Friday, May 8, 2009

Daily Fail: Happy Aeroboat




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After yesterday's stomach-churning Race Car Repeat, it's only fair that I give you something...happier...to start the weekend. This next bootleg is happy. So happy, in fact, that "happy" is even part of the toy's name.

Just don't think that it's going to make you any happier. That would make you unhappy indeed.





Happy Aeroboat continues the Zephyr Knight line of impulse-sized LEGO knockoffs. Stock number 1012, it follows Racing down the road of suck. Except that it's a boat. Maybe it's a "River of suck"? Eh. Whatever.




The background art actually meshes well with the toy - a rare sight among Zephyr Knight bootlegs. I don't recognize the Happy Aeroboat as being based off of a LEGO set, but it's certainly a possibility. Maybe a sharp-eyed reader will recognize a perversion of one of their favorite sets. It's happened before.



As part of "Series Transformation" we get four suggested uses for the included parts. Nothing too exciting this time around. All four models are shown on the water. Makes you wonder what the "aero" in "aeroboat" is supposed to refer to.



The mini-figure in this set is standard for Zephyr Knight - an inverted LEGO Blacktron design on the torso, goofy grin, and powder blue pants. He does come with a clone of a LEGO air tank accessory - that's the first time I've seen that particular piece in a Zephyr set.



The colors don't match the package, but there's still enough yellow to make the included toy feel similar to the one pictured on the box. I know this is a complete stretch, but all that red added on to the base yellow and black makes me think of a before-and-after shot of the Comedian's badge. (The bootleg itself being the "After", if you follow my tenacious thread.) Obviously, I don't get out enough.

At any rate, this bootleg suffers from the same warped molds and brittle plastic as the other Zephyr Knight offerings. You can't really make it out in the photo above, but the entire back end of the Happy Aeroboat is only attached on one side due to the base being curved in strange ways.



When putting this last shot together I realized I had installed those red side-panels backwards. (Compare with the photo above this one.) Whoops. Amazingly, the figure can actually sit in the boat and reach the controls. An unusual feat for a knockoff.

We're left with just one question to ask....is Happy Aeroboat happy?

No. Of course not. It's sad.

But I bet you could have guessed that before you even started reading this review.

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As always, many thanks to Joe from The Undiscovered Playthings for sending me this set to review.

2 comments:

Joel Hook said...

Mabye its powered by "Aero's", you know, the bubbly choclate? (Don't know if you get them in America, I have some American friends who were unaware of some famous brands here)

Anonymous said...

Well, I'd say it's more a "River Of Deceit", but it's not really the season to be mad either. (Okay, okay, for those who caught that, I know it was bad. For those who didn't just grin and nod.)

I think it's kind of amusing that the "Happy Aeroboat" features a bored looking pilot (in the box art) who seems to have cheered up by the time he was assembled. Maybe breathing the fumes from the cheap cancerous plastic in a small enclosed poorly ventilated space will do that to a minifig?