I have to say, I really love these pieces.
The Mosasaur is, curiously, in EXACTLY the pose that I envisioned a Sideshow Mosasaur would be rendered. It's a pose that possesses a lot of grace, similar to David Krentz's Tylosaurus. Plus, the ammonite and shark are very welcome accents. This apex predator is well-deserving of the Sideshow Dinosauria treatment. It's been at the very top of my "Want" list.
As to the T.rex and Triceratops, I'm VERY surprised that we're going to see these. Very, very surprised. I like the dermal quills on the Triceratops, similar to the Shane Foulkes piece. I'm curious as to how closely the final piece will mirror this concept art... it's extremely reminiscent of the Stegosaur mother and child maquette. I hope not too much so for everyone's tastes. There's a big opportunity to make the crest on the adult ostentatious and focal. Really draw the eye in an imposing, striking way that could be both appealing for conspecific mates, and intimidating to conspecific threats or any potential predators. The paint application, if executed properly here, could be really stunning. The sculptural detail on the Stegosaurus maquette is breathtaking, so similar treatment herein would be most welcome... just a matter of outstanding paint.
The very valid critique has been raised that we've seen several iterations of T.rex from Sideshow now... but, I would add, none quite like this. I'll admit, as many of you know, to quite a degree of T.rex bias, but to have a healthy, bulky, adult T.rex in its prime would truly be outstanding. I love the grizzled veteran for which we have been given a maquette, as well as the brazen neophyte being skewered by the Triceratops in the Dinosauria flagship diorama (personally, my favorite statue). This could be equally magnificent as a radically different approach to the same animal. Surprising, given the extensive treatment already provided to T.rex, but I won't complain to expand my collection with another Tyrannosaur. Add to that that T.rex, given its (well-deserved
) celebrity status, is a strong draw for a broad swath of collectors apart from just paleo-freaks like us, and you have a sure win on your hands. Popularity and name recognition will bring the collectors flocking to another T.rex... and I intend to be first in line.
A few more thoughts: I'm not sure how likely it is that this T.rex will be a feathered specimen. It would be very interesting to have a fine down coating, as well as some thicker areas for ornamentation... again, lots of potential for vibrant paint application... but not an overall substantial layering. Dispersal of metabolic heat that would have been generated by an animal the size of T.rex would have precluded such a phenotypic trait in large theropods. Y.huali is a strong template for what reasonable, filamentous plumage would look like in animals like T.rex, and even that is still very contested. BUT, this line is all about bold, visionary interpretations of these immensely beautiful and immensely mysterious animals. I'm perhaps most anxious for the colors that will be utilized in the final piece... I'm hoping for something truly remarkable, yet with predatory utility in terms of cryptic coloration. It's a great opportunity. I can't get over the robustness of the sculpt. If the piece has a vibrant color palette (AND if it is an intended companion piece for the Triceratops), it could be a territorial male, seeking to supplement much-needed energy reserves for conspecific combat or to provide a meal in courting a susceptible female. If the color palette is more dull, it could be a gravid female, desperately seeking the nourishment needed to sustain her and her progeny. Two mothers fighting for the next generation... I'd like some fresh wounds on both animals to really tie the story together. Plus, adequately enormous teeth on the Tyrannosaur!!! This has been done right in the previous Tyrannosaur statues. I can't really get a good visual on the teeth on this one. Hopefully very menacing, as the prodigious teeth are a hallmark trait setting T.rex apart from even other large theropods. LOTS of potential already laden in the sculpt. Just thinking out loud.
I'm thrilled to see so many imminent additions to the line. Truly heady times to be a dino nerd!