Werepuppy's A Doll A Day Challenge 2020

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I would say that the goth look is still in style, it's just moved with the times - I'm hearing of the latest subculture of e-boys/e-girls which I can link back to emo and scene cultures, which themselves link back to the goth movement in the first place. As for older goths... Well, they put it away and bring it out on special occasions. You learn to adapt and to blend. Mostly because society is widely youth orientated when it comes to the idea of subcultures so the idea of older goths becomes unthinkable in a way that does not necessarily apply to other subcultures - aging punks are allowed, aging goths are not.

With regards to dolls... It's interesting to me to see these alternative style subcultures become integrated into the mainstream. Oh, it's only in small ways and I do believe there was a kick up in regards to a Fashionista having coloured streaks and an undercut, but it's still more than I ever personally saw growing up. It does lead to the question of do subcultures still exist in the public eye, or is it just some hodge-podge of looks that no one really understands? But sociological discussion doesn't really fit on a doll board and I wouldn't know where to start with making a balanced informed argument on either side of this one.

(I still maintain that if BeGoths hadn't folded just before that first wave of Monster High came out, it could have found a brand new audience...)

(05-17-2020, 07:36 AM)Loona Wrote: Ah! A BeGoth! She is lovely, and I really like her hair! BeGoths are super underrated and overlooked... I remember when I first saw a picture of them, it was an avatar of someone on a subculture forum. My doll knowledge back then technically meant Barbie, the girl I had dolls of when I was a child, so I didn't even recognise her as a doll. Nor would I ever have thought she's actually a doll who was mass-produced and not individually customised. I remember how amused I was when I learned there was an actual doll line of edgy-looking goth girls. Wow.

Speaking of edgy, it is indeed weird how her features no longer come across as edgy as they did some time ago - but fashion and general observation has changed a lot in the past 10 years, and many things that have been considered edgy back then are now fashionable, sometimes even mainstream. I'm not surprised doll lines have also incorporated these features into the clothing and personalities of dolls.

Speaking of goth, I don't think it was ever really a big thing - at least not around here. I've been involved with the subculture (as a casual goth, never really edgy) for over 20 years now, and during this time I had so many labels stuck on me incorrectly by non-goths (Depeche Moder, satanist, Marilyn Mansonist, rocker, metalhead, emo, and most recently, hipster. Oh, and in general, a mourner), but never once did someone ask if I was a goth. I can't really blame these people, because the things listed were all things that got above a certain level of common knowledge/noticeability, and thus became terms more widely known, whereas goth never did. And speaking of that, the subculture isn't in an easy situation because aesthetics aside and music in focus, this as a genre can refer to so many things depending on the circumstances, time, place, etc. And I think to many in the subculture, music is really important - but will the fact that you are a goth necessarily mean you can start forming a notable subculture also musically? Well, not necessarily, because your goth friend apparently listens to something else that is also goth, but totally different... (the Wave Gothic Festival held annually in Germany is a great example of this. All performers can come under the umbrella of 'goth', and I have never heard of a third of them, cringe at another third, and the remaining third that I like is still coming from like... 20 different genres. When at the festival but not at a concert, it is quite difficult to meet another goth who will share the same taste in music as yours).

...and yeah, we got old too. At our/their late 30s-40s, many of my past subculture-friends have abandoned the looks or even the subculture completely, and if not, they have become moms and dads, which adds another level of difficulty when one wants to look and behave in a certain way. We do wonder with my husband and the handful of friends who still show up at parties and festivals where the next generation is - they aren't anywhere to be seen, at least locally.

I remember my first discovery of BeGoth dolls... I was visiting Forbidden Planet which, at the time, was my local comic book store and they always had cool collectibles in. I remember seeing these dolls on one of the higher shelves and finding them pretty cool. At the time, I didn't really have enough in the way of disposable income to by myself one, plus it was during those awkward years when people insist - if you're a girl, or at least in my ex.perience - that it's time to put away toys and grow up. ... That's a thing that merits a wider discussion - boys and their toy are accepted for a longer period of time than girls are socially 'allowed' to have an interest in similar things. Hm.