critter-reviews

[critter-reviews]

Schleich 2004 Mountain Goat

It’s almost winter here, despite the fact that my wandering onions are sprouting, so I figured I’d review a cold-weather friend. This was actually my first schleich, too, so it’s a special one.

Mountain goats, despite their name, are not true goats. Instead, they are in their own genus and are most closely related to the takin. Pretty cool! They’re also endemic to North America, and driving along canyons, I do sometimes see them.

This figurine is a pretty good representation. It’s got that classic shaggy winter coat, the small, curved horns, and the characteristic hump in its back. The sculpting on the fur is really nice, feeling as volumetric and clumpy as it looks in life. There’s a light cream wash over the fur, and gives it a little more depth. The one thing I’m missing are the weird feet that mountain goats have, but it’s a small nitpick.

The face on this goat is very sweet (and well-loved as you can see from all the scuff marks and grass stains). The eyes are set appropriately in the head, and the nose is spot on. I do with they hadn’t painted the eyes brown with a round pupil. It might have saved time and made the toy appear more lifelike just to have a shiny black eye.

This goat is female, which is... surprisingly somewhat rare in figurine toys. I’m not sure why the majority of plastic animals are male (aside from the ones with obvious sexual dimorphism), but they are. Either way, this goat is female and has a cute fluffy tail to boot.

Finally, I think this toy is a good choice for collectors of ungulates, as it feels sturdy and lifelike, and is a decent size. I’ve had it for years, and aside from some scuffs, it’s still in pretty good shape.

[critter-reviews]

Marx Ankylosaurus

Hey folks, long time, no post. Figured that, since I had some time, I’d review a toy that I just really like for the sake of it. Today it’s the Marx Ankylosaurus!

This figure was originally designed in the 50s, as you can see by its rolly polly appearance that makes it so darn cute. It has squat, thick legs, a well-detailed back packed full of osteoderms (the little nodules on the back), and a placid expression. Normally, the head would be detailed with small bumps, but I think my own toy was carved up a little.

The whole thing reminds me of medieval illuminated manuscript creatures, which I think adds to its charm. I also personally prefer this brown color mine came in as opposed to the typical mint green or grey. It fits the creature well.

[critter-reviews]

Cape Buffalo & Debut!

Hello! For starters, this is the first ever post on this blog purely about reviewing animal toys, figurines, and other such things. My partner chose the subject of the first review, the 2007 Safari Ltd. Cape buffalo!

Cape buffalo are large bovines found throughout Africa, though this subspecies specifically (S. c. caffer) is only found in the east and the south parts of the continent. 

This buffalo here is munching on some miscellaneous plant matter, and two oxpeckers rest on its back. The pose, while boring, is very cute, especially when comparing it to other figurines of buffalo. He’s about 12 cm from nose to rump, and about 8.5 cm from hoof to head.

It is well detailed, with many a wrinkle and hair. However, sometimes I feel like these small toys can be over detailed, with hair being present in places that probably wouldn’t show up very well at this scale. This is just my preference, but I really do prefer the smoother look! 

He is very stocky, with large hooves, a short torso, well-muscled hind legs, and a wide chest. The feet are probably so large for stability, but it does give the figure a very cartoon-y look. It’s cute, but there are other figures out there that do a better job of making buffalo look muscular, while still keeping that graceful kind of look that bovines often have!

The best part of this figure is the face, in my opinion. It’s a very sweet looking animal, and the ears are so droopy. The horns curve nicely in that swoop typical for the subspecies, and his eyes are glossy and black. 

That being said, I do have some major nitpicks, some of which I already went over. The body is very short and, weirdly, kinda thin, especially when compared to the chunky legs. The posture of the legs are a little odd, with the hooves being weirdly sloped. It almost looks like the plastic was warped (and maybe it was?). The oxpeckers are also... green? They almost look like parrots, but with the signature oxpecker bill. 

All in all, it’s not a bad figure, but there are better out there (including Safari’s own Toob version). It’s probably the cutest out of all the Cape buffalo figurines out there, at the very least!