Jurassic week continues here at True North Bricks in celebration of the 30th anniversary of the original film. While the first movie remains my all time favorite, the sequels presented many amazing dinosaurs. While the film itself was not the greatest of the franchise, I still loved the Spinosaurus in Jurassic Park 3. This dinosaur remains conspicuously absent from the modern LEGO® figurine lineup. However, you can find a FLEGO (fake LEGO®) version on sites like AliExpress. Many years ago, I reviewed a few of these fake versions, like the raptors, T. rex, and Indominus rex. I’m a borderline purist, and fully advocate for buying actual LEGO® products when they exist. However, I am not above FLEGO versions of compatible products that the LEGO® Group doesn’t make or has retired. Consequently, I bought a FLEGO Spinosaurus.
The above images are not the property of True North Bricks. The image on the left was sourced from Brickset, while the right is from a random auction on eBay.
Note, I said the Spinosaurus is conspicuously absent from modern figurines. Many modern LEGO® dinosaur molds date back to 2010 and the retired Dino theme. Just look at the belly of staples like the T. rex and Triceratops. They read “©2010 The LEGO Group” for that reason. However, the LEGO® Group produced less detailed dinosaurs prior to that. Additionally, they produced a Spinosaurus directly linked to Jurassic Park 3. The year was 2001 and it was part of the Studios theme. The build depicted the scene featuring the airplane in the tree as if it was being filmed for the movie.
I bought a FLEGO Spinosaurus from AliExpress for $8 CAD.
In any case, the original LEGO® Spinosaurus is not to my liking. Plus, it doesn’t look good with the newer dinosaurs. Interestingly, a few months ago, I found a FLEGO Spinosaurus on AliExpress. The mold looks remarkably LEGO®-like in the photos. A few years passed since my last FLEGO dinosaur encounter, so I thought I’d give this figurine a go. After all, the LEGO® Group does not offer it. Initially, I spent a chunk of time scouring AliExpress for a good deal. These figurines range widely in price from seller to seller. I saw them going for $30 CAD, but I found mine for $8 CAD with free shipping. A recent search before publication revealed one for $7 CAD. The figurine shipped from China in a bubble envelope. The Spinosaurus came disassembled inside in a plastic bag.
Similar to my experience with T. rex and Indominus rex a number of years ago, the Spinosaurus arrived pretty banged up. You can see the black scuff marks in the image above. I am not terribly bothered by this in this case because I plan to repaint this figurine. The coloring sucks, and I especially hate the eyes. I want my Spinosaurus to look like the one from Jurassic Park 3 and Camp Cretaceous. However, you need to be aware of the scuffs since it’s a recurring issue I’ve seen with these FLEGO orders.
Expect your Spinosaurus to arrived a bit banged up.
While we’re on the topic of paint, there was little effort to make this Spinosaurus look good. I will admit that the sail pattern is not terrible. I don’t love it, but I don’t hate it either. However, most of the Spinosaurus is the unpainted color of the base plastic, which is boring. Additionally, similar to the raptors I reviewed, the claws are not painted at all. Conversely, the T. rex and Indominus rex both had painted claws, but the paint bled everywhere. Again, I plan to repaint this, so I don’t really care in the long run. But it would be nice to have a good looking dinosaur right out of the shipping envelope. That’s probably too much to ask for $8 CAD though.
Next, let’s talk about plastic quality. Similar to the T. rex and Indominus rex figurines, the Spinosaurus feels noticeably cheap compared to actual LEGO® products. Additionally, the plastic feels brittle like its predecessors as well. I can’t tell you how well this actually stands up to play though. In terms of the T. rex and Indominus, I packed them away and lost them for a long time through various moves. They’ve been in a box since I reviewed them. But the Spinosaurus is made of the same stuff. For a repaint and display, it’ll be fine. At $8, even if it breaks, you can afford another. So, you get what you pay for, but it will probably serve its purpose as either an inexpensive display or short-term play thing to lose interest in. Let’s face it, kids are fickle when it comes to the newest thing.
The plastic feels cheaper and more brittle than its LEGO® counterpart.
Interestingly, many of the parts on this Spinosaurus are almost identical in shape to the LEGO® versions. The legs, tail, and arms look the same as those from the LEGO® dinosaurs. Even the body shares remarkable similarity except for the sail. However, the body betrays a major difference you’d never see in LEGO® products right above the arm. You can see some odd structuring used to hold the arm in place. It makes me wonder if this is actually an unused, leaked LEGO® design. It’s pretty obvious the FLEGO makers have access to actual LEGO® molds somehow. It’s not a stretch to think they could get unreleased prototypes too.
Another minor issue arises with the hands. Like the Indominus, the hands are the same plastic as the rest of the body. Same with the tip of the tail. The LEGO® Group often produces them from rubber for flexibility. Otherwise, this model lacks some older issues I had with the T. rex and Indominus. Firstly, the joints don’t squeak when you move them. Secondly, the joints are all firm. The legs and tail do not pop off very easily.
I bought a FLEGO Spinosaurus and I don’t hate it… I actually kind of like it.
What do I think of my Spinosaurus overall? I actually don’t hate it. In fact, I like it. It is cheap quality and paint job is not very nice. But at the same time, it cost $8 CAD. You can’t expect much for that price. Otherwise, the form of the figurine looks like it could be something the LEGO® Group would produce. I would not be surprised if this was a leaked prototype mold. In the end, I want a LEGO® Spinosaurus. The LEGO® Group have not produced one, plain and simple. So, I bought a FLEGO Spinosaurus instead. For now, I have an acceptable substitute and a new creative project to paint it in a way I like. What do you think? Would you buy this Spinosaurus? Let me know in the comments below or reach out on social media.
Until next time,
-Tom
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