Every year there is at least one toy the makes the headlines at Christmas because parents have been fighting over it in high street stores. These toy shortages occur because the companies that make them don't want to over estimate the popularity of a product and produce too many that don't sell, leaving them with a lot of unwanted stock and a large bill from production costs. Last year it was the Nintendo Wii. Other memorable toy shortages have been Teletubbies, Furbees, Tamagotchi and Tickle Me Elmo.
Elmo is back this year, and this time he is performing Live and is sure to fly off the shelves as quick as, if not quicker than he can be stacked on them.
If you're not aware, Elmo is a muppet from Sesame Street. Elmo Live is a true all singing all dancing educational toy. On the inside is an advanced robot which produces life-like (or more accurately, muppet-like) movements. This gives him the ability to move his mouth in time with the speech he makes.
The Elmo Live has a large amount of spoken word recorded into him. With it he tells stories, makes jokes, sings songs and plays games. All this is done while he gets in and out of his seat, crosses and uncrosses his legs, dances and waves his arms around. The wide variety of movements and speech gives Elmo Live a very believable personality. It's easy to forget he is actually a robot. Elmo could entertain the children for hours.
Elmo Live is also interactive. He has sensors all over his body which enable him to react to touch. If you squeeze his nose he will sneeze. If you tickle his feet or stomach, he will laugh and if you give him a cuddle, he will say "I love you".
Fisher-Price are known for producing toys with educational value. The educational value of Elmo Live is that he is designed to help children learn to listen and communicate. For example, when Elmo ask for a hug, children will be rewarded with an "I love you" when they do as he asks.
The idea of using this character as an educational tool is a controversial one however. Elmo has been criticised in the past for his use of grammar. In particular he refers to himself in the third person, for example he would say "Elmo is feeling tired". Sesame Street creator Jim Henson responded to these allegations, stating that this is typical language for this age group and Sesame Street will not encourage improper use of English.
Whatever you believe, many children will love Elmo this Christmas, while many other will miss out because of under-stocking. To avoid disappointment on the big day and stress leading up to the big day, parents are advised to order as early as they can.
