4852 - Asian Animal Enclosure

[Tiermann]

This is a review of one of the new zoo sets. I purchased it from Toys R Us for $54.95 when they had their 25% off sale recently. The new zoo series isn't due for general release in the US until April, but Toys R Us has had it since last fall as an exclusive. I hope they do the same next fall with the new farm or space series.

Here is an image of the entire Asian set



The set consists of three animal enclosures and the large torii gate.

[Tiermann]

The first enclosure is for pandas.





There is one adult panda and two babies. The enclosure is 4 sections all with clear panels. Two of them are on a grass piece and two on grey rocks. This is a new fencing style and is available as an add on this year as well. the add on has red rocks though, like the larger zoo set. So only the grass sections would look good to enlarge this enclosure. The new rocks have a gap on the bottom that can be used to attach small landscape elements like the little pond seen here. The enclosure sections are held together by clip posts that allow a pretty broad range of bending, so a number of enclosure shapes can be made with them.
Also seen in the 2 above photos are the zoo visitors a man and little girl. Both have newer non-hat hairstyles and are nicely done.


This close-up of a fence post shows the clip style. this one has 3 connections so it could be used to attach to another enclosure. In this case there is a pitchfork as shown in the instructions. There is also a matching blue shovel in the set.

[Tiermann]

Here is the torii gate.



This gate style is Japanese and represents a transition point between sacred and profane areas. It is used at Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. The color is correct but there is often black on the top. The piece is made of two halves that snap together and a separate lintel at the base that is connected with yellow System X connectors. All of the Sys X connectors in this set are the yellow type. On either side of the gate you see the short bamboo fence panel. There is also a longer panel used in the other enclosures. The part number is for 2 short sections and 2 long sections all together. I will definitely be ordering some from DS. I hope they eventually release a bamboo fence as an add-on. I think these would make a much better back to the panda enclosure than having it all be clear.

[Rasputin]

That is the first thing I saw was the nice looking gate way and the fence. It looks really good in your pictures, nice deep red color  I will be ordering many of these from DS as well

Set the wild animals free 

[Skywalker]

yeah...the gate is very nice ! Thx for this Review

[Tiermann]

Here is the zoo worker that comes with the set.



She is a nice figure and it's good that they've included a woman for this one. There is the wheelbarrow in this set as well, and various food items to feed the animals as seen in the enclosure photos. No chocolate ice cream or strange shaped frisbees in this set though.

This IS free - otherwise they end up locked in plastic tubs...

I'm at work so this may take a while to get through. 12 more photos yet.

[Tiermann]

The next enclosure is larger and is for the orangutans.



There are nice signs for the fences that show a cartoon version of the animal and have the name. You can see the nest for the tree. it is set up as the instructions show. I really don't like it, it's difficult for the orangutans to sit in with this method. I would use a different larger tree in the future.



The enclosure is made of two of the rock and clear fence sections in the front, the two larger bamboo fence sections to the left and two white walls. One of the walls has an arched door and the other has the small steps and the Chinese style roof sections with the 3 monkey wall sculpture.



Seen from the top you can tell that the walls are not at a right angle. the section with the door has a slanted connecting edge. This limits it's use somewhat as do the sections out of the corners.

In addition these wall sections are one sided. The other side is not attractive for use in a scene.





It's unfortunate they are not more versatile. The roof sections though are much easier to use elsewhere as has been seen in the last year at the big European shows.

[Tiermann]

The orangutan is a new animal with this set. The adult has moveable arms and legs and head similar to the gorilla. The baby doesn't have any moving parts.



They are nice though and a great addition to the primate family.

[Tiermann]

The final enclosure is for the tigers. There is one adult and one baby in the set, the molds are the same as previous ones but there is a new paint job and the color is a little darker in the past. The enclosure sign says Sumatran as a sub-species.



There is a skeleton piece and a meat for food. The other animal in this set is the peacock with the raised tail.

[Tiermann]

Here is the tiger paint job, nicely done I think.