DinoMania is a series of collectible dinosaur model kits that are packaged with a hard chocolate candy. Each toy is blind boxed, so you don't know what one you are getting until you open it. These toys are manufactured by Kaiydo in Japan and distributed in the USA by Promotopia.
Known in Japan as Dinotales: The Chocolasaurs Collection, DinoMania are set to invade America. What is being released as series 1 in the USA is actually series 3 in Japan. Apparently these have sold over 20 million units in Japan.
Each box contains one DinoMaina model kit, 2 pieces of candy, stickers and a catalog. There are 24 different creatures in the series, including dinosaurs, mammals, sea creatures and other prehistoric life. There is also a mystery chase figure in the assortment.
The candy is official premium UHA hard chocolate - similar to a dum-dum lollypop. It's small, so it may not be suitable for younger children.
Each dinosaur model is about 5-7 pieces and come in a small bag. Be careful when opening it, as these pieces are really tiny. Instructions on assembly are provided on the back of the sticker sheet. I found the assembly process to be intuitive and the resulting model held together well. Each model is hand painted, and the level of detail is astounding. Once assembled, the toys are about 1-2 inches tall.
DinoMania toys are available at select museum, hobby, educational, comic, and specialty stores across North America.
For more information visit the official DinoMaina site at:
Official Japanese Web Site for Dinotales: The Chocolasaurs Collection:
http://www.uhauha-uha.com/saurus/index.html