Those early 2000s dinosaur sets were abominations.

Hmmm, does this count as Constraction? It came in a tube thingy, and you build a creature with specialized parts specifically for that purpose. So maybe we're still in line with the trend lately...

@Maxbricks14 said:
"Those early 2000s dinosaur sets were abominations."
False. The bodies were modular, and you could mix and match the parts in ways that were quite fun and make actual abominations. Also because of how the bodies were constructed, you could extend them, so you get something like Boga from 7255 and that's really cool. You also wouldn't have the Mutant Killer Whale of 4797 , Elephants from the Orient Expedition line of sets 7414 and 7418, or the superior Dewback from 4501 without these Dinosaurs sets. They requires specialized pieces like today's dinosaurs and big molded creatures, but there are more opportunities to be had with them with how certain parts were designed, and they have pretty good range of motion. The main limitation are the combined legs, but if these style of animals had stuck around long enough, I'm sure some better legs would have been designed if they were required.

@MCLegoboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"Those early 2000s dinosaur sets were abominations."
False. The bodies were modular, and you could mix and match the parts in ways that were quite fun and make actual abominations. Also because of how the bodies were constructed, you could extend them, so you get something like Boga from 7255 and that's really cool. You also wouldn't have the Mutant Killer Whale of 4797 , Elephants from the Orient Expedition line of sets 7414 and 7418, or the superior Dewback from 4501 without these Dinosaurs sets. They requires specialized pieces like today's dinosaurs and big molded creatures, but there are more opportunities to be had with them with how certain parts were designed, and they have pretty good range of motion. The main limitation are the combined legs, but if these style of animals had stuck around long enough, I'm sure some better legs would have been designed if they were required."

And besides, this guy used a dragon/crocodile head as a tongue, and that's just cool.

I loved these fellas as a kid, and I still love them now. They're rather silly looking, but their designs provide room for creative interpretation that more realistic models don't afford you.

Silly and open-ended. That's good LEGO in my book.

These dinosaurs were hokey, at the time.

But I remember absolutely loving them.

I'd waited my whole entire life to have a Lego Tyrannosaurus rampaging down the main street of my Lego City, and -- although the dinosaurs in the Adventurers line from a few years before this were a nice start -- these dinosaur sets were just sublime.

I actually liked the Spinosaurus configuration (basically the T-rex model on the front of the package, with an added spine on its back) more than the T-rex, at that.

@TheOtherMike said:
" @MCLegoboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"Those early 2000s dinosaur sets were abominations."
False. The bodies were modular, and you could mix and match the parts in ways that were quite fun and make actual abominations. Also because of how the bodies were constructed, you could extend them, so you get something like Boga from 7255 and that's really cool. You also wouldn't have the Mutant Killer Whale of 4797 , Elephants from the Orient Expedition line of sets 7414 and 7418, or the superior Dewback from 4501 without these Dinosaurs sets. They requires specialized pieces like today's dinosaurs and big molded creatures, but there are more opportunities to be had with them with how certain parts were designed, and they have pretty good range of motion. The main limitation are the combined legs, but if these style of animals had stuck around long enough, I'm sure some better legs would have been designed if they were required."

And besides, this guy used a dragon/crocodile head as a tongue, and that's just cool."

I agree, these are much more fun to play with, and feel more like Lego rather than very specific molded pieces that they use nowadays, however, that doesn't mean I like the look of the original dinos better than the newer ones.

LORE TIME!

These aren't your ordinary dinosaurs. These are, as dubbed by the LEGO Studios Director Steven, the "Mesozoic Morphing Monsters" capable of transforming into multiple other species of dinosaurs and prehistoric reptiles (albeit not always anatomically correct, even by 2001 paleontology standards). This specimen, the Tyrannosaurus rex, can transform into a Spinosaurus, Ouranosaurus, or Parasaurolophus. It tends to lure in its prey in one of its seemingly docile herbivore forms before showing its true colors as a terrifying carnivore.

The Tyrannosaurus rex was the top predator during the time of continental drift, prowling the Murky Marsh, Wild and Wet Rainforest, and Savage Ocean throughout the Great LEGO Dino Quest, making it a foe best avoided rather than fought. As shown in the online CGI animation, if the T. rex sank its teeth into the neck of a Plesiosaurus, it could shatter its fellow creature into LEGO pieces! Certainly a gruesome way to show off the new Animal Building System...

But the tyrant lizard king's reign did not end 65 million years ago. In the present day, these dinosaurs still live on the aptly-named Dinosaur Island (which may or may not have been the same island explored by Johnny Thunder). They were discovered by the LEGO Studios film crew while scouting for locations for yet another Dino Cop sequel. But then, the nefarious Evil Ogel used his Mind-Control Orbs to seize control over the dinosaurs in his latest plot to ruin the holidays for everyone, and of course the Tyrannosaurus rex were his most terrifying pawns (although apparently, they look similar to Martian dogs?). It took the combined efforts of Alpha Team, the LEGO Studios crew, the Life on Mars astronauts, and the Martian princess Cassiopeia to thwart Ogel's scheme. Once freed from his control, a liberated T. rex proceeded to take a bite out of Ogel's escape plan, chomping down on his mini-flyer before he could exit stage left.

~~~~~

With a childhood obsession of dinosaurs leading Adventurers to be my gateway drug into LEGO Mania in 2000, the release of 2001's Dinosaurs theme had perfect timing for me. I was awestruck by seeing these on the front cover of the May/June 2001 issue of LEGO Mania Magazine and couldn't wait to get my hands on them. I even saw them on display when the Life on Mars tour truck stopped at a local Toys "R" Us that summer! Of course, with the Tyrannosaurus rex being my all-time favorite dinosaur (hey, I'm basic, but at least I admit it), 6720 especially captivated me. It was so cool seeing the familiar design elements (the head and arms in particular) from the Adventurers Dino Island theme incorporated into this new design with so much printed detail. It may seem quaint today, but I still love it.

Dang, this brings back memories. I remember strapping a couple of engines to the back of this thing and turning into a dino robot for Ogel to terrify the Wild West with! :)

@MCLegoboy said:
" @Maxbricks14 said:
"Those early 2000s dinosaur sets were abominations."
False. The bodies were modular, and you could mix and match the parts in ways that were quite fun and make actual abominations. Also because of how the bodies were constructed, you could extend them, so you get something like Boga from 7255 and that's really cool. You also wouldn't have the Mutant Killer Whale of 4797 , Elephants from the Orient Expedition line of sets 7414 and 7418, or the superior Dewback from 4501 without these Dinosaurs sets. They requires specialized pieces like today's dinosaurs and big molded creatures, but there are more opportunities to be had with them with how certain parts were designed, and they have pretty good range of motion. The main limitation are the combined legs, but if these style of animals had stuck around long enough, I'm sure some better legs would have been designed if they were required."

Can't agree more. That system had quite the potential.

I definitely prefer the newer, molded Dinosaurs, but these classic Dinos still have a certain charm to them.

I never knew of this set's existence before today, but seeing it's a 4 in 1 build with just 23 pieces, and all four versions look halfway decent (for the time they came in), that's kind of cool. And quite playable too.

Being a dinosaur loving child at the time I had to get all four of these. While the mosasaur one was my favourite due to those massive jaws this was the second. And once I had all four it took me about ten minutes to start creating weird hybrid monstrosities!

"My tongue is a crocodile, your argument is invalid!"

These were great! The pieces are specialized, but just generic enough that mixing and matching the parts made creatures that still resembled actual prehistoric animals (some more than others). Each set came with more parts than you need to allow for at least 4 configurations.

And this set in particular uses the head and arms from the Dino Island subtheme of Adventurers (the arms date back to the Dragon Masters dragon from Castle). But with a crocodile head for a tongue, and the printing is amazing.

This model including the sail spine that is also includes can make a 'spinosaur', which is also includes with new colors and printing in set 1371 Spinosaurus attack.