I see the neo-rivet counters on Merde-Mag are bleating again. It would seem that, having waxed lyrical about the emperor's new toys for so long, a certain degree of dismay is setting in because the twiddly bits that were 'raising the bar' and 'weveneverhaditsogood' last week are now falling off onto the carpet. I can see that would be upsetting when you're trying to force a Power Ranger figure through the R2349 opening cab door so he can shelter from the hail of R343 Battlespace missiles. What the world needs this week, if I'm following developments correctly, is a generic, pull-along tank engine with rubber wheels. And if it can transform into a Blue Pullman or a Donald Duck night-light with just the flick of a well-practised wrist, then so much the better.
European manufacturers have been making models with twiddly bits for decades and they're not particularly prone to spontaneous disintegration. Isn't it pretty obvious that if the more recent Hornby 'grown-ups' releases fall apart it just means that Hornby need to learn how to build them properly, like everybody else does? Surely the Back-to-Basics lobby doesn't need to spitefully prevent others from enjoying highly-detailed models, but can just pick something simpler from the Hornby catalogue and get on with their lives? That's why Hornby still produce a varied range of such products (with or without faces on the front) and normal people buy them without having a paddy. I would have thought even single-celled organisms could work that one out, although such opinion might be divided.
A variation on the old computer help-desk joke springs to mind. Have you still got the original packaging? Well replace everything carefully, take the box back to the shop, and tell them you're just too stupid to own a train set...
Currently On My Stereo: Steve Hackett - Spectral Mornings