Since your husband personally asked for the kit, and you say he's an all-or-nothing kind of guy, I'd recommend just skipping the Mr. Beer and going with a starter kit, one that comes with at least a plastic fermenting bucket (generally 6.5gal), and either a carboy (a glass or plastic vessel that looks like a big water jug, minimum 5 gallons), or another bucket. Having both containers be about 6.5gal is even better, as transferring a beer from a primary to a secondary fermentor is widely seen as unnecessary among experienced brewers here (although to be fair, there is still quite a bit of debate over this), and making them both primary fermentors would allow him to minimize waiting between making new batches, and that's a good thing when you consider how long beer takes to become drinkable (and especially how impatie-- I mean, EAGER, new brewers can be!)
A bottling bucket (usually just a pail with a spigot near the bottom) isn't
technically required but highly recommended. Most people will tell you the worst part of the entire process is bottling the beer, even with a bottling bucket, but it makes it a lot more tolerable. If possible, I also strongly suggest buying a 2nd hydrometer, as a backup, just in case. It's probably the only piece of equipment that you really, truly need to buy (though buying less than what you get in a kit is not a good idea), and it's doubly important for beginners. But hydrometers break almost stupidly easy, and tend do so almost exclusively when you're NOT prepared for it
The only way I would recommend Mr. Beer at all is if your husband really doesn't drink much. In that case, the tiny fermentor it comes with will be far more likely to continue to be useful, but keep in mind that beer should spend minimum 3 weeks (ideally, at least 4) before drinking, and that the Mr. Beer fermentor can produce about a case at a time.
I don't know how you two are about gifts - every couple is different - but maybe your best bet would be to simply ask him what he wants...