There comes a time in every child's life when they become interested in role-play and dressing up. This usually happens at around the age of three. Generic costumes, like doctor, fireman, policeman and cowboy outfits are good fun, but for a little person they are nothing compared to the excitement of dressing up as their favourite superheroes: Spiderman, Superman, The Power Rangers, and of course, the popular Lazy Town character, Sportacus.

I bought this product back in the summer for my then soon-to-be three-year-old, because Sportacus was his favourite at the time, but I'm afraid to say it was a complete waste of money. The costume is so badly designed, it's unbelievable! Surely, the manufacturers could have tested this product before it went into mass production? Or were they just too LAZY to do so?

This set is manufactured by Fisher Price and it consists of the following articles:

The Hat: the only item that is somewhat usable, although it's still a bit too large to fit a three-year-old. It should be adjustable or made out of a material that is more stretchy.

The vest: Made of the same thin, flimsy, polyester material as the hat, it has velcro straps for the magic crystal to hold it together in the middle. It's a bit of a struggle to figure out what goes where, especially when you have a wriggly child to contend with.

The magic crystal: It's a battery-operated unit which plays music and sound effects. It's supposed to be attached to the front of the vest, but it's quite fiddly to put on, though that's not the worst thing about it. The worst thing is its size and weight. It's too bulky and heavy and it literally just hangs from the flimsy vest. When your child is jumping up and down, like they're supposed to when they're playing Sportacus, there's a good chance this heavy object will hit their face and cause injury.

The goggles: You can slot these in the hat to wear them Sportacus-style, or you can put them on like glasses. Either way, they won't stay on. Well, to us it doesn't matter now, because one of the earpieces broke off and we lost it, so we can't use the goggles anyway, which is actually good, as it saves some frustration.

The armbands: Now, these are completely useless. They're made of some type of hard plastic, and when you put them on, they dig into the flesh of your arms. Seriously, it looks rather painful. But not to worry, as they won't stay on for longer than a minute anyway, before falling off altogether. Whoever designed these should be made to wear them as a punishment.

The moustaches: These are just some stickers used as a moustache. Again, they're useless, as they come off within a minute or so. You're better off if you just paint a moustache using face paints.

The belt buckle: A piece of plastic with the Sportacus logo on it that you're supposed to clip on the waistband of your child's trousers. This accessory is somewhat unnecessary, in my opinion, and chances are you will lose it within days anyway. I know, we did.

The packaging: Such a waste! There have been some TV programmes about wasteful packaging lately, specifically calling attention to bad practices by toy manufacturers. This item is packed in a huge box, full of polystyrene, wires, and other bits to 'beef it up' and make it look more substantial than it really is, otherwise consumers wouldn't be willing to pay the rather hefty £19.99 RRP. I've made a promise to myself never to buy another product with this kind of wasteful packaging, and I'll definitely take this into consideration from now on when choosing toys.

I paid close to £20 for this item last summer. Since then, the prices have come down considerably. I saw it in Woolworths for £14.99 the other day and Amazon is currently selling it for just £6.99, but frankly, I don't think it's worth even that much. I wish I could turn back time and get my money back so I could buy something more useful than this.