Vault Review: The Lost World’s
T-Rex (Sci-Fi Revoltech #29)

I loved dinosaurs as a kid, but I can’t remember the last time I bought a dinosaur.  That is, until recently.  With the new Imaginext Dino-Riders, it seems like I’m picking up a toy dino every week.  And now Revoltech’s adding to my current collection with their new Jurassic Park T-Rex. 

This figure’s been a long time coming.  Scheduled to be figure #14 in the Sci-Fi Revoltech line, the Jurassic Park T-Rex’s original release date was November of 2010.  But there were some licensing issues along the way and the folks at Kaiyodo had to shelve his production until now.

Rex here has been on my “to buy” list ever since his prototype debuted a couple years ago.  I had grand plans to mingle him in with my growing collection of kaiju Revoltechs, giving him his own space on my makeshift Monster Island (i.e., my toy shelf).  But with his licensing issues and the denial of more Godzilla Revoltech’s by Bandai, I was beginning to feel a bit hopeless about this new Sci-Fi line that I’d grown to love.  Even though we’ll never get our Godzillas, I’m really thankful that Kaiyodo was able to follow through with production of Mr. Rex here.

Like the Sci-Fi kaiju, the T-Rex has an amazing amount of detail to his sculpt.  But where their skin looked like a costume come to life, the T-Rex’s body looks real.  Sculpted details like muscles and veins only add to the already realistic features of scales and textured rib bones.   There are even sculpted bits of loose flesh that hang down under his jaw and around his neck.

The Rex’s paint job is also extremely complex and does an incredible job of adding to his realistic look.  The figure itself is molded in the light tan color of his underbelly, then a dark brown wash was added to give more depth to the sculpt.  There’s a very dark green added with stripes of military green color running along his back.  Then there are the very dark brown tiger stripes that run along his sides.  To top it all off this figure has a mostly glossy coating, making his flesh look moist and alive.

Like most Revoltech figures, the T-Rex has a wide range of movement.  His head, lower neck, shoulders, hips, knees, ankles, and tail bone are all revolver joints.  There’s a swivel about a quarter way down his neck, while his jaw and shin are hinged, and his tail has a bendy wire running through it.  Continue to page 2…

22 thoughts on “Vault Review: The Lost World’s
T-Rex (Sci-Fi Revoltech #29)

  1. Hey! I had those orange and grey stegosauruses!

    I would really like to get this guy, but something about the paint is off-putting. I think it’s the same thing with superheroes who have stripes on their costumes–if you move a limb in a certain way, it’s very obvious.

    Hell, I may get him anyway. It would be cool to pose him next to the big electronic Bull T-Rex I still have from then “The Lost World” first came out.

  2. THIRTY BUCKS?!! I paid sixty for mine — not counting shipping and customs/VAT charges! Where the Hells are you getting your stuff from that I should know about?

    Having gotten that out of my system, another great review I enjoyed, especially the mounted Obi-Wan.

    Never having even seen a Revoltech figure in person before I ordered this puppy, I was expecting it to be bigger, like at least six inches tall. On the whole, though, I’m pleased with the toy itself, apart from a couple of minor gripes and the major gripe of the cost.

    1. I went back and checked how much I actually paid, and I exaggerated a bit. I actually paid about $34.50, plus shipping.

      I buy almost all of my imports from Amiami (http://www.amiami.jp/shop/?set=english)

      They are usually the cheapest place to get them from, and they have excellent service. The downside is that the Yen keeps going up in price, so things are getting progressively more expensive. Also, shipping can be expensive if you want your toy fast. There is a cheaper method to ship, but it can take anywhere from a couple weeks to a couple months to get to you.

  3. beedo, that scale thing is my main point of contention w/ the revoltech line… they’re just too damned small for me. that said, they do make gorgeous toys, and this rex certainly proves that. he’s one handsome devil, you can almost smell the rotting meat on his breath. 🙂

    also, i believe vault’s usual destination for all imports is amiami.

    1. Yup, DR knows my shopping habbits 😀

      I do wish they were bigger also, but when you get enough figures together in the same scale it becomes much easier to get used to. This T-Rex fits in pretty nicely with my other Revoltech Kaiju, so I’m pretty satisfied.

  4. Beedo: I’ve only seen it for $60 too and I passed on it because I just couldn’t justify that price. But $30 is totally different. If anybody has a link to one that’s for sale at $30, feel free to pass it on. 🙂

    Great review, by the way! I love the pictures, especially the one of the Tyrannosaur biting at the Revoltech box.

    1. Only reasons I paid that much for it is because I didn’t know of anywhere else to get it, and thought it would be bigger than it was. Now I know . . . and knowing is half the battle!

    1. Because BBTS buys stupid and figures they need to do the 100% markup on import toys like in the old days when the exchange rate was around 250 Yen/Dollar?

      HLJ has the T-rex at their discount of 2834 Yen, that’s 15% off the MSRP of 3334 Yen. At the current Y/D exchange that’s around $37.15 USD. Figure around $18 in postage (that’s REALLY rough and slower is cheaper), so as a one item purchase that’s around $54.

      OTOH BBTS is buying by caselot and getting a wholesale discount, and slowboat sea freight, so their cost is likely around $20, surely under $30. So, yeah.

      (and there WAS a time where Kaiyodo, Kotobukiya and a couple other small companies had banded together to bring their lines to America but they closed their L.A. office and I think that source is gone)

  5. Right, well, I’ve already got my T-Rex, but if any future products come up, I’ll look into that site you recommend. Thanks!

  6. Dudes, you have to open your mind. It’s called ‘going to a craft store’, Hobby Lobby is probably the best, and check out their dollhouse area.

    Also there’s sometimes cool stuff in the kids aisle, where Playskool dwells.

  7. Yup, Steve’s right. I got it from Hobby Lobby and it came with a chair too. If you want to pick one up make sure to check out their website, they usually put up a %40 off coupon every few weeks.

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