I would KILL to live in a world where where Ever After High went on longer than it did. Like, we could’ve gotten a MONSTER HIGH crossover. And also, they never got to do a Wizard of Oz inspired line, which is such a shame.
there was a eah x mh crossover, there was a book called the legend of shadow high i believe, written by shannon hale. although i get if that doesn’t count
Everyday i remember we almost had a MH x EAH movie i cry. I was so hyped for this and loved so much both franchises but then EAH was cancelled without a proper ending and MH was rebooted(Plus MH G1 sales started to suffer in 2016) so they cancelled the whole thing.
We kinda did have a crossover tho. CA Cupid was originally MH but transferred to EAH. Yeah it wasn't a collection of characters from each meeting each other. Which I know is what you mean. And would be anazing but it was a crossover. If nothing else in the LITERAL crossover sense. 😅
They were building up to one with cupid!! She seems to have been one of the few of not only characters aware that monster high and ever after high existed simultaneously within the shows/movies!
The aesthetic vs. diversity thing imo has a ton of self sabotage in it. Customers want diversity to be normalized, they ask for it and companies listen but because capitalism gotta capital they fulfill it in the cheapest way they possibly can. This works out for them no matter what. If their cheap terrible product sells? Great! They've lowered the bar on expectations and made a good profit. If it fails? Also great! They can just fall back on "tried and true" products and claim diversity doesn't sell. Basically companies are greedy and risk averse and also run by older privileged people invested in the status quo.
Just thinking about all the boy dolls that weren't as cute or attractive or creative as their girl counterparts. Like, no wonder they aren't popular. Nobody ever gives them a chance.
Exactly. Also, maybe this is a bit bitter of me, but it almost seems intentional with the consistency that diverse lines have poor quality. This is true for other media too, like tv shows and whatnot. As time goes on, I'm seeing more association between representation and low-quality product. Sometimes it feels like they're training us to associate the two and resent diversity in the process.
@@midoriya-shonen there is also a selection bias amongst consumers who want the lines to fail. It happens with dolls just as often as movies. A line of dolls comes out that isn't diverse and fails. The reaction is "The dolls were ugly, they were poorly made, they were overpriced, they were poor quality!" A line of dolls comes out that's diverse and it fails. The reaction is "Forced diversity killed the line! The line was to political, black/Asian/Hispanic dolls don't sell!" Even if all the first reasons were true for the second line too the failure MUST be because of diversity.
I think we can all agree Shadow High was cancelled *WAY* too soon. Honestly SH had always been done dirty, whether it be from MGA or in universe of the webseries (Shanelle was robbed) It's so unfair they had to be dropped just because MGA wanted to make Rainbow High more kiddy (and Sunny pretty much just killed her sister as soon as she hatched that mutant slime creature)
That Rainbow High rebrand was awful!! MGA left Poppy out for a while and soon after Sunny hatched her creature which I assume eventually caused Luna to either leave her family or commit suicide!!
@@DoIIyMama Neither were most of the lines discussed in the video, that's irrelevant to the discussion. Cancelled too soon as an opinion just means either the line wasn't allowed to grow and reach its potential or someone wanted to see more of it.
S.I.S. doll secondhand prices are just FOUL!! Also like you said its funny to have a line that is diverse *and* fashionable but modern day Barbie just refuses to allow anyone to actually be fashionable (outside of like... Rewind I guess?)
This, a thousand times! I’ve recently fallen in love with that general era of fashion dolls, and the prices on anything that isn’t beaten to all heck are just horrible 😢
Moxie Teens is definitely a line I really REALLY wish had taken off and revolutionized the doll world so we could have more playline dolls available that are larger than the 11 1/2 inch size that Barbie standardized. I personally love larger dolls more than smaller ones, so having more options of taller dolls outside of collector items would be really neat!
I think some of the Lalaloopsy spin off lines were so good! The Lalaloopsy girls (the ones who were more school themed and were closer to a Barbie type proportion but still not exactly) were so cute and fun, and the Lala-oopsies were so adorable and really appealed to my preference for unnatural colors and fantasy!
Oh Lalaloopsy Girls brings me back😭I distinctly remember undoing the redhaired girls braids (the one cut from the cloth of a school teacher or something?) and never being able to return it to it's original style. And I LOVE the fact that they (or at least the deluxe ones) came with PJs! It so fit the boarding school thing they had going on.
I love Lalaloopsies! I have a bunch of the dolls, babies, ponies and plushies. I saw the Girls and wanted them but they were never in stock when I went into town. From a rural community, me.
I wish Shadow High understood its potential. It may sound vary random, but the need for goth and alternative styles in the doll market is there. Maybe making it exclusive to online stores and make them a collector spin off of the rainbow high line, I don't know. I just imagine the potential of imaginative, weird and alt fashion with mga quality and I start to loose my mind. Instead, they gave us rainbow high dolls with other name. Well.
I loved the Star Darlings books but god some of the webisodes were painful - there was this one that especially stood out where Libby's friends basically made a song about how annoying she was. (also still mad they never made Astra or Adora dolls)
I am around your age and grew up with mainly blond Barbies as the option for fashion dolls. There was the odd line like Jem, and some celebrity dolls like Cher and Donny & Marie, but no real brand that was competition. Also no online shopping. This must be hard for younger people to imagine. Part of why I started collecting again a few years ago is that I wanted to experience an abundance that wasn’t available to me as a kid. I’m glad I’m still young at heart to enjoy dolls.
I think So In Style is my favourite of these, but I also love others like Moxie Teens and Ever After High. Unfortunately all of these short-lived dolls are pretty expensive on the secondary market, especially since I have to pay Canadian shipping, so all I have is one S.I.S. doll. I don’t know what happened with Stacey McBride Irby and Mattel, but it’s sad that she is not working there anymore. That must be a catch for talented doll designers: they need the big corporation to get their designs out to the public, but the corporation also hacks away at their designs and creativity in the name of profit. The later S.I.S. were more simple, and the current Fashionistas are even worse. I would bet that a designer ends up feeling like their input isn’t really needed for something so basic. It’s always exciting and heartbreaking to see what the designers do when Mattel lets them make OOAK dolls and they can really get resources.
Moose Toys also has a line called "Scruff a Luvs", which are plush animal toys with a similar idea -- the tagline was ‘Find us Scruffy, Make us Fluffy’, and you're adopting an abandoned 'mystery pet' to care for it, which includes washing the fur (probably more gel or something similar). It launched in 2018 and saw a lot of success, so I think the idea with FailFix was to translate the concept to fashion dolls. I love the FailFix dolls and totally agree that their 'real' faces are super cute! The mystery reveal gimmick just seems to be kind of the 'thing' with Moose Toys, you know? They also have the Magic Mixies (and the Pixlings dolls offshoot of that line are also adorable).
thank u for mentioning barbie so in style and the genius of stacey mcbride irby. that is the strongest point for barbie's fashion ever. i have so many nostalgic memories about them but even removing my bias they are just perfect.
Ever After High's mistreatment made me so sad. It was so hard to collect for it and I never even got to open and enjoy half the dolls I got even if I did find them.
EAH is one of my favorite lines and I desperately wish that it could have lived longer! You are 100% correct, the show was amazing and needed a conclusion!
I think a second struggle with star darlings was that they were exclusive to the Disney store. Like I could buy the books from a Barnes and noble but 8 year old me had no idea that the dolls existed. Plus you are right about the zodiac. I imagine kids whose signs were missing probably didn’t want a doll that wasn’t their sign or they didn’t like the doll for their zodiac.
I hate it when whoever is paying for your toys and other items locks you into your own sign/birthstone. My birthday is in August: I detest peridots, but I ended up with multiple peridot themed items
Moose Toys Capsule Chix were so creative, and I loved the varied themes. I didn't even know the doll line existed until after they'd already been discontinued and started showing up at Outlet stores.
Same! I found some secondhand and thought they were the neastest thing and surely were from the mid 2000s but it was really surprising to be so wrong lol. They have amazing articulation for their size, and idk their faces are just so cute. Literally never heard anyone talk about them before now tho so I guess they truly are underappreciated
American Girl's World By Us doll line deserved so so much better, its concept was to talk about modern day social issues which I thought was a great next step for AG, and it added more diverse dolls to AG which is something they've always struggled with. But they seemed to have give up on the doll line almost as soon as they released it, they never got new items and were very quickly sidelined by other releases. Its just frustrating to see something that was such a good idea wasted.
I adore Star Darlings, especially for its zodiac theme, which is why I'm surprised they're so underrated, I made it my mission to collect every single doll a while ago and I was able to in 2022, even the UK exclusive Cassie and Sage, just wish they would've made the rest of the characters!
I really like how creative they are with the designs too! Like I feel they don’t stick to the normal designs I usually see in Zodiac themed things. Like Vega being blue and not ultra soft girly is refreshing!!
@@Aros4 I'm a Gemini, but Vega is my favorite character and I feel that they perfectly represented Virgo in her, and yes the designs are all so good! Virgo being "the virgin" doesn't even really have much to do with the sign itself, as I'm sure most of us know how intense and self assured they can be, lol
I really hope that Bratzillaz makes a comeback since the Bratz has made one. Its designs were some of the best and them being cancelled because of the Bratz was stupid since it always felt like something completely different.
I found some in a thrift store in great condition for a couple of euros and theyre so cute!! As someone who only really collects asian doll lines they are by far my favorite western doll line!
I agree. I was lucky to find a bunch of Fashion Fever outfits on eBay last year, but the secondary prices are generally high. The closest thing we have now are the outfits from Disney Ily 4ever. I think the Jaaks doll versions with the extra outfit are pretty good value for 11.5 inch doll outfits. There are also two BarbieStyle outfits on Mattel Creations, and three more coming this year. The retail is around $25, but they did have a brief BOGO deal around Christmas. I also collect Integrity dolls and just paid $75 each for two outfits. Integrity says the high-end clothing often costs at least as much as the doll to produce.
S.I.S. Dolls were my fav back in the day! I love their fashions way more than the main Barbie line. At that time S.I.S. clothes felt more current yet with the glam campy flare Barbie had. Barbie’s fashions were tacky or the taste level was juvenile or terrible. That line was cancelled way too soon. They deserved at least ten more years.
the first doll i bought second hand was the jade bratzillaz back to magic doll. she truly did start my doll collection, and now I have over 100 rainbow, bratz, and monster high girls in my room. I wish bratzillaz where cheaper second hand because their inset eyes are so beautiful
Star Darlings world granted wishes to gather wish energy to use like electricity. it was always weird to me that the entire star world was so dependent yet ignorant of anything on Earth
i love how because you so consistently happen to post on days i desperately need a little comfort media, when you post a video on a day i don't feel particularly bad my instinctive reaction is 'i probably need to take a break' lmao. darling dollz posted, reminder to practice self care 🙏 i don't even collect dolls I just love it here
Also: I loved the Hairdorables Hairmazing dolls when I first saw them, and it guts me to know they had plans for new characters to cross over into the line but it got cancelled! (Totally with you on the giant earring love, too.)
I remember there being a so in style dress up game on the Barbie website when I was a kid. It was one of my favorite ones but it seems no website archived it after flash died
I love learning about doll lines I've never seen before from these types of videos. I'm enamored with the Disney VIP dolls, even though I never saw most of the shows I'd looove to see the Alex/Selena Gomez one in person. I love the funkier proportions and the caricature style faces, I think they're endearing and cute and manage to keep out of the uncanny valley. And the Star Darlings are similarly cute and were totally out of my radar!
Thank you for including FailFix! The line was definitely increasing in quality, with PrettyArtee having a noticeably nicer outfit than the series 1 dolls. I think it probably would have been refined even further if it hadn’t ended so soon. I think some of those dolls are truly gorgeous!
I definitely agree on EAH. And as I've looked back, I really missed out on the Bratzillas. They are gorgeous! I'd love a good reboot/continuation for both lines. I liked the Star Darlings, except for the odd sizing compared to other dolls I had at the time. But that's a me thing. The designs gave me old-school Rainbow-Brite, and I loved that. But Ever After High is the one I would potentially sell a kidney to have back. There was so much potential, and there were so many stories that could have been used to create new characters.
I cant AGREE MORE with your points. I wish EAH had an ending or any continuation with the story, i wish star darlings were more available, WISH MOXIE TEENS HAD MORE! And the disney girlies had a wider release😢😢 i miss SIS a lot they were so so so prettyy. Some dolls were gone too soon :( thanks cammy for the amazing vid❤(as always)
Reboot She-Ra deserve more dolls. Fully articulated dolls from mattel at that time was crazy, and we only got one wave of dolls + the SDCC ones. I would have loved to get characters like Perfuma, Entrapta, Scorpia, Mermista, Mara. It had so much potential for goregeous dolls at a very decent price of 14.99
It sucks so much that these dolls never got a chance! Mattel distributed them horribly and only to the US too?! The unreleased Mermista is beautiful too, although the unreleased two pack of Glimmer and her mother (apologies I can't remember her name, I haven't seen the show in years) seemed to have no articulation for some reason? Despite having "Powerfully posable" on the box, lol. These dolls for sure weren't perfect, (Catra is...goofy) but I'm so upset these guys never got past their first line and a She Ra and her horse two pack! Plus the SDCC dolls, of course. Tbh I really wish modern cartoons got more doll lines in general
I loved the style and concept of Bratzillaz so much and wish I could get some of the dolls. Imo an underrated fashion doll line that was canceled too soon is Disney Attractionistas. I'm gonna continue to mention these dolls until the day I die. While I happen to own one in box, I don't actually know what quality they were. I feel it was a really cool concept that sadly ended up going nowhere. I do feel like the ILY dolls are a sort of successor to Attractionistas and I'd love to see more incorporation of ride inspired fashion pack or perhaps even dedicated dolls in the future!
I found out about new dolls I never knew existed! So its always interesting to listen to you. Bratzillaz are the only Bratz I actually like. I HAD to have Meygana when I first saw her and fortunately I immediately found her second hand for a very good price (she now sells for $20-25 even in poor states).
I wish my scene was never discontinued in the US in 2002 before its complete discontinuation in 2011. It was never fair that they gave up on them in the US. I'm glad they are finally coming back soon
Bratzillaz and ever after high I was so disappointed to see get cancelled 😢. While I don't collect dolls, I've always loved their extended media (movies, shows, books, etc). And ever after high was one of my favorites, and I really loved bratzillaz too 😭. I still have hope that they'll be revived like monster high and the main Bratz were 🙏.
I will always be mad about ever after high being canned (same with so in style i remember begging for some of them for christmas cause theyre gorgeous)
CAVE CLUB!! They were released in 2020 by Mattel but discontinued a year or two later, they did not last long. But they’re my favorite and they deserve another chance, they’re so colorful and sweet. And the dinosaur/cave man element is so unique, I love it❤
Star Darlings is still a huge mystery to me. All of the other lines you mentioned I love but I can sort of see a reason for their cancellation, fair or not, but SD was so obviously intended to be Disney's next big thing, you can see they really invested A LOT of money in them, dolls, novels, cartoons, and they were setting a big complex lore and world, the characters had tons of potential to grow and develop and then....nothing. As if it never happened. But why? What happened? They were barely released a few months, so I can't reach any logical explanation.
I really don't see it... specially with how Mattel wants to stay on Disney's good side, having their own princess doll line would be a big "no no" for Disney.
@@MadPieS2 yeah that’s a good point, maybe if Mattel had something that differentiated them enough from the princesses? But yeah you’re right it’s not likely to happen.
@@MadPieS2I agree howeverrr there have been some stuff Mattel has done recently which have fans wondering if they are making a comeback. There’s some hope, even if its a little. We also know that they are still producing the EAH molds because the new Barbie line thats going to be released have very similar molds to EAH dolls! I’ve also heard that G3 MH has a multi-dimensional subplot so there’s definitely space for that EAHxMH crossover that was so tragically stripped from us
I will forever have a grudge against failfix for stealing art and then everyone on Instagram arguing that you can’t steal fan art (it wasn’t fan art anyways but besides the point) and that it doesn’t matter that a company traced an artist’s work because the doll was cute -_-
One of my favorite canceled lines was Project MC Squared! As a STEM girl, I loved the little projects that came with the dolls. I also liked the show on Netflix.
The failfix girls, in my view, had a failure in the packaging itself. A lot of people, children or collectors, can't really get a good idea of the doll as it is packaged, the face sculpts of the smudged make up masks makes it look like they are in distress and the plastic robes don't let anyone see the quality of the clothing. I get that they were getting into the blind bag and experience oriented packaging like OMG LOL but there were no cute graphics or good pictures of them on the box to help this. I skipped them completely because of this and after I saw people taking good pictures I got myself a few Kawaii for rebodying. I think if they had sold the common ones in a simple packaging, or had a clearer way to show the final product they'd had a bit more traction. Without that, any argument like "make up bad" was enough to topple them.
The story of ever after was getting somewhere and now I I’ll never know! And the dolls were so detailed! I’ll never forgive descendants for killing eve after…
In response to Zodiac/Astrology-themed doll lines, I recommend checking out the Icy Fortune Days May Tree bjd dolls (they're small dolls, about 5in tall or so) I have Libra, Virgo, Leo, Taurus, Pisces and want the whole set, they're beautiful cute little dolls with really well made clothes. They come in mystery/blind boxes but I got mine on Amazon and picked the ones I wanted.
I adore the concept which Zeenie dolls went with! I'm trying to be as environmentally friendly as possible an I deeply care for Earth. I think, these dolls are cute in their own specific way and this concept should be explored more!!
also I kinda agree with what you have said about Star Darlings BUT Adora is kinda ugly to me (I'm aquarius and I'm taking that presonally). There is only one problem with them: their color palette. It should be more diverse. Color wheel have exacly 12 colors so I don't understand why they didn't just use it for them:(
I’m still in mourning for Trashion Alley. WE WERE ROBBED. I just REALLY want some dolls outside of monster high that will lean into the anthro animal aesthetics!! I have my own ideas for a line but it’s not like I have those connections to pitch it, but it would just be so fun to have animal dolls 😭
Failfix dolls look so beautiful💕. Their inset eyes, the adorable size, and great articulation made me love them when I first saw them. Truly a shame I wasn't collecting dolls back when they first released but I still got some of them and I love them❤️
I'm not into Bratz - I was a teenager when they were first released, and I'm not a huge fan of the oversized lips and tiny eyes - but Bratzillaz are really awesome-looking. And what is that one Ever After High doll in the flowery dress?! Gorgeous.
I love Star Darlings even though I don't like astrology and my zodiac sign is the polar opposite of my personality. Maybe the spacey magical girl theme attracted me to buy them
I never got an s.i.s doll, but agree that this doll line shouldn’t have been cancelled. One of Barbie’s biggest issues in the early 2000’s was lack of diversity. So in style could’ve seriously helped the Barbie brand a lot
To this day, I'm always surprised that Ever After High dolls didn't make it that far and got cancelled. I thought it would be neck and neck with Monster High. I wonder if could ever have a comeback
Star Darlings was pretty interesting & visually appealing, but like you said, there was that weird meanness in the media, and Disney has never just let a magical girl series under its umbrella just thrive. And they had way more interesting designs than the indie line Zodiac Girlz, which was another zodiac line that didn't last long.
I started collecting Ever After High Dolls back in 2015 until I lost my interest on them back in 2017 due to cheap quality, molded leggings, molded tops, and lack of articulation.
I completely agree with Hairdorables Hairmazing! They're one of my favorite doll lines ever and I'm lucky to have all of the dolls they did release. I wish these could be brought back... Another one I'd like to add is Barbie Generation Girl. Maybe its nostalgia speaking but I used to play their computer game so much! I think theyre very pretty and I love their articulation. I was able to acquire 2 of these dolls second-hand (incomplete but I don't mind!) Also adding Mermaze Mermaidz and Mermaid High. Mermaze was really stepping up their game after the first release. Except for the expensive price, why were they even discontinued?? For Mermaid High, I feel like they didn't get a proper chance. They're pretty dolls yet didnt even make it internationally...
Hairmazing hairdorables did release some of the new characters under the kaleidoscope line in 2022! The were only released at kohls and Costco..I have almost the entire lines as these were my absolute top faves besides lol omg! And I collect so many fashion doll lines..
I loved Ever After High! I watched all the episodes, read most of the books, and bought a whole bunch of the dolls. (And I was already a grown adult during its entire run) It's a shame we will probably never see them come back...from what I've read, Ever After High was a big part of why Mattel lost the Disney Princess license for several years. Now that they have it back, they probably wouldn't want to risk it.
Fantastic video. I'm always impressed with how you get your points across in such a down to earth manner, bravo. I am a big FailFix fan, though I completely see the points for them sending a unhealthy message might be cause for criticism, really poor marketing decisions on that line. I would have liked to see Cave Club last longer, mainly because we only got one male doll. Cave Club came with so many good play accessories that really fleshed out what each of the main characters was into - especially in the 'Wild About' line. The prehistoric pets were designed and painted really well, espeically the larger ones that were sold separately, wish I had gotten more when they were on clearance. Not exactly a 'doll' but speaking of fantastic little creatures that only lasted about 2 waves, the Hatchimals Pixies Riders are really wonderous miniatures that have incredible detail for their size. I also liked how the cardboard box packaging turned into a little playset, fulling covered in colorful art that was unique to each figure. After wave 2 the line took a major turn for the worse. Are you familiar with them?
I’m new to your channel this week and I’m obsessed! I love how you teach so much history of dolls! I love that your videos are long too! Thank you for what you’re doing!!!! ❤❤❤❤❤
I miss Star Darlings! The dolls, not their Mean Girls attitude. I do love an astronomy theme, too. Ever After High was my second favorite dolls to collect, after Monster High. When they did, the rebranding it was terrible, and the quality got bad. I want more shows like Ever After and Monster High.
I think EAH was discontinued because Disney sued them for copyright issues with their characters. Mattel lost the contract with disney and then the rest is history. Although Mattel just got back with Disney, that is why we had a few sneak peaks that suggest maybe EAH will be back.... 😉
I absolutely agree with the EAH inclusion. your vids introduced me to the series and motivated me to watch it all and it is so ridiculously good. there were so many character arcs and stories left unfinished, even if they didn't bring back the dolls, i would just want the movies and webisodes to continue.
This isn’t a super small niche one but I wish equestria girls understood the potential they had
I honestly loved the og EQ dolls
@@imbored5095 me too! I have a shelf dedicated to only mlp eg dolls and it’s bittersweet really
I love them but I also agree the prototypes looked great
I really wish the prototypes were the ones we had....Twilight was gorgeous
truly!??
Novi Stars 👽 another line cancelled too soon.💔
Agreed! Those dolls are so gorgeous and unique, we needed more of them
Love them! So sad I didn't learn about them until they were discontinued.
I regret so much not having bought them when they were out, they are so pretty and fun.
Loved the Novi Stars!!
I would KILL to live in a world where where Ever After High went on longer than it did. Like, we could’ve gotten a MONSTER HIGH crossover. And also, they never got to do a Wizard of Oz inspired line, which is such a shame.
we almost had the MH x EAH crossover as well, there was already voice lines, discarded animatics etc i cant
there was a eah x mh crossover, there was a book called the legend of shadow high i believe, written by shannon hale. although i get if that doesn’t count
Everyday i remember we almost had a MH x EAH movie i cry. I was so hyped for this and loved so much both franchises but then EAH was cancelled without a proper ending and MH was rebooted(Plus MH G1 sales started to suffer in 2016) so they cancelled the whole thing.
We kinda did have a crossover tho. CA Cupid was originally MH but transferred to EAH. Yeah it wasn't a collection of characters from each meeting each other. Which I know is what you mean. And would be anazing but it was a crossover. If nothing else in the LITERAL crossover sense. 😅
They were building up to one with cupid!! She seems to have been one of the few of not only characters aware that monster high and ever after high existed simultaneously within the shows/movies!
The aesthetic vs. diversity thing imo has a ton of self sabotage in it.
Customers want diversity to be normalized, they ask for it and companies listen but because capitalism gotta capital they fulfill it in the cheapest way they possibly can. This works out for them no matter what. If their cheap terrible product sells? Great! They've lowered the bar on expectations and made a good profit. If it fails? Also great! They can just fall back on "tried and true" products and claim diversity doesn't sell.
Basically companies are greedy and risk averse and also run by older privileged people invested in the status quo.
Just thinking about all the boy dolls that weren't as cute or attractive or creative as their girl counterparts. Like, no wonder they aren't popular. Nobody ever gives them a chance.
Exactly. Also, maybe this is a bit bitter of me, but it almost seems intentional with the consistency that diverse lines have poor quality. This is true for other media too, like tv shows and whatnot. As time goes on, I'm seeing more association between representation and low-quality product. Sometimes it feels like they're training us to associate the two and resent diversity in the process.
@@midoriya-shonen there is also a selection bias amongst consumers who want the lines to fail. It happens with dolls just as often as movies.
A line of dolls comes out that isn't diverse and fails. The reaction is "The dolls were ugly, they were poorly made, they were overpriced, they were poor quality!"
A line of dolls comes out that's diverse and it fails. The reaction is "Forced diversity killed the line! The line was to political, black/Asian/Hispanic dolls don't sell!"
Even if all the first reasons were true for the second line too the failure MUST be because of diversity.
absolutely correct, they do this totally on purpose
I think we can all agree Shadow High was cancelled *WAY* too soon.
Honestly SH had always been done dirty, whether it be from MGA or in universe of the webseries (Shanelle was robbed)
It's so unfair they had to be dropped just because MGA wanted to make Rainbow High more kiddy (and Sunny pretty much just killed her sister as soon as she hatched that mutant slime creature)
SH was not successful with broader audience
That Rainbow High rebrand was awful!! MGA left Poppy out for a while and soon after Sunny hatched her creature which I assume eventually caused Luna to either leave her family or commit suicide!!
@riverstyxx829 Lavender is gorgeous, IMO, but I agree she's pretty far away from the original SH aesthetic.
I guess Sunny really was the evil twin after all. xD
@@DoIIyMama Neither were most of the lines discussed in the video, that's irrelevant to the discussion. Cancelled too soon as an opinion just means either the line wasn't allowed to grow and reach its potential or someone wanted to see more of it.
S.I.S. doll secondhand prices are just FOUL!! Also like you said its funny to have a line that is diverse *and* fashionable but modern day Barbie just refuses to allow anyone to actually be fashionable (outside of like... Rewind I guess?)
This, a thousand times! I’ve recently fallen in love with that general era of fashion dolls, and the prices on anything that isn’t beaten to all heck are just horrible 😢
Moxie Teens is definitely a line I really REALLY wish had taken off and revolutionized the doll world so we could have more playline dolls available that are larger than the 11 1/2 inch size that Barbie standardized. I personally love larger dolls more than smaller ones, so having more options of taller dolls outside of collector items would be really neat!
How can one person be so consistently right?
I think some of the Lalaloopsy spin off lines were so good! The Lalaloopsy girls (the ones who were more school themed and were closer to a Barbie type proportion but still not exactly) were so cute and fun, and the Lala-oopsies were so adorable and really appealed to my preference for unnatural colors and fantasy!
Oh Lalaloopsy Girls brings me back😭I distinctly remember undoing the redhaired girls braids (the one cut from the cloth of a school teacher or something?) and never being able to return it to it's original style. And I LOVE the fact that they (or at least the deluxe ones) came with PJs! It so fit the boarding school thing they had going on.
OMG yess!! Their pouty mouths were so precious. Hopefully with the Lalaloopsies comeback we’ll see these dolls again 🥹
i remember hating the lalaoopsies as a kid 😭 i remember it feeling super cheap n flimsy compared to my standard lalaloopsy dolls
I love Lalaloopsies! I have a bunch of the dolls, babies, ponies and plushies. I saw the Girls and wanted them but they were never in stock when I went into town. From a rural community, me.
I love Lalaloopsy Girls ‼️‼️
I wish Shadow High understood its potential. It may sound vary random, but the need for goth and alternative styles in the doll market is there. Maybe making it exclusive to online stores and make them a collector spin off of the rainbow high line, I don't know. I just imagine the potential of imaginative, weird and alt fashion with mga quality and I start to loose my mind. Instead, they gave us rainbow high dolls with other name. Well.
I loved the Star Darlings books but god some of the webisodes were painful - there was this one that especially stood out where Libby's friends basically made a song about how annoying she was.
(also still mad they never made Astra or Adora dolls)
I went on a rant about that exact episode but I cut it because I talked about it for way too long 😭
@@DarlingDollzwould love to see the rant tho lol
I was born in 1974 and the dolls today blow my mind with how beautiful their faces are and how cool their outfits are.
I am around your age and grew up with mainly blond Barbies as the option for fashion dolls. There was the odd line like Jem, and some celebrity dolls like Cher and Donny & Marie, but no real brand that was competition. Also no online shopping. This must be hard for younger people to imagine. Part of why I started collecting again a few years ago is that I wanted to experience an abundance that wasn’t available to me as a kid. I’m glad I’m still young at heart to enjoy dolls.
I think So In Style is my favourite of these, but I also love others like Moxie Teens and Ever After High. Unfortunately all of these short-lived dolls are pretty expensive on the secondary market, especially since I have to pay Canadian shipping, so all I have is one S.I.S. doll.
I don’t know what happened with Stacey McBride Irby and Mattel, but it’s sad that she is not working there anymore. That must be a catch for talented doll designers: they need the big corporation to get their designs out to the public, but the corporation also hacks away at their designs and creativity in the name of profit. The later S.I.S. were more simple, and the current Fashionistas are even worse. I would bet that a designer ends up feeling like their input isn’t really needed for something so basic. It’s always exciting and heartbreaking to see what the designers do when Mattel lets them make OOAK dolls and they can really get resources.
@c.w.2000 Yes!! I have a very small collection of dolls now, that my inner child adores!
Moose Toys also has a line called "Scruff a Luvs", which are plush animal toys with a similar idea -- the tagline was ‘Find us Scruffy, Make us Fluffy’, and you're adopting an abandoned 'mystery pet' to care for it, which includes washing the fur (probably more gel or something similar). It launched in 2018 and saw a lot of success, so I think the idea with FailFix was to translate the concept to fashion dolls. I love the FailFix dolls and totally agree that their 'real' faces are super cute!
The mystery reveal gimmick just seems to be kind of the 'thing' with Moose Toys, you know? They also have the Magic Mixies (and the Pixlings dolls offshoot of that line are also adorable).
thank u for mentioning barbie so in style and the genius of stacey mcbride irby. that is the strongest point for barbie's fashion ever. i have so many nostalgic memories about them but even removing my bias they are just perfect.
Ever After High's mistreatment made me so sad. It was so hard to collect for it and I never even got to open and enjoy half the dolls I got even if I did find them.
EAH is one of my favorite lines and I desperately wish that it could have lived longer! You are 100% correct, the show was amazing and needed a conclusion!
I think a second struggle with star darlings was that they were exclusive to the Disney store. Like I could buy the books from a Barnes and noble but 8 year old me had no idea that the dolls existed. Plus you are right about the zodiac. I imagine kids whose signs were missing probably didn’t want a doll that wasn’t their sign or they didn’t like the doll for their zodiac.
I hate it when whoever is paying for your toys and other items locks you into your own sign/birthstone. My birthday is in August: I detest peridots, but I ended up with multiple peridot themed items
Same lol.I’m a may baby (3 days away!) and I don’t really like green a ton but everything for may is green because of emeralds.
Moose Toys Capsule Chix were so creative, and I loved the varied themes. I didn't even know the doll line existed until after they'd already been discontinued and started showing up at Outlet stores.
Same! I found some secondhand and thought they were the neastest thing and surely were from the mid 2000s but it was really surprising to be so wrong lol. They have amazing articulation for their size, and idk their faces are just so cute. Literally never heard anyone talk about them before now tho so I guess they truly are underappreciated
American Girl's World By Us doll line deserved so so much better, its concept was to talk about modern day social issues which I thought was a great next step for AG, and it added more diverse dolls to AG which is something they've always struggled with. But they seemed to have give up on the doll line almost as soon as they released it, they never got new items and were very quickly sidelined by other releases. Its just frustrating to see something that was such a good idea wasted.
Was feeling terrible this morning and this will definitely cheer me up!
Same here.
Bad morning gang
EAH is my Roman Empire
I adore Star Darlings, especially for its zodiac theme, which is why I'm surprised they're so underrated, I made it my mission to collect every single doll a while ago and I was able to in 2022, even the UK exclusive Cassie and Sage, just wish they would've made the rest of the characters!
I really like how creative they are with the designs too! Like I feel they don’t stick to the normal designs I usually see in Zodiac themed things. Like Vega being blue and not ultra soft girly is refreshing!!
@@Aros4 I'm a Gemini, but Vega is my favorite character and I feel that they perfectly represented Virgo in her, and yes the designs are all so good! Virgo being "the virgin" doesn't even really have much to do with the sign itself, as I'm sure most of us know how intense and self assured they can be, lol
I really hope that Bratzillaz makes a comeback since the Bratz has made one. Its designs were some of the best and them being cancelled because of the Bratz was stupid since it always felt like something completely different.
I found some in a thrift store in great condition for a couple of euros and theyre so cute!! As someone who only really collects asian doll lines they are by far my favorite western doll line!
If there's one thing I wished that didn't discontinued, that would be Fashion Fever but at least kept the fashion packs going
Fashion fever was amazing! What quality!! I wish I had bought more.
I agree. I was lucky to find a bunch of Fashion Fever outfits on eBay last year, but the secondary prices are generally high. The closest thing we have now are the outfits from Disney Ily 4ever. I think the Jaaks doll versions with the extra outfit are pretty good value for 11.5 inch doll outfits. There are also two BarbieStyle outfits on Mattel Creations, and three more coming this year. The retail is around $25, but they did have a brief BOGO deal around Christmas. I also collect Integrity dolls and just paid $75 each for two outfits. Integrity says the high-end clothing often costs at least as much as the doll to produce.
S.I.S. Dolls were my fav back in the day! I love their fashions way more than the main Barbie line. At that time S.I.S. clothes felt more current yet with the glam campy flare Barbie had. Barbie’s fashions were tacky or the taste level was juvenile or terrible. That line was cancelled way too soon. They deserved at least ten more years.
the first doll i bought second hand was the jade bratzillaz back to magic doll. she truly did start my doll collection, and now I have over 100 rainbow, bratz, and monster high girls in my room. I wish bratzillaz where cheaper second hand because their inset eyes are so beautiful
I will never move on from Ever After High... 💔
Star Darlings world granted wishes to gather wish energy to use like electricity. it was always weird to me that the entire star world was so dependent yet ignorant of anything on Earth
i love how because you so consistently happen to post on days i desperately need a little comfort media, when you post a video on a day i don't feel particularly bad my instinctive reaction is 'i probably need to take a break' lmao. darling dollz posted, reminder to practice self care 🙏 i don't even collect dolls I just love it here
same here, not a collector but i love learning about fashion dolls and darling dollz’s whole vibe is immaculate and so comforting
Also: I loved the Hairdorables Hairmazing dolls when I first saw them, and it guts me to know they had plans for new characters to cross over into the line but it got cancelled! (Totally with you on the giant earring love, too.)
SAVE ME DARLING DOLLZ SAVE MEEEEEE (tysm for posting…. Always a hightlight for me
I remember there being a so in style dress up game on the Barbie website when I was a kid. It was one of my favorite ones but it seems no website archived it after flash died
I miss when Flash player was still active, Flash games were incredible
The so in style dolls were gorgeous! And so hard to get second hand now. I agree with your picks. I also loved the my scene barbie line
I love learning about doll lines I've never seen before from these types of videos. I'm enamored with the Disney VIP dolls, even though I never saw most of the shows I'd looove to see the Alex/Selena Gomez one in person. I love the funkier proportions and the caricature style faces, I think they're endearing and cute and manage to keep out of the uncanny valley. And the Star Darlings are similarly cute and were totally out of my radar!
Thank you for including FailFix! The line was definitely increasing in quality, with PrettyArtee having a noticeably nicer outfit than the series 1 dolls. I think it probably would have been refined even further if it hadn’t ended so soon. I think some of those dolls are truly gorgeous!
I definitely agree on EAH. And as I've looked back, I really missed out on the Bratzillas. They are gorgeous! I'd love a good reboot/continuation for both lines. I liked the Star Darlings, except for the odd sizing compared to other dolls I had at the time. But that's a me thing. The designs gave me old-school Rainbow-Brite, and I loved that. But Ever After High is the one I would potentially sell a kidney to have back. There was so much potential, and there were so many stories that could have been used to create new characters.
Ever after high is my Roman Empire as the kids say
I cant AGREE MORE with your points. I wish EAH had an ending or any continuation with the story, i wish star darlings were more available, WISH MOXIE TEENS HAD MORE! And the disney girlies had a wider release😢😢 i miss SIS a lot they were so so so prettyy. Some dolls were gone too soon :( thanks cammy for the amazing vid❤(as always)
Reboot She-Ra deserve more dolls. Fully articulated dolls from mattel at that time was crazy, and we only got one wave of dolls + the SDCC ones. I would have loved to get characters like Perfuma, Entrapta, Scorpia, Mermista, Mara. It had so much potential for goregeous dolls at a very decent price of 14.99
It sucks so much that these dolls never got a chance! Mattel distributed them horribly and only to the US too?!
The unreleased Mermista is beautiful too, although the unreleased two pack of Glimmer and her mother (apologies I can't remember her name, I haven't seen the show in years) seemed to have no articulation for some reason? Despite having "Powerfully posable" on the box, lol.
These dolls for sure weren't perfect, (Catra is...goofy) but I'm so upset these guys never got past their first line and a She Ra and her horse two pack! Plus the SDCC dolls, of course.
Tbh I really wish modern cartoons got more doll lines in general
I loved the style and concept of Bratzillaz so much and wish I could get some of the dolls.
Imo an underrated fashion doll line that was canceled too soon is Disney Attractionistas. I'm gonna continue to mention these dolls until the day I die. While I happen to own one in box, I don't actually know what quality they were. I feel it was a really cool concept that sadly ended up going nowhere. I do feel like the ILY dolls are a sort of successor to Attractionistas and I'd love to see more incorporation of ride inspired fashion pack or perhaps even dedicated dolls in the future!
Love when you talk cancelled dolls! Also apt that I just got in my most sought after Star Darling today ❤ serendipitous
I found out about new dolls I never knew existed! So its always interesting to listen to you. Bratzillaz are the only Bratz I actually like. I HAD to have Meygana when I first saw her and fortunately I immediately found her second hand for a very good price (she now sells for $20-25 even in poor states).
I wish my scene was never discontinued in the US in 2002 before its complete discontinuation in 2011. It was never fair that they gave up on them in the US. I'm glad they are finally coming back soon
Bratzillaz and ever after high I was so disappointed to see get cancelled 😢. While I don't collect dolls, I've always loved their extended media (movies, shows, books, etc). And ever after high was one of my favorites, and I really loved bratzillaz too 😭. I still have hope that they'll be revived like monster high and the main Bratz were 🙏.
I love that you called Star Darlings stellar
I will always be mad about ever after high being canned (same with so in style i remember begging for some of them for christmas cause theyre gorgeous)
CAVE CLUB!! They were released in 2020 by Mattel but discontinued a year or two later, they did not last long. But they’re my favorite and they deserve another chance, they’re so colorful and sweet. And the dinosaur/cave man element is so unique, I love it❤
The Ever After High books slay !
You should do a video on the Korean fashion doll, ddung. A very cute fashion doll that's overlooked in America
Star Darlings is still a huge mystery to me. All of the other lines you mentioned I love but I can sort of see a reason for their cancellation, fair or not, but SD was so obviously intended to be Disney's next big thing, you can see they really invested A LOT of money in them, dolls, novels, cartoons, and they were setting a big complex lore and world, the characters had tons of potential to grow and develop and then....nothing. As if it never happened. But why? What happened? They were barely released a few months, so I can't reach any logical explanation.
the star darlings took me backkk, i loved the animated series and i had no clue there were dolls!
i would honestly love to watch a video about the whole star darlings franchise in general if you ever wanted to make one!
Eah was cancelled too soon, they were awesome! I hope they get a reboot like monster high and maybe a even a proper crossover this time!
I really don't see it... specially with how Mattel wants to stay on Disney's good side, having their own princess doll line would be a big "no no" for Disney.
@@MadPieS2 yeah that’s a good point, maybe if Mattel had something that differentiated them enough from the princesses? But yeah you’re right it’s not likely to happen.
@@MadPieS2I agree howeverrr there have been some stuff Mattel has done recently which have fans wondering if they are making a comeback. There’s some hope, even if its a little. We also know that they are still producing the EAH molds because the new Barbie line thats going to be released have very similar molds to EAH dolls! I’ve also heard that G3 MH has a multi-dimensional subplot so there’s definitely space for that EAHxMH crossover that was so tragically stripped from us
I never saw the So in Style Barbies. They are gorgeous!
Im going to look om eBay but they are probably really expensive. 😭
I’ve never heard of so in style they are so cute!! I would definitely but them today 🥲
RIP FailFix dolls, still by far my favorite faces of any doll. Love putting them on custom bodies.
I will forever have a grudge against failfix for stealing art and then everyone on Instagram arguing that you can’t steal fan art (it wasn’t fan art anyways but besides the point) and that it doesn’t matter that a company traced an artist’s work because the doll was cute -_-
I love So In Style! I have most of the dolls and purchased them when they were released.
LOL OMG Fierce was cancelled way too soon. I'm SO. SAD. that Kitty K and Candylicious weren't released. 😢
I needed that Candylicious, she looked sooo perfect 😢
I needed this, thanks darling
One of my favorite canceled lines was Project MC Squared! As a STEM girl, I loved the little projects that came with the dolls. I also liked the show on Netflix.
I will never get over start darling I was their #1 fan from jump like I’ve never rode for a doll line so hard and I didn’t even get an Aquarius doll
Wow. I haven't heard the name "Moxie Teenz" in YEARS. It unseeded such a deep memory from my brain
Never heard of So in Style dolls; which I had. I’m going to have to find one at a reasonable price.
Fianna fins was my favorite doll I had when I was younger ❤️🥲 miss her dearly
I remember getting my niece two Star Darlings dolls. I thought they were so well made so I picked them up. Wonder why they failed.
Wild Hearts Crew, Gone in less than a year but not forgotten.
See Darling Dollz video pop up on my feed
It was posted 13 min ago
Yaaaay!❤
The failfix girls, in my view, had a failure in the packaging itself. A lot of people, children or collectors, can't really get a good idea of the doll as it is packaged, the face sculpts of the smudged make up masks makes it look like they are in distress and the plastic robes don't let anyone see the quality of the clothing. I get that they were getting into the blind bag and experience oriented packaging like OMG LOL but there were no cute graphics or good pictures of them on the box to help this. I skipped them completely because of this and after I saw people taking good pictures I got myself a few Kawaii for rebodying. I think if they had sold the common ones in a simple packaging, or had a clearer way to show the final product they'd had a bit more traction. Without that, any argument like "make up bad" was enough to topple them.
The story of ever after was getting somewhere and now I I’ll never know! And the dolls were so detailed! I’ll never forgive descendants for killing eve after…
In response to Zodiac/Astrology-themed doll lines, I recommend checking out the Icy Fortune Days May Tree bjd dolls (they're small dolls, about 5in tall or so) I have Libra, Virgo, Leo, Taurus, Pisces and want the whole set, they're beautiful cute little dolls with really well made clothes. They come in mystery/blind boxes but I got mine on Amazon and picked the ones I wanted.
I adore the concept which Zeenie dolls went with! I'm trying to be as environmentally friendly as possible an I deeply care for Earth. I think, these dolls are cute in their own specific way and this concept should be explored more!!
also I kinda agree with what you have said about Star Darlings BUT Adora is kinda ugly to me (I'm aquarius and I'm taking that presonally). There is only one problem with them: their color palette. It should be more diverse. Color wheel have exacly 12 colors so I don't understand why they didn't just use it for them:(
I was sooo hopeful that Mermaze would release leg attachments, I feel like a real opportunity was missed.
I’m still in mourning for Trashion Alley. WE WERE ROBBED.
I just REALLY want some dolls outside of monster high that will lean into the anthro animal aesthetics!! I have my own ideas for a line but it’s not like I have those connections to pitch it, but it would just be so fun to have animal dolls 😭
Failfix dolls look so beautiful💕. Their inset eyes, the adorable size, and great articulation made me love them when I first saw them. Truly a shame I wasn't collecting dolls back when they first released but I still got some of them and I love them❤️
We NEED a doll collection tour!! I’m talking 1+ hours of just in depth doll talk!
I love all your videos. They're so historically informative & I learn a lot.
Some people take things so seriously that it takes away from actual problems...
I'm not into Bratz - I was a teenager when they were first released, and I'm not a huge fan of the oversized lips and tiny eyes - but Bratzillaz are really awesome-looking. And what is that one Ever After High doll in the flowery dress?! Gorgeous.
There's a lot of EAH dolls, do you have a time stamp for the one you're referring to that's in the video?
@@princessravendiamond4288 20:06
I wish Novi stars would make a come back.. those were soooooo unique ❤
I love Star Darlings even though I don't like astrology and my zodiac sign is the polar opposite of my personality. Maybe the spacey magical girl theme attracted me to buy them
the sayori pfp is a jumpscare lol
This pink sweater is your color!
I love the Ever After High appreciation you always bring to your channel 👏👏👏 brb gonna go rewatch the entire series for like the 6th time 😅
I never got an s.i.s doll, but agree that this doll line shouldn’t have been cancelled. One of Barbie’s biggest issues in the early 2000’s was lack of diversity. So in style could’ve seriously helped the Barbie brand a lot
To this day, I'm always surprised that Ever After High dolls didn't make it that far and got cancelled. I thought it would be neck and neck with Monster High. I wonder if could ever have a comeback
Star Darlings was pretty interesting & visually appealing, but like you said, there was that weird meanness in the media, and Disney has never just let a magical girl series under its umbrella just thrive. And they had way more interesting designs than the indie line Zodiac Girlz, which was another zodiac line that didn't last long.
I started collecting Ever After High Dolls back in 2015 until I lost my interest on them back in 2017 due to cheap quality, molded leggings, molded tops, and lack of articulation.
I completely agree with Hairdorables Hairmazing! They're one of my favorite doll lines ever and I'm lucky to have all of the dolls they did release. I wish these could be brought back...
Another one I'd like to add is Barbie Generation Girl. Maybe its nostalgia speaking but I used to play their computer game so much! I think theyre very pretty and I love their articulation. I was able to acquire 2 of these dolls second-hand (incomplete but I don't mind!)
Also adding Mermaze Mermaidz and Mermaid High. Mermaze was really stepping up their game after the first release. Except for the expensive price, why were they even discontinued??
For Mermaid High, I feel like they didn't get a proper chance. They're pretty dolls yet didnt even make it internationally...
Hairmazing hairdorables did release some of the new characters under the kaleidoscope line in 2022! The were only released at kohls and Costco..I have almost the entire lines as these were my absolute top faves besides lol omg! And I collect so many fashion doll lines..
I loved Ever After High! I watched all the episodes, read most of the books, and bought a whole bunch of the dolls. (And I was already a grown adult during its entire run) It's a shame we will probably never see them come back...from what I've read, Ever After High was a big part of why Mattel lost the Disney Princess license for several years. Now that they have it back, they probably wouldn't want to risk it.
Fantastic video. I'm always impressed with how you get your points across in such a down to earth manner, bravo.
I am a big FailFix fan, though I completely see the points for them sending a unhealthy message might be cause for criticism, really poor marketing decisions on that line.
I would have liked to see Cave Club last longer, mainly because we only got one male doll. Cave Club came with so many good play accessories that really fleshed out what each of the main characters was into - especially in the 'Wild About' line. The prehistoric pets were designed and painted really well, espeically the larger ones that were sold separately, wish I had gotten more when they were on clearance.
Not exactly a 'doll' but speaking of fantastic little creatures that only lasted about 2 waves, the Hatchimals Pixies Riders are really wonderous miniatures that have incredible detail for their size. I also liked how the cardboard box packaging turned into a little playset, fulling covered in colorful art that was unique to each figure. After wave 2 the line took a major turn for the worse. Are you familiar with them?
It's so nice to see you again with dolls in your hands! I would like more reviews from you, not just chatting.
lol omg fierce😭 the unreleased candylicious was the most beautiful doll i've ever seen
Omg your videos always make my day!
I’m new to your channel this week and I’m obsessed! I love how you teach so much history of dolls! I love that your videos are long too! Thank you for what you’re doing!!!! ❤❤❤❤❤
I miss Star Darlings! The dolls, not their Mean Girls attitude. I do love an astronomy theme, too. Ever After High was my second favorite dolls to collect, after Monster High. When they did, the rebranding it was terrible, and the quality got bad. I want more shows like Ever After and Monster High.
i wish i had some of those discontinued dolls. Great video
I think EAH was discontinued because Disney sued them for copyright issues with their characters. Mattel lost the contract with disney and then the rest is history. Although Mattel just got back with Disney, that is why we had a few sneak peaks that suggest maybe EAH will be back.... 😉
hairmazing is one of my favorite lines ever made. i adore the color palettes and face molds!!
I really love your channel 😭❤️
I absolutely agree with the EAH inclusion. your vids introduced me to the series and motivated me to watch it all and it is so ridiculously good. there were so many character arcs and stories left unfinished, even if they didn't bring back the dolls, i would just want the movies and webisodes to continue.