The Fastest Hunk of Junk in the Galaxy -- For Toddlers!
Written: Jan 25 '03 (Updated Oct 20 '03)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Fun Star Wars playset for toddlers!
Cons: Most characters have no articulation. Stickers. Loud.
The Bottom Line: Large play areas and cute Star Wars figures geared for toddlers. Sure to please both young kids and old Star Wars fans.
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| mizgnomer's Full Review: Playskool Star Wars: Millennium Falcon Adventure E... |
I'll be honest. When Playskool/Hasbro announced the release of its Star Wars toys for pre-schoolers my husband and I knew that we were going to get some of them for our son, but also knew that we might like the toys more than our son would. My husband and I have been Star Wars fans and toy collectors since our childhoods, so as much as we wanted to give this toy to our son, we also wanted it for ourselves.
I was pleasantly surprised when I presented our son with the Star Wars Millennium Falcon Adventure -- it was love at first sight. He was all over it! At 18 months of age he is still a bit young to really get the most out of this type of toy, but he loves playing with the Falcon and has enjoyed it much more than I thought he would!
Product Description:
Star Wars: Millennium Falcon Adventure is based on the first Star Wars movie, which was released in 1977. The set includes the Millennium Falcon, Han Solo, Chewbacca, C3PO, and a Storm Trooper.
It is obvious that Playskool/Hasbro went through a lot of trouble to make these toys safe and fun for toddlers. The figures are chunky and easy to grasp. All of the pieces (except C3PO) are made from a just-barely-soft plastic. The characters don't have much articulation, but less movement means less chance for a small piece to break off and become a choking hazard. The weapons (except for Chewbacca's bow-caster) are not removable -- they are part of the figure itself, which means no small pieces to lose or choke upon.
The characters have big feet and a wide stance with a low center-of-gravity, so they are easy to stand up and do not fall over easily. Everyone except C3PO can stand or sit in the cockpit, so they do have a slightly odd stance -- half standing, half-sitting -- but they still stand quite well. Still, even though the ship and the characters are cute-ized and chunky, they are also impressively detailed.
There are other sets in the Playskool/Hasbro Pre-School Star Wars line. We also have the Fast Through the Forrest playset which includes Luke Skywalker and a Biker Scout who can sit atop speeder bikes. Both sets of toys are completely compatible -- I can now put Han Solo on a speeder bike or have Luke sit in the Millennium Falcon's cockpit.
Playskool recommends all of its Star Wars Adventures line for children ages 3 and up.
Low-Down on the Falcon:
The Millennium Falcon is very cool. It is approximately 10 inches in diameter, and with legs intact it stands approximately 7 inches tall. The exterior is made of a hard plastic
The outer hull of the Falcon is fairly well detailed, including some grime/burn marks to keep her from looking all shiny and new. A radar dish on top can rotate and pivot, and the laser cannons on the top come complete with cool sound effects that match the movement of the guns.
A red button on the hull provides more sound effects, including music from the movie. A few sound effects feature Millennium Falcon "fly by" sounds that would be good for accompanying a child's play. There is also the sound of a failed attempt to jump into hyperdrive, after which C-3PO says "The hyperdrive on the Millennium Falcon is damaged." Pushing the button after C-3PO's announcement results in other "sick-engine" sounds. After the hyperdrive gets fixed (more on that in the interior section below), R2-D2 squeals and C-3PO says "You did it!", followed by a healthy engine sound.
There are three ways to get into the Falcon to play. The largest play area is revealed by opening the back half of the ship's roof. The interior is large and nicely detailed. The coolest (in my opinion) feature in the interior is the chess table, so you can re-enact the 3-D chess match between C-3PO and Chewbacca. On the back center wall is a button that plays "phrases" from 3 of the characters (R2-D2 beeps, Chewbacca grunts, and C-3PO says "I am C-3PO"). To the left of the center wall is a panel where the various inner-workings of the ship are exposed (mostly through stickers). There is a red button on the wall, a red light, a green light, and a "hydrospanner" (which is basically a rubber hose). When C-3PO announces that the hyperdrive is damaged, the red light will start flashing. You can touch the hydrospanner to the red button (or just push the red button), and a loud (annoying) sound will play to represent the ship being repaired. C-3PO will then announce "The hyperdrive on the Millennium Falcon is repaired!" and the green light will come on for a few seconds. There is also a floor panel, in front of the engine panel, that can be flipped up (covering the engine guts) or down (becoming part of the floor). Lastly, there is also a place on the wall for storing Chewbacca's bow-caster.
Another way to access the large play area is via the entry ramp. The ramp can be lowered down between two of the support legs, providing access to the play area from beneath the ship.
The third play way to access the interior is through the cockpit. The cockpit is fairly small -- only 1 character can be inside at a time. The cockpit's roof flips open to the side, but can also be accessed via the larger play area (through a small walkway). The cockpit isn't as well detailed as the larger play area on the ship.
There is some minor assembly required (3 legs inserted into the base, attach laser cannon, attach guns, apply decorative stickers, add batteries).
3 "AA" Batteries (not included) are required for the sounds.
Low-Down on the Figures:
~~ Han Solo: He is 2 inches tall and in the somewhat odd squatting/standing position. He has no articulation -- he is a solid piece (including the blaster he holds in his right hand). He is wearing the familiar black & white outfit from the first movie, and although his face isn't exactly like Harrison Ford's he does have Solo's signature smirk.
~~ Storm Trooper: Like Han, he is also 2 inches tall and in that odd, squatting stance. He is wearing a cute-ized-but-fairly-accurate version of the Storm Trooper armor. He is also a solid piece (no articulation), including the blaster in his right hand.
~~ Chewbacca: Chewy is nearly 3 inches tall and is much bulkier than the human figures. He has a very pleasant face with big blue eyes. His hands and feet are very over-sized, with holes in each hand so he can hold his bow-caster (the only weapon I've seen that is separate from its character). There is also a slot on his back for the bow-caster (as through he was wearing it slung over his shoulder). Chewbacca's arms and legs are each jointed. He is slightly squatting too, but it is less noticeable because his legs are so big. He is a really super-cute figure!
~~ C-3PO: 3PO is a bit different than the other figures in this set. First, he is not squatting. Second, he is quite hard, unlike the other slightly-pliable characters -- possibly because he is shiny and metallic (I'm guessing they couldn't get that shiny finish on the softer plastic). He has no articulation, but is in a rather C-3PO-ish pose (arms held out from the body, head slightly cocked).
Our Experiences:
I was pleased to see that my 18-month old son was excited when we pulled this toy out of the box. Sure, he doesn't understand the glory that is "Star Wars", but the Millennium Falcon is simply cool and fun to play with, regardless of whether or not you've seen the movies.
My boy loves opening up the back of the Falcon to reveal the large play area. He shoves other toys inside and closes the lid. He has also tried standing inside the play area, so it is quite sturdy (although I would not recommend standing in it). On the down side, my son has a much harder time opening the cockpit. Mommy or Daddy must open it for him, and it is frustrating for the little guy.
I'm grateful that the characters are slightly soft and pliable, because my son simply loves chewing on Han Solo (why he chews on Han and no one else I have no idea). By far my son's favorite character is Chewbacca, possibly because he is the biggest. My son carries him around the house and puts him in his Fisher Price Little People play sets.
I must admit that I'm a bit less impressed with these character figures than I was with the Fast Through the Forrest figures. These figures seem just a bit less detailed (especially when I compare the Storm Trooper to the Biker Scout). I'm very impressed with the Millennium Falcon itself, except for the cockpit. The cockpit seems more cheaply constructed than the rest of the ship. The characters don't sit in the seat all that well, and Chewbacca can just barely fit inside the space.
I do have a concern about Chewbacca's bow-caster. It is small enough to present a choking hazard, and my son does like to put it in his mouth and chew on it. We've removed the bow-caster and hidden it until my son gets older.
As both a plus and a minus, the entry ramp on our Falcon falls off somewhat frequently with use. The good news is that this ramp is built to pop off without breaking and snap back on with ease, so at least it isn't irreparable.
It is sometimes hard for my son to get the figures through the smaller interior openings. He loves moving the characters through the interior, but two of the openings (between the cockpit and the rear area, and the opening for the entry ramp) are on the small side. Since Chewbacca (the largest figure) is his favorite, it can be frustrating when he is trying to wedge Chewie through a too-small opening.
As mentioned above, there is some minor assembly required. It was very quick and easy to put together, but the stickers gave me fits. The large after-burner sticker simply wouldn't go on straight (it runs the length of the back of the ship), and it nearly drove me insane. One of the interior stickers (that goes around the hyperdrive) had a very small area that ripped off when I was removing the sticker from its backing. It isn't horribly noticeable, but the fact that a little piece of sticker is missing bugs me to this day.
After approximately 30 seconds without your child pressing a noise-making button, the toy plays a sound of R2-D2, reminding your child to play with the toy. Now, a lot of my son's toys have this feature and normally I appreciate anything that attempts to regain my son's super-short attention span. However, on this toy the sound selected is loud and somewhat obnoxious. Quite frankly, it scares us! We will either be off doing something else, or my son will be playing with the figures elsewhere on the toy, then the sound plays and makes him jump.
Other than that final R2-D2 sound and the obnoxious hyperdrive-repair sound, I do like most of the sound recordings used on the ship. The guns in particular are fun sounds to play as you make-believe the ship is flying through space. The engine/fly-by sounds are cool as well. The Star Wars music is always nice to hear (although the music recordings are a bit muffled).
Quickie Summary:
Pros:
+) It's from the first Star Wars movie (episode 4)!
+) Well detailed
+) Lots of sounds, generated in a variety of locations (on the cannons, on the ship's roof, on the central pillar, and the fix-it button)
+) Four figures from Star Wars included with the playset
+) Large interior play area for fantasy-fun
+) Designed for pre-schoolers (chunky figures, few small parts, durable, well balanced, etc)
+) Adorable and fun to play with!
+) Figures can be stored in the playset (convenient storage).
+) It's Star Wars! For Toddlers!
Cons:
-) Characters don't sit in the cockpit all that well
-) Cockpit is hard to open
-) Not much articulation
-) Those darn stickers
-) Characters don't always fit through the doors/hatches
-) Sounds can be a bit loud
-) Bow-caster is small and can get lost easily
Final Thoughts:
I knew that my husband and I would love the Star Wars Millennium Falcon Adventure, but I was pleasantly surprised to see how much my 18-month old loves it as well! There is a lot to play with on this ship, and I'm really pleased with it.
Related Reviews:
Playskool Star Wars Adventures - Fast Through the Forest
Playskool Star Wars Adventures - The Stompin' Wampa Set
Playskool Star Wars Adventures - X-Wing Adventure
R2-D2 Interactive Astromech Droid
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 29.99
Type of Toy: Playscene
Age Range of Child: 3 to 5 Years
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Epinions.com ID:
mizgnomer
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Location: Tennessee
Reviews written: 306
Trusted by: 202 members
About Me:
Don't meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you're crunchy and taste good with ketchup
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