Fisher Price has been doing nothing short of dominating the little dudes market with their huge Imaginext line. One of the staples of the lineup has to be their dinosaurs and dino-rider-esque sets. Let’s take a quick look at a couple of the basic and deluxe price point sets new for this year.
One thing I noticed is there’s been a bit of a shift in style where the Imaginext Dinos are concerned. When Imaginext started playing around with the “Dino-Rider” concept, the figures and gear had more sci-fi and techie elements to them. This new series has opted for a more “tribal” look, with the accessories and figures looking more like something from an ancient Mayan-like era. This has got little to do with the fun and function of these little guys, but I have to say, it’s pretty cool to see this kind of style and attention paid to sets geared at small kids — again, definitely one of the things Imaginext is known for.
The Pterodactyl set features the title beast as well as a small warrior, or maybe more of a scout.
The dino himself is done in a bright orange plastic, and does feature some basic articulation at the wings, head and legs. No opening jaw on this guy, but that could be due to the size. There is also a nicely integrated button on his back that activates a hinged flapping feature.
The figure has the standard articulation of the other Imaginext figures and comes with this very ornate headress/helmet — there is some really cool sculpting going on there.
While the Pterodactyl isn’t exactly equipped to be a mount, he can still interact with the scout thanks to his hooked feet that let him get a good grip on the guy’s arms for some quick air travel.
The larger Raptor set comes with figure, dino, accessories, and a translucent boulder. The Inca/Mayan vibe carries over this time into the dinousaur as well, with his riding mount (permanently attached) adorned with all kinds of feathers and ceremonial-type details.
He’s also wearing a spiked helmet, which comes in handy for the action feature. He has some basic articulation and the arms and legs, as well as a hinged tail. The neck has some movement as well, but this is more for the action feature.
This warrior also has a unique armor piece and comes with a spear and shield that both fit nicely in his hands.
The warrior figure mounts to the Raptor using the usual foot-peg system. Once on there, set the boulder on the raptor’s head spikes, press down on the warrior, and you’ve got yourself a raptor-catapault. Because once the thrill of having a raptor taxi you around wears off, you might as well use him to throw rocks at people you don’t like. I can dig it.
Much like everything these Imaginext guys run out, these are some great designed toys that are doing a bang-up job of helping us collector-type grown-ups share our love of action figures with our own little people. And any excuse to play with dinosaurs is always a good one. Thanks to the Fisher Price crew for sending these along!