Simpsons Family Car

This isn't an exclusive, but I bet you don't see it show up at as many retailers as the regular figures.  Right now, the Sam Goody line of stores has it, which includes Media Play and Suncoast, and Electronics Boutique.  Target is also supposed to carry it.  Most of the on-line comic shops are selling it as well.

Talking Feature - ***1/2
The best part of this little vehicle is the lines imbedded.  Pushing each character will give you one or two, maybe three lines of dialog.  But push the hood, and you get a conversation between the whole family!  There are 3 or 4 complete conversations, and the one about the hitch hiker is great...

Paint - ***
The paint ops on the figures is good, as is most of the car.  But I found one major problem with everyone I looked at - the color of the hood is slightly different than the rest of the car.  Even someone as color blind as I can see it, so it must be screamingly obvious to those that can actually differentiate red and brown. 

Packaging - ***
It's the same packaging as the playsets, and the same size.  As always, colorful and sturdy, but getting a little old.  I would like to see some change, at least by 2002.

Sculpting - ***
The head sculpts on the figures are generally good, even in the slightly smaller scale.  But one oddity is Marge with her arm around Homer - this pose seems extremely out of place.

Some folks are bothered by the open roof and Marge's hair.  I don't mind, since I'm not sure it would have looked right to have her hair scrunched off to one side.

The scale is the other problem for many folks.  These are NOT in scale with the WOS figures, as you can see from the picture below.  I don't mind too much, since I buy just about anything with 'Simpsons' on it, but I do understand and warn you on it.

A plus to the sculpt is the dent on the front left fender, looking just as you'd imagine it should.

Design - ***
The car works great as a toy as well - the wheels spin freely, and it takes off with a soft push.  The speaker is placed in the bottom of the car, and is loud and clear.

Value - **1/2
The only store I could find this at locally was Suncoast, and $30 is definitely too much.  $20 is much more appropriate, and if you can shop around to find it at that price.

Overall - ***
The talking feature really makes this piece.  Having the conversations between the characters is a great idea, and works well here.  If you're a casual collector, or only collect those items that are in scale with WOS, you may pass this up.  But for the rest of you hard core types, you'll definitely want to grab one of these.  The trick is to find it cheap! 

Where to Buy:
Bricks and mortar selection is kind of sparse right now.  As I said, the Sam Goody family of stores have them in stock, as do some Electronics Boutique.  Other on-line possiblities:

- New Force Comics are out of stock, but you should always check their first for Simpsons stuff.

- Electronics Boutique (EBgames.com) had them for $20 on-line as well, but are also back ordered! (MROTW Affiliate)

- Action Figure Express has them, but at $24.95 they are a little more expensive.  (MROTW Affiliate)