When Mulan was first being advertised as a coming attraction … I found myself looking forward to a new Disney movie. I was pleasantly surprised by how MUCH I enjoyed this movie. I admired Mulan for her courage and her desire. Yes, even though she was a girl she showed all of China what a difference she could make. And boy … did she ever! These are messages I want my own daughter to know and realize. That she can make a big difference in this world and she should always follow her dreams.

So when the Mulan products (toys) began hitting the shelves, I knew that I wouldn’t have a problem with her playing with these. Our only problem was having access to them…


~ Tell me what she looks like? ~

My daughter spent quite a bit of time admiring Matchmaker Magic Mulan before ever actually taking her out of the box. Why? With the excessive prices of toys in Brazil (yes, South America!) it was very rare that one was ever bought there. So when Matchmaker Magic Mulan hit the shelves in Brazil excitement was in the air! That was … until we saw the price. So … my daughter spent a great deal of time gazing upon Matchmaker Magic Mulan on the shelf at the toy store in hopes that one day she would have her own.

My daughter’s luck held, because for her fourth birthday she was given her very own Matchmaker Magic Mulan. With months and months of wanting this doll … she couldn’t wait to get this doll out of the box!

Upon my initial gaze on Mulan, she is an attractive doll with her flowing, jet black hair. But what is that on her face? Why Matchmaker Magic Mulan has her face painted for the big Matchmaking ceremony. She has a soft white glow (as if she got hit one to many times with the powder puff!) to her face with rosy cheeks. While this is attractive, it would be nice to see her al’ natural. But I will address this concern momentarily.

The clothing on Matchmaker Magic Mulan is well done and looks authentic enough for me! Made of a silky material, not only does Mulan have just the one outfit. No, you are able to transform your Mulan from a village girl into a Princess by changing her clothes to a traditional dress. How is this done? With just three simple sets ~

1) Take off her sash, which can be easily removed by pulling apart the Velcro fastener.

2) Undo and reverse Mulan’s skirt.

3) Now take the sash and reverse it also. Then when done, roll down Mulan’s sleeves … and now you have Mulan in her princess outfit!

I found having the reversible clothing to be a great asset to this doll. Why not take advantage of having two outfits for the price of one? When reversing the skirt and sash it gave an entirely new look for Mulan to wear. And the colorful flowered material used was just beautiful.

A quick note about Mulan’s hair. Mulan comes with her long black hair in a ponytail. In fact, she has several hair bands tied in her hair into several areas. Why? Because while transforming Mulan from a village girl to a Princess means that you will also need to change her hairstyle. Pulling the cord located on Mulan’s back quickly does this. By pulling this cord it will transform Mulan’s hair from a ponytail to a bun. I was pleased to see that this actually did work, and has continued to work over repeated use, although … the hair is not as taut in the bun as it once was.


~ What comes with this Matchmaker? ~

Matchmaker Magic Mulan does come with quite a few accessories, which happened to be one of the reasons my daughter was most intrigued with her. She loves to play with the accessories that come with both her Disney and Barbie dolls. (It’s a good thing because she has plenty of them!) :)


~ small bowl w/ makeup puff ~ Yes! This was it ~ the once accessory that my daughter couldn’t wait to get her hands on! The small bowl was maroon in color, yet had many colorful paintings on it. My daughter has had hours of enjoyment pretending to put makeup on her dolls.

~ hair combs ~ A decorative hair comb for both Mulan and your child are provided. The combs themselves are teal in color with a brightly colored flower located on the top (center) of the comb. While my daughter’s hair comb would not stay in her hair (she has very fine hair!), Mulan’s was a perfect match for her hair and is a great decorative touch!

~ parasol ~ Mulan couldn’t possibly go outside without her parasol, so lucky for you … one is included. It does require a small amount of assemble. My daughter was able to assemble by herself but younger children may require some adult assistance. This parasol is another cute accessory for Mulan. My daughter was very pleased because its primary color was pink, surrounded by colorful flowers. If she could find an umbrella of the same design, she would be overjoyed! Please be aware that the end of the parasol could poke an eye if played with improperly. Also, the top portion of the parasol (which connects the parasol and handle together, is a small part.

~ Hair ties ~ While Mullein does come with hair bands in her hair, three hair ties are provided in case the originals are lost. The instruction pamphlet for Matchmaker Magic Mulan give an example on how to wrap around Mulan’s hair if needed.

~ blanket/towel ~ Not quite sure if this is supposed to be a blanket or a towel for Mulan , I decided to see what my daughter would do with it! You know what? It must be for multi-purpose uses because she has used it for both a towel and a blanket for Mulan.

~ shoes ~ All I can say is … Mulan has an awfully large pair of feet! Don’t be expecting to mix/match these shoes with those of Barbie.


~ Any dislikes about this doll? ~

Unfortunately, I do have a few. And I should note here that it is I who has these dislikes mostly, not my daughter.

~ joints in the arm/legs ~ While these joints help aid in Mulan being more flexible, I don’t care for how they look. My daughter changes clothes on her dolls repeatedly. In fact, when I picked up Matchmaker Magic Mulan this morning, she was wearing pink Capri pants with a pink bathing suit top (Please don’t tell Mulan’s father!). The jointed elbows on Mulan did not make a very good appearance.

~ magic face? ~ This Matchmaker Magic Mulan is supposed to have a magic face. Yes, magic! But there is no magic here. In the directions that come with this Mulan, it states to dip the makeup puff (provided) into warm water and apply to her face. This would change Mulan’s coloring on her face. Then when you want to change Mulan’s face back, dip the makeup puff into cold water and apply. I’ve tried it, my daughter has tried it and even my husband has tried it repeatedly. We just can not get it to work! This at first was very upsetting to my daughter, but … she gave in to the fact that Mulan’s face will always be white, and likes her none the less. The directions do state that the color change will last longer if you do not expose this doll to chlorinated water, intense heat or direct sunlight for prolonged periods of time. I can tell you that Mulan was not exposed to any of these, but still failed to work correctly for us.

~ cord on her back ~ While the cord on Mulan’ back is useful to transform her hairstyle, it serves no other purpose. This results in a long black cord with a teal colored bead on the end of it sticking out of all of Mulan’s clothes. When younger my daughter would get annoyed with this, as the cord would get stuck in the clothes while trying to change Mulan. She has grown more accustomed to this, but still hates to have that cord hanging around. I must confess that I have often thought of cutting off this cord, leaving her hair down in a ponytail.


~ My final thoughts ~

As much as I want to recommend this toy, I simply can not. Matchmaker Magic Mulan was not worth the price, even with the reversible clothing! I found the lack of magic changing face and the annoying black cord hanging from her back a big turn off. If I had paid for this doll I would have been even more disappointed.

Yes, my daughter stills plays with it, but I can say that it is not one of her most played with dolls. So I’m sorry Matchmaker Magic Mulan, you just were not a match in our house!




~ Disney’s ~ Matchmaker Magic Mulan … made by Mattel comes with a 2-year limited warranty valid only in the U.S.A. ~




Recommended: No

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