Collection Review: Safari Ltd & Papo Corvids

Figure Brand: Safari Ltd & Papo

Figure Name(s): Raven (150829)
Magpie (50286)

Sex: both male

Name: Safari Ltd Raven- Kier- Irish for ‘Dark One.’
Papo Magpie – Latimer- Latin for ‘One Who Knows Latin.’

Year Made: Raven - 2014
Magpie - 2022

Observations/Thoughts:
Really nice bird sculpts from both Safari Ltd and Papo. I believe Papo do the best bird models of any figurine brands out there, as ALL the bird figures from Papo I’ve collected so far are always so beautiful. The Magpie, Latimer is a new favourite from mine, though I adore Kier the Raven from Safari Ltd too. Probably because them, and corvids in general happen to be my favourite birds in the world.

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I’ve had Kier the Raven for longer and I like him a lot, though he’s probably less of a detailed bird sculpt than if Papo were to make the raven sculpt. I like him mostly because he IS a raven, if he wasn’t I don’t think he’d be a bird I’d like.
What I don’t think I like about the sculpt is the overall shape and form- he’s made to seem as though he’s perching but to me, he’s completely bent and facing downward with his wings un-spread which makes it seem like it’s a silly pose to me? And my model seems to tip over a lot, that’s a big problem with displaying that particular model and I don’t know if it’s just mine, or if all of them are like so. I think he should have been sculpted in a more upright pose to offset this, with a head up etc.

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As far as my birds go, I think Latimer the magpie is definitely my favourite, he’s so incredibly sleek and handsome, right down to his alert, upright pose and the fact his tail and wings has a lovely metallic sheen of green and blue to it, like a real magpie. I feel Papo have went out of their way to sculpt a very realistic magpie, and I’m so grateful they did because he’s a beauty. I’m just curious as to how they got that metallic sheen on his feathers- obviously it’s some very good metallic kind of paint.
His pose is also a lot better than Kier’s above, it’s not tipping forward, but in fact he’s standing on the ground, feet apart, his long tail helping to keep him upright and his head up, giving him an alert look. I called him Latimer(meaning: ‘One Who Knows Latin.’) because I think he looks really clever(though not necessarily wise!) and spends his time collecting nuggets of information and because of this, the other birds merely assume he’s wise, not just clever and assume because he’s wise he must know some archaic, classical language, like Latin. ^^

Rating: Raven 3/5
Magpie 5/5

My Safari raven bentds so much that it touches with the bill on the floor after some time. I tried to fix it but after a certain time it curls back. That's a production issue, I guess. I don't know if it is specifically from a certain batch or if it happens to all models. Could you tell me which number your raven has printed on it?
Newer Papo birds are clearly superior to all other bird figures from major brands, they're at a higher price level but they are worth it. Look how outstanding is that magpie!

Thank you Roger! I thought my Kier was the only one that did that, it's a production and even... design flaw too?
I definitely agree on Latimer the magpie, he's my favourite bird of my collection so far.

The safari raven is a favorite of mine and it went through a LOT of play years ago. It must be a bad batch because mine stands perfectly upright.

I thought so too Joliezac, mine seems to be from a bad batch(it's got 1221) on the base

I can't check the number of mine at the moment but it is surely a different batch since mine was bought a long time ago and 1221 is a production batch of 2021.
I think the figure is not perfectly balanced and puts the weight forward. When it is exposed to high temperatures, as it happens in my house since I live in a warm region, the plastic gets softened and the figure starts bending forward with the weight. Though, it does not explain everything since my raven is quite stubborn.

I actually tried to push him back a little too with a little bending and pressure and small heat but again, he didn't work, just bounced back and tipped over again :/

Finally I checked mine and it is from the first batches since it is printed 0913 which means it was produced in 2013, just the year before its official release.
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Yes I see what you mean Roger, they seem to have corrected the pose with making it more upright? Mine is definitely the tipping forward pose.

Some very nice birds!
I quite like the Safari raven. It's a pity that he has this problem with his position but I love his feathering. Kier is very nice name.
Latimer is also a very pretty bird. I like how delicate his feet look and Papo gave him a nice colouring.
Hopefully Papo will also make a raven for their bird line.
Both of them are definitely on my wishlist.

Thanks Katy, it's a terrible shame with the raven, I hope one day they'll do a better perching pose or a wings spread one