After seeing the commercial on TV my son wanted this really bad. It doesn't really work very well. The bobber where you put your bait doesn't open up very well. I've had to open it up to fix tangled line twice. I like the idea of it though. It makes it easy for younger kids to cast, but it's not really designed for younger kids. Older kids like my 9 year old can cast a regular pole pretty well.

We purchased the Fogo Rocket Rod Fishing Rod (Rocket Fish to our twins) for our twin boys (almost 4 years old.) Overall they performed really well, and the boys love them. We did have one son jam the line inside the reel a couple of times, but it was easily repaired while we were still on the boat. The boys even like casting them in our back yard for fun. Our little guys can be tough on anything, and thus far their new "Rocket Fish" have held up well.

The fishing rocket is OK to use for fun, but it will not work good if you are fishing from boat or in river with curnt. The Rod is for fun not fishing.

I have taught fishing at a camp for kids 20+ years, and have seen many children delight in the mastery of their fishing techniques. Nothing like observing a child catch their first fish all on their own, it truly is something they will remember for their lifetime! I recently had a 2nd grader show up with this rod, and witnessed only frustration and disappointment. (The safety of this rod while fishing with a group truly came into question too, but that is another issue.) Secondly, why reduce your child's ability to master small and large motor skills by 'copping out' from buying the traditional rod? Take it from my experience, buy your child a traditional rod and closed-faced reel by Zebco or Shakespeare (lots less expensive) and take the time to help them develop the motor skills to master the art of fishing. They will feel so much more accomplished when they've experienced a good cast and caught a fish all by themselves then cheating with this tragic invention.

my 8 yr old was very excited to get this toy. We've practiced in the backyard and we're now ready for the real thing. It took me some time to figure out hor to re-string the rod after line got snagged, but I did. It only comes with one launcher thing for your line and hook, but there is a replacement for three of them for around $[...]