This web page disappears October 26.

As it turns out, these critters were distributed in countries other than the United States (imagine MY Ameri-centric surprize), under different names, with different packaging. These are some of the variations...

As it happens, the packaging I got with the Sky Hopper (I unfortunately didn't win the Lunar Legs) was in that fabled "near mint" condition, which really surprized me; usually when people say "near mint," they mean, "Well, it got rained on, and the dog had it buried out back for a while, and my son drew pictures on it." This was actually as described, which was a pleasant surprize.

It's hard to see what's written here, but notice the international Country symbols next to the instructions on the back of the box? I think they're Deutchland, Great Britain, France, Italia, and Nederlands. If I'm wrong, somebody let me know.

This puppy is the High Hoppin' Hoomdorm, except it isn't; note the "Sky Hopper" label, in the same font and color as found on the US versions. It also doesn't have the clear air reservoir depicted on the box and represented kind of cheezily in the instructions, which interests me because I've seen this tank before, depicted as clear on another box. Could the clear tank have been a prototype? I have no idea.

Wouldn't it have been tremendously easier to make them all the same? What's the point to these variations? It's also interesting, to me, anyway, that the labels on the pumps depicted on these boxes are different from any I've actually seen, and don't match the equipment as delivered.

I mean, somebody somewhere must have suddenly jumped up and decided, "Well, we certainly don't need such slickly produced packaging in this unsophisticated market like we did for the Americans."

And all his (I'm just assuming it was a "he") buddies, yes-men to the last, nodded their heads wisely, stubbed out their fat cigars, and said, "You're right, old man. We'll just slap something together."

Whilst in a dark corner somewhere, some twisted smurf was thinking, "Wouldn't it be cheaper and easier just to use the same stuff we've already used?" Wait, I think that was me.

And here's a photo I brazenly stole from an ebay auction for a newly discovered (for me, anyway) variant, the "Automobiles Planetary Stoomdorm" from Canada! Note the non-rhyming subtext: "Just pump it up with a little air/It's the strangest car you've ever seen." Maybe those lines rhyme in French. Don't know if I'll bid on it or not, but it would be nice to add to the collection.

Disturbing innocent bystanders
since September 1998