You may or may not have heard about TMX Elmo, which is the 10th Tickle Me Elmo (hence the X), and which may or may not also be "Xtreme." Toy manufacturers have informed us that it will be this Christmas season's sensation, and as dutiful consumers, we as Americans will rush to the stores and buy it. And you may think to yourself, another Tickle Me Elmo? Didn't we already have that fad?

But maybe you haven't seen this thing in action yet...



I mean, seriously... wow. I thought Elmo in Muppet form was enthusiastic, especially in comparison with his Sesame Street pals like Oscar the Grouch, or the morose Telly. (The inestimable Cookie Monster, of course, possesses a manic insanity all his own.) But this doll is an onslaught of noise and disjointed robotics, not so much ticklish as epileptic. It's easy to see why little kids will love it (for a week or so), and why dogs will be terrified of it (forever).

It's hard to imagine that this sort of thing would exist at all if Jim Henson was still alive (happy belated 70th, by the way, Jim), for reasons I'll go into at a later time, but here we are.