"Oh Ken!!!! I'm afraid, the poufy sleeves and hair-do don't do a thing for your image ... "

I was surprised and amused to hear my hubby make this comment (in a comically sweet and lispy voice) as he untwisted the zillionth plastic coated twist-tie while attempting to remove Prince Stefan from his cardboard and plastic entrapment on Christmas Eve night. But I have to agree with him, at least on the hair! The costume is exquisite and beautifully detailed (at least as much as can be expected for a $14 toy and not a collectors item) ... but the hair ... OH MY!!!! I'm quite certain that given the choice, Prince Stefan would be spending much more time with Prince Eric and Interior Designer Steve and Hair Dresser Ken than he would with silly ole Rapunzel Barbie. But thankfully, our 5 year old Skye has made no such cynical observations ... in her eyes, Prince Stefan is truly a manly man prince charming ... the perfect companion to her beautiful Rapunzel.

Handsome Prince? or total frog?

Ken as Prince Stefan is definitely a typical story book handsome prince. Tall, muscular, but trim, with blue eyes and blond hair he is sure to delight any young princess! He is dressed in a regal outfit of shimmery ivory pants topped by an equally shimmery royal looking top of beautiful blue, ivory and gold. The sleeves are noticeably poufed, the waist is cinched and belted and the back which velcros closed is designed to allow easy access to his ‘speech button’. The prince’s outfit is completed with gold lame’ boots, a gold tone sword and shield, and a golden crown. The set also includes a masquerade mask.

Prince Stefan can be posed into a sweeping bow, but cannot be posed on bended knee. His head and arms can also be posed and turned manually.

As noted, this Ken doll has synthetic hair as opposed to the more common molded and painted hair that most Ken dolls sport. While the ‘real’ hair is in some ways a nice addition and goes along with the whole hair-related concept of the Rapunzel story line, I personally think that perhaps the molded hair styles are a bit more flattering and dare I say manly? Prince Stefan’s thick coarse blond locks are cut in something resembling an early 80’s disco king semi-shag do. Not too shaggy nor too many layers, but perhaps a bit too long and too poufy (think, the Hardy Boys in need of massive conditioning treatments) And I have anything against long hair on a man … LOVE it in fact … but the pouf of blond on Prince Stefan is a wee bit off in my opinion, I’m sure a Fabio-esque mane would draw even more negative comments than the shorter do that Prince Stefan sports … but it might be more flattering. Of course, most 5 yr old Barbie fans will probably think that he is just as handsome as can be!!!!

Why did you purchase this toy?

Long before Christmas Eve rolled around, my hubby and I had vowed that this would be a ‘no-Barbie’ Christmas … vehicles, play sets, clothing, pets and any other Barbie related gifts were okay, but with dozens of usually unclothed and poorly groomed Barbies scattered throughout every room of our house, our cars, and Nana’s house there was just no need for yet another new Barbie. Mattel had other plans! Just in time for holiday wish list making, they introduced Rapunzel Barbie … and all her many friends. Skye received the Rapunzel video as a gift in October, so naturally Rapunzel and Prince Stefan went to the top of her Christmas list. And naturally, Santa didn’t want to disappoint one of his two most favorite children! Rapunzel, Prince Stefan, and even Penelope the mighty dragon magically appeared beneath the Christmas tree on Christmas morning … despite my futile vow of ‘no new Barbies’. * sigh *

On the up side ... as luck would have it, while doing our Christmas shopping I found all three main characters for $14 each at our local Target! Not a fortune of a savings, but a full $5.99 each less than the on-line prices I’d seen on the characters … and enough of a savings to allow another gift to fit within our Santa budget.

How long did your child seem interested in the toy?

Skye has played with Prince Stefan, and the other Rapunzel characters she received, every single day since Christmas. Admittedly this has only been a week or so, but I don’t see her interest in the dolls waning one bit. She plays with them within the context of the Rapunzel storyline, but she also incorporates Prince Eric into various other imaginative play with her other Barbie and Ken dolls, vehicles, houses, and various accessories. Would a prince REALLY be serving ice cream from a beach side ice cream stand alongside a pink hair Jam-n-Glam Teresa? Maybe not, but this one sure seems to enjoy the change of pace! * lol*

Skye has always noted that she has WAYYYYYY more Barbies than Kens … so it’s nice to have at least one more manly man (even if he does have wussy hair) to add to the population! I’m sure he’ll be taking on many more male roles in the coming months or even years.

What did your child seem to like or dislike about it?

As noted, the simple fact that Prince Stefan is male, is enough to make him a valuable addition to Skye’s Barbie collection, but there are additional features that make him even more likeable!

The most noticeable of which may be the recorded phrases and voices that can be activated by pressing a button on the prince’s back. Just like in the story, Stefan asks Rapunzel to throw down her hair, he also tells her, in a very sincere voice, that he loves her, he asks her to accompany him to the masquerade ball, and he makes a distinctive and recognizable kissing noise. The clip of wedding music goes along with the story line very well, but in a way seems oddly out of place coming from the prince’s body … after all, it isn’t a phrase or sound that he actually would make. Skye surprised me by making the observation that “the kiss should come AFTER the wedding music, because they play the music before they tell them to kiss!” I placated her by saying that they also play music when the bride and groom walk out of the church, but I still think she thinks of the music as being the wedding march when the bride enters.

All in all, I think that Prince Stefan is a wonderful addition to Skye’s Barbie and Ken (and Teresa, and Kira, and Kelly, and Crissy …) collection! She seems to be very pleased with him and has already had hours and hours of creative and imaginative play with Prince Stefan and the rest of her new Rapunzel collection. I’d recommend Prince Stefan as a nice gift purchase for any die-hard Barbie fan or collector regardless of age.

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Do you have a Barbie freak in your house or on your holiday shopping list too? Then you might enjoy these additional reviews –

Lending Santa a helping hand with Mermaid Fantasy Barbie


All About PVC Fetish Barbie ... er ... uhm ... I mean Star Splash Barbie

Barbie And Krissy Stroll 'N Play

Fashion Photo Barbie

Bead 'n Beauty Barbie

Bath Boutique Barbie

Wash 'n' Wear Barbie

Jam 'n Glam Teresa Doll

Picture Pockets Barbie Doll

McDonald's Barbie And Kelly

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 14
Type of Toy: Action Figure
Age Range of Child: 3 to 5 Years