The Real Story Behind the Demise of Barbie and Ken
Written: Mar 01 '04 (Updated Dec 26 '05)
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Pros: feet easily removed for rapid shoe changes
Cons: clothes so tight they may be difficult to remove, in spite of Velcro fasteners
The Bottom Line: If you would like to introduce your pre-teen to the world of tight clothes, excessive make-up, adolescent sexuality, and uncomfortable shoes, Sasha might be a great place to start.
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| Horswispr's Full Review: MGA Entertainment Bratz: Sasha |
As usual, the press has managed to mess things up. Call it journalistic incompetence. Or just plain laziness.
You had to come to Epinions to get the real story.
In Lauren Weber's candy-coated Newsday account of the split-up of Barbie and Ken, she goes with the party line, writing:
"After 43 years of dating, Barbie and Ken have drifted apart," said Russell Arons, vice president of marketing at Barbie and Ken's parent company, Mattel. "There are a lot of successful career women out there who don't want to get tied down."
To further deflect attention from the sad truth, she creates a pseudo-controversy between John Lister, of Butler Consulting, and Arons:
"This pretend-boyfriend thing probably just wasn't helping sales anymore," suggested John Lister, chairman of Lister Butler Consulting, a Manhattan-based brand identity firm.
Arons disputed that version of the story. "The breakup of Barbie and Ken has nothing to do with Ken's sales," she said. "They've been strong all along."
More thorough investigative journalism would have revealed the simple and sorry truth:
Barbie left Ken because Sasha is carrying Ken's baby.
Sasha, one of the original "ghetto Barbies" marketed by MGA Entertainment as Bratz dolls, was candid yesterday when Amber, my friend's 10-year-old daughter, interviewed her on her mother's carpeted living room floor.
"Yeah, he's my third baby daddy," Sasha said, snapping her gum. "We met at the club. I thought he looked good. He was drunk. I told him I was 18."
When asked if she had misgivings about breaking up a legendary relationship, she said, "Barbie always thought she was all that. If she'd of taken care of business at home, this wouldn't have happened. Anyway, he came up to me."
Ken was asleep under Amber's bed upstairs and couldn't be reached for comment. Barbie was seen entering the Betty Ford Center near the couch, and her agent, Ralphy the (live) hermit crab, declined to be interviewed.
Amber's Sasha has her hair pulled back and tied in a blonde-streaked dark pony-tail. Her roots are dyed black. Beneath her tweezered eyebrows is a vast quantity of abalone eye shadow. Her heavily mascaraed large eyes are bluegreen with flecks of orange near the pupils. Her puckered lips are painted with a deep burgundy lipstick.
She stands about 11" tall and has a huge head. Her legs are disproportionately long and clad in jeans that resolve just below the knees. She is wearing a jean jacket over a sequined tank top that fits tight over her smallish breasts. Her hands are tiny, as if to suggest feminine helplessness.
Her feet are removable, allowing rapid shoe substitution. This Sasha is wearing what would be about 7" heels, as is her friend, Meygan. Both dolls' arms and legs move, and their hands are permanently spread outward, as if to suggest a wave, submission, or a struggle to balance on their high heels.
According to Weber's article, Sasha and Meygan are part of a line of "hip-hop dolls targeted at girls ages 9 to 12."
Both look like a caricature of that 13-year-old girl on a street corner somewhere in Vallejo or Jersey City that mothers everywhere hope their daughters never become.
Controversy rages over whether MGA's Bratz dolls should be praised for celebrating cultural diversity (Sasha and Meygan look vaguely Latino to me, but I have no idea what ethnicity or culture they're supposed to represent), whether they might have a negative influence on young girls, causing them to seek out "trashy" looking makeup and clothes, or whether they're a passing fad, both celebrating and poking harmless fun at poverty, disempowerment of women, disrespect for authority, and the never-ending rise in teen pregnancies.
Amber's Betty Spaghetti doll was present during the Sasha interview and offered her thoughts. Betty Spaghetti is Ohio Art's "make your own" doll that actually looks like a little girl, with big, make-up-free eyes, bendable twig legs, and large hands that look like they're ready for playing and learning.
Readers can access Lisa J's excellent review at the following link:
http://www.epinions.com/content_94886399620
It's the only review of Betty Spaghetti currently on Epinions. There are over 20 reviews of the various Bratz dolls.
Betty Spaghetti said, "I love Sasha and Meygan! They're so cool! But I love Barbie and Ken too! Barbie and Ken were so nice to me! They took me to Lion King and Finding Nemo!" Twirling her long, yellow spaghetti hair, she continued, "Sasha and Meygan took me to a movie too. It was called 2 Fast 2 Furious. I loved the cars, but I thought all the arguing and kissing was yucky."
Amber and her friends actually spend more time playing with Betty Spaghetti and her friends than with Sasha and Meygan. The dialog they generate with the Bratz dolls generally revolves around what number "baby daddy" so-and-so is, and whose butts they could kick. Even at 10, the girls appear to understand satire.
Bear, a psychologist bear manufactured by Gund Teddy Bears, Inc., said, "I admit to being a bit distressed by these 'Bratz' dolls, but I think they reflect the current cultural climate. And I don't really think they have the power to adversely affect children. What matters is the guidance parents provide for their children. Do they model good values? Do they listen to their children? Do they pay close attention to how their children are doing, and what their concerns are?"
Betty Spaghetti giggled and said, "Yeah! My mommy listens to me! And she hugs me too!" Sasha snapped her gum and said, "Whatever." Meygan stepped outside to smoke a candy cigarette. Ken, holding his head and descending the stairs, said, "Bear, you're naive. I've been hearing the same crap for over 40 years. And look at me now."
Bear concluded, "Would I buy Bratz dolls for my own cubs? No. But I wouldn't be that disturbed if I saw them playing with them either. Cubs are resilient. They need to be exposed to different things."
Will Ken's indiscretion with Sasha really lead to the end of an era? Time will tell. But I wanted Epinions readers to know the real story, so they could make informed decisions about future toy purchases.
Recommended:
No
Amount Paid (US$): 8
Type of Toy: Action Figure
Age Range of Child: 6 to 8 Years
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