Apatosaurus One of Many - Store Versions Exist, Too
Definitely Dinosaurs Vinyl Figure
Item No.: No. n/a Manufacturer:Playskool Includes:A full dadgum meal, if you can believe it Action Feature:n/a Retail:$2.99 Availability: 1988 Other: Available in red and brown, too
And with an Apatosaurus, our trip to Wendy's in the 1980s ends. If memory serves, this was the one I wanted the most - it's blue, and it was big and neat. Who doesn't love a giant tubby lizard giraffe? It has a little more wear and tear than the others, but I think that's due to the last 26 years in a box with other, cheap dinosaurs toys. Don't store your toys that, way, is what I'm saying.
At about 6-inches long, fellow has an articulated neck and a delightfully rubbery plastic hide. The blue on top brings out some nice detail, plus he has big toes and meaty legs - I can't imagine someone wasn't thinking "food" when this was designed. His only point of articulation is at the neck, which seems more useful on this guy thanks to his long neck. While a smaller dinosaur can just rotate his head on a stumpy neck, this one can almost reach the floor. It certainly adds a little more personality to a figure with an expression that does not necessarily convey consciousness. He's cute, he's got a goofy mouth, but this is a decent piece of plastic.
The detail is on par with the rest of the line, as is the deco. And it holds up pretty well in a cardboard box with skeeball prizes and toy erasers. The Definitely Dinosaurs brand is an Apatasaurus in a circle, and this little guy has one in his belly. It's better than the cheap plastic dinosaurs from most companies, but to put this in context his competition included Dino-Mites and Dino-Riders - both nifty lines. It's a wonderful era of toys, and the only line at the time that seemed overly concerned with authenticity was Tyco's Dino-Riders - but the Definitely Dinosaurs range seemed very good given how these creatures were portrayed in that era. Which is to say, imperfectly, but that's probably gong to be the case until we nail down cloning or time travel.
Given the size and price, this is a phenomenal piece that deserves more respect than it got. I'm not saying the full retail range is necessarily worthwhile but there weren't a ton of decent articulated dinosaurs with paint in those days. I doubt we'll ever see hollow vinyl figures given away with food again, and after Hasbro's brief flirtation with sofubi-esque figures a few years ago I don't doubt the era of seeing them sold to American kids may be over. Well, except for BanDai - perhaps Godzilla Resurgence will inspire them to make fun cheap kaiju toys again.
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