The Valkyrie

CS recently supplied me with these lovely shots of a large film tie-in toy, the Valkyrie. Straight from the animated epic Titan A.E, which mixed computer 3d graphics with conventional cel animation, this is a large toy at about 18 " long.

 A Beautiful model from a largely overlooked film, the Valkyrie reminds me of the Probe Force series with the elongated fuselage and clustered engines.

The Valkyrie represents a combination of elements, sleek ship design which I love and electronic wizardry which I loathe in toys. The inclusion of 'speech chips' and sound FX represent a turning point in the production of toys. Whereas earlier generations of toys relied upon the inventiveness and imagination of the child to add the sound effects, electronic toys at once added a small selection of stock phrases and sounds, but equally meant that the child no longer had to 'play' withe the toy to get the best from it, it was all pre-packaged at the touch of a button. The unfortunate death of a child after accidentally swallowing a small missile from a Mattel Battlestar Galactica toy in the late seventies also meant that all future toys would be made safe and free from firing missiles, small parts and easily breakable elements, The inclusion of electronic 'FX' was intended to bridge the gap, but for me it just limits the need for creativity at playtime.