The Dinosaur Toy Blog

Review by Dan Liebman, Photos by Mat Hockett

No dinosaur figure collection is complete without Parasaurolophus. While some may outclass her in a popularity contest, she is certainly the most well-known of all hadrosaurs. Her signature crest provides instant recognition, and this reconstruction for the Battat line includes a rarely-depicted stretch of skin running from the crest to the neck.

In recent years, paleontologists like Scott Sampson have contended that many of the exotic features so often found in dinosaurs were actually display structures. Indeed, many appear too fragile to be used in rigorous combat, so it is possible they were used to identify their species and attract mates.

The Battat dinosaurs are known for their flashy color schemes, but it’s plain to see that some extra attention was spent on the crest of this animal. It’s likely the artists also interpreted this as a showy structure, and collectors will no doubt nod feverishly at the suggestion that these figures were “ahead of their time.”

The golden body is lined with cyan along the back, a color which echoes across the entire length of the body and culminates at the head. A series of dark marks underscore the pattern from the ribcage, and continuing on to the anterior of the animal. Many companies seem to skimp on hadrosaurs, perhaps assuming their efforts should be focused on species that will sell better, but no effort seems to have been spared with this piece. Even the eyes are unusually intense for a hadrosaur replica.

Fortunately, the Parasaurolophus is only a moderately rare figure by Battat standards, so they tend to show up on eBay with some regularity. Prices can fluctuate of course, but this one rarely exceeds the $60 range. For any fan of the species, this is easily a must-have, and certainly one of the finest renditions of Parasaurolophus walkeri ever to be produced.

Today, we will take a look at the most controversial figure in all of the Battat line: the Stegosaurus. One of the things that the Battat line is renowned for is its great accuracy, but the makers of this Stegosaurus seem to have thrown caution to the wind. Before we get started, I must make it clear that the “sandy” look and weird color spots are not part of the actual figure itself. Instead, they are the battle-scars of an individual figure that probably had to put up with some kid roughly playing with it in a sand box, and then promptly going to town with a crayon.

The overall sculpt is great in most aspects. Scales detail the skin, with the occasional larger scale. The plates have realistic wrinkles on them. Wrinkles and musculature on this figure are very well done, giving it an extra lifelike look. As for accuracy, most departments are pretty good. Anatomical proportions are correct, and there are seventeen plates. However, like all the other Battat figures, the Stegosaurus is down to the species level. In this case, the figure is a Stegosaurus armatus, but the 17 plates are attributed to S. stenops. The plates themselves are okay, but are too thin and on the small side. There is one more inaccuracy of this figure, which makes this Stegosaurus quite controversial.

If you are reading this review, I assume you are able to count. But to help out the numerologically impaired, this Stegosaurus has 8 spikes. Eight. You are not hallucinating. How could the Battat line, one of the most accurate dinosaur lines ever despite being almost two decades old, commit this absurd travesty? There is a somewhat plausible explanation. When Othniel C. Marsh reconstructed Stegosaurus ungulatus (which is now considered to be the same thing as S. armatus) in 1879, he drew four pairs of spikes on the tail. This remained common in Stegosaurus reconstructions for the next few decades. The first time a Stegosaurus was shown with two pairs of spikes was in 1903, when Charles R. Knight sculpted a Stegosaurus model that isn’t too far off from what we know of the dinosaur today. After that, the idea of two pairs stuck, engrained in the public mind and popular culture, until Battat decided to shrug that notion off. Many have withheld from getting this figure for the number of spikes alone, and it remains quite controversial among the dinosaur collector community.

Rants about overabundant thagomizers aside, let’s go on to the paint job. It’s simple yet natural, with the top of the body a dark sepia brown, which blends into earth yellow for the lower part of the body. Red flashes from the plates, supporting the popular idea that they were used for display. The eyes are yellow, but don’t have much life in them and seem to be staring out into space. The claws are individually painted, which is a nice touch that even some figures today don’t have. Being made in the 90’s, the paint application isn’t exactly the most precise, and this is especially evident with the head. The insides of the mouth are painted a soft pink, but some of it shows up on areas of the head where it shouldn’t be. Also, my figure has a random spot of red on the head. This was not done by a roughhousing child. Like all Battat figures, the paint on the Stegosaurus is prone to smudging, so treat this figure carefully. The paint wear on my figure was most likely caused by a roughhousing child.

Perhaps having something to do with the unique decision the sculptors of this Stegosaurus made about the figure’s tail, the Battat Stegosaurus is the most common of the Battat dinosaurs. It’s sometimes available on eBay for around $15, which is only a bit more than the retail price it had back in the 90’s. In addition, Dan Lorusso’s site says that the Stegosaurus is still available, but it would probably be best to email him about it first. Lorusso was one of the paleoartists who helped sculpt the Battat figures, and the Stegosaurus is the last Battat that the site has. If you do go hunting for this figure on eBay, make sure to look closely at the pictures. The plastic the plates are made of is rather flexible; so many used figures will have bent plates. This is a nice Stegosaurus figure, despite the whole spike fiasco. If you don’t like the extra spikes, you can just chop them off with a knife and paint the holes, but some consider acts of customization sacrilegious if performed on a Battat. All in all, it’s a great figure for dinosaur lovers, especially Stegosaurus fans, but isn’t the best the Battat line has to offer.

Despite being such a famous dinosaur, most of the Triceratops figures out there don’t quite do the animal justice. The rendition of this dinosaur by the legendary Battat line, created for the Boston Museum of Science, does indeed do Triceratops justice, despite being made in 1994.

As if charging at an unseen Tyrannosaurus, this Triceratops is clearly actively moving, with its horns pointing straight out and the legs in mid-stride. With perfect proportions, this is a very accurate and detailed sculpt. Massively muscled thighs included, the musculature on this figure is quite well done. The only inaccuracies are that it is now believed that ceratopsians had their palms facing each other instead of facing backwards, and that their arms were slightly splayed to the sides. However, these are extremely recent discoveries. The amount of accuracy this figure has managed to keep for over 15 years is extremely impressive. There are some small scales on the frill and head, and the rest of the body is detailed with realistic wrinkles and small scales. Unfortunately, some signs of the 1994 production date are present. A nitpicky observer can see several mold lines if he/she looks closely. However, these don’t do much to detract from the great sculpt.

Along with the great sculpt, this figure also has a nice paint job. The base color is a dark maroon, and it is detailed by Columbia blue on the frill and body. All the horns, claws, nostrils, and beak are a dark shade of vanilla yellow. A lovely orange color makes the eyes of the Triceratops stand out and gives this figure a lively look. One thing must be said about the paint though. Being a figure produced in the 90’s, the paint application is a bit sloppy at times, usually around the claws or beak. Like all other Battat figures, the paint is a rather delicate, so treat this figure well if you don’t want the paint to smudge.

Being from the now extinct Battat line, this figure is no longer commercially available. Within the Battat line, different figures have different levels of rarity. Sadly, the beautiful Triceratops is one of the rarer ones. Occasionally they pop up on eBay for at least $40. If you don’t want your Paypal account to beg for mercy or to have a giant hole in your wallet, there is another, albeit time consuming, method to acquiring this rare figure. Many sellers will put up huge lots of dinosaurs for sale on eBay. While most of these have rather worthless random figures of no brand, one can sometimes strike it lucky. Some of these lots will have valuable dinosaurs, such as Battats, among them, and the sellers will have no idea of their worth. If you can find one of these lots, you can obtain this figure for a quite reasonable price. Another thing worth noting is that Battats bought on eBay will usually have some paint/play wear, like my figure. Being in exact perfect condition can make a figure cost much more, and even imperfect figures can command quite large sums if they attract enough attention and have a low enough starting price. In conclusion, this is one of the best Triceratops figures ever made, and certainly worth searching for. Happy dinosaur hunting!