Safari Ltd. - New for 2023

[Shane]

even tho I'm spoilt for choices with Japanese branded figures, I still think some of safari's figures esp the sea animals could fit in with the Japanese releases despite some having blunt teeth, wonky proportions (lack of caudal keel in mako and great whites) and some figures like their 2016 great white needing to be bigger. I've started with Safari ltd growing up with many toob figures like the ocean, sharks and coral reef and looking forward in 2023, the figures are getting better like the sand tiger, 2019 sperm whale and they finally gave proper caudal keels in the case of the Salmon shark. I love the plastic and paint on these figures and even tho as an adult who buys these figures to display, I do 'play' with them from time to time by taking them from the shelves and admiring the details or for the need to handle something to keep my mind busy as I myself have ADHD.

Can't argue about those caudal keels. I love the 2016 great white and 2017 mako, but they are definitely lacking in keel.

[Saarlooswolfhound]

I have always been a defender of variation in animal species and thus figures of them... so I am just gonna leave these screenshots here, taken from a simple google search for GGO.














Lastly, I personally don't think that criticising something like the pointedness of claws/teeth/beaks etc. is a fair comparison. 1)toy companies must follow safety regulations (same goes for thick legs- to avoid breakage), 2) most japanese models are made of vastly different material than most major brands, you can achieve different effects depending on the material being used and the reproduction process (casts/moulds etc.) for figures, and 3) you could easily "fix" this issue with a file, scalpel, or dremel like tool...

[Saarlooswolfhound]

I never noticed that before JimoAi! But yes indeed, now that you point it out, lots of sharks lack that caudal keel.

[JimoAi]

even tho I'm spoilt for choices with Japanese branded figures, I still think some of safari's figures esp the sea animals could fit in with the Japanese releases despite some having blunt teeth, wonky proportions (lack of caudal keel in mako and great whites) and some figures like their 2016 great white needing to be bigger. I've started with Safari ltd growing up with many toob figures like the ocean, sharks and coral reef and looking forward in 2023, the figures are getting better like the sand tiger, 2019 sperm whale and they finally gave proper caudal keels in the case of the Salmon shark. I love the plastic and paint on these figures and even tho as an adult who buys these figures to display, I do 'play' with them from time to time by taking them from the shelves and admiring the details or for the need to handle something to keep my mind busy as I myself have ADHD.

Can't argue about those caudal keels. I love the 2016 great white and 2017 mako, but they are definitely lacking in keel.

ngl it would be awesome for Safari to rerelease these sculpts with the caudal keel. IDC if they are the same with just the caudal keels though I would like to see the great white scaled up too

[JimoAi]

even tho I'm spoilt for choices with Japanese branded figures, I still think some of safari's figures esp the sea animals could fit in with the Japanese releases despite some having blunt teeth, wonky proportions (lack of caudal keel in mako and great whites) and some figures like their 2016 great white needing to be bigger. I've started with Safari ltd growing up with many toob figures like the ocean, sharks and coral reef and looking forward in 2023, the figures are getting better like the sand tiger, 2019 sperm whale and they finally gave proper caudal keels in the case of the Salmon shark. I love the plastic and paint on these figures and even tho as an adult who buys these figures to display, I do 'play' with them from time to time by taking them from the shelves and admiring the details or for the need to handle something to keep my mind busy as I myself have ADHD.

Can't argue about those caudal keels. I love the 2016 great white and 2017 mako, but they are definitely lacking in keel.

ngl it would be awesome for Safari to rerelease these sculpts with the caudal keel. IDC if they are the same with just the caudal keels though I would like to see the great white scaled up too. the ironic thing is that it's present on the whale shark that came before but at least the caudal keel issue has been fixed with the salmon shark which has them


hey I just purchased the 2015 Tiger shark despite only having 4 gills and I'm not sure if the stripes are right as I'm now really scale conscious but the rest of the proportions look right and I like the material of it Vs the rubbery material of the Schleich and the tiny tail on the collectA

[Shane]

ngl it would be awesome for Safari to rerelease these sculpts with the caudal keel. IDC if they are the same with just the caudal keels though I would like to see the great white scaled up too

It's unlikely they'll get updated in the too near future since both shark figures are fairly recent and other than the keels, both hold up quite nicely. The focus is more on sharks that haven't been done yet (like the recent salmon shark).

But never say never. Great white is the T-rex of the sea, in terms of sheer ubiquity of figures, so it's not out of the question that another one gets made eventually.

[JimoAi]

It's unlikely they'll get updated in the too near future since both shark figures are fairly recent and other than the keels, both hold up quite nicely. The focus is more on sharks that haven't been done yet (like the recent salmon shark).

But never say never. Great white is the T-rex of the sea, in terms of sheer ubiquity of figures, so it's not out of the question that another one gets made eventually.

would love to see a sixgill shark or something wierder before another great white from safari

[Gwangi]

I like the Safari mako shark well enough, even without the keel. But I've never been a fan of their great white, I have Schleich's and the old MBA whites. See? I'm not a brand loyalist, sellout, brownnose, or whatever some might think me to be. 

But yeah, no hurry on a new white. Greenland shark is at the top of my list.

[bmathison1972]

Some of the posts in this thread make me wonder why these people even bother to collect animal figures in the first place.

There are certain individuals I have wanted to ask that question to, and not just because of this thread (and not just this forum...) 

[Saarlooswolfhound]

A greenland shark would be great! I would be curious if they include the ubiquitous eye parasite though...

[Fembrogon]

I'd love a cookiecutter shark myself, although a greenland shark would certainly be cool. A larger frilled shark would also be neat, especially with the Prehistoric Sea Life Toob being out of production.

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Great suggestions also. Even a goblin shark would be neat, to compete with CollectA's. I would love some sort of chimaera. Maybe even a wobbegong!

[Gwangi]

A greenland shark would be great! I would be curious if they include the ubiquitous eye parasite though...

I was wondering the same thing to myself a few nights ago. I would think they should be there.

Lots of awesome shark suggestions here. Thankfully, Safari likes their sharks. And we've gotten some great ones from Papo and CollectA in recent years too. I feel like its only a matter of time before we get more.

Maybe we can get a life size dwarf lantern shark for the IC line. 

[Saarlooswolfhound]

Or a pocket shark. I would like a selection of reef species too, like port jackson, horned, eppaulette, etc. I would even take a toob in order to get several species at once.

Honestly, their sharks have been some of my favorite models from the last few years. Its a great way to educate kids and adults on different species, and can piggyback sales from Discovery Channel's Shark Week!

[Gwangi]

Or a pocket shark. I would like a selection of reef species too, like port jackson, horned, eppaulette, etc. I would even take a toob in order to get several species at once.

Honestly, their sharks have been some of my favorite models from the last few years. Its a great way to educate kids and adults on different species, and can piggyback sales from Discovery Channel's Shark Week!

Zebra bullhead shark, please! 

We actually do shark reviews on the blog for the entire week of Shark Week. Something to look forward to, and think about contributing to as well. 

[Saarlooswolfhound]

I know! I probably should start thinking on what species to present.

[bmathison1972]

Before this conversation gets too far off track, please remember this is a 'New for...' thread, not a 'Wishes and Wants' thread.
If you want to discuss Wishes and predictions, please start a thread specifically for it 
Thanks

[EpicRaptorMan]

Some of the posts in this thread make me wonder why these people even bother to collect animal figures in the first place.

Sounds a bit like gatekeeping

[suspsy]

Well, look at that. The great grey owl presently has a 4.1/5 with 20 votes. That's a pretty high rating, that is. And is it a record number of votes for an ATB review? Must be.

And I think I will end up buying it for my boys' collection. Keep up the fine work, @Shane and the rest of Safari!

[EpicRaptorMan]

Wasn't there already high suspicion that there was spamming going on? Added to the fact that it's the highest number of votes, an emotionally charged subject for a couple individuals, and a confirmed bias for SafariLtd...I dunno.

Some of the posts in this thread make me wonder why these people even bother to collect animal figures in the first place.

Sounds a bit like gatekeeping