Mirage
by Hasbro and Playskool
"Specifically designed for Preschoolers with little hands and Big Dreams"
Why?
 You're going to hate me for reviewing this toy. Right? 'What the heck was Ed Thinking?' Preschoolers are too young to read and adult collectors shouldn't be interested in this guy. This goes back to that entire stigma with all toys called "Gobots" or "Go-Bots".
Well I couldn't resist. The name MIRAGE for goodness sake is attached to this ages 3+ toy. The venerable "Transformers" label was affixed. Mirage was even a F-1 racecar with a blue and white color scheme. Then I saw hints of that trendy SD, Super Deformed, look that has been all the rage lately. Mirage-bot deserves a viewing and some time to sit on the minds of robot fans.
To begin-- We have a fat, squashed, low-slung F-1 racer that is easily recognizable as a PlaySkool version of G-1 Mirage. All of those Generation X dudes and dude-ettes have grown up. Some of us may have kids and these kids now need Transformers brainwashing. Miragebot is ready along with his trusty sidekick dog and bubble-eyed long-limbed driver.
Inner-Workings
 I thought the transformation was a bit unforgiving with each arm and leg spring-loaded. As an adult I had no problem. My girlfriend, ahem, the adult did mess up the first 4 times. It takes some finesse to bend the arms/ front wheels into place and then latch them. If you miss-- thwonk-- the arm shoots back to it's stiff pose. The same with the legs. You must fold the knees into two directions and then solidly latch them. If you mess up you get a spring loaded catapult. Giving Mirage-bot to 3 and 4 year olds is pushing the envelope. Just be aware of this and present it to 5 year-olds and up.
The paintwork and sturdy-ness of the toy gets kudos. Paint application is "spot-on" perfect and the wheels and rims look great. The axles and wings all appeared to be well engineered and should last. Toy parts were rounded to keep them from poking out an eye -wink-.
Fun Factors and Toy Intangibles
This is a good, stiff, well made toy that is fun. Kids in my area have had a blast borrowing Miragebot. The dog and man are big bonuses for play; fellow Transformers fans may recall wishing that our 80's toys came with drivers.
Press the steering wheel for a noisy rumbling engine. Kids will love it, adults will hate this feature. There is no volume control : ( . Each time you mount the driver the steering wheel gets jarred.
As a toy collector I will say Mirage-bot has grown on me. You may recall hating SD or Super Deformed toys when they first came out in the mid-90's. Japan first introduced this "squashed form" style of toy. Well, Playskool's Mirage is the same way. It takes time to acquire a taste for this blue shrunken Transformer. But the $13 price makes it perfect to awkwardly complement your Generation 1 Transformer "Robots in Disguise" Mirage. Think Laurel and Hardy. Smile as you contemplate it's shrunken proportions and play away. |
