Ornament Review: Operation - 2015 Hallmark Ornament

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Great game ornament with fun buzzes

Cons: All cons buzzed away

The Bottom Line:

The Operation

Was successful with this fun

Christmas ornament

It’s No Operation to Like This Ornament

I love board games, so I am enjoying both of Hallmark’s game based ornament series.  There’s the official Family Game Night series, and then there’s the unofficial games series.  2015’s Operation was part of that unofficial series, and it’s a lot of fun.

I must admit, I never owned Operation or played it that much as a kid, which was probably a good thing.  The idea behind the game was to remove items from the man who needed surgery.  The large tweezers you were supposed to use were metal, and if you hit the sides of the opening, the man’s nose would light up and a buzzer would go off.  Whenever I try to do something requiring a steady hand, my hands shake like crazy.  I would set the buzzer off every time.

But I’m not reviewing the game, I’m reviewing the ornament.  The main part of the ornament is a faithful replication of that board game operation table.  It’s a giant rectangle with the various compartments with his body parts that need to be removed.  The game board is red around the sides and yellow on the front.  And yes, we even get the fun names for the body parts like “Adam’s Apple,” Charlie Horse,” or “Writer’s Cramp.”  Those parts are not actually removable in this case, but you can still see the spaces around them.  Attached to the board is the tweezers used in the game, although in this case they are stuck together and don’t actually work as tweezers.

This is one of Hallmark’s magic ornaments.  While it doesn’t play a song, when you touch the tweezers to the sides of the openings, you’ll hear the buzzer and see the man’s nose light up.  And here’s the best part to me.  In the ornament, that’s what you are supposed to do!  The ornament does require three button batteries to work, and your first set in included for you.

Being a rectangle, this ornament has a flat surface for year round display.  There are feet on the bottom of the ornament just like on the game, but it is best to set it up on one end so you can actually see the top.  The sides are wide enough that it is surprisingly stable like that as well.

You will find the loop for hanging the ornament on the top side.  Slip a hook through there, and you’ll find that hit hangs straight.  The tweezers hangs off the side and just barely past the bottom of the ornament, so they aren’t an issue either.

The games Hallmark has picked have been wonderful pieces of nostalgia, and Operation is another perfect example.  Having these games to hang on my tree makes me smile, and anyone else who enjoyed them as a kid will feel exactly the same way.

Here are the rest of Hallmark’s board game ornaments.

Original Price: $17.95