Today I'm checking out the last vehicle I know from Mattel's Jurassic World: Legacy Collection of Matchbox vehicles: The '93 Jeep Wrangler #12. A Target exclusive, this small subset of vehicles features vehicles from the first two Jurassic Park films and a
maintenance truck from Jurassic World. Initially these were pretty tough to find but it seems now that Target is restocking these little vehicles. I was super excited to finally get my hands on Jeep #12 as this is the staff vehicle that Dennis Nedry crashes when he is trying to get to the docks to deliver the stolen dinosaur embryos to the Biosyn contact. Yes, this is the jeep that Nedry is in when he gets killed by the
Dilophosaurus. I have to admit it's one of my favorite parts in a film that is pretty much filled with my favorite parts. Heck, remember how gruesome this scene was in the original novel? I still remember this line: "Nedry stumbled, reaching blindly only to touch the ragged edge of his
shirt, and then a thick slippery mass that was surprisingly warm, and
with horror he suddenly knew he was holding his own intestines in his
hands." I dig it. Let's check this one out after the break...
The Facts:
Model Number: FMW98
Length: 2 1/2 inches
Non-Scalper Price: $1.25
Comparison:
* I've reviewed quite a few of these Jeep Wranglers now. On the left is the covered #12 I'm checking out today while, from left to right, is the
silver and blue "off-screen" Jurassic World Jeep Wrangler, the
muddy Jeep #29 from the Land Rescue Convoy 5-pack, and
Jeep #18 from the Island Explorers 5-pack. It too me longer to find this one, but it's the original release and the Jurassic World silver and blue Jeep is a direct repaint of it.
The Positives:
* The body of this vehicle is a slick as any of the other Jeep Wranglers. Nice printing on the hood and sides with clean logos, great work on the body design, and the inclusion of the light bar on the top of the windshield. I really dig the work here.
The Negatives:
* What I don't like here is the way Mattel handled the top of the vehicle. Like the
blue and silver Jeep, this one is also translucent but it looks worse here. The amber color definitely puts me more in the mind of the tip of John Hammond's cane than of the top of a jeep. I get what the designer was trying for but it didn't work very well here.
Darn! I'm conflicted! I love the body of this Jeep and the very fact that it exists but, my gosh, the top of the Jeep is an eyesore. I really don't want to complain too much about a toy that cost me only a little more than a dollar but it definitely killed what could have been one of the greatest miniature cars of all time. This is still a Good vehicle but the weird translucent top definitely makes this one less of a "must have" and more of a "why not." Like Dennis Nedry with a candy bar, though, it's pretty tough to have this one in hand and not want it. But it's more like a Three Musketeers that you'd just eat because it's around rather than something like a Kit-Kat or a Symphony that you'd hunt down.
For more Matchbox Jurassic World: Legacy Collection vehicles, check out the following:
Matchbox: Jurassic World: Legacy Collection (2018)
'97 Mercedes-Benz ML320
Island Explorers
Since the canvas tops of this and the silver Jeep #9 are removable, I have high hopes Mattel will eventually give us Jeep #10. All it needs is a different windshield (without a lightbar) and toolboxes on the sides in back.
ReplyDeleteYes! Jeep #10 is one of my favorites due to the scenes it is in. It would make an excellent release!
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