MAIN Toy Reviews Elmo Live

Elmo Live

Elmo Live; Fisher Price, recommended age 2+, MSRP. $79.99USD

Since 1996 when the first Tickle Me Elmo Dolls hit the market this little, red, furry monster has been making people giggle with his antics.

Well, he's ba-ack!

I know, another year, another Elmo. We really felt the same way until we had the chance to play with this one. In all honesty if we had to choose an Elmo out of the many Elmos out there this would be the winner.

This Elmo really is more "live" than any of his predecessors. Although we still get a kick out of the singing pizza.

The Elmo Live doll is very easy to play with. You just need to press his buttons to get him going. He has over 30 minutes of recorded sounds, sayings, questions, and songs. Squeeze his hand, and he'll dance. Elmo even blows kisses, asks for hugs, and says he loves you. This Elmo sings, dances, tells stories and jokes; his movements are very animated and lifelike.

As is the case with most animatronic toys out there, the mechanical gear grinding noise can be distracting. When Elmo falls over he politely asks you to help him up, then he thanks you for helping him up. A very nice touch in the manners department with big kudos there, especially since he falls over quite a bit!

If you squeeze his foot, he will sit down on his stool to tell you a story. You need to set Elmo on a good solid surface for fewer tumbles, if he falls over mid-story he does not continue from where he left off before he fell, he starts over. We felt this to be a bit of a glitch. We love the story telling, he even moves his arms and adds gestures to the stories. It was a nice way to do a little calming, snuggle, story time.

Elmo's sneezing shtick is the pinnacle of hilarity for the little ones, they laughed so hard we thought they were watching a top list comedian. You wind up laughing because the kids are laughing so hard. Elmo goes silly if you squeeze his nose, he laughs, he yawns, and he asks you to dance with him. He will ask you if you "have his nose" and ask you to give it back to him. In the eyes of a small child Elmo is undeniably live.

Ideally we would love to have a bit more variation or some way to add more stories but given previous animatronics toy limitations this Elmo's selections are rather wide-ranging. Elmo's fur is kind of thin, there could be some snuggle fluff between you and his inner workings. Elmo really isn't a toy that is made to drag around and play with. It's more along the lines of you push the buttons and then the kids watch and parallel play with him.

Let's face it — Elmo is a rock star in the Sesame Street monster line up. So, if you have a little Elmo fan at home than this is sure to bring smiles and giggles, and lots of silly dancing along with it. We found Elmo Live to be a hit with the preschool set, and we laughed quite a bit ourselves.

also see -> This is Serious Ming-Ming

Spike the Ultra Dinosaur

also see in Party Ideas -> Elmo Party Ideas

About the Author: Mary Rose is a Mommy, a writer and an early childhood educator who believes in learning through play and the value of good toys.