Marital Aid Test Kitchen: The Odyssey Tickles More Than Just Your Fancy

After getting acquainted with Babeland's Nubby G and Aquawand, I was pretty excited to try out the third and final vibe in their line: the Odyssey Tickler. Looking like a strange cross between a penis and a flower (yeah, I know), the vibe promises strong, powerful vibration coupled with some delicate tickling nubs. Which, really, sounds like the perfect combination to me.

There's a lot to love about the Odyssey Tickler. It's cute, quiet, and relatively cheap, and, for a vibe that runs on two AAA batteries, it has a pretty powerful motor. There's also the matter of the Tickler's... ticklers. As a fan of the Nubby G's nubs, I was really excited for some tickling action - and, happily, the Odyssey Tickler delivered as promised. Depending on your anatomy, you may have to wiggle the vibe around a bit to unlock the magic of the tickling. But hey, with a toy like this, the journey is half the fun.

But despite its charms, there was one problem I just couldn't ignore. Unlike its more complicated cousins, the Odyssey Tickler has just one button. If the vibe is off, pressing the button turns it on. If the vibe is on, pressing the button increases the vibration speed - unless you're at the third (and highest) vibration speed, in which case pressing the button shuts the vibe off. Which, in the heat of the moment, can really suck. Imagine grooving along to some really great fantasy, only to accidentally or absentmindedly press that button and shut everything down.

Yeah, it's kind of a buzzkill. Much as I enjoyed the Tickler, I think I'll be sticking with the Nubby G from here on out.

· Buy the Babeland Odyssey Tickler (babeland.com)