Werepuppy's (Attempt At) Doll-A-Day 2019!

[werepuppy]

The army of emo edgelords is ex²panding! Congrats on new acquisition!

I agree about animated villains being more ex²pressive than heroes. It's one of reasons I often find myself quite fond of them...

Thank you! Hot Toys Kylo is a lot taller than the other edgelords...

Oh yeah, it's easy to fall for animated villains because they show such a range of ex.pression. It's part of the reason I really liked this Heroes and Villains line as they did produced some more - frankly - interesting looking dolls. Even Peter was more interesting than their usual fare. 

Whoa, another Hot Toys addition!  Congrats!  Sounds like you got lucky with the last one at a lower price.  How does he compare to your other Hot Toys figures?
Aren't you even a little tempted to debox Hook & Pan?  They could have lots of adventures in the Room... 

In doll/figure terms? This has been an unusually lucky year for me, and I'm still kind of going "...how?" when I think on it. There is a picture coming showing him next to Diana and Rey but in short terms... just a hair taller than Diana, and he's on the TrueType body, so a bit easier to put into poses. His outfit is the most bulky though, so that's a consideration when posing him. 

I am so tempted, it's unbelievable, but I am being good and keeping them in box.

Congratulations on adding another Hot Toys figure to your collection!

[looks at collection] What even is this year for me...?

Yes, I did mean Christina Henry, sorry for getting the name wrong.

It's okay, I just wanted to make sure there wasn't another awesome author out there who I was missing out on! 

- - - 

248: Designer Heroes and Villains: Alice and the Queen of Hearts

Yes, I know the name plate says Red Queen, but Disney admitted that was their fault, and it was too late to change it. I like that they did stick with her animated look here, in comparison with the Designer Villains range.

[davidd]

That looks like a nicely sculpted version of Alice who would be fun to see interacting with your other figures.

Seriously, Disney (and their manufacturer) mislabeled the box? On a "Designer" line intended for the collector market? They really don't care about anything other than the money, do they?

[werepuppy]

That looks like a nicely sculpted version of Alice who would be fun to see interacting with your other figures.

Seriously, Disney (and their manufacturer) mislabeled the box? On a "Designer" line intended for the collector market? They really don't care about anything other than the money, do they?

Don't. It's so tempting to open her. Why don't Disney make an Alice for their normal life of dolls? She'd sell so well...

Eh, probably not. 

- - - 

Limited Edition 17" Live Action Cinderella

This had actually been a gift from my brother a few Giftmases ago. He found her for less than retail, and was very proud of that fact.

[Jubilee]

I like Alice's apron its beautifully designed. The Queen s outfit is good to lots of details on the clothing. At first I thought their was blood on her apron until I  zoomed in.

[neon_jellyfish]

I loooove Alice and Queen of Hearts (who would have guessed?)!!! And that's just so sweet of your brother! Cindy's dress is beautiful.

[davidd]

At first I thought there was blood on her apron until I  zoomed in.

  Now that you mention it, that does look like blood spatters!

A 17-inch Cinderella? That's... huge! Like, not a scale that matches anything else huge!

She's gorgeous, though! Is she actually a darker skin tone, or is that the lighting? 

"He found her for less than retail, and was very proud of that fact."   That Scots stereotype is a stereotype for a reason, in'nit?

[werepuppy]

I like Alice's apron its beautifully designed. The Queen s outfit is good to lots of details on the clothing. At first I thought their was blood on her apron until I  zoomed in.

Alice's apron is gorgeous and ... you're completely right about how it does look like blood. That's something I never noticed before! 

I loooove Alice and Queen of Hearts (who would have guessed?)!!! And that's just so sweet of your brother! Cindy's dress is beautiful.

Heee, I would have guessed this would have been one of your faves. Honestly, I think it's a real shame Disney haven't opted to make an Alice for their regular doll line. Considering merch from that film tends to be a big seller, and they clearly have a face-sculpt and body for her around... Even if it was just a limited run thing, as in "we're only doing it over Christmas", I still think it would sell well. 

I really was grateful to my brother for this that Giftmas. (Don't worry - I had gotten him a gift of equal value. We're a family of deal hunters.) Cindy's dress is really a highlight. 

A 17-inch Cinderella? That's... huge! Like, not a scale that matches anything else huge!

She's gorgeous, though! Is she actually a darker skin tone, or is that the lighting? 

"He found her for less than retail, and was very proud of that fact."     That Scots stereotype is a stereotype for a reason, in'nit?

Heee. Cinderella fits in with my Tonners - she's 1/4 scale, or MSD sized, though again, fits better with the Tonners due to their more fashion doll like proportions. (So Evangeline Ghastly, Ellowynne Wilde... Not so much Mauds, mostly because she's more child-like. I mean, I guess in that sense you could consider Mauds more 1/3 scale... I'll need to work that out, actually.) Olivia, Jack, Wednesday, and Helena are much taller.

It's the lighting - for some reason a lot of the 17" LE dolls from Disney at this time had this effect on their skin that is sort of like a shimmer effect? Only it can make them look like they're just sweating a lot. Anyway, it can either photograph really light or really dark, and no amount of adjusting seems to fix it. Unless you live somewhere that has guarnteed beautiful natural light. 

LOL. Also helps we're a family of deal hunters, especially around big holidays and birthdays. 

- - - 

250: Limited Edition 17" Moana

I got sad when this girl came out. There had been an LE Frozen release around the same time, and it sold out fairly quickly. Moana here sat on the shelf for a while. Don't know why, she's gorgeous. (If it had been now-ish, when the market has cooled a little, I would understand, but this was a couple of years ago when it was still fairly in the stages of selling out quickly.)

She's the last of my LE Disney dolls. I doubt I'm likely to go for the new designer line this year unless it doesn't sell too well and there's some left, but considering the Glasgow store is the only Scottish store to get them in, I doubt that'll happen. Still, I am very fortunate and grateful to have what I have, and I love the ones I have.
 
If I ever get lucky enough to find the LE Merida doll, I will be so pleased, because she's my grail LE Disney doll, but that's always a back-burner type thing.

[neon_jellyfish]

Big Moana is so pretty! She looks really well-made!

[davidd]

From what I can tell from your photo of the in-box figure, this looks like the nicest Moana figure I have seen! But then, I rarely see Disney Limited Edition figures. I don't know if there's a Disney store within a thousand miles of where I live.

[For the sake of accuracy, I looked up the locations of the nearest Disney Stores. There are actually six of them roughly equally distant, about 200 miles / 300km, or a four hour drive, away.]

As for Moana being a shelf-sitter compared to the Frozen characters, that was the case here even with the mass-market playline dolls. Frozen, and particularly Elsa, became some kind of mania, to the detriment of all other dolls and figures from any franchise or manufacturer. I don't understand it, m'self. When I finally watched the movie, I found it kind of meh. And Anna was actually the heroine and the star, not Elsa. I guess there's something about sexy blonde evil (although she wasn't actually evil) chicks that appeals to... kids, adults... I guess, everybody.

Plus, Frozen was a mega-hit movie. Moana... I dunno. I haven't seen it, and I didn't see much about it, not pre-release trailers, not online comments, no "buzz" at all. I don't know if it was good or bad, but apparently audience response was indifferent at best.

My impression, based on observing online responses, in-store toy releases, and general public response, is that, generally, Disney movies based on "classic European style" fairytale stories, whether actual fairytales or in the Euro-centric fairytale style, like Frozen, tend to generate more interest than "non-Euro" mythology, history, or legend-based stories like Moana, Pocahontas, Mulan, or Aladdin. I know these movies all have their fans, but when it comes to toys and "collector interest," well, nothing beats Frozen-mania, and the non-Euro character toys tend to sit on the shelves longer. Could be over-production on the part of Disney, too, when it comes to the toys and figures. The marketers always seem to ex-pect each new movie to outperform the previous one, and they ramp up production based on those ex-pectations, so the "appearance" of toys being shelf-sitters might also be related to the unrealistic ex-pectations on the part of manufacturers and retailers. Ex-pecting each new release to outperform the previous release is unrealistic.

(I know Lilo & Stitch was non-Euro and was hugely popular with commensurate tie-in marketing success, but that was not really a "fairytale" or "historic" type film; it was a crazy comedy about a space alien.)

Sorry, just rambling. Anyway, I want you to take your Cinderella... I must admit to feeling somewhat disappointed to learn that she is not actually a "Malibu Cinderella" with a golden-bronze tan... figure outside on to the back... porch? Patio? Verandah? Stoop? Deck? Portico? Piazza? Garden? Yard? ... well, outside, under the beautifully diffused-by-constant-overcast Scotland skies and snap a pic under what passes for natural light in your dreary northern latitude so I can see the "color-changing effect" of different lighting conditions. Pretty-please and thank you!

(Speaking of which... summer is almost over, and you said you would try to take some of your little crew out and about to show us some of the local countryside. I'm still hoping you have a chance... or a sudden, uncharacteristic burst of enthusiasm for life in the great outdoors... to do that.)

((Largely unrelated: I see that there is a new Addams Family animated film scheduled for October release here in the States. Will it be opening over there as well? Have you seen the trailers? What do you think?))

[Lejays17]

All the LE dolls you’ve shown recently are gorgeous. And Cinderella really does lokk like she’s got a deep tan, so it’s interesting you say is a product of the light you’ve taken the pic in.

[Alliecat]

Ooooo... I would definitely take her out of the box. I really liked a lot of the movie... the animation was just gorgeous. The Polynesian theme, the music; not so much the little "creatures", but... I should watch it again.
Cinderella looks quite mature here. And again, maybe just the lighting, but she looks a little angry?

[Elfy]

That Moana looks fantastic.

[werepuppy]

Big Moana is so pretty! She looks really well-made!

One of the extra awesome things about Moana? She's got a slightly thicker body than the other Disney dolls - they did attempt to keep her in line with her animated self. I know that sounds so silly to be excited about, but considering the majority of fashion dolls are all within the same relative size of each other, and the Disney Princess line the only really differences come from face sculpts, this difference is huge.

From what I can tell from your photo of the in-box figure, this looks like the nicest Moana figure I have seen!

As for Moana being a shelf-sitter compared to the Frozen characters, that was the case here even with the mass-market playline dolls. Frozen, and particularly Elsa, became some kind of mania, to the detriment of all other dolls and figures from any franchise or manufacturer. I don't understand it, m'self. When I finally watched the movie, I found it kind of meh. And Anna was actually the heroine and the star, not Elsa. I guess there's something about sexy blonde evil (although she wasn't actually evil) chicks that appeals to... kids, adults... I guess, everybody. 

Anyway, I want you to take your Cinderella... I must admit to feeling somewhat disappointed to learn that she is not actually a "Malibu Cinderella" with a golden-bronze tan... figure outside on to the back... porch? Patio? Verandah? Stoop? Deck? Portico? Piazza? Garden? Yard? ... well, outside, under the beautifully diffused-by-constant-overcast Scotland skies and snap a pic under what passes for natural light in your dreary northern latitude so I can see the "color-changing effect" of different lighting conditions. Pretty-please and thank you!

((Largely unrelated: I see that there is a new Addams Family animated film scheduled for October release here in the States. Will it be opening over there as well? Have you seen the trailers? What do you think?))

Honestly, I think Disney have been overplaying the Frozen mania far too much. When it comes down to it, the story isn't that unique in their catalogue - as you mentioned Lilo and Stitch, I will point out that the emotional crux of that film was centered entirely on the sisters. Even the non-romance focus of Frozen wasn't new - Brave did it the year previously and actually better to my mind - Anna still ends up in a relationship, Merida remains single. Even the suitors thing in Brave was Pixar deliberately riffing on 90's Disney Princess tropes - in Aladdin, Jasmine setting her pet tiger on a prince looking to win her hand was just a comedic aside, and her opposing tradition is see as such a good thing. In Brave, Merida trying to oppose tradition almost causes war. You know, like it actually would.

I will attempt to Cinderella outside and get pictures. This 'summer' has not actually been great weather wise, and the few days that have been okay, I've sadly been too busy with so much other stuff to get anyone outside and get photographs taken. We're not getting the sun long enough to set up for any type of photography - even stuff in my back garden. I mean, typical of Scotland, really, but I was really hopeful to get some stuff done this year. 

((We've got an October release date too. Overall thoughts.... It feels like a by the numbers plot that you would guess people would use for Addams Family media - OH NO, SOMEONE NORMAL HAS MADE FRIENDS WITH US! Frankly, the musical played it in a more interesting way if only because they completely subverted what people would have ex.pected from Wednesday Addams falling in love, and also Lucas Beineke is a delightful addition to the cast of characters really. I do appreciate that they have chosen to animate using the old New Yorker comic strip designs. Voice acting... hit and miss. Some would work better as live action versions of the characters. Overall? ... I think I will get a giggle or two, but I'm not ex.pecting anything much.))

All the LE dolls you’ve shown recently are gorgeous.  And Cinderella really does lokk like she’s got a deep tan, so it’s interesting you say is a product of the light you’ve taken the pic in.

If I get a day that is even slightly better than it is right now, I will move to an area that has much better natural lighting and try to get a clearer picture of her.

Ooooo... I would definitely take her out of the box.  I really liked a lot of the movie... the animation was just gorgeous.  The Polynesian theme, the music; not so much the little "creatures", but... I should watch it again.
Cinderella looks quite mature here.  And again, maybe just the lighting, but she looks a little angry?

LOL, honestly for my LEs, I really love how they look in the box, so there isn't as much drive to debox. It helps that for Moana, they did actually create a nice 'scene' for her in-box, so that she does come across as more of a display piece. (Actually, I have seen parents buy these dolls for young children to play with. At the cheapest, these LE dolls start at maybe £72 in the UK. Generally they're more around the £100 mark. That... does not scream child's play toy to me...)

Cinderella is based on the live action portrayal by Lily James. For some odd reason, all the Disney dolls made her look a little angry. It makes no sense - Lily James' portrayal of the character was always cheerful, or at least always putting a smile on to face the world. If this had been a doll of Lily James' take on Elizabeth Bennet then the anger would make sense. I will just not understand the choices here. 

That Moana looks fantastic.

She is a fantastic doll. 

- - - 

251: The Hot Toys Line Up

As Allie asked for it, here's Kylo-Ben with Diana and Rey. As we can see, he's just ever so fractionally taller than Diana - mostly because actor Adam Driver is crazy tall. Does mean there is an accurate height difference between him and Rey, which is always good for photo-stories and the like, even if it can make making it look like they are looking at each other a bit harder. 

He's on a TrueType body, so there is visible articulation. Or rather, there is if you can get his outfit off as he actually has the bulkiest and most layered stock of them. I really should take a picture of him with my Medicom Anakin, because it's honestly just hitting me now that there is a deliberate similarity of look between them. I mean, more than the inherent ridiculous nature of Kylo trying to emulate the worst parts of his Grandfather, that is. 

Diana still wins as being the heaviest of the figures, largely due to her internal steel skeleton.

[neon_jellyfish]

That's great that Rey and Kylo have proper heights. I kinda wish Wondsie was taller than Kylo, because 'majestic Wonderwoman scolds tiny emo edgelord' scenes would be a lot of fun...

[davidd]

Are you saying that Kylo-Ben wears a multi-layered, bulky uniform to disguise his otherwise scrawny, unimposing physique? That should come as no surprise, I suppose.

I bet he has tall soles and heels on his boots to add height, as well.


It will be interesting to see how you "bring this figure to life" in the context of The Room.