Before anybody jumps on me... I can't say this with 100% certainity, BUT...
I was looking at the Rattlor I picked up for my youngest son today, and I noticed that the scales on his shoulders had a tough time matching up with the arms. I had to get him into a "Hey, want a hug?" pose before they would match up. So I started looking at it from all angles, and from the upper angle I could tell that the scales look like they might be angling from a reversed angle from what might have been intended-
http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...fe/noticed.jpg
Looking at that pic, it seems the scales angle in towards the back more than they angle in towards the chest. This causes you to have to swing out the arms so that the scales allign right with the biceps. If you reverse the shoulders though, the scales angle in towards the chest and have an easier time of lining up. It is especially noticeable on Rattlor's left arm.
I put these together with some quick photoshopping to show how it would look if the shoulders were reversed. Admittedly, this is a quick, crappy job- But I really think it looks better from all angles with the switch.
http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...idecompare.jpg
http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...ontcompare.jpg
Again, I could 100% be wrong on this. When I noticed the Hssss shoulders way back when, the difference was a lot more obvious. It took some looking at Rattlor before I even started thinking something seemed odd. I went back and looked at pictures of the Snakemen 2-pack, and although the paint isn't there to make it as noticeable, it looks like the shoulder placement is the same. Even the Rattlor shown at conventions looks like it may have been assembled this way, so it could be what was intended to begin with. Or it could have been an early error that just was never caught. I don't know. I just know that it seems backwards to me and I thought others might think the same.
Would be great if the 4H could chime in and say which way the shoulders were intended to go- Scales angling in towards the chest or in towards the back.
Sallah