Review and images by Fembrogon; edited by bmathison1972
There’s a Gashapon for just about everyone, I’d wager. Bandai’s trademarked capsule toy brand (an onomatopoeia name for the “gacha-pon” sound of the machine crank and tumbling capsule) has been running strong for over forty years, covering just about anything that can feasibly be made into a miniature – from company mascots and popular anime characters, to erasers and food items, to even highly realistic insects and lizards.
The leopard gecko (Eublepharis macularius) is easily among the most popular pet reptiles in the world, and perhaps the most popular pet lizard. Entire industries exist that are dedicated to producing leopard geckos in the hundreds of different selectively bred color morphs they’re now available in and it’s unlikely that you’ll ever walk into a pet shop that doesn’t have them.
Although they look like lizards the tuatara (Sphenodon punctatus) of New Zealand is in fact the last living member of the order Rhynchocephalia and not a lizard at all. This order of reptiles, closely related to squamata (lizards, including snakes), had their heyday during the Mesozoic, getting their start in the mid-Triassic and achieving worldwide distribution during the Jurassic.
Review and images by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
The king cobra (Ophiophagus hannah) of Southeast Asia is actually not a ‘true’ cobra in the genus Naja, but it most definitely lives up to the first part of its name. It’s one of the more deadly venomous snakes, fully capable of killing animals up to the size of Asian elephants with a single bite.
One of the most powerful animals in the Animal Kingdom, having a bite force of over 3,000 psi and able to hold its breath underwater for over an hour, the crocodile is an impressive animal that is feared and yet even revered in some cultures, notably the Ancient Egyptians who worshipped them.
Review and images by Fembrogon; edited by bmathison1972
G.I. Joe is not a franchise I have any prior affiliation with or affection for; it just never crossed my radar in any meaningful way growing up. Show me a big, articulated reptile toy, however, and I will gladly offer any merchandise brand a moment of my time.
Review and images by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
The common or green iguana (Iguana iguana) is a reptile of many titles. It’s the largest member of the iguana family, measuring up to 1.7 metres from head to tail, with most of that length being tail. It has probably the widest distribution of any lizard, ranging throughout most of South America and all the way up into southern Mexico, plus it’s been introduced to places like Florida, Hawaii, Singapore, Thailand, and Taiwan.
Review and images by Saarlooswolfhound; edited by bmathison1972
This article marks my first multiple model (Safari Ltd. TOOB) production! Presented here are 14 figures, 7 original pieces and 7 later re-released with updated paintwork. The Cryptozoology Designer TOOB by Safari Ltd. #677504 was originally released in 2013 with simplistic paintwork, then re-released a few years after retirement with much improved paint schemes for most of the figures.
Review and images by Suspsy; edited by bmathison1972
Chameleons are a wondrous family of lizards famous for their colour-changing abilities, independently moving eyes, and lightning fast tongues. They are found throughout all of Africa and Madagascar, and range all the way into the Middle East, southern India, and parts of southern Europe.
Review and images by Fembrogon; edited by bmathison1972
Turtles and tortoises don’t seem to get the same bad rap their reptilian relatives have historically suffered; perhaps their slower nature, omnivorous diets, and long lifespans have endeared themselves to human sensibilities better. Not all testudines are harmless, however, and as a kid who liked his predators, I was always most enamored with the big-beaked, carnivorous snapping turtles.
Today I will be reviewing the 2019 caiman by Safari Ltd. I was inspired to review this figure after it came up for my daily Museum post and all the exhaustive research I did on determining its identification. Let’s discuss the identification first, shall we? Safari Ltd. only marketed this figure as a caiman, mentioning both the genera Caiman and Melanosuchus on their website.
I’m a little late to the Hallowe’en party this year…but better late than never. And in that spirit, here’s a set of animals that, if you mess with them, ‘late’ could be your proper adjective. Animals that as a group tend to create a visceral if generally unnecessary fear and loathing, even though most are harmless.
