Indie Squid Kid

Last month I wrote up a small review of the Discovery Kids Smart Animals™ Giant Squid figure and asked one of the great mysteries of the ages…What does a Giant Squid sound like?

Anyway, long story short, someone at JAKKS Pacific, the toy’s manufacturer, read my post and offered to send me some free samples, including the all-important Scanopedia! So, without further ado…

Smart Animals™ is a toy line from Discovery Channel’s Discovery Kids™ imprint that puts a new spin on the classic concept of plastic animal figures. Each figure has a small chip that, when scanned with the Scanopedia™ device (sold separately, of course), plays sound effects and quizzes you on trivia about the animal. The line includes a large assortment wildlife, including dinosaurs, African and North American animals, and marine life.

The squid figure is really cool, but it looks more like a Humboldt than an Architeuthis—its fins are too large and its tentacles are too short. (Incidentally, the squid figured on the back of the package appears to be a slightly different sculpt, one which actually matches the silhouette sticker on the front of the package.) The Great White’s gaping mouth seems almost comically large, but, hey, sharks have big mouths! It’s kind of their thing. Both figures are approximately 4 inches long, and each has it’s own display stand. I don’t have the Scanopedia “electronic talking animal encyclopedia”, but I am really curious to know what sounds they think a Giant Squid makes!

I picked this up the other day at my local Target, but it doesn’t look like it’s made it onto Target.com, Amazon, or even the Discovery Channel online store yet.