GIGANOTOSAURUS - Schleich "World of History" small version 2015

During the summer, Schleich released a series of small-version dinosaurs featuring all-new sculpts and dynamic, colorful paint applications. I have already taken a look at their "World of History" small version Velociraptor, Tyrannosaurus rex, Triceratops, Therizinosaurus, and Carnotaurus. Now, it's time to take a look at the final release: the small version Giganotosaurus.

It's interesting to note that, despite the fact that Schleich released a completely new large-size Giganotosaurus this summer, this small version looks nearly nothing like its larger self. That large version (reviewed in an earlier post on this site) is massively thick and solid, while this small version appears quite lithe, and is incredibly thin in terms of width. 

It's posed mid-roar, with a couple of the defining twists to the neck and tail that the recent releases have been sporting. Each hand has 3 fingers, with the wrists slightly twisted outwards. The mouth is open and the roof has some basic sculpting, while the tip of the tongue is curled upwards from the bottom interior. The mouth is pink, and the teeth are painted mostly well, individually.

The rest of the paint is applied well, with some highlight airbrushing, but it's honestly a paint scheme that I don't much like. The entire dinosaur is a deep crimson, which is ok, if not a bit interesting. The belly/underside and highlighting, however, is a metallic silver. Not grey, but silver. As in, reflective with little sparkly bits that catch the light. It does add a little flavor to a sculpt and design that I find pretty bland, especially in comparison to the new large version Gigano, but it's a bit too much of a stretch for me, personally.

The sculpt shows the same care and attention to fine detail that the other small releases have. There's some neat wrinkling at the neck where it bends inwards, and I like the profile of the head a great deal. The hands and feet are a tad soft, but the torso itself has a good measure of creases and wrinkling to add some depth.

Honestly, this is probably my least favorite of the new small version releases, right alongside the Velociraptor. It's not bad, but it really doesn't do anything to stand out in my display. There's a very generic quality to the whole piece, and I find the metallic silver to be too garish for my own tastes. That said, it may be eye-catching enough to capture the attention of a kid, which is who these are directed towards, anyway...