Eric: A great toy invention can come from anywhere, but few ever make it to the shelf. For the first time ever, one lucky toymaker will get the opportunity of a lifetime. Legendary toy company Mattel will make their toy and sell it all across America. But first, they need to present their toy to a panel of experts. I look at over 10,000 toys every year. Eric: Jim Silver, the leading toy reviewer in America. I think it's a great idea. Eric: Dylan Lauren, founder of Dylan's Candy Bar. Thousands of toys have crossed my desk, and this is unlike anything I've ever seen. Eric: And Jen Tan, Creative Director of Toys at Pixar Animation Studios. If they make it past these experts, they'll move on to the fiercest judges of all... Noah... Just a little off the top. Woman: Aalyrah, hot chocolate, double whip. Eric: ...Aalyrah... Mmm. Man: Let's go. ...Toby... ...and Sophia Grace. I'm ready. Eric: After the judges have tested... Oh, no. Oh! Aah! ...debated... I have no words. I disagree with you, Aalyrah. Okay. It's not even a real toy. No! Eric: ...and deliberated... Have you come to a decision? This is gonna be really hard. But only one of you can make it to the finals. Welcome to 'The Toy Box,' where the stakes are high and the judges are short... because they're kids. Ooh-whoo! Captions were made with the support of NZ On Air. Able 2018 (Chuckles) -I'm Rachel. -And I'm Steve. We are from Pleasant Grove, Utah, and we are full-time toy inventors. And we are the inventors of Tubelox. a life-size construction toy where you can build your own play. So if you can dream it, you can build it. Push it. Oh, you did it! - Good job, bud. - You did that. So, we've been married for 14 years, and for 10 years, we had a difficult time having children, so we adopted two boys. And it's just been an unbelievably magical experience for us to have these kids in our lives. They're our driving motivation for what we do. There is just a lot at stake here. We've invested around $70,000 of our own personal money, and we put all of our time into this. And the chance to go in front of Mattel and the brand recognition that they can provide is truly a dream come true for both Rachel and I. 'Rachel and me'. Taxi! (Both laugh) Hey. Ohh! You're out! We did it. Awesome. What in the world is this? This is a helicopter. This is how you start the motor. - See? (Laughs) - Oh, I see. But don't press it too hard 'cause then it will fly up. Awesome. Where are you guys from? - We're from Utah. - Yeah, and Utah actually has per capita the most children. - And you have kids, right? - Nope. - No kids? Okay. Thanks for really throwing that in my face (!) - (Both laugh) - Ouch. Well, I grew up in a big, huge family. This was, uh, similar to one of the toys that we had. But the best part is, my mom loved how we could take it apart and then we could put it back in a container. - Yeah. - And so it wasn't, like, this thing that was all over the floor like some construction toys where you step on them, and then you break your foot... - Yeah. - ...and you curse and all that. I think we know which ones we're talking about. (Both laugh) You've got this down. I'm not worried about you guys at all. You're gonna need a majority vote from the mentors to move on to The Toy Box. So, you're gonna go in there. Okay, we got to start the motors. Here. (Both laugh) - Thank you. - See you, guys. You're a good helicopter pad. We are really excited. This is our one shot to get in front of top toy experts. Hopefully they see the vision that we see and make the most of it. - Oh. - Whoa. - Yes. That's amazing. (Chuckles) a build-your-own play toy, so it's a hands-on type, engineer, stimulate-the-brain type toy for kids. It's the only toy on the market that you can actually build, climb on it, sit on it, and play on it. We have 40 different designs that we have in the manual that come with it to show the children what they can build. And then, of course, we really want to promote their own designs. Can I sit in that? - Yeah. - Absolutely. (Laughs) Wait, how much weight can it hold? (Laughter) I'm asking, how much weight can it hold? It can hold me. - Okay. - I-I can climb in it. Ah! This is fun. Wow! (Laughter) Whoo! Oh, my God. How fast can it go? Yeah, that remains to be seen. what am I getting? How many pieces? How many configurations can I build? And how much does it cost? Okay, so it comes with 220 total pieces. You can build over 40 designs. And the retail price currently is $249. I mean, it's` it's expensive, but it's` I feel like you get a good amount of play value. Jim: How do I know it's safe? Because, you know, it's` it's now a riding toy. Right. Right. We went through ASTM standards. We're already approved for U.S., Canada, E.U., and Australia. For ride-ons? For` - Yes. Yeah. Yeah. - Okay. That's great. - Yeah. - Dylan. We've seen a lot of toymakers come in and present us things where you can build something. Um, there's definitely a lot of them out there. But this is amazing. It's definitely going in The Toy Box. - Thank you. - Thank you. I'm concerned about the price. I'd like to see it go from $249 to $199. That being said, I am dying to see what the judges in The Toy Box think of this. Congratulations. You're going to The Toy Box. - Yay! - (Laughter) Congratulations. - Thanks so much. - Thank you so much. You kind of prepare for the worst in a scenario like this, and it couldn't have gone better. I think that they were impressed, and I feel like they saw what we see. This is the dream. This is the American dream. It is unbelievable. (UPBEAT MUSIC) My name is Troy. I invented Pool Cubes. Ah! We love Pool Cubes! It was originally invented because my kids needed a platform to stand on as they were learning how to swim. My hope is that it would be something that toymakers see the benefit in and the potential to make money. I come from a small town and a very poor family. All the way through my life, I've just struggled to work and to get to where I am now. And then to actually have an idea that I came up with, with my children is very special. What's up, Troy? Hey. How are you? Good. How are you doing? - Good. - What do you have in your hand? - What is this? - This is a Pool Cube. It's part of a building-blocks system that sinks in a swimming pool, and you can build different things ` platform, whatever your imagination can think of. That's awesome. Troy, where are you from? From Fayetteville, Arkansas. - I'm from Kansas. - Are you? - That's` Can't spell Arkansas without Kansas. (Laughing) That's right. That's right. So what ` what do you have invested in it? Hundreds of hours of time and thought, and then I think we've so far $120,000. Well, I wish you all` I wish you all the best. - (Chuckles) - I'm gonna open the door, you're gonna go talk to the mentors. Are you nervous? Uh, a little bit. A little bit. - Well, don't be nervous. - Okay. Can I get a Sooie pig? (Laughs) Are you` Are you not an Arkansas fan? I-I am a` I am a big Arkansas fan, yeah. Sooie! (Laughs) Let me hear you. You got to do one for us. Sooie! - Ho! - (Laughs) - All right, get in there. - Okay. (Chuckles) This is a big moment for my` my family and for Arkansas. I got to go in there and convince them that this is the winning toy. This is the best toy that's gonna be presented today. - Hi. - Hi. - Hi. My name is Troy. And this is my Pool Cube. It's a building-block set that sinks in the swimming pool, and you can build from the ground of the swimming pool up. You can build platforms, you can build steps. Yeah, I think I like the idea. I mean, you know, the kind of large-scale construction in a pool, you know, and then having kids be able to basically create their own water park, you know, in their own pool. - Yeah. - That'd be cool. That's really, really cool. How's this different than a cube that I get, like, at Home Depot or container store that just will go to the bottom of the pool - and I can stand on it? - Oh, like a milk` like a milk crate or something like that? - Yeah. - Like a crate box. - Yeah, oh, gotcha. - They're made out of a plastic one. Yeah, they` they won't sink. These won't sink, either. These have to have weight added to them. This doesn't sink? It's so heavy. No, it has to have a weight added to it. You think of, like, a jug of water. Even though it's full of water, you still put it in a swimming pool, it floats because plastic is` is lighter than water. What kind of weight do you put in it? Well, we've` we've tried different things. That's where we're at a kind of a little bit of a standstill, and we need help from professionals. As of now, these don't sink? These will not sink. These will not sink as they are. You need` Okay, you need something - to kind of make it sink. - Right, right. The original ones, we actually had cylinders full of sand. - Ohh. - And we put them in there, and then we weighted it down that way. Oh, that's how you played with them. That's how we've been playing with them. - I'm trying to understand, you know. - (Laughs) I know pool toys pretty well. It's a really small market, not a lot of big successes. I mean, compared to the rest of the toy market, it's about this big. How do you` How do you play with this? Well, yeah, what I've noticed with the kids is that they make games, and they swim from one island to another, one cube to another inside the swimming pool. How much are the retail price? The packaging was costing us about $70, and we were selling it for like almost ` - Yeah, it was ` - $200. Yeah, it was get` it was get` Yeah, it was getting pretty expensive. Most pool toys are generally $14.99, or even most ` uh, more of them are $9.99 and under. What I think is it's not ready for The Toy Box, but it has potential if you keep working with the advice we gave you. I do have a few concerns. The whole thing about weighting it is` is a concern with me. Price is kind of an issue, and the safety, too. I just think, you know, you definitely would have to have an adult at all times with the kid when building it in case, you know, it snags. I think there's a lot of potential, but right now, as it is, I don't think it's ready for The Toy Box. This would be good for institutions that teach swimming. And I look at the pool-toy market. And it's a price sensitive market. It's low-price items. I would focus on institutions. You have a good idea. It's the start of something. Troy, I don't think this is ready for The Toy Box. - I'm sorry. It's game over. - Yeah. All right. Troy: I'm disappointed. Pool Cubes needs a lot more engineering to move forward, a lot more money. I just don't see that happening. I'm just gonna have to put it to the side for now. Eric: Coming up on 'The Toy Box'... - Boom! We're finished. - You want to try it out? It's a chair for the judges! - Oh! - (Laughing) All right. When I first saw this toy, I went... Sayonara! (HAPPY MUSIC) I am Padmini. I live in Naperville, Illinois. I was formerly an electrical engineer. Currently I am an entrepreneur. I invented EmotiPlush, and EmotiPlush is the most amazing doll. There's nothing like this in the market. It's the only one that has the ability to change facial expressions. My son has a communication disability, and he had trouble understanding social-emotional language. So I created this toy, and I saw a huge growth in emotional learning, as well as empathy in my son. And that's what got me thinking about whether this might be a toy that helps everyone, not just my son. Hello. You've got a handful of dolls. They're called EmotiPlush. Aww. Very soft. Do you mind holding these two? - Oh, sure. - Okay. So these are facial-expression dolls. - Really? - So they can change their expression to any expression you want them to. You know, it's basically a therapy tool. Okay, you do the expression, and I'll try to match it. Try this. Not too bad. Are you nervous to be here today at all? Uh, you know, I was, but after meeting you, I'm not. - Yeah. - Yeah. I've` I'm kind of like a therapy doll. - Yeah. - I've relaxed you. - Yeah! - Yeah, I've just ` - Yeah, exactly. - I wish you all the best. Thank you so much. This is the biggest moment in my life. It's unbelievable. It's, like, surreal. This is serious business. 1 in 10 kids every year is diagnosed with some mental disorder, like ADHD, autism spectrum disorder. I feel the best way to address that problem is to nip it in the bud. Teach little kids about social-emotional learning. Teach them about facial expressions. And teach them how to regulate their emotions. So I have an amazing product that does just that. It's called EmotiPlush. So, just for a demo, have a look at Emily, and she's gonna talk to you. Hello. My name is Emily. I'm very happy to be here. I'm a little scared. Are you gonna ask me some really tough questions? (Laughs) You guys all look very friendly. (Chuckles) So I think I'm gonna be okay. So imagine this in the hands of little boys and girls. Dramatic play with dolls is never gonna be the same ever with EmotiPlush in their hands. I think it is really important to teach kids about emotion. And I like that, you know, you're able to, you know, manipulate the emotions, you know, pretty easily. Jim: What happens after three minutes? - I've made all the emotions. - Right. And I know it's great in the therapeutic market, but now how else is a child gonna play with it? Just like how a-a Barbie doll or another, you know, figurine is used in a dramatic play. Well, a Barbie doll is different 'cause Barbie's all about fashion, who she can be. It's aspirational. She can be a game developer. She can be president. This is powered by imagination. That's gonna be, like, the battery power for this. I mean, be a way for kids to, uh, communicate how they feel. - I have a question for you. - Go ahead. Um, having` You've probably looked at thousands of dolls and toys. Are there other, um, toys that are not necessarily teaching toys that could be utilized as a teaching toy in that they can change their facial expressions? Uh, they're really not teaching toys. There's a lot of emoji type of toys that come out. They light up, and the different faces light up. You'll see a smile, you'll see sad. So you see different emotions light up within the face. - Right. - But it's starting to get flooded. So this one is under the control of the child. - And how much are they? - I sell them at $35 each. Jim: All right, Dylan. It is time. Dylan: Hmm. I think this is an interesting, um, use of a doll, and I think this cause is really important, - so I think it should go in The Toy Box. - Thank you. I love what you're doing in the therapeutic market. - Thank you so much. - It's a really` It's a really good thing. I have a lot of concerns about the mass market, so I'm saying no. Jen, it's up to you. Jen: The price is too high, but hoping that you can achieve a lower price point when you, um, send out to mass, but overall, I think the idea is really strong, so I would say yes to The Toy Box. You're going to The Toy Box. - Congratulations. - Thank you so much. - Congrats. - Thank you again. I made it to The Toy Box! I got to go in there and show them that this doll is really fun. - I'm Mike. - And I'm Tom. We've known each other since we were 6 and 8 years old, respectively. When we were kids, we invented a game called The Grid. Tom was actually on a trip to Italy. He got inspired by a different game that he learned there. He taught it to me, and ` and we've been playing our version ever since. So much of our time and effort, uh, and emotion has gone into this game over the last 25 years. We had to believe in ourselves and in what we were doing, 'cause if we don't, no one else is going to. What up, fellas? - Hey, hey. - Hello. - How's it going? - (Laughs) The Grid. What is The Grid? The Grid is actually our first invention. - Really? - Tom and I have known each other since we were little kids. We've been working on it. Who's better at The Grid? - That's obvious. - Is it? - It's` Yeah, it's me right here. - Me. Tom. - Right, exactly. - I don't think so. I ` - Really? - We're gonna find out. I hope we can play each other, and really I can prove that it's clearly me. Get in there. Have fun. Knock them off The Grid. - Ooh. Thanks a lot. - Sweet. All right, see you, man. Tom: We really want to impress all the experts, and that's what we're here to do. We're looking for three yeses. - Hey, there. - Hi. - Hi. Hey, how are you? - Good, good. I'm Mike. - I'm Tom. And, uh, this is something that, uh, has been in the works for us for quite a few years. It's called The Grid. What you do is you place it on the ground up against a wall, and players take turns tossing game pieces at it. And the player whose game piece lands closest to the wall wins for that round. - All right, who wants to play? - Yeah, let's play. -We'll set it up here. -Yep. Get it against the wall there. - Dylan, you go first. - Yeah. Now, Dylan only flips one piece? - Yes. - Is it one, one, one? - So...yeah. - It's one, one, one. Mike: Ooh. Okay, so that's off the board. Dylan: Aw. That's a good shot, though, but we're gonna leave it here for now. - Jen: Nice. - Okay, it's in play. - Nice. - All right. So when I would go and just go. And... So that's a black hole. So what happens is this piece goes in. And everything gets sucked into the black hole, and you start over. Am I still going for a bonus hole? - Yep. - So there's no other points, like, if I hit the red or the blue or the` So if you hit the red or the blue, your piece stays there, and you shoot again. - Uh-huh. Oh. - So you have to risk an additional piece. - There we go. Okay. - Aww. (Laughs) -Nice. -Ooh! Okay. Jim: All right. Okay. So this could be for all the marbles right here. - Look at the shot. - Jen: Wow! So you win all these game pieces from that round. - Wow. - Okay. Jim: Have you thought about a scoring system or a way that you can play both ways that you could put numbers on there? Our previous iteration of this had numbers on it. - Why'd you take it away? - I think the nice thing about it is that they could easily be modified. So let's talk about the game aisle. It's probably the most crowded aisle in the toy business. There are other games that have mats. I mean, how do you stand out in comparison to those games? It comes down to the ease of game play, kind of the simplicity of the concept. If you were to just, um, boil this down to two sentences, like, what is the game, how would you describe it? Um... It's, um... It's a` It's a game where you ` you` you toss your` you toss game piece towards` towards the wall, and whoever lands it close wins. How old are your youngest players that you've tested this with? - 6 to 14 is ` is really the target age for it. - Okay. That's when we see, uh, kids really get hooked on it. And estimated retail price point? Um, $29.99 for the ` for the complete kit. Most board games are $20 and under. It doesn't look like it should cost that much. I just don't know if I would play it more than once. So, for that reason, I don't think it's the toy that has the endless play for me, so I can't send it to The Toy Box. Well, I'd be interested in seeing how kids react. I'm struggling because I'm not sure how fun it really is. I'm sorry, guys. I can't send you to The Toy Box. Jim: You have something here. It's just missing that element. Lower the price, add a little bit more to the game play. - Yeah. - And you might have something. But right now, I'm sorry, guys. - It's game over. - Ah. A little disappointed, you know. But this fuels the dream, for sure. Mike: We see it in the future as a game that will be in the hands of children across America. Coming up on 'The Toy Box'... What is that? Who needs a back massage? Uh, not me. The possibilities are endless. Run! It's the attack of the killer robots! I think I might have overreacted there. * (ROCK MUSIC) My name is Melissa. I live in Pleasant Hill, California, and I'm an industrial designer. The name of my toy is Terry, but I call him a Lightbox Terrier. He's a very unique breed of dog. Yeah, it looks pretty good. I love kids' products, so what I really wanted to do is design something for kids that looked cool, that represented me ` clean and modern and sharp, a little edgy. And what better thing to design than a toy that makes kids smile? If my toy is a winning toy, it would be a really great, fun, awesome achievement. - Hi, Melissa. - Hey, what's up? - How's it going? - Well, good. I'm breathing a sigh of relief right now. Oh, yeah. Tell me about it. Because I almost wore those exact pants. - Seriously? - Yep. - Same size and everything. - We would have wrecked it. We would have looked like Mick Jagger up here. I know. Melissa, tell me what you've wheeled in here. What is this? So this is Lightbox Terrier, and, uh, he's pretty much a lightbox. Where are you from? I'm originally from Mexico. It's a town called Cocoyoc. - Oh, Cocoyoc. - Yeah. - Yeah, totally, right? Like` - No. - What's Cocoyoc famous for? - It's famous for... - Melissa. - (Laughs) Right now. - Hey, Cocoyoc! - Hola! - Hola! Que paso, mi amigas? - Como esta? You have the perfect attitude to be here. I'm really excited for you. - Thank you. - Go in there. Wow them with your terrier. I know you're gonna wow them with your pants and your personality. - Thank you. - (Both humming) - (Laughs) - All right, have fun. Here we go. Give it a shot. - Bye. - Bye! - Bye, Terry. (Woofing) Oh, my goodness. - Whoa, what's that? - Oh. (Laughs) Hey, guys. - Hi. - How's it going? - Jen: Good. - How are you? - What is this? - Ooh. The new breed of dog that you need to meet. (Laughs) His name is Lightbox Terrier. And I'm a designer. Um, and I'm also a design teacher, so the more you play with him, you're gonna discover he has lots of little treasures inside. - Okay, yeah. - So how do ` how do we play with your terrier? All right, well, when you start playing with him, he lights up. - Yeah. - His heart lights up. I wanted to allow kids to, you know... - Ohh! - ...use a very slight touch of color. - Oh, my God. - How many colors does it have? - Any color you want. - Can I see the colors? - Yes! You can play with it. - I want to color the breed. Hold on. What does it do? - Oh, my God. - Love this. - I love that color. -How does it open? -Can you open him up? You open him up. What's in here? - Yeah. - Cool. - There is a little roll of paper. So basically if you wanted to draw here... Oh, my God. You can draw. It's like a whole storage home. - Jen: Yeah. - I thought it would be cool to have, like, accessories that you could purchase later - to make him more you. - Hmm. Um, but, you know, kids can overlap things. This is super cool. I can see this at, like, MoMA Design or, like, Giggle's or any of these, like ` Thank you, guys. And the coolest thing is that you can draw all around the dog. - You can draw on this? - Yes. - It's like a whiteboard. - It's a dry-erase dog. - Ahh. So you can actually create your own character. How much is this, all this? Well, I thought we could` I could sell the dog on its own with maybe a few accessories at like $60 or something. I would say, like, you could get away with like $100, $99. No more than that. No, easels sell between $50 and about $90. - This is nice, though. - So... It lights up, and there's different colors. - That's true. - I mean, it's a light ` - Drawers. - Look at it. It's a light` It serves as a toy, as well as, like, a piece of furniture. - I see this` - I feel like I'm getting killed here. - No. - (Laughter) Like, I've seen adults with homes with modern art, and, like, pieces like this would fit into an adult home or a kid's home. So, to me, it's` so many people would like this - who like this style, you know, of art. - Yeah. You would put batteries in it? (Sighs) Yeah, I mean ` I mean, LEDs can last a long time, but this was kind of the leash. - (Laughter) - That is so cute. I wanted to think of` make sure I thought about that. I just want to get a feel of how heavy it is. - It's a little heavy. - It's a little` Yeah. It's heavy. Yeah, I want it to be well-made, you know. Well, that brings us to decision time. I think you probably already made your decision, Dylan. - (Laughs) - I'm done. I-I want this. I want this in my store. - I want it in my home. - Aww. I want to play with it all day. I-I really love this toy. - That makes me so happy. - I'm really excited about this. - Thank you. - So is that yes? - It's going to The Toy Box? - It's going to The Toy Box. - Yes! - You're taking this ` (Laughter) Um, I love the idea. I haven't been able to stop playing with it. - (Laughs) Thanks. - So yes. - Aww, thank you! - I would send you to The Toy Box. High fives. I'm excited. I have some concerns. It's the price. It's not gonna cost $100. I think it's gonna cost more to make, which is expensive sitting in the toy aisle. However, there's a lot of play value in this toy, I want to see what the judges think of this. You're going to The Toy Box. Congratulations. Ohh! Thank you. If they don't like it, I-I will take it. Ohh! I want to give you all hugs, but I don't think they'll let me. (Laughter) I'm feeling awesome right now. And I'm just super excited that the caliber of people that are up there are actually appreciating what I worked on super hard. So it's a pretty neat feeling. Ooh-whoo! (FUN MUSIC) - Hi! - Hi! Melissa, congratulations. You're here. So you made it through the mentors. That means you're one step closer to getting a deal with Mattel and having this sold all across America. But now you have to get past the judges, and they're gonna decide whether you move on to the finals. And only one toy is gonna go. So are you ready to meet the judges? Bring them over. Are any judges in the house? Judges? Judges? (EXCITING MUSIC) Ooh! (Laughs) What up? Hi, guys! How's it going? - Hi! - Hey! You guys look awesome! This is Melissa. This is Sophia Grace, Toby, Aalyrah, and Noah. What is that? Basically, I love dogs. - (Gasps) - You guys like dogs? (Judges concur) Well, let me tell you something about this little guy. He is called Terry, and he's a little Lightbox Terrier, so he lights up. He loves when you come up here and play with him. You guys ready for me to show you? - Yeah! - Yeah! Eric: Get on down here. Get over here. I want to show you a couple things. Do you guys like art? I love art. It's my favorite subject. Do you guys know what a canvas is? - Yep. - I do. It's pretty much a canvas - for you to have fun. - (Gasps) So you can draw an eyeball or you can draw a star. - On the dog? - You can draw the whole dog. Except right there. You can't draw right there. I'm just kidding. (Laughter) Hey, guys, let's draw Eric! Eric on the butt. I've never tried to draw on my dog before. Then I'd get in trouble. But now I can draw on a dog without the consequences! If you open here, you can find all kinds of random, little things. And his teeth come out. What?! Look, look, I'm making it change colors! It's a dog without pooping or peeing or slobbering all over the house. It's just fascinating. That was fun! Can you walk this dog? Well, you can pull him on a skateboard. And he rolls with you. Can you use him as a pet? You can use him as a pet. You can use him as a lamp at night. That would be cool. How much would I have to spend to buy your toy? Well, I sure hope that it could be a pretty affordable price. Maybe $60. And then you can buy the accessories. - $60 or $16? - $60. Are you really as cool as you look on the outside? Well, I hope so. - She's complimenting you. - Well, I just ` Thank you very much for thinking that. All right, Melissa, you did a great job. - Thank you. - We'll see you back in here in The Toy Box for the judges' final decision. Say, 'Take care, Melissa.' All: Take care, Melissa! Take care, you guys. Nice meeting all of you. - Thank you very much. - Nice meeting you. - Great job. Great job. - Thank you. If I win tonight, that would mean I am this much closer to achieving one of my biggest dreams I've ever had. So I'm very excited. * (FUNKY MUSIC) Hi, Steve! - Hi! - Hi, Eric! - Hi, Rachel! - (Laughs) - Hello. So now with the opportunity to head into The Toy Box and have our toy in front of live judges, it's gonna be exciting. I don't know what to expect, but we know our toy is awesome. You're here in The Toy Box. That means you're one step closer to getting a deal with Mattel. You just have one more obstacle. Actually, four more obstacles to get past. (Laughs) Thanks for the hope. And those are the judges. You want to meet the judges? - Yeah, let's meet them. - Yeah. Okay, judges, would you like to meet Steve and Rachel? (Suspenseful music plays) (Both laugh) -Welcome to The Toy Box. -Hey, hey! - Kids! - So... - Yes! - Have at it. build your own play. You know all those toys that you want at the store and your mom and dad won't buy them for you or your grandma maybe does? Well, now you can create it up here. You can create it here. So the sky's the limit. Do you guys want to build a few things? -Yeah! -Yeah, come on down. - Yeah. - Steve: Okay. So, these are a little bit new, so you just kind of have to jam them in there at first. Four, five. Come on, Eric! Do some work! I'm making a chair over here! Slide it down. And then you put this here. you can make endless things. You could build an amuse-a-ment park! Dat, dat, dat, dat, dat. Dat! Slides right under there like that. Who wants to try it out? - Boom! We're finished. - You want to try it out? It's a chair for the judges! Oh! (Laughing) All right. build whatever you want! You can build a rocket, a car, a hammer, a nail clipper! I'm out of here! - Whoo! - Sayonara! I can ride my homemade car to school! To school, everybody! Okay. I think I might have overreacted there. Rachel: Oh, wow. Good job. Eric: Okay, now, just go up my back. Hey, you guys ever made a back massage before? (Laughs) Who needs a back massage? Uh, not me. Gang, let's head back up to our chairs so we can start asking some questions about Tubelox. Yeah! Run! It's the attack of the killer robots! How much ka-ching, ka-ching would I have to have to, uh, buy your toy? - Ooh. - That is a good question. Right now, it retails for $249. Aalyrah: Ching-ching. Dough. How much teeth am I gonna have to lose to get this money from the tooth fairy and buy this toy? I'm probably gonna have to lose, like, all my teeth. Sophia Grace, go ahead. How did you come up with this amazing idea? When I was your age, my parents found this` this toy because they thought that it would help stimulate our minds, get us excited about being outside. That toy is actually no longer on the market. And so I want my kids to have the same enjoyment that I had growing up, and I think there's a need, because sometimes we spend too much time in front of a screen. Hey, don't judge them. (Laughs) I mean, I'm not telling you how to raise your kids. I'm just saying don't judge them. Apparently you like tubes. Why? I like them 'cause they're easy to connect. (Trumpets) Oh, come on! What are you doing?! Is he magic?! All right. Steve, Rachel, thank you so much. You did a great job. - Thank you, kids. - We'll see you back here for when the judges make their final decision. - Thank you, judges. - Take some tubes. - All right. See you guys. - We appreciate your time. See you guys. Great job, great job. - Thank you. - Salute you. - Thanks. store would be incredible. And hopefully those kids ` they give us a chance. We're not here, you know, to ` to necessarily 'just play', which we're ` You know, we want to win. - Hi, Padmini. - Hello, Eric. - You made it. - I did. Congratulations. When the judges see this in Toy Box, they're gonna love it. They're gonna see the play potential, and we'll prove Jim wrong. Getting past those mentors, getting into The Toy Box was essential. Now you have to get past...the judges. So you ready to meet the judges? Absolutely. Okay, judges, with your best smiley face, please reveal yourself. (ROCK MUSIC) (Laughs) - Ooh. - Adorable judges. That is not a smiley face. Floor's yours. You guys have seen dolls, correct? -Yep. -Yeah. But have you seen dolls come alive? All: No. These come alive with emotions and expressions. And so here is her looking angry. And here is her looking shocked. (Yawns) I don't like dolls, personally. (Sighs) And he's gonna stop yawning once he starts playing with this. I'm not yawning. All right, who wants to throw some faces? (Judges concur) I like this one. So basically you just make an expression and then try to match it with your face. Toby: Okay. All right. So let's see. He's going nuts. He's like, '(Gasps) What's going on? I'm in The Toy Box! (Gasps)' - Let me see yours. - This is confused. Let me try and do it. - Oh, wow. That's pretty cool. - Oh, that's great. - Fish face. - Fish face. Awesome. Most dolls have this look. Ding! And I've never seen dolls with sad faces 'cause no one would want to play with a doll like that. But these dolls ` you don't always have to have a sad face, or you don't always have to have a happy face. You can have an emotion. Hey, guys. Try mine. Hey. All right, guys, let's, uh, head back up to your chairs. Let's discuss some EmotiPlush. When I first saw this toy, I went... Confused. Then when I start playing with it, I went... And that's the 'great toy' face. How did you come up with this toy? So, the inspiration? That's what you're asking? - Yes. - Is my son, who has a developmental disability. So he doesn't understand emotions like you guys. So I had to come up with some tool to teach him about emotions. So I created this, and then he got it. That's beautiful. Aalyrah, go ahead. How many faces can you make on these dolls? Infinite. - So infinity? - So I can make... Well, how many expressions can you make on your face? Infinite? I never counted. Yeah, you just change your eye a little bit, and the emotion changes. You move your mouth a little bit, and your emotion changes. - All right, Padmini, great job. - Thank you. We'll see you back here for the judges' final decision. Everybody say, 'Bye, Padmini.' All: Bye, Padmini! And give me a good expression on your face to send her off with. Bye! Padmini: These kids have in their hands my fate of going to the next round. I actually have to pinch myself to think about that. I mean, signing a deal with Mattel would mean... a dream come true. All right, judges, three amazing toys ` Lightbox Terrier, EmotiPlush, This is a big decision. Three toymakers ` their fate is in your hands tonight. All right, it's Lightbox Terrier. What do you think? I think I'd like to use it as a drawing place and a night light. Okay, that's` that's a fair point. Aalyrah, is it a toy? Yes. Yes, it is. It's an art project, too, Eric. - Duh. - Okay. Sorry, sorry. I tried picking it up, and it's sort of really heavy. And she said you pick it up. Um, I don't know. But what I did like is it's really fun, - and you could... - Right. ...draw, um, the coloring of a dog, and draw` if it was a pit bull, - you could draw the white stripe down the neck. - Right. It doesn't even look like a dog. It looks like a box. Hold on a second. Do any of these toys look like` like the real thing? No. - Well, moving the dog ` - Does an American Girl doll look like the real person? - No. - We wouldn't have all that room. It'd be super skinny legs. - And plus ` - Well, not the exact shape. Just look more like a dog. -Yeah. -It's a good point. Let's move on to EmotiPlush. - Emoji-plush. - Emoti. - Emotic-plush. - Emoti. - Pizza, pasta. - Nope. - (Both laugh) - Still emoti. Can't change it. EmotiPlush. - Emoti` Emoticon-plush. - Nope. (Toby laughs) All right, Toby. It's a new kind of doll that I just don't imagine fitting in with American Girl dolls and Barbie 'cause that bring them in to the good thing. It's the reason. I've never seen anything like it. And when I heard that she made this for special-needs people and for her son, it really touched my heart. I mean, I-I see what's good about it. Like, it's the facial expressions. But if it didn't have the facial expressions, it would just be a regular doll. Okay. We've covered EmotiPlush. So should we move on to Tubelox? - Yep. - Yes. - Yes. I have nothing to say about the bad things 'cause I really like it. I could build a bike, a car, a wheelbarrow, um, a lion-tamer thing, you know, a chair with a homemade whip. - (Whip cracks) - Awesome. I mean, I know some people would find it fun to build things and then play with it, but I could go to the store and I could find a tiny, like go-kart or something. - No instructions! - Yeah. - Yeah. - 'Cause you could just do whatever you want with it. So is that a positive for a toy for you guys? - That's a positive. - Yes. I think that it's so pricey. I can see it more like $84. - Just $84. - Yeah. - And 99 cents. That` - $84.99? Yes. But if it was $85, you'd be... What? But something I really liked is the possibilities are endless. You could make anything. All right, so three great toys, but we can only choose one. And you guys have to decide which toy that is. All right, it's been a tough decision. But I think you've come to a decision, so should we call in the toymakers? - Let's do it. - Yep. Toymakers, come on in! Melissa. Padmini. Steve and Rachel. It was a very difficult decision. But only one toy is gonna move out of this round to the finals to get a deal with Mattel, so I'm gonna give it to Sophia Grace. Sophia? This was a very tough decision, but I think we picked the right winner. Okay, Lightbox Terrier, your toy was educational and fun and imaginative and creative all in one. It was a really different and fun toy. EmotiPlush, I loved the way your toys can teach children with disabilities to be able to learn the emotions, and I think the meaning of the toy is really nice and really special. much fun. I loved playing with it. You can just make whatever you want, and it would just be great. All of your toys were so amazing. But... only one of you can make it to the finals. Lightbox Terrier. (Sighs) Will you make it to the finals? (Sighs) The magic 8 ball says... Without a doubt. Congratulations. -Really? -Congratulations. -Yay! -Congratulations. - Good job. - Good job. Very nice. Thank you. Thank you, judges. The toy industry is tough. There's a lot of great toys out there. But whenever one door closes, another one opens, so it's not the end for us. Thank you, Padmini. Padmini: The fact that I didn't get it is quite devastating, but I'm gonna continue making these dolls for kids who need them, and I hope I've reached out to certain people's hearts. Congratulations, Melissa and Lightbox Terrier. - Thank you. Give you a hug. - You are moving on. I feel super-duper lucky right now. Like, out of this planet lucky. Eric: You have a chance now to be in the finals - and get a deal with Mattel. - Wow. Kids, judges, you did a great job. I'll see you right back here next week... All: ...in The Toy Box! Able 2018