Plarail Push de Go! Easy First Plarail Thomas the Tank Engine Set

Well, this might be of interest to you guys

The latest version of the 'My First Plarail' concept which was exported under various guises in the past, usually based on the old pull-back Plarail 300 Series from the 90's with a circle of rainbow-coloured Plarail track, this one's changed it up, offering 2 variants, either Dr Yellow or Thomas, with velcro-fastened wagons, and a playmat with a circle of raised felt 'track' for the train to run along, although the train's also compatible with regular Plarail tracks for when they're ready to begin the transition to mainline Plarail gear.

The reason i'm showing off the Thomas version, is that i'll be able to post a review of it soon - I've mentioned previously that this Christmas, i'm bringing a new Plarail fan into the fold in the form of one of my young relatives [recently turned 3], who's absolutely enamoured with my Plarail gear whenever he comes over to ours, especially Thomas! For his Christmas present from me this year, i've assembled a selection of what I think is pretty much the essential starter selection of track and accessories for any Plarail collector, along with Thomas, Hiro and Kenji, and i'm certain he's going to absolutely love it.

However, I simultaneously had to consider what I could get for his younger brother [who's about 1/1.5 years old], but he came over recently as well, and was equally as fascinated with my Plarail layout, and also loves Thomas, although found the small trains and track a bit tricky to handle - So, finding that Tomy had already thought of that problem, and made a set that was exactly ideal for his needs, it solved that problem entirely Not only that, but the fact it runs on regular Plarail means the two can play with their trains together, which is absolutely ideal, meaning i've now got 2 new Plarail converts under my belt lol  

Fun fact though, their mum [one of my cousins] distinctly remembers the Tomica World/Motor Road & Rail era of Plarail, as her brother had the Tomica World 7428 City Set as well as a TW Thomas - I inherited both around age 9, and the parts of that set [it was incomplete when I got it] are still very much in use amongst my track supply  

Needless to say, she was impressed the stuff was still around, as naturally she'd assumed that it had been discontinued altogether, and asked me whether current-gen Trackmaster was a worthwhile alternative - I said that while Trackmaster certainly has it's benefits, I personally reccomend Plarail over it, simply because unlike Trackmaster, it's a train set that can last beyond the 'Thomas phase', as not all kids will grow up to be lifelong Thomas fans [like myself], so Plarail has the benefit that it has a wide selection of real-world models that allows the track and accessories to be used to build a bigger and more advanced model railway, without having to invest in a brand-new model railway system just to break from a line of exclusively Thomas models [hint hint Trackmaster]. 

So, once i've seen the set in action, expect a road-tested review from me It also got approval from my mum who was simultaneously trying to solve the present problem, and was [like me] trying her best to avoid anything AEG related, because all 3 of the little ones on our side of the family like Thomas, but not AEG. 

Incidentally, we've tried putting AEG on for them once when they come over, but they just aren't interested, whereas anything from the model or CGI eras will get their immediate attention... So, guess it's good to know I'm not the only one who thinks that way, even if I'm way outside the target market  

As a result, all the young boys on Mum's side of the family are having a rather Thomas themed Christmas, as the youngest one in our side of the family, who is only about 11 months old [and got a complete set of the Railway Series books as a baby shower gift from me earlier this year, for when he begins to read], is getting a Fisher-Price 'My First Thomas', a massive interactive model Thomas which can be pushed along for use as a balance aid [he's just starting to make the first stabs at walking], so yep, it seems Thomas is becoming a family tradition, which i'm totally on board with lol

Wow! That's a lot of words.

A lot of words, but well written.

As a relatively new grandparent I fully appreciate the sentiments. She has just turned two but she can connect plarail tracks. Also wooden rails, but I doubt that a two-year-old could assemble Trackmaster.

She has  wood, plarail and OS-railway track to play with. Her favorite is blue plarail.

For engines she has the choice of wood, plarail and simple 0-gauge engines. She prefers the powered Thomas type intended for the wooden railways so we get to enjoy watching a tiny Thomas pulling or pushing larger vehicles around an oval of blue plastic track.

Yeah 😅 apologies for the high word count, that's a fallout from being an academic English writer, where it's drilled into us to be as detailed as possible, especially for research papers lol

Gets to a point where even if I'm writing about my hobbies, I just switch into writer-mode and end up writing in the full academic style lmao

@Densha - Yeah it's interesting for me too, because although I don't have any kids, until recently I'd never really seen myself, or been in a position where I was an adult figure to younger kids, and so I'm still getting used to the whole idea (I'm only 23 so it makes me feel old lol)

Still, I like it, especially when the little ones come to you because to them, you're the 'magic train dude', and you get to share a lifelong hobby with the next generation, honestly, it's getting moments like that which make the hard work I do at the moment worth the trouble

Incidentally, if you think this is wordy, wait till you guys see the post I've got lined up for the General board about my current academic work, which is going to talk about the Railway Series, and hopefully get me a PhD lol 😂 Thought it might interest some here on BPT though, if you like the sound of hearing about a planned Thomas themed research paper