Toys R Us Exclusive "Animal Planet" Dinosaur Encounter Carnataurus Set Review:
Every few years, Toys R Us refreshes their "Animal Planet" offerings. This new set replaces an earlier set consisting of a larger capture vehicle and a Therizinasaurus. This set contains a brand new dinosaur, a new dinosaur hatchling and a new capture vehicle. The figure and remaining accessories are all recycled from previous offerings.
The Carnataurus is set to be a lot of kids' new favorite dinosaur as it plays a major part in the upcoming "Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom" movie. There have been a few Carnataurus figures in the "Animal Planet" line before ranging from small unarticulated versions to large deluxe electronic light and sound models, but this small sized version is an all new mold. The sculpting is quite good all around, not as good as the upcoming Mattel "Jurassic World" figure, but on par with the previous Chap Mei versions. The articulation is a bit lacking as both legs move in unison due to the action feature- rear the body up and the dinosaur roars and its mouth and eyes light up. There is additional articulation in the shoulders, but that is it.
The Triceratops hatchling looks to be an all new sculpt that is reminiscent of, but much improved over, the old "Jurassic Park" hatchlings that came with the Kenner figures 2 decades ago.
The capture vehicle has both high and low points. With how often Chap Mei's molds get reused in this line it is always good to see brand new molds debut. Aside from it's newness, this vehicle falls short of expectations. All 4 wheels move freely as they should. Surprisingly, the roll cage does not open so the driver has to be inserted through the open front end, this is not a big deal as there is plenty of room to get it in, it is just surprising as they are usually hinged. The capture claw on the hood elevates and declinates, the claw itself can rotate and open and close to grab dinosaurs, but the base of the arm does not rotate leaving the capture arm front facing only.
Overall, this set is a mixed bag. The new dinosaurs are fun, it comes with the best accessory tree available in the line and the spectacular dinosaur cage returns to retail after being gone for over a decade, but the lackluster vehicle and recycled figure kind of makes the $21.99 price hard to swallow. This is a set I would advise you to wait for the "buy on get one 40% off" sales TRU runs on their "Animal Planet" line ever 2 months or so.
