Collection Review: Schleich Wolves

Figure Brand: Schleich & Papo

Figure Name(s): Wolf (14821)
Artic Wolf (14742)

Sex: Both males

Name: Artic Wolf- Amarok (White Wolf- Inuit)
Wolf- Ciaran- (Irish for 'little dark one.')

Year Made:  Wolf - 2019
Artic Wolf - 2015

Observations/Thoughts: Two Schleich wolves this time, one being an artic wolf, the other being an ordinary grey wolf? Timber wolf?
Again when it comes to the wolf, I do think Papo do a better one, as both the artic wolf and the ordinary wolf are in a somewhat usual pose, except the grey wolf is snarling, adding slightly more interest to the model.

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Amarok, the Artic wolf is an okay model I find, though I’m not a fan of his thick curly coat, looks a lot like the shaggy piles of wool lots of sheep have, especially given the colour too. Not a fan of the lumpy look of him either, or the fact his pose is the same neutral, all four paws on the ground, simply standing looking forward. His overall body colour is a light cream to very light yellow, any shadow is caused by the lumpy tufts or curls he’s supposed to have. I don’t know why Schleich opted for this design choice, as looking them up, I don’t think Artic Wolves are particularly curly, they just seem to me like they have the same coat as an ordinary wolf, so…I’m not sure why it couldn’t have been done smoother? Anyways, I choose the Inuit name Amarok for him as in keeping with his nature, it’s a mythical white wolf that’s giant in stature and unlike other wolves who hunt in packs, Amarok hunts alone.

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Ciarán is my Schleich wolf, I prefer his overall body shape as his coat doesn’t contain the lumps that I assume were the thicker, shaggier coats of the Artic Wolf. He looks and feels a lot more smooth and natural. His pose is also better as though he is standing with all four feet on the ground and it is quite plain, his head is held straight, mouth open in a snarl and glaring focused at something. It’s really nice to see a wolf in a very natural pose, he could be used in a diorama type scene where he’s standing down another predator. The expression, the open mouth and his tiny tongue visible are a great addition to the overall look of aggression he has, then the ears and tail tucked back for a nice touch of realism.
His colour is a differing gradient of grey, the lightest tones which are almost a yellow grey on his underside all the way up to a very dark charcoal on his back. One back leg is also slightly stretched back too, with tail down in a frightened-aggressive pose. It’s a neutral pose but also one I find has subtle movement, or at least a good deal of expression in it.

 Rating: Artic Wolf- 3/5
Wolf- 5/5

Thanks Widukind!

I still don't know in real the new Papo reddish grey wol but it looks to be a very good model. I prefer both Papo to these Schleich but I think my favorite pair is the Safari one which I have in my collection. This grey wolf is interesting, especially the pose but the model is farm from being absolutely great in my opinion. I also dislike the sheep whool of the Arctic wolf. I'd give 4 to both models but the Arctic one would be a 4 close to 3.

I have these 2 guys in my pack!

Hi Roger, yeah I do like the grey one a lot more, the snarl is interesting to me! Agreed with your thoughts on the Artic Wolf too, too woolly looking in my opinion.

Hi Caracal, I think I saw you posting these before in a pack picture alright?

Hi Brandubh94, I psted many times wolves packs! For the polar ones, see "Winter is coming" and "A strange story"! for the other ones in "outdoor pictures"   :)

Some lovely wolves!

Wolves are some of my very favourite animals but I only managed to start my wolf pack this year. And one of my current pack members is also Schleich's Arctic wolf though I have her as a female in my collection. She got the simple (and generic) name Arktika.
I have to agree that her fur looks rather strange. I don't know why they decided to make it curly but I like her face. Her gray version looks a little bit better in my opinion and I hope to get it at some point.
I don't have the grey wolf yet and I'm not sure if I will get him or not. He has a cool pose and his colouring looks also fine enough. I really like the name you gave him, Ciarán suits him for sure.

Hi Kathy! Yeah lots of us seem to be in agreement about the artic wolf's woolly coat. I love the name you gave her, it happens to sound very fitting of her artic home alright!