Magic 8 Ball

When I asked my Magic 8-Ball if I should write a positive reivew, it said "IT IS ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN." When I asked if all those reading this review should buy a Magic 8-Ball it said (quite emphatically, I might add) "YES." Though the Magic 8-Ball may hedge with a "MOST LIKELY" or the ever cryptic "BETTER NOT TELL YOU NOW," it is most often a source of affirmation. Having a Magic 8-Ball on your desk can save countless hours of trying to make decisions based on long, complicated evaluations of fact.

Some 8-balls can be difficult to read, physically, that is, as the manufacture does not lead the inner mechanism to place an answer flat against the opening. Again, difficult to check when buying through the web. (Talking 8-balls, which Amazon doesn't list, solve this problem.)

Variants on the 8-ball come and go (most recently, affirmation balls and financial-advice balls have made the rounds), but these are nothing more than pretenders to the throne. When asked if these imitators could provide correct answers, the Magic 8-Ball said, "OUTLOOK NOT SO GOOD."


Recommended For Kids Of All Ages   November 16, 2004
Robert I. Hedges
75 out of 81 found this review helpful

This is simply a classic! I never had one as a kid, and as a result I was unfocused and directionless. Fortunately, I now have one in my office, and it helps me greatly in my professional life. I highly recommend the Magic 8 Ball for kids of all ages, but be sure to note that if you know the answer to the question before asking, the crystalline matrix of the special magical blue solution will become deionized, and thus, cause the Magic 8 Ball to generate random, spurious, and possibly incorrect answers. Fortunately this is a highly buffered solution and resets to a neutral pH after every question, thereby restoring functionality.

I recommend this for silly fun for the whole family, and especially for politicians, who, as a group, would make overall better decisions after consulting with the Magic 8 Ball.



Great fun for kids from 5 to 95 (and beyond)   March 14, 2006
JLind555
33 out of 35 found this review helpful

When I was seven years old I received a Magic 8 Ball for Christmas. As soon as I unwrapped it, I ignored every other present under the tree for the next half hour, so absorbed was I in the 8 Ball. Fast-forward some quarter of a century later when my own son was seven. I passed my 8 Ball down to him. That's how durable it is.

WHAT IT IS:
The Magic 8 Ball looks almost exactly like the 8-ball in a billiard game, only larger; about five inches in diameter, slightly flattened on one side, which allows it to sit on a flat surface without rolling off, and constructed of very hard black plastic. The flattened side is a round window, in which you can see an icosahedron (a 20-sided geometric figure) floating in water. On each face of the icosahedron is a phrase written in white: Yes, Without A Doubt, My Sources Say No, Concentrate And Ask Again, Yes Definitely, Outlook Not So Good, You May Rely On It, Ask Again Later, etc. The positive, negative and vague phrases are distributed about 10-5-5, so you get a 50% chance of a positive response, a 25% chance of a negative response, and a 25% chance of a vague response.

HOW TO PLAY:
Using the 8 Ball is great fun. You hold the ball face up, with the 8 showing, and ask a yes-or-no question. Turn the ball over, wait a second or two, and as if by magic (at least young children will think so), a face of the icosahedron with the answer to your question will swim eerily up into the window. The question, of course, should make sense. I remember my bratty little five year old neighbor down the hall complaining that my new 8 Ball was dumb -- "I asked it, Is my mother a boy? and it said Yes." I told her "Ask a stupid question, get a stupid answer." She went home in a huff.

The big caveat in playing with the 8 Ball, of course, is taking it too seriously. It's a game, for heaven's sake. It's a toy, actually, but grownups who think they are too grown up for toys can call it a desk game or whatever else they want. (Law & Order SVU fans: check out the 8 Ball sitting on Detective Tutuola's desk.) You can ask the 8 Ball any question that can be answered with a yes or a no; like most other fortunetelling games, its response will be right some of the time. Using the 8 Ball to play the stock market is definitely dicey. It's can be frustrating when you're told to "Concentrate And Ask Again", or "Ask Again Later". I wanna know now, dammit.

The Magic 8 Ball is one of the classic toys, like Slinky, Mister Potato Head, and Lego blocks, that have stood the test of time. It's easy to use and great fun.

SAFETY/DURABILITY:
I've never known an 8 Ball to break. My own was dropped on the hard floor innumerable times and never showed a crack. Maybe if you bounced it at 90 miles an hour off a concrete wall...

AGE RANGE:
Age 5 to adulthood. Children under 5 will probably find it too large and too heavy to handle easily.

Judy Lind



A True Classic   November 4, 2005
Tanya Lee (El Paso, Texas)
14 out of 14 found this review helpful

When I was a kid, my brother and I would play with my Grandfather's Magic 8 Ball. We could sit there for hours thinking up questions to ask the ball and then laugh hysterically at the answers that popped up.

I have to admit that I'd forgotten all about the Magic 8 Ball until a recent trip to Toys 'R Us for some early Christmas shopping. While wandering up and down the aisles, I rediscovered the Magic 8 Ball! It's hard to imagine getting so excited over a toy, but I nearly jumped for joy at the sight of it! As soon as I got back to the car, I ripped the packaging open and started asking questions. My favorite answers are, of course, Yes and You Can Rely On It! Once home, I called my brother to see if he remembered sitting on Grandpa's front porch playing with the Magic 8 Ball. This turned into a great conversation about us as kids and for that alone, this ball is magical!

If you are looking for a fun toy or to bring back memories of childhood, the Magic 8 Ball just might be the answer! It was for me!


Magic 8 Ball Rules   October 17, 2004
Bruce Bochnowski (milford de usa)
18 out of 20 found this review helpful

1. The Magic 8 Ball Will not function correctly if asked a question to which you already know the answer (i.e. "am I fat?")
2. Do not ask the Magic 8 Ball the same question twice

Used correctly this "toy" will render unprecidented insight and advice...