davidd's A Doll A Day Challenge 2020

[davidd]

...is she hunting for skulls & bones too...?

Of course! Skulls, bones, and buried treasure!

How sturdy is the - is it silicone? ...on these bodies? Is it hard to scratch it?

The body is made from silicone, so the texture is quite rubbery. The figures have stainless steel skeletons that are considerably more robust than the plastic armatures of the "seamless" figures released a few years ago. When I first read about these figures, I decided I was not interested because they needed a lot of special care, including being dusted with talcum powder on a regular basis to keep the silicone from becoming tacky or sticky. The new versions are much more like "action figures" in that they do not require as much special treatment, they are sturdier, and they hold poses well. I have not damaged one yet, but some caution is required when posing them because it is possible for the internal armature to pierce the silicone exterior with rough handling.

So far it appears that dirt and dust will easily brush off. I have read that the silicone is prone to staining, particularly from dark clothing.

Is that clay or a harder type rock you have out there?

The soil here is quite loose, sort of a sandy clay, with a lot of stones embedded in it. The soil packs down quite hard, but once broken up with a pick-axe it shovels almost like sand. Surrounding areas are a red limestone. There are also numerous dark basaltic lava rock outcroppings.

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27 September – Mattel Star Wars Darth Vader Barbie

To me, one of the most interesting features of this figure is the extremely Darth Vader-ish shadow she casts!

Other than that... there's not a lot to recommend this figure. Granted, it was designed as a "collector" figure, not a toy, so perhaps my ex-pectations were too high. There's not much "play value" in this figure. She stands in one position and looks beautifully ominous, but that's about it. Both arms are molded in a bent-elbow position, with only limited motion at the shoulder. The legs are typical hip-only joints, further constrained by the tight pencil skirt. The costume is sewn and apparently molded or glued in place. As far as I can tell, it is not possible to remove the hard black plastic corset without damaging or breaking it.

Now that I've opened the package there's almost zero resale value to this figure (which is still extremely common on eBay mint in box), so I'm not sure what I'll do with her. Keep her, I suppose. But the lack of articulation definitely limits her "play value."

And the figure doesn't include a light sabre. I mean, c'mon!