Via

Probably not the Etch A Sketch image Romney's camp had in mind.

​In a brief break from the depressing news we've been covering lately, we wanted to weigh in on presidential toys. You may have heard that Romney aide Eric Fehrnstrom had something to say about Etch A Sketch yesterday.

"I think you hit a reset button for the fall campaign," Fehrnstrom said, before dropping the pixelated bomb that seems to typify how the Romney camp bungles their campaign the day after a win when they should be celebrating: "Everything changes. It's almost like an Etch a Sketch. You can kind of shake it up and restart all over again."

Etch A Sketch was happy to be front and center, releasing this statementt:

Happy to see Etch A Sketch, an American classic toy, is DRAWING attention with political candidates as a cultural icon and important piece of our society. A profound toy, highly recognized and loved by all, is now SHAKING up the national debate. Nothing is as quintessentially American as Etch A Sketch and a good old fashion political debate.

Like most things "quintessentially American," Etch A Sketch toys are, of course, manufactured in China.

Still, it's worth noting that Etch A Sketch is only the most recent in a long line of toys made famous by presidential playtime.

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Truth: We didn't actually get a talking doll for Christmas. We are way too old for that sort of nonsense (no offense, kids). But we did watch this video of a talking doll calling someone, quite agreeably, it seems, a "crazy bitch." Or whatever she's trying to say. And it inspired something in us, call it our entrepreneurial toy-making spirit, because we thought, with a laugh that spewed out a dribble of coffee, what a brilliant creation a talking doll that could really tell it like it is would be. A doll that stopped being polite and started getting real. We might even hope to own such a talking doll, to carry her around in our handbag on the daily journey of life to ward against the common lifestyle scrapes we find ourselves in, occasionally. In honor of Toys 'R' Us's "You & Me Interactive Play & Giggle Triplet Dolls" -- one of which is featured in the above clip -- here are 10 things we would like a talking doll to say. Things that might, you know, actually be helpful.

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Gary Ham's SUCKset, complete with miniature Village Voice

NYC-reared antihero Sucklord may've been banished from BRAVO's Work of Art 10 days ago, but the self-proclaimed jerkbag looms larger than ever among his designer-toy colleagues. So much so that last week, fellow designer toymaker Gary Ham released a handmade wooden tribute, the SUCKset, a cartoon rendering of the man Morgan Phillips, complete with literal "rat tail" interpretation of Morgan's haircut and a tiny copy of the Suckadelic-splashed September 28, 2011 Village Voice.

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​For one of the most unsettling collector's items available, look no further than the new "Horrors of War" trading card collection. Cards range from "Atomic Bomb" to "Highway of Death," and cover every war from WWII to our current war on terror. You can also buy the signature of Winston Churchill, Donald Rumsfeld, Benito Mussolini -- you name it. Long forgotten Spanish-American or Korean War heroes? You bet. They're available for purchase today.

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​Today, the Nintendo World Store in Rockefeller Plaza hosted a launch party for the new K'NEX Mario Kart Wii Building Sets. The event featured contests, lots of video games, photo-ops with Mario and Luigi, and an appearance by K'NEX president, Michael Araten.

The new K'NEX product will allow kids to build tracks from the Mario Kart games and then race motorized carts on them. Araten told Nintendo TV today that he wanted to bring the joy of Mario Kart to real life, but as we explored the Nintendo store and examined the new products, we were puzzled: Why would anyone choose to play with K'NEX's motorized cars instead of playing the Mario Kart game on the Wii?

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Ladies and gentlemen, a photo of the world's only Filet-O-Fish Happy Meal.

​Gather round, children, and listen to a tale of the evil New York City Council attempting to take your Happy Meal toys away. Yahoo reports that the dastardly City Council Deputy Majority Leader Leroy Comrie, who comes from a magical place called "District 27," has introduced a bill that aims to ban fast-food toys and, as he says, will "empower parents by making it harder for the fast food industry to target children with predatory marketing techniques." What can you do to save your fun toys from being banished to the land of restricted personal freedoms? Nothing, you're just a kid.

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via East Hampton Star

​Remember your childhood teddy bear? The one you had a truly special friendship with, your very own Mr. Bigglesworth? That guy you dragged to every park, play date, and preschool until he got too dirty and worn out? Your mom then had commit her first truly evil deed as a mother -- she had to throw your no-longer-fluffy friend away. But take heart: Your dream art installation is coming to New York! A bronze teddy bear with a bright yellow covering who stands 23 feet tall and weighs 35,000 pounds will be installed in the plaza in front of the Seagram Building on Park Avenue.

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via NY Post

​If you thought Watson (the Jeopardy computer) was going to rule our puny human asses alone, now Watson has his minions. The Pentagon has just developed a robotic hummingbird designed for spying called the Nano Hummingbird. The New York Post has the specifics on the spybots: "the Nano Hummingbird, at 19 grams, weighs less than an AA battery. But, given that hummingbirds are not that common in many urban settings, the next prototype likely will be modeled on a sparrow." (Hm, how about a pigeon?)

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​Every year, toy companies come out with some ridiculous new toy that supposedly ratchets up the "cute" factor about ten points past where it has any good reason to be. This year is, frighteningly, no different from any other.

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