Elefun

I have to admit, I never owned Elefun, but it was a toy I was always enchanted by when I would see the commercials during Saturday morning cartoons. It's happy, shiny, bright color scheme, it's adorable Elephant character and the overall concept just jumped out at the kid inside of me. And while the kid inside of me screamed to be released from her skeletal imprisonment, I ignored her cries for help and instead focused on wanting to play with Elefun. I knew a kid who had one, my first best friend in 1st grade, a boy named David. David was from a wealthier family than I was (at the time, anyway, as my mother would remarry into money just a few years later) and had all sorts of neat things I never got. Elefun was one of those. I vividly remember going to his enormous house for his birthday party and this was one of the toys we all played with.

Elefun is an extremely simple toy to grasp the concept of. An Elephant, using a motor powered nozzle, shoots nylon butterflies out its nose into the air, and you have to collect them with your little butterfly nets. A truly horrifying idea, if thought about realistically. Somebody really ought to get this poor butterfly sneezing Elephant some veterinarian help pronto, because that sort of medical malady just ain't normal. The toy was released in 1993, and designed by, frankly, two men with the coolest names ever; Omri Rothschild and Boaz Coster. Besides sounding like the heir apparent to an outrageous fortune they're set to inherit after murdering their father in cold blood, this seems to be their only toy, or at least it's the only one listed on Wikipedia and they don't have a page themselves so it's safe to say Elefun is their legacy.

And really, what a wonderful adorable legacy to leave! The goal of the toy, as I stated previously, is deceptively simple. The child who collects the most butterflies in their net is ultimately awarded a butterfly token on their net and the player who captures the special blue butterfly wins a token as well. The first player to collect 3 butterfly tokens in total wins the game. Also a special golden butterfly was added in 2012. And, as with everything from the 90s, there's a girls version called Belefun. Really, it's the same exact fucking toy, just pink, because society at one pointed decided to deem the color blue for boys and the color pink for girls. And as if that wasn't stupid enough, because colors aren't genders, the mere fact that an Elephant itself had to be redesigned solely for a female market is fucking ridiculous. Lemme tell you something, okay? Kids don't give a FUCK what the color of a toy is. I'm a girl, and I enjoyed the hell out of the original Elefun the few times I managed to play with one. This entire concept that there has to be a "girls version" of something - and really the only change that's ever done to facilitate the notion that it's for girls is that the color is different - all but breaks apart when you realize that there's absolutely no reason for it but to trick little girls into thinking this was designed for them instead of against them. These people don't design girls versions of toys because they think girls deserve them, they do it because they see an untapped market. The whole thing hinges on the fact that they think little girls are stupid, and thus will buy something solely because the color is different. As a former little girl, I think I can say with the upmost certainty, go fuck yourself.

Overall, the toy hasn't really had much of a life outside its original release, but then again I don't see many toy commercials on TV these days anyway so to claim one is more financially successful based solely on its advertising campaign is a rather bold thing to do. Either way, it may not have the legacy that something like last weeks subject, Mr. Potato Head, might have or the iconography that something like the Slinky has, but Elefun kind of exists in that perfect space where it's really beloved by those who remember it so fondly and not overly adored by a public that demands a million different spin off versions, a feature film and a Saturday Morning Cartoon based on it. I think that's the perfect place to be, honestly, for anything, is that middle ground where it's remembered but it's not extremely famous.

Elefun is a really original, really creative and really goddamned cute toy that's perfect for young kids who just want to have a fun afternoon. It's not hard to understand how to use, and it's not dangerous in any way. And, I'm happy to announce that you can still buy it! It's available on Amazon and even at your local Walmart! Despite not having that super strong mainstream following, it's maintained enough popularity to warrant continually being released even in the year 2020, and that's really just fantastic honestly. I highly recommend Elefun if you have small children, or if you yourself feel like a small child and just want a pleasant fun way to spend an afternoon.

I have to admit that I really like Elefun especially because I have such a weird attachment to things that blow air. Whether it's vacuums, fans, hairdryers; I just love the sound and the feeling it makes, and Elefun is a perfect use of those in toy form. Perhaps even I'll go snatch one for myself as an early Hanukah gift. Who wouldn't want a toy that looks like a concept out of a Dr. Seuss book?

After all, you're never too old for a butterflying sneezing elephant.