centimetres in length and about 20 centimetres tall. This Rex stands in an active pose, with its left leg moved forward and its right leg posed backward, as if walking. Its head is quite large, almost as big as its belly. It can swallow human and smaller dinosaur figures whole, but they have to be retrieved via the same way they came in. The head, neck and tail are made of a more flexible material than the rest of the figure, with the eyes being small transparent orbs with a black spot (the pupil) painted on them. The T-Rex features poseable arms, legs and even feet (which sport huge toes and claws, including the smaller ones on the side of the lower legs). On its belly, the T-Rex carries a visible speaker unit and battery cover, as well as a little switch, with 'On', 'Off' and 'Try me' printed next to it. The actual sounds are activated by pushing the little button on its back, above the upper legs. In the case of the latter option, the figure only makes noises when the button is pushed, while when in 'On' mode the figure also produces sounds at random. Overall, this figure produces at least thirteen different sounds, including stomping sounds which can be produced by bashing the feet on any surface (this also works when the figure is still boxed).

This large T-Rex features a basic three-way paint job. Colours on the softer parts of the figure's body are more vivid because of the different materials used. The underside (most of the lower jaw, throat, belly and most of the lower part of the tail) are painted greyish beige. The limbs, flanks and middle part of the tail are coloured grey. The top parts of the body (most of the head, neck, back and upper part of the tail) are painted orange. Black lines run over the orange colouring, while additional black colouration is found on the head on the snout, in a a big cluster around the eyes, with a line running out of this part around the chin and in a wave pattern over the lower jaw. Diffused black stripes and spots adorn the flanks, knees and tail, while black bands are found around the lower arms and end of the tail, and a row of black spots runs over each toe. On the upper jaw near the snout the creature sports small triangular blue shapes, two on each side of the face, with black lines around these. The claws on both fingers and toes are painted black. The Rex has beige teeth (some of them broken off or worn out) and the inside of its mouth is pink, with the tongue coloured a darker shade of pink.

The Forest Hunter General wears a dark grey jacket adorned with lighter grey spots and shapes and revealing a grey shirt underneath, as well as silver tags around his neck. He also sports a black utility belt, dark grey trousers and black boots. His pants and shirt sport some slight tears, like he’s had a run-in with an unpleasant dinosaur. He has brown hair and eye brows, black eyes and a rather grim look on his face. He stands in a very odd pose, left leg stretched forwards and right leg braced backwards, left arm reaching up and right arm pointing down, as if he's startled by some prehistoric vermin in front of him. He comes with a missile launcher, which is coloured in a slightly metallic dark grey paint job, with a dark pink missile sticking out of it on both ends. Pushing the end of the missile sort of launches it, though it doesn’t work very well.

Analysis: it took a while, but Hasbro finally did something else than just repaint figure after figure for this toy line, though only once. In this case, they dug up an old T-Rex sculpt, the biggest and baddest around, and revamped it to become the new top predator figure. With great results, since this is by far the most impressive, awe-inspiring and daring figure Hasbro has produced since the JP III line!

Even though this Deluxe Tyrannosaurus uses the specifications of the classic and much beloved Bull T-Rex figure from the TLWS1 toy line, it's a totally different animal altogether. It can still swallow figures, but these can only go a short distance instead of making it all the way to the belly and being retrieved via a big slit in its belly (which also means this new T-Rex incarnation doesn't have a big hole there). That's probably why this Rex doesn't come with a survival pod, since human figures won't be retrieved and thus won't survive being gulped down by the latest Tyrant Lizard King. The figure's poseability has been maximized. This time it can move more than just the arms. The legs and even the feet (which is wholly new for JP toys' standards) are also poseable, increasing playability.

The new paint job is okay, but not the figure's most appealing feature: the grey, beige and black feels fine, the orange less so. It seems too colourful and cheerful on a massive predator like this, though it does feel in place in the already very brightly coloured JP 2009 line. It does also hint at the dismally ugly orange paint job from the Chaos Effect Omega T-Rex predecessor though. However, overall it's an acceptable paint job, and also fairly detailed. All the claws have been taken care off, the tongue is coloured differently from the rest of the mouth, and there's various lines, spots and stripes to give the animal more character. The triangular blue shapes on the upper jaw are a nice little touch for example. The Rex also retains its glassy retina, something only used three times now in JP toys lore.

The sound system of this T-Rex has been expanded a lot compared to the previous Rexes. Though the sounds are not as loud as before, there's an awful lot of them instead of only two or three. At least thirteen different noises can be heard, varying from movie accurate roars to snarls, growls, chomping and stomping sounds. Some of these may be familiar, as they were used for the Bull T-Rex and the JP III T-Rex figures. The difference between a 'Try me' and an 'On' option is a nice touch, but makes little difference overall.

This Deluxe Tyrannosaurus comes with a Forest Hunter General figure and its missile launcher. The human figure is completely dwarfed by the huge T-Rex, and is only useful as prey for this berserker beast. It fits in its mouth and throat easily. Basically Hasbro provided the Rex with its own snack. Unfortunately the General is not painted differently from its regular appearance in this toy line, which makes it less original. The weapon is still totally lame and does absolutely no damage to the hulking carnivore.

Overall, this is one of Hasbro's finest releases and certainly the main attraction of JP 2009. It's not surprising many dinosaur collectors totally ignored the rest of the line and only got themselves its crowning achievement. It should come as no surprise if this becomes a much desired and valuable toy over the next decade, as has been the faith of most big JP figures before. It sincerely deserves such a future.

Unless Hasbro starts to milk this figure to no end as well...

Repaint: yes, more or less. Though at first glance this figure appears a mere repaint of the TLWS1 Bull T-Rex, only its bare shape and size have survived the heavy retooling this sculpt underwent for this toy line. The torso and limbs are now composed of hard plastic, while the head, neck and tail are comprised of softer material than before. The original three Bull Rex sounds are still there, but now backed up by new roars and growls, as well as the JP III T-Rex figures' noises. Overall, this figure might as well be a totally new sculpt, even though it doesn't appear to be. The Forest Hunter General appeared in the exact same paint job in his own set in this toy line, but was originally a JP III figure, which by itself was already repainted for JPD2. The missile launcher originally came with the JP III Military Diver figure, appeared again with that figure repainted in JPD2 and has also been featured with the Diver of this toy line.

Overall rating: 8/10. Probably the best addition to the world of JP toys since the better JP III sculpts were first released in 2001. Though the paint job is not perfect, the many new features, much improved poseability and overall size make for a formidable dinosaur toy. The General and his weapon (as well as the cut-out vehicle) are nice little additions but are hardly noteworthy compared to the main attraction here, though they add some additional fun. This set wasn't rare on release, but that swiftly changed. Because it's such a good and huge toy, it was quite sought after and has by now become almost as valuable as the original TLW Bull T-Rex it was based on. Don't expect this one to be an easy find, despite it not being a very old toy.

Jurassic Park 2009: Battle Growlers: Velociraptor

Year of release: 2009

Description: this Raptor figure can only stand up straight in an overly dramatic posture, its body straight upwards, its legs wide apart and its ferocious claws ready for action, its head facing upwards and turned to the right, jaws wide open (incapable of being closed). The tail is bent in a sort of 'S' shaped fashion. This sculpt has proto-feathers on the back of its head, following the design change of the Jurassic Park III Velociraptors as compared to the Raptors seen in the first two movies. Accordingly, it also has a nasal ridge on each side of its face. A dino damage wound is located on the upper base of the tail, revealing some of its tail bones and dark red muscle tissue. Inside the wound a button is found: when pressed this produces a snarling sound. On its back this creature has a small lever, activating the slashing claw action feature. This also produces an eerie shrieking noise.

This Raptor has a fairly restrained paint job compared to some of the more bizarrely coloured dinosaur figures of this toy line. The underside (throat, belly, lower part of the tail, feet and arms, inner part of the legs) and most of the head is painted very light grey. The rest of the body (back of the head and neck, back, flanks, the rest of the limbs and tail) is coloured brown. On each side of the body, a brown stripe runs from the arms almost to the end of the tail, interrupted only by the upper legs. A very thin light blue stripe runs all the way above it. The proto-feathers on the back of the head are coloured in the same shade of blue. The face is adorned with dark brown stripes, three on each jaw (so twelve in total, or six if the jaws could be closed), one starting much broader than the others at the eye sockets. The Raptor has small yellow eyes with black pupils, white teeth, a pink tongue and inside of the mouth, dark grey claws on both toes and fingers and a white JP logo on each upper leg.

Analysis: naturally this new 2009 JP line couldn't go without a larger Raptor figure, so once again the original JP III Alpha Velociraptor sculpt was revamped (despite the JP III Pack Raptor being such a lousy figure you'd wish Hasbro would repaint that particular sculpt for a change). Apparently the designer who came up with this new paint job wasn't completely high as the designer who thought of the more grotesque paint jobs of this line was (or he/she did a better job at hiding it), since this Velociraptor's paint job is fairly simple compared to those.

It's a pretty good new paint job, original enough but also not totally new. It's interesting to see the underside's colour also covering the head for a change, since that is usually reserved for the topside's main colouring. The slight camouflage effect achieved by the dark stripes over the light facial colour works well: it is somewhat reminiscent of a zebra or a white tiger. The brown and blue stripes are also a nice touch, adding enough diversity to the paint job without the overall colouration going over the top. Still, the proto-feathers could have used more work, they're rather bland now. This paint job's colouration remind one of the old JPS2 Gallimimus' colours, with its combination of brown, blue stripes and a light grey underside. This is most likely unintentional though.

Otherwise, this release is nothing special. It still comes with an irritating posture hindering playability, a very annoying wound that can't be covered up and a fairly ineffective attack option. It's definitely the paint job that makes this Raptor worthwhile enough.

Repaint: yes. This is a repaint of the JP III Alpha Velociraptor figure (Wave 1). It has been repainted several times before for Camo-Xtreme, JPD2 and JPD3.

Overall rating: 6/10. A solid new paint job, but only a half decent sculpt. This dinosaur figure is not at all rare and can still be found easily. Since this set was a Toys'R'Us exclusive that could change over time, but probably not in the coming decade.

Jurassic Park 2009: Battle Growlers: Triceratops

Year of release: 2009

Description: this four legged rhinoceros like dinosaur is easily recognizable by its large head with the round crest around it and three horns on its face, two large ones above the eyes, and a smaller one on the snout. It has a beak resembling a parrot's. The crest is adorned with small orange spikes sticking out of it (sixteen in total). It has a sturdy body, about twice the length of the head, ending in a short thick tail. Very noticeable, this figure sports a dino damage wound on its left flank, showing white ribs and red muscle tissue. A small button can be found in this wound, which when pressed produces a low howling growl. A second sound can be made by pushing the tail upwards (though in this release's case, the package suggests pressing the head frill instead), which also causes the head to rise upwards, as if attacking a carnivore with its horns. This second sound is more aggressive, like a hissing growl.

This Trike sports a rather diversified and elaborate paint job. Its underside (lower jaw, throat, belly, lower part of the tail), upper legs and parts on the back and upper part of the tail are coloured light grey. The facial area is mostly black, as is the back (with little triangular shapes sticking out of the main black colouring) and uppermost part of the tail. A black stripe runs from the mouth over the neck and back almost fully to the end of the tail on each side of the creature, interrupted only by the upper legs. A second black stripe runs from the base of the neck, also over the flanks toward the end of the tail, but not over the legs, again on both sides of the Triceratops (but on the left flank also interrupted by the wound). The body areas on the flanks and tail between both sets of black stripes are painted green. The lower legs are equally green, separated in colour from the upper legs by black bands around the knees. The small claws on all four legs are coloured dark green. The head frill is painted shiny dark blue, with short orange stripes on its edges running to and over the little frill spikes. The back of the frill is just plain black. The Ceratopsian carries a green stripe on each cheek, while the eye sockets are also green, with small blue eyes (and black pupils). Its beak and the three horns on the face are painted beige. It also has a pink tongue, and white JP logos on both upper hind legs.

Analysis: also making a return for the latest JP toy line is Hasbro's Triceratops sculpt, which remains a rather accurate and appealing figure, unhindered by some weird attack posture like most other electronic Hasbro dinosaurs are, though it too sadly retains its gaping wound. It comes with the same head butt action as before (and the same two sounds), though apparently the Hasbro team forgot this action feature was supposed to be activated by pushing its tail upwards, which is not mentioned at all on this figure's package. Instead, pressing the frill releases a 'combat roar', meaning, there is no distinct action feature specified on the figure's box. Luckily, us JP fans know this sculpt better than its creators it seems, and it's safe to say the original attack option is still present.

So the only really new thing (Hasbro's ignorance doesn't count since it was always there, it just seems to have gotten worse over the years) for this sculpt is the paint job, and oh my, did they went all out for this one! First impression with the abundance of green and the black bands would be of a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, which is a whole different animal altogether. The new paint scheme is quite bizarre, but also rather imaginative. The fact the frill is coloured differently from the head and slightly adorned with stripes and such is a real improvement over this sculpt's previous incarnations, though it could still have used some more work, since it's a bit bland at present. The colouring on the rest of the body is a bit over the top though. The stripes all coming together on the end of the tail is a nice touch, but the lower legs being painted so differently makes it look like the Triceratops is wearing socks. It would have been preferable if the lower legs had been painted regular elephantine grey, and the black stripes and green colouring had continued over the upper legs instead. It's good to see details have been taken care of though, as illustrated by the claws, the eye sockets and the beak. The horns could have used more details though, they look a little too artificially pristine the way they are now.

Overall, still a good figure, but the paint job is a little too much. For some reason overly festive and elaborate paint jobs just don't cut it on thick hide quadruped dinosaurs like this one, as this case shows. A good try though.

Repaint: yes. This is a repaint of the JP III Triceratops figure (Wave 1). It has been repainted once before for JPD3.

Overall rating: 6/10. Still one of the better original Hasbro sculpts (and surely one of the best sculpts of this line), but, despite its originality, the paint job is just really over the top and tends to feel somewhat silly. This dinosaur figure is not at all rare and can still be found without difficulty. Since this set was a Toys'R'Us exclusive that could change eventually, but for the next few years, we're good.

Jurassic Park 2009: Battle Growlers: Tyrannosaurus Rex

Year of release: 2009

Description: like almost all of Hasbro’s medium sized dinosaur models, this electronic Tyrannosaurus doesn’t stand in a neutral posture. It's posed in a bent position, head, arms and tail positioned to the right, in a walking mode with the left leg posed forward and right leg backwards, as if circling potential prey. It has a large dino damage wound on its right flank, revealing red muscle tissue and white ribs. Inside this wound a button is located: when pushed it activates a rather high pitched growl. A second button is placed on its throat. Pressing this button produces a fierce attack roar, and makes the jaws open. Both the arms and legs are fully poseable.

This T-Rex features a fairly intricate paint job. Its underside (lower jaw, throat, belly, lower part of the tail, underside of the arms and inner part of the legs) may be plain beige, but the sides of the animal (sides of the neck, flanks, back parts of the arms and legs and sides of the tail) are coloured brightly green instead, and the top parts (neck, back, upper part of the tail, forward sides of the arms and legs) are painted yellowish brown with dark brown stripes. The face and top of the head is bright red, while the area around the lower jaw is coloured a darker shade of red. The Rex has small yellow eyes (with black pupils), white teeth, a pink tongue, a red inside of the mouth, dark grey claws on both fingers and toes, and a white JP logo on both upper legs.

Analysis: despite the overt abundance of little Rex sculpts and the presence of a huge Tyrannosaur figure in this toy line, Hasbro also felt the need to repaint this often used medium sized Rex sculpt once more, making this the most T-Rex intensive JP line so far. Few people would have lamented its absence, but if it was missing from this line they would have missed out on a pretty neat paint job. If red has been used to colour the flanks instead of green, it would have been very tiger like. The use of many stripes coupled with green and brown colouring gives this animal a distinct jungle feel: one could see this as an attempt at an unofficial Camo-Xtreme Jungle T-Rex. Details have been taken care of, including all the claws, and the difference in colour between the tongue and the inside of the mouth is a nice touch, hardly ever done before. The face and the top part of the head being coloured so separately feels a bit odd and out of place, but it harkens back to the good old Camo-Xtreme Arctic T-Rex which had a similar thing going on (it worked better in that figure's case though).

Apart from the appealing and colourful new paint job, there's little of interest to this figure. The posture it assumes is still a nuisance if you want to play with, the biting action which needs to be activated by an inconveniently placed button has little practical effect and the huge gaping wound on its right flank is still bloody annoying. But once again, we have proof that a solid paint job alone can make a sculpt look much better than it actually is.

Repaint: yes. This is a repaint of the JP III T-Rex figure (Wave 1). It has been repainted several times before for Camo-Xtreme, JPD2 and JPD3.

Overall rating: 6/10. A half decent sculpt, but a pretty good new paint job making it look much cooler. This dinosaur figure is not at all rare and can still be found easily. Since this set was a Toys'R'Us exclusive that could change over time, but probably not for the next few years.

Jurassic Park 2009: Battle Growlers: Dilophosaurus

Year of release: 2009

Description: this dinosaur, a slender bipedal carnivore with a very characteristic head, sports two semi-circular ridges on top of its head, with a little spike behind each. Also, the large frill (not removable), which was a made up feature for the Dilophosaurus in the first Jurassic Park movie, makes it easily recognizable. The figure stands in a sort of stalking mode, with its body and tail bent, its legs and arms wide apart, its head posed to the left and its jaws opened. The figure has a large dino damage wound on its left flank, showing white bones and red muscle tissue, with a button inside it, which produces a hissing shriek when pushed. Also, an orange lever is located on its back: when pulled, the figure slashes its arms back and forth and makes a hissing, rattling attack roar.

This Dilophosaurus has a very fiery paint job. Its underside (lower jaw, throat, belly, underside of the upper arms, inner part of the legs and lower part of the tail) is coloured simply beige though. The rest of the body is covered in a reddish brown paint job. Its neck, back and tail are adorned with orange colouring which largely extends over the flanks (including the dino damage wound) and has various small rounded and spiky shapes running out of it, most notably on the hips and tail. Additional orange stripes and shapes are found on the limbs. In most cases, the orange colouring is accompanied by small yellow spots and shapes found in the middle of it. The top of the head and the crest are coloured red, with red stripes running over the face over the snout and ocular area. The crests are equipped with thin yellow lines running around its edges, and also forming a circular shape in the middle of each crest. Unlike the rest of the figure's bright colouring the crests are adorned in a symmetrical pattern instead of randomly. The big frill around the creature's neck is painted plain reddish brown, like most of the body, except for the centre of its front side, which is coloured orange and gradually shifts into aforementioned brown. The figure has a pink tongue and inside of the mouth, white teeth, small green eyes (with white pupils and black irises), black claws on both toes and fingers and a white JP logo on each upper leg.

Analysis: finally, the return of the Dilophosaurus sculpt! Too bad they didn't retool it like they did with the big T-Rex, since all of this figure's former faults remain intact. To start with, its frill still can't be removed, hindering not only overall playability and rendering its front side too heavy so it can't stand up straight, but also being in the way of the attack action of the arms, which has a very limited range because of this, and is otherwise rather unimpressive. Also ever present is the big dino damage wound on the flank which can't be covered up. At least it's partially camouflaged by the new paint job in this case.

Which brings us to this figure's only new feature: the elaborate colour scheme. If you ever wondered what a possible Camo-Xtreme Lava Dilophosaurus might have looked like, this could very well have been it. It gives this dinosaur a very dragon like feel, its already bizarre look being fused with colours which spawn a sense of fire and danger. The details are also nicely done, especially on the head, like the crests and the eyes. However, the frill should have gotten more attention, being so obviously there but hardly presented with a paint job to speak off, like the figure was factory painted separately from the frill and its paint job was largely forgotten (which may have actually been the case).

Overall, a good paint job, but a bad figure. At least its movie accurate sounds are still there (making the figure hard to play rough with if you want those to stay in working order).

Repaint: yes. This is a repaint of the JP III Dilophosaurus figure (Wave 1). It is a first time repaint (yes, those still exist in this day and age!) and, so far, a last time repaint too.

Overall rating: 5/10. Despite its effective and original new paint job, this is still not a very good figure due to its asinine posture, gaping dino damage wound and limited attack feature. This dinosaur figure is not rare and can still be found effortlessly. Since this set was a Toys'R'Us exclusive that could change some day, but probably not for the next few years.

Jurassic Park 2009: Dino Trackers: Dino Glide Billy Brennan VS Pteranodon

Year of release: 2009

Accessories:

-Hang Glider

Description: Billy wears a grey sleeveless shirt adorned with dark blue spots, dark blue trousers with some tears on them, a black belt around his waist and brown shoes. He has red hair and eye brows and black eyes. He has some asymmetric details, including belts around his torso, a wristband (right arm), a glove (left arm), a shoulder patch (left arm) and a backpack with a hole in it so the glider can be attached to the figure: all this detailing is coloured black. Most notably, his left arm can move differently from the average human figure, not only forward and backward, but also up and down. The figure stands in an odd position with its legs wide apart and appears to be looking down. The glider is coloured black, covered in various light blue spots and shapes on both sides, revealing a yellow frame work around the edges. It basically resembles a large triangle. Billy can carry it on his back, so it appears he's hanging onto it.

The Pteranodon is positioned with its claws open and its head looking to the right, the left wing raised significantly upwards compared to its right wing. It's mostly coloured light yellow, while the back, most of the legs and feet, the arms and the fingers, the neck and most of the head are painted orange. On their top side the wings feature several brown stripes. The beak is painted brown, except for a triangular area around the nostrils which is pink instead. The figure sports two small brown bands around its head crest. The Pterosaur has small black eyes, a pink tongue and a black JP logo on the underside of its left wing.

Analysis: apart from Alan Grant, the only other actual character from any of the JP movies to reappear in JP 2009 is Billy Brennan. As before, he comes with a hang glider (inspired by the para-sailing scene from Jurassic Park III no doubt) and a left arm that has additional poseability options compared to the other human figures produced by Hasbro. His paint job is quite close to the one used on the original JP III Billy figure (though he's a red head now), except a little darker and more detailed. He looks pretty gritty and tough, as does his hang glider, which features a radically new and detailed paint job compared to its previous incarnations. At least it looks good this time, even though its actual use is still limited: Billy can carry it on his back and pose his arms like he's flying with it, but it looks totally unrealistic and rather goofy.

His Pteranodon companion also got a new paint job, which is far more brightly coloured and cheerful by comparison. It has vague echoes of the JP III Pteranodon paint jobs (the regular ones, not the Alpha Pteranodon sculpts'), but that seems a mere coincidence. Apart from the various colours on the head and the stripes on the wings, this paint jobs is less detailed than the rest of the set. The odd posture of the Pterosaur doesn't help playability, though it can still use his feet to grab a hold of the glider or Billy's left arm. For originality's sake, it's good to see this particular sculpt pop up after it's been neglected for eight years while almost all of the other JP III miniature creatures got countless repaints. There's plenty of Rexes and Raptors already in this toy line...

Repaint: yes. This set is identical to the Billy Brennan set of the JP III line (Wave 1). Billy himself has been repainted once before for JPD2 (along with his hang glider). The Pteranodon is a first time (and until so far, last time) repaint though.

Overall rating: 6/10. Billy remains a fairly good sculpt, though not overly originally repainted. While the hang glider is a bit of a silly thing, it features a splendid new paint scheme. The little Pteranodon has a less appealing paint job, but it's nice to see this sculpt again for a change. Otherwise there's nothing new to be found here. This set is not rare and can still be found with little effort. Since this set was a Toys'R'Us exclusive that might change eventually, but probably not for the next decade.

Jurassic Park 2009: Dino Trackers: Dino Diver VS Spinosaurus

Year of release: 2009

Accessories:

-Hydraulic Impulse Dino-“Tranquilizer” Speargun

Description: the Diver wears an all black suit (including black flippers), covered in light blue stripes and (mostly triangular) shapes, with an orange vest over it, as well as several black belts and orange highlights. On his right leg he has a knife holder with a knife in it (non removable), not coloured differently so a bit hard to notice. His face is partially covered with breathing equipment (with orange filters), though he’s got nothing covering his eyes (brown eyes and eye brows). He’s got a black air tank on his back. He shows signs of a dinosaur attack on his left leg and right arm, revealing bare skin. His weapon appears to be some sort of missile launcher (though its title, as stated above based on the information on the figure's packaging, is a bit longer than that). It’s coloured in a slightly metallic dark blue paint job, with a dark pink missile sticking out of it on both ends. Pushing the end of the missile sort of launches it, though it doesn’t work very well.

The Spinosaurus is positioned in a crouching move, its right arm resting on the ground, possibly stalking potential prey. Its left arm is raised upwards and its mouth is opened wide. Except for its top body parts (top of the head, neck, uppermost part of the back, sail and top of the tail), which are coloured purple, the figure's body is all pink. However, a lighter shade of purple is mixed in with the pink on the side of the neck and tail, the flanks and the arms, making those body parts look darker then they are. A row of small dark purple spots runs on either side of the creature's body from the neck over the flanks to about half way the tail. The Spinosaurus has white teeth and a red tongue and inside of the mouth, small yellow eyes with black pupils and a black JP logo on both upper legs. Its claws are not painted.

Analysis: JP 2009, like the JP III and JPD2 lines, features some aquatic action with this Diver figure and its buddy of old, the not-so-often-used-as-some-other-sculpts crouching Spinosaurus. The Diver himself differs little from its last incarnation, except for the blue stripes and less detailed paint job. Also, the American flag which graced his left arm the previous times is now absent, leaving his affiliations unknown: maybe he's gone AWOL, or he's turned mercenary. His trusty weapon, a sort of missile launcher, unfortunately is still by his side and continues to leave much to be desired, being neither very effective nor good looking or easy for this figure to handle. The rocket this time is purple, which also makes it look a bit goofy.

His Spinosaurus companion got it worse though, and features a completely wacky pink paint job, like some sort of bizarre prehistoric variation on the 'My Little Pony' theme. Whatever the designer who painted this fellow was smoking, stay away from it for your own good. Pink and purple just aren't good choices for big carnivore figures, or even their miniature counterparts, as this figure proves by looking just totally stupid. Also, the lack of detailing, particularly the unpainted claws, is a bit of a bummer. It would come as no surprise if it turned out this Spinosaurus is crouching down because it offers itself up for a mercy shot from the Diver's gun to put it out of its overly festive misery. If only Hasbro had done the same beforehand to the toy designer who came up with these idiotically brightly coloured dinosaur paint jobs for the JP 2009 toy line...

Repaint: yes. This set is identical to the Military Diver set of the JP III line (Wave 2). The Diver has been repainted once for JPD2 (along with his missile launcher), while the Spinosaurus has already been repainted several times for Camo-Xtreme, and JPD2 and would be used twice for this toy line. The missile launcher was also used for the Deluxe Electronic T-Rex set of this toy line.

Overall rating: 4/10. The Diver is okay, but not very different from its predecessors and sadly less detailed. His weapon is still lame. The Spinosaurus is a fairly decent sculpt but features an absolutely awful silly paint job. This set is not rare and can still be found with little effort. Since this set was a Toys'R'Us exclusive that could change over time, but probably not for the next decade or so.

Jurassic Park 2009: Dino Trackers: Forest Hunter General VS Tyrannosaurus Rex

Year of release: 2009

Accessories:

-Dino Claw weapon

Description: this General wears a dark grey jacket adorned with lighter grey spots and shapes and revealing a grey shirt underneath, as well as silver tags around his neck. He also sports a black utility belt, dark grey trousers and black boots. His pants and shirt sport some slight tears, like he’s had a run-in with an unpleasant dinosaur. He has brown hair and eye brows, black eyes and a rather grim look on his face. He stands in a very odd pose, left leg stretched forwards and right leg braced backwards, left arm reaching up and right arm pointing down, as if he's startled by some prehistoric vermin in front of him. He comes with a Dino Claw weapon,basically a large hand held contraption which ends in two comparatively small claws than can hook around dinosaur body parts. The claws are operated by a handle on its top side. The Claw is coloured totally black.

The T-Rex stands in an active posture, its head curved to the left and its arms stretched out as if attacking something. The tip of the tail is bent, pointing upwards and to the left. It has small pads on its feet to give it extra support, though it still tends to fall over at times. While its underside (most of the lower jaw, throat, belly, arms, most of the legs, feet pads and lower part of the tail) is painted simply grey, the rest of the body sports a more intricate paint job. The upper jaw and face, neck, back, and top part of the tail are coloured in a very dark shade of brown (which at first glance seems black) with rounded stripes running out of this colour over the flanks, upper legs and sides of the tail. Vague regular brown colouring is applied around the edges of the darker brown colour, while lighter brown spots are found on the head, neck, flanks,upper legs and both sides of the tail. The Rex has white teeth and a red tongue and inside of its mouth, as well as small yellow eyes with black pupils. Its claws are not painted, but it has a black JP logo on each upper leg.

Analysis: JP Dinosaurs 2 might have been able to do without them, but human figures are back for JP 2009 (Hasbro's, unfortunately). A more realistic approach is taken for their paint jobs, as illustrated by this Forest Hunter General and its camouflage army gear (maybe not enough green and brown for forest stealth, but still pretty concealing colours). His outfit looks gritty but fitting on him, much darker than his JPD2 predecessor and his more brightly coloured attire. He retains his idiotic and awkward posture though, which continues to hinder both his playability and his ability to stand up straight. His rocket launcher has been exchanged for what was formerly Alan Grant's grappling claw, still a silly and highly ineffective piece of equipment that looks overly complicated but works very simply (though, generally, not at all). Its new black paint job goes well with the General's sombre new look. The officer has a hard time holding on to it without falling over though, so it would have been preferable if either the weapon was made smaller (which shouldn't have been too hard considering less than half of the thing actually is of use to the clawing action) or the General's overall pose was adjusted, but Hasbro opted for the more simple solution of just not giving a damn.

The military man comes with the same T-Rex whose presence dominates the four dinosaur two-packs of this line, making this its fourth appearance in JP 2009. Though its underside could definitely have used more work and detailing (painted claws and pads would have been appreciated), the upper half of its body features a pretty good new paint job, fairly detailed and original, complimenting the General's darker and grimier new look. Still, this is one sculpt we definitely don't need to see again, ever, and it would have been nice to see this human figure paired with another miniature dinosaur than its original counterpart, for diversity's sake. If they can give him another weapon, they can give him another dinosaur, but it seems we have to make due with the same line-up as before. Which means the General is dead meat, considering his lame Dino Claw is no match for this ravenous little Tyrant King.

Repaint: yes. This set is identical to the Military General set of the JP III line, except for the weapon which originally came with JP III Alan Grant. The General has been repainted once for JPD2, while the T-Rex has already been repainted over a dozen times for Camo-Xtreme, JPD2 and JPD3 and would be used several times again for this toy line. The General would also make an appearance in the Deluxe Electronic T-Rex set of this toy line, with the exact same paint job. The Dino Claw weapon was also repainted for JPD2, and would be featured a second time in this toy line.

Overall rating: 5/10. Not the best sculpts and accessory, but the paint jobs are fairly okay, certainly compared to some of the more zany repaints in this toy line. This set is not rare and can still be found with little effort. Since this set was a Toys'R'Us exclusive that could change over time, but probably not for the next decade.

Jurassic Park 2009: Dino Trackers: Desert Tracker Alan Grant VS Velociraptor

Year of release: 2009

Accessories:

-Dino Claw weapon

Description: Alan Grant sports a lime green shirt with a blue bandana, as well as light grey pants (with a big tear on the right leg, revealing bare skin underneath), a green utility belt and dark grey shoes and gloves. He also has black hair, eye brows and eyes. He stands in a fairly neutral posture, except his right leg is posed in a forward move as if taking a step, and his left arm is raised upwards a little. He comes with a Dino Claw weapon,basically a large hand held contraption which ends in two comparatively small claws than can hook around dinosaur body parts. The claws are operated by a handle on its top side. It is coloured in about the same shade of grey as Grant's pants.

The Velociraptor stands in a stalking posture, its right arm and leg stretched out and its head raised upwards with its mouth open, as if it's about to jump on something. The tail is raised upwards and bent at the tip. Most of its head and its underside (throat, belly, lower part of the tail, underside of all limbs) is painted beige, while the top of the head, neck, back and upper part of the tail are painted light brown, this colour running out of the back colouring in small stripes over the upper legs and base of the tail. The rest of the body, most notably the top parts of the limbs and the flanks, is painted yellowish beige. A few dark grey spots are found on each side of the creature on its neck, flanks, upper leg and mostly on the tail. The Raptor has white teeth and a red inside of the mouth, cat like yellow eyes with black pupils, black claws on its feet (but not on the hands) and a black JP logo on both upper legs.

Analysis: Alan Grant finally makes an official return to the realm of JP toys in JP 2009, after last having been seen in the JP III line and making an anonymous appearance in JP Dinosaurs 2). He wears a somewhat less noticeable attire (no excessively white shirt this time), which suits him well. However, the green shirt and especially the blue scarf would give him away easily in a desert environment, so as a 'Desert Tracker' he doesn't seem very successful (hence the tear in his pants, probably). His lame Dino Claw Weapon also would do him little good - in whatever environment - since it has great trouble restraining dinosaurs and is overly bulky and inoperable. Grant had better learn a few things from the Raptor that accompanies him in this set, which combines a desert camouflage paint job with a Velociraptor's usual lethal ferocity. This paint job, though effective in communicating a desert feel for this set as a whole, is pretty standard and offers little surprises. The sculpt itself has been released to death (even in this toy line), and has been done better before. This one isn't necessarily badly coloured, it's just a dull paint scheme and could have used more detailing (like painted claws on the hands too).

Overall, though Grant looks more casual and realistically dressed than his predecessors, the continuing use of Hasbro's ugliest piece of JP weaponry and the bland paint job on this overused Raptor sculpt make for a rather standard Hasbro set: just not very exciting.

Repaint: yes. This set is identical to the Alan Grant set of the JP III line (Wave 1). Grant has been repainted once for JPD2 (along with his Dino Claw), while the Velociraptor has already been repainted over a dozen times for Camo-Xtreme, JPD2 and JPD3 and would be used several times again for this toy line. The Dino Claw weapon was also used for the Forest Hunter General set of this toy line.

Overall rating: 5/10. Not the best sculpts and a lousy weapon, but the paint jobs are pretty modest, certainly compared to some of the wackier repaints in this toy line. They're still not especially appealing or imaginative though. This set is not rare and can still be found with little effort. Since this set was a Toys'R'Us exclusive that could change over time, but probably not for the next decade or so.

Jurassic Park 2009: Dino Battlers: Velociraptor VS Tyrannosaurus Rex

Year of release: 2009

Description: the T-Rex stands in an active posture, its head curved to the left and its arms stretched out as if attacking something. The tip of the tail is bent, pointing upwards and to the left. It has small pads on its feet to give it extra support, though it still tends to fall over at times. Its predominant colour is dark grey, which covers all of its body except for its underside (lower jaw, throat, belly, inner parts of the upper arms and legs and most of the lower part of the tail) which is coloured greenish beige instead. On the neck, back, upper legs and first half of the tail, green stripes are found, most of them forming triangular patterns, resembling lightning, or cardiographs. An additional pair of green stripes runs over the eyes (blue with black pupils) on the figure's face. The Rex's teeth are white, while the tongue and inside of the mouth are red. Its claws and the pads on the feet are not painted differently. It carries a white JP logo on each upper leg.

The Velociraptor stands in a stalking posture, its right arm and leg stretched outward and its head raised upwards with its mouth open, as if it means to jump on something. The tail is raised upwards and bent at the tip. Its underside (lower jaw, throat, belly and most of the lower part of the tail) is coloured beige, while this colour also runs over the flanks, the hind parts of both arms and legs and on the face around the eyes (cat like, yellow with black pupils). The rest of the creature's body is light red, while dark red stripes run over the back and tail. The Raptor's teeth are white, while the tongue and inside of the mouth are red. The claws on the feet are painted black, though those on the hands remain unpainted. The Raptor sports a white JP logo on each upper leg.

Analysis: we wanted original paint jobs, it seems we got them... Both dinosaurs look positively festive, as if they're on a night out for a prehistoric carnival. Whether that's a good thing is up for everyone to decide for themselves, but at least it's imaginative. Granted, it does feel kinda odd for two vicious carnivores like these, since it makes them stand out a lot and would hinder their attempts at seizing prey. This two-pack has a kind of Chaos Effect feel to it, weird and colourful. Maybe Hasbro went for more colour to attract the kiddies, since most collectors won't think much about these bizarre paint jobs. Plus, this is just more of the same, two sculpts that we're really tired of seeing repainted by now, getting yet another makeover, as if Hasbro is trying to find an ultimate colour and paint scheme for these sculpts (this would not be it for sure). Original colouring not withstanding, unfortunately some of the details are still off: the Rex's claws and pads should have been painted, and the same goes for the claws on the Raptor's fingers, though the latter at least got those big claws on its feet painted differently this time.

Rex VS Raptor, who would win? Under normal circumstances a Velociraptor would never fight a T-Rex, but these figures are more or less the same size. Though the Raptor is more agile and has those nasty sickle shaped claws on its feet, you can't compare that to a bulldozing, bulky heavyweight like this little T-Rex, so that would be your best bet. It's a tight match though.

Repaint: yes. The T-Rex originally came with the Military General for the JP III line and has already been repainted over a dozen times for Camo-Xtreme, JPD2 and JPD3 and would be used several times again for this toy line. This Raptor sculpt was paired with Alan Grant for the JP III line and has also been repainted many times for Camo-Xtreme, JPD2 and JPD3, and would also be featured in various JP 2009 sets.

Overall rating: 4/10. Imaginative and funky, but rather silly new paint jobs. Otherwise there's just nothing of particular interest in this set, unless you don't own either one of these sculpts yet (if ever!). This set is not rare and can still be found with little effort. Since this set was a Toys'R'Us exclusive that could change some day, but probably not for the next decade.

Jurassic Park 2009: Dino Battlers: Spinosaurus VS Velociraptor

Year of release: 2009

Description: the Velociraptor stands in a stalking posture, its right arm and leg stretched outward and its head raised upwards with its mouth open, as if it means to jump on something. The tail is raised upwards and bent at the tip. All of this creature's body is coloured orange, except for its underside (lower jaw, throat, belly, most of the lower part of the tail, underside of the arms and fingers and inner parts of the legs and feet) which is beige instead. A large part of the face around the eyes on either side of the Raptor's head is also beige. On its back, the Raptor features six yellowish beige (a different shade of beige than mentioned before) stripes, with smaller yellow stripes of the same shape in the centre of each of these stripes. The figure has yellow eye sockets, housing cat like orange eyes with black pupils. It has white teeth and a red inside of the mouth, as well as black claws on the feet (but not on the fingers). A white JP logo is found on each upper leg.

The Spinosaurus is positioned in a crouching move, its right arm resting on the ground, possibly stalking potential prey. Its left arm is raised upwards and its mouth is opened wide. It's a very green figure, this colour being found on all of the body, except for its underside (lower jaw, throat, belly, most of the lower part of the tail, inner parts of the arms and legs) which is coloured dark beige. The upper jaw and face, the feet and the sail are coloured dark green with the tip of the tail and three stripes running around the tail full circle sporting the same colour. On both flanks it carries a few beige spots. The figure has small yellow eyes with black pupils. It also has white teeth and a red inside of the mouth and tongue. The claws on both hands and feet are not painted. A white JP logo is found on each upper leg.

Analysis: Hasbro yet again went for a very colourful set of new paint jobs in this two-pack, but again failed to deliver on making these paint jobs look actually good, except maybe for kids who like their dinosaurs overly brightly coloured. Both paint schemes are otherwise not very inspired. In fact, the Spinosaurus' paint job is very similar to the green paint job of its Camo-Xtreme Swamp predecessor, making it a poor copy of that particular release. Both figures lack a sense of detailing, as illustrated by the lack of painted claws (except for those on the Raptor's feet, but in this case the small claws on the back of the feet have been neglected). It is good to see the alternative Spinosaurus sculpt used for a change (though of course a new sculpt would have made us much happier!), since we haven't seen it since JPD2. The same can't be said for this Raptor sculpt, which has overstayed its welcome for far too long.

The Raptor, which in normal circumstances would be more or less in perfect scale with Hasbro's human figures (though not in the standard JP situation where Velociraptors are hugely oversized), is lucky he's about equal size as the Spinosaurus. In reality any Spinosaurus would just bite the Raptor in half, being considerably taller. In a fight between these particular two dinosaurs, the Raptor with its lethal sickle shaped claws would probably win the day. The Spinosaurus already seems to have fallen to its knees accordingly.

Repaint: yes. The Spinosaurus originally came with the Military Diver for the JP III line (Wave 2) and has been repainted before a few times for Camo-Xtreme and JPD2 and would be used twice for this toy line. The Velociraptor sculpt was paired with Alan Grant for the JP III line (Wave 1 instead) and has been repainted many times for Camo-Xtreme, JPD2 and JPD3 and would also be featured in various JP 2009 sets. 

 

Overall rating: 3/10. Funky use of colours here, but these new paint schemes aren't particularly imaginative or appealing. Besides, there's just nothing of particular interest in this set, unless you don't own either one of these sculpts yet. This set is not rare and can still be found with little effort. Since this two-pack was a Toys'R'Us exclusive that could change some day, but probably not for the next few years.

Jurassic Park 2009: Dino Battlers: Spinosaurus VS Tyrannosaurus Rex

Year of release: 2009

Description: the small Spinosaurus figure stands in a walking posture, with its left leg posed forward and the left arm raised, its mouth opened as if roaring and the end of the tail bent pointing to the right. It sports a typical three-way paint job. Its underside (throat, belly and most of the lower part of the tail) is painted greenish beige. Most of the head, the sides of the neck and tail, the flanks, the tip of the tail and the limbs are coloured brown. The back of the head, neck, back, sail and most of the upper part of the tail is painted green. It features several greenish beige stripes on the head, neck, back (including the sail) and tail. The claws on the hands and feet are not painted. The inside of the mouth is painted red, while the creature carries white teeth and has small red eyes with black pupils. The Spinosaurus carries a white JP logo on both upper legs.

The T-Rex stands in an active posture, its head curved to the left and its arms outstretched as if attacking something. The tip of the tail is bent pointing upwards and to the left. It has small pads on its feet to give it extra support. Its predominant colour is grey, which is found not only on all of its underside (lower jaw, throat, belly, limbs, lower part and tip of the tail) but also on most of its back and on the upper legs. The rest of the body (the rest of the head, the neck, the flanks and the rest of the tail) is orange. It features several dark grey stripes and spots on its head (around the eyes), the back, the forearms, the lower legs and the front half of the tail. The claws on the hands and feet are not painted, nor are the pads under the feet. The tongue and inside of the mouth is painted red, while the creature carries white teeth and has small green eyes with black pupils. The Tyrannosaurus carries a white JP logo on each upper leg.

Analysis: good idea, Hasbro! Let's pack the same two miniature big predator figures together... again! It's only been done a bunch of times before so who will know or care? Of course us JP fans care, but apparently we don't really count when there's the potential of making money off kids around. So we are cursed with yet another crappy set of repaints, once again with totally unappealing paint jobs. The used combination of colours is ugly on both figures, though it's definitely worst on the Rex. Grey and orange are just not meant to be used together as this figure successfully demonstrates. Also, the lack of painted details is appalling. Neither figures have their claws painted and the pads on the Rex's feet are woefully neglected. There's just nothing in this set a collector could want, except to add the set to his/her collection to make it complete.

So, assuming anybody cared, who would win this conflict? The Rex is the likely choice. Not because it is the dinosaur king as some zealous fanboys keep reminding us, but simply because it is a much heavier figure and easily knocks over its opponent.

Repaint: yes. The T-Rex originally came with the Military General for the JP III line and has already been repainted over and over again for Camo-Xtreme, JPD2 and JPD3 and would be used several times again for this toy line. This Spinosaurus sculpt was paired with Amanda Kirby for the JP III line and has likewise been repainted often enough for Camo-Xtreme, JPD2 and JPD3. In JP 2009, this would be its only appearance though.

Overall rating: 2/10. Same old same old. Not very impressive sculpts repainted and packaged together too often already, and these paint jobs aren't great. There's just nothing of particular interest in this set, unless you don't own either one of these sculpts yet. This set is not rare and can still be found rather easily. Since this set was a Toys'R'Us exclusive that might change some day, but probably not for the next decade.