No 10
The Magic Mixies Crystal Ball is the toy built for the unboxing moment: the child performs a spell with the wand, the ball fills with real mist and lights, and a plush creature appears inside that then responds to touch with 80 sounds and reactions. After the reveal it keeps working as a fortune-teller toy, and the mist refills with water.
It is the Christmas present for a five to nine-year-old who likes magic, the birthday gift that is as much about the first five minutes as the months after, and the one toy of the season that makes the adults in the room say wow.
Ages 5 and up, batteries included, the plush is pink in this edition. Ninety dollars for the reveal that gets filmed.
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