Crazy Aaron returned from the New York Toy Fair and thought some shout-outs were appropriate.
The Cricket Toy – For those awkward moments, a keychain fob that chirps like a cricket. Its a gimmick, but a funny one. And Jeff Anderson, the creator, is a fun guy who knows how to turn an awkward moment into a laugh.
Triops – I’ve always been fascinated with SeaMonkeys but they are more hype than reality. They are tiny and hard to see. They aren’t really monkeys. Triops takes the concept to a new level of awesomeness. Billed as “creatures that time forgot”, you place the eggs into water and they have growing into swimming creatures that a blend of silverfish, horseshoe crabs, catfish and alien facehuggers. They get to be about 1 1/2″ long. I saw them in person and they are great.
Q-Ba-Maze – This building set caught my eye and my ears. You build towers using a series of cubes which allow steel balls to fall through. The movement and sound of the balls is just like the Pachinko machines I used to play with as a child. The pieces are beautiful colored clear plastic and it looks like a lot of fun.
Crazy Forts – As a kid, I was always rearranging the furniture and blankets to make forts. With Crazy Forts, you basically have oversized Tinkertoys to shape into fort-like structures. Cover with blankets and the kids can crawl through them. Then, they pack away in a tiny box for later use. So obvious, I’m surprised no one ever did this before!
Photos by Kardandak Enterprises, LLC/ToyOps/Q-BA-MAZE Inc./Everest Wholesale.