As my son approached his 4th birthday, I was tasked with buying his presents. This was errand I didn’t mind running. I love shopping for toys, never mind for birthday presents.

One of the things my son and I do together is watch the Nick show Avatar: The Last Airbender. It’s one of my favorite shows. It’s got an intelligent story, likeable characters, and he can enjoy the show just as much as I do.

So when I stepped into the toy store, the logical choice was the fantastic Appa with Air Launching Aang. Appa is Aang’s flying bison. This gentle beast is the main form of transportation for Aang, Sokka and Kitara, as they fly around the world in their quest to defeat the Fire Nation.

Appa measures about 13 inches long and features articulated head and legs. The head is made out of vinyl, while the rest of the body is made out of hard plastic. Appa takes 3 AA batteries and features motion controlled sound as well as Launching Aang action. If you tilt appa forward or backward, he makes different sounds. The buttons on either side of the saddle activate sounds while Aang is attached.

The real awesome thing about Appa is the launching Aang. He’s a fixed posed figure with a plastic propeller on top. The base inserts into the saddle, then you activate by pressing one of the white buttons. The prop will start to whirl very fast! You then press down on the center button to launch him, with sound effects! Check out the video of it here.

You can also check out a cool flash demonstration at http://avatartoys.com/

This toy is so much fun. Even if you are not an Avatar fan, if you love toys, you will love this.