Thomas and Friends take an go are great! I have much love for these trains. They are a die cast train, so very durable. My son carries and throws and drops them everywhere and they stand the test. We started out with the take and go trains because of the affordiablility. They are much more affordable then the wooden trains. The paint doesn't chip either. My only complaint is the tracks. We bought them to go on a train table, and the tracks don't stay put very good. They aren't attachable really, and most the time are just strewn all over the floor. Also, they don't fit on our train table very good. There are just so many set, and the big parts don't fit well either. I love that the magnets work on both ends. This is very goodfor younger children so they don't have to get frustrated when the magnets don't work. You can also buy other charachters that fit with these, like sesame street, and go diego go..
Think Media Take N Go trains is recommended by mawfia