SDCC, Monster High Style

It's SDCC time again which means Monster High has a thing and it's a thing and mostly I'm trying to avoid looking directly at the sun that is Webarella because unless I win one in a contest or something, I have next to no hope of owning her and it is making me a very, very sad panda.

I mention this not for sympathy but so that you can understand my mindset when looking at the MH stuff that's appeared online. I feel weird like there should be a more central location of information but SDCC's MH stuff has always been a bit scattershot as it happens because, duh, it's a Con. The Con for a lot of people. Perhaps afterwards we'll get a flood of different angles or something. I don't know.

Until then, let's get on with the show.

( Pictures aplenty after the cut, but nothing new if you've been keeping up. )

All in all, I wish I were more excited? I think I'm tired of new characters. I haven't seen Twyla in person and GiGi is apparently still harder to find stateside so I haven't seen them in person to gauge whether or not my lack of interest in them is due to them actually being yawn inducing or if it's just they photograph badly. Jinafire isn't nearly as pretty in person as I think she should have been, though Skelita is loverly.

I was all set to be super thrilled by this year's debuts and yet I'm not. Maybe it's the headache I'm nursing for the second day in a row. Maybe it's the realization that I have two weeks to get everything packed. TWO WEEKS.

Someone, come talk dolls with me. Regardless of whether you agree or disagree, I won't hold it against you. (I don't think anyone would think I would, but the headache says to write the disclaimer anyway.)


Or, if that's not your thing, let's look at this article asking If Barbie's Allure is on the Wane?

We'll ignore the fact that apparently there are a billion articles about Barbie's sales not being as hot as some might expect and focus on the duh reasons why before heading over to the WTF moment contained within. Mattel's biggest competition for Barbie at this point is... Mattel. Apparently American Girl is picking up steam despite the fucking price hike at the start of the year (STILL BITTER) which is good for them because it'll possibly give them room to try something less blonde in the future. (Though not next year's GOTY who sounds very, very, VERY blonde.)

Still, AG is for people who want to give their kids the anti-Barbie, so the real competition is in the Monster High brand. To which I again say, "duh." The thing I love about MH is that is so clearly not just for little girls. Yes, it appeals to them, but it also appeals to anyone who is old enough to remember Scooby Doo and the Ghoul School.

Which is why this little gem sticks in my craw something fierce:

Mattel is also introducing a new line of dolls, Ever After High, which, Stockton said, the company hopes will reach "a segment of older girls untapped by Monster High."

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Okay, what? Have you guys over at Mattel seen the actual dolls? Because I've got three of the four of them now and there is no way in hell these things will skew older than Monster High as a general rule. There's just no way. They actually look younger (comparisons to Moxie Girls are still pretty accurate) and the fashion choices are actual fairy tales. Fairy. Tales. While the book(s) could quite likely skew older, the dolls themselves are pretty much guaranteed to go to younger kids. It's just...

Seriously, guys. Think before you speak.