Guess Who I Saw? Plus My Not-So-High Opinion of the New Wave of Limited Editions

Note: this post is somewhat snarky and very disappointed. Just so you know.
While I am not going to purchase her, I got to see Limited Edition Jasmine at the Disney Store! I think she's pretty, but I also feel like the detail and quality of the LE dolls is going down significantly.






Jasmine just feels somewhat gloppy to me, and Aladdin is no different:


http://blog.disneystore.com/

This picture is supposed to make me want to run out and buy him the second he hits stores, but I find it somewhat laughable. His hair is a big poofy mess, he has a ridiculous look on his face, and he is wearing his street rat ensemble... which has been covered in rhinestones and embroidery he would never have been able to afford.

You can do better, Disney Store, I own your Kristoff!

http://blog.disneystore.com/

Jafar is actually pretty well done, which is just wrong. Aladdin is terrible but Jafar is great? You have got to be kidding me!

http://disneydollscollectiblesandmore.tumblr.com/image/126796412090

One of the D23 Exclusive Limited Edition dolls this year was a Red Slave Jasmine. She looks slightly better to me than blue Jasmine, but why are we glorifying her moments of enslavement??? She would have looked lovely in her purple dress, but they send a VERY different message with this doll... and not one that I'm so sure I like.

http://disneylimitededitiondolls.tumblr.com/post/126789610079

Another D23 Exclusive, this Minnie is simple, elegant, and fairly sweet. She doesn't really excite me, but her hair (instead of ears) frightens me.

http://blog.disneystore.com

We in the OUAT Fandom have been requesting dolls since Season One. When the finally gave them to us, they made a D23 exclusive, very small size LE release with faces that bear essentially no resemblance to the characters. *sigh*

http://blog.disneystore.com


When I saw that http://blog.disneystore.com/ was announcing new Frozen Fever LEs, I got a little excited. I loved Frozen Fever! What I don't love? These dolls. They look great at first glance, but if you zoom in on them that changes. The embroidery is very bunchy, the hair is frizzy, and both girls' faces seem empty and somewhat characterless. Also, you can tell that neither girl's dress is made of particularly high quality fabric. Plus... it's the fourth wave of Frozen LEs. I adore Frozen, but even I think that's excessive.

As for the new DFDC sets (you can see them here and here and here) I am VERY disappointed. Ariel's outfit is neat and Snow has a sweet face, but Ursula and Elsa are just scaled down versions of their 16 inch counterparts. Rapunzel looks mean. All of the embroidery is puckered and gloppy. Also, why is Hans with Elsa and not Anna? I understand that that's in part because Elsa is more popular and in part because of the Kristoff and Anna set, but making something like Gaston and Belle or Aurora and Maleficent would have made much more sense. As for Kristoff and Anna... well... I was going to buy them. I had money set aside. I was waiting, anxiously, for pictures to be leaked. I was thinking that they'd look something like this OOAK Anna by Lulemee, with spectacular capes and sweet, slightly scared faces. Instead, they... I don't even know where to begin! I like Anna's dress fine and Kristoff's tunic is okay. Her hair is nice and they have okay faces (nothing spectacular, just fine) but their capes and hats are extremely underwhelming. I'd be willing to get the set for half price or less, but I can't justify spending $130 on something that doesn't have a WOW factor.

Okay, end of rant. Does anybody have a different opinion? Does anybody agree? Please be courteous with your responses. Any uncivil comments will not be published.

MyLittleMegara

Comments

  1. I understand where you are coming from. I've never owned a LE doll. . .but I don't see myself owing any of these. I don't quite understand Elsa with Hans either. Oh well, let's just hope some future dolls will improve. :)

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    1. I'm glad you understand. :) Hopefully a perfect LE will find their way to you! Personally I'm hoping for a Meg and Hades set if they do a second villains DFDC wave.

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    2. That would be awesome! I hope that they'll make a collection for the not so popular girls like Meg, Jane, Alice, Giselle, and so on. I would like that. :)

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  2. First of all, I'm so happy to see a new post from you! So here comes a long-long opinion from me:
    Well I think the Villain - Hero/Heroine couples are OK especially Peter Pan&Hook and the Hag - it's nice to see something new. Maybe they'll even start making classic dolls of them. They look good with those background but the box is just too small for them. And I'll alway laugh whenever I hear Designer Hag. There was a funny picture when this pairing was first leaked and many people thought that it's a funny idea.
    I'm not a collector, I do not want to own any of the LE dolls, they are too expensive for me and I would be afraid that something happens to them all the time. It would be nice to see them once in person though, to have a look at a complete collection. :) I've never seen any of them in person, just the photos.
    Hmm I do not really understand what's the matter with the Frozen Fever LE dolls, I thought they use for every doll the same moulds and only slightly different facepaint.
    Stock photos are often awful, though and the outfits they are wearing are my least favourites.
    17 inch male dolls almost always have hairstyle problems but at least there is enough hair there to fix it, I'm sure we'll se some nicely restyled dolls. Maybe they didn't want to do a big version of the Fairytale couple version and that's why he's wearing that outfit?
    Jafar has an advantage: no hair, no messy or hair or completely wrong hairstyle, no hairproblem at all. His staff is my favourite part.
    I actually like the red Jasmine better but I always thought that they never really captured well Jasmines face. Something is bothering my but I have no idea what it is. Maybe it's her eyebrows and that she looks angry? I can't tell.
    Lulemees OOAKs are alwys very detailed and made with lots of love and that's something a factory can't do: it's just a mass produced doll (even if there are not that many of them) I think the dolls are OK but those capes look awful.Looks like they went and took a mudshower.
    I never was a fan of dolls made to resemble real people they look mostly odd. Again, we must mention Lulemee and other talented artists, they can make even these dolls great.
    There is a rumor about these dolls:
    http://www.spoilertv.com/2015/07/once-upon-time-first-images-of-d23-doll.html
    I'm not sure if it is true, though.
    Forgot Minne, she is OK but nothing special and not one of my favorite characters.
    And last but not least, here is something to cheer you up (and completely spoil and take over your blog) Look who I finally got!:
    http://kepfeltoltes.hu/150804/CIMG6832res_www.kepfeltoltes.hu_.jpg
    Meet Miss Victoria and Miss Dorothea, nicknamed Kiki and Dolly. They are twins in my story and have a really strong bond. :)
    I'm really careful with my two beauties what would I do if they were LE? I was really lucky to get with the help of a really nice person and artist these dolls, Elsa was one of the last old classic dolls and since the old Classic Anna was already sold out, I choose Frozen Fever Anna so she is a little Miss Frogleg with her green legs. But they doesn't bother me as much as I thought they would.

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    1. You bring up some excellent points and I agree that it is nice to see some under appreciated characters like Peter Pan. I was just very unimpressed with the quality of these sets especially compared with previous waves. You're right about the FF LE's having the same molds, but their face ups aren't nearly as... I don't know, I just feel like they don't have the same depth in their eyes as the first three waves? I know that male doll hair is usually an issue, but Aladdin and Kristoff have essentially the same hairstyle and my LE Kristoff's hair is flawless and realistic. Based on the identical price tag and circumstances, I would expect identical quality. Jasmine does look too angry, or at least too sultry, for my tastes. I know that OOAKs represent things no factory can do (I have made a few customs myself) but the appearance of Lulemee's dolls' clothing is generally similar to what I would expect from a LE doll and the "mudshower" capes, as you so aptly put it, don't cut it. I wasn't expecting much of a comparison in the detail of the face up, just a similar expression. In that scene, both characters are feeling very awkward and self conscious but these dolls look too excited. The rumor you found is the actual stock photos of those dolls, and I agree that most human-like dolls aren't well done. I just wish they were. :) The Minnie doll is very easily forgettable... I almost forgot to put her in my post!

      Thank you for posting your opinion, I love being able to have discussions. :)

      Kiki and Dolly are lovely, though I'm a bit confused by Anna's ensemble. Do you know why she's wearing the Mattel dress and the regular Classic Doll's shoes? In any event, congratulations on such a wonderful addition to your steadily growing collection!

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    2. Seems like my first reply to this went missing while submitting so I'll have another go:
      Peter Pan, Hook and the Witch gave me hope that they are willing to make characters like Meg. And Designer Hades! (if there is a Designer Hag, Hades can make it, too, can’t he? *can’t get over that old Designer Hag picture*) Megara could go with Hercules, too and this pairing could in my opinion pass as part of both collections, I mean HeroHeroineVillain and romantic couples. After all, Megara was working for Hades.
      I guess we are tired of so many Frozen dolls bit there are still so many people who want them.
      The Prince Hairsalon is just bad. They can do some nice ones but most of the timeit’s a mess. I read many people complain about Kristoffs hair, too. I’m no judge since I haven’t seen him and his hair in person. Jafar doesn’t know how lucky he is, no hairtrouble.
      I would have been surprisedif they did completely new faces for them but I didn’t believe they would make a Designer Hag or Hook or Peter Pan.
      I meant with the rumor that there will be a second run of these dolls, an online release, but I’m not sure about that and some people are guessing itgot mixed up woth the Villain couple sets release date. :)
      Thank you! I got the ladies through a trade and the dress switch was part of it. I got to choose between the flats and the boots and I picked the boots since I plan to make Annas winter outfit and I can’t make boots mysalf and I thought they look nice evern with her FF dress and last but not least, much less of her green legs is visible. :)But she is wearing now some clothes I made to test patterns From Eternal Snowkiss, if you don’t know them already I can only highly recommend them. The FF dress went to Miss Fiona (the custon lady you christened not so long ago)and she’s very happy with it.
      Now I have to switch to Megs Blog Kik and Dolly are very interested in her story. I guess she has some new fans, and you, too. :D
      I love being able to have discussions, too, but there are so few people around her to discuss these things with.

      http://kepfeltoltes.hu/150817/CIMG7091res_www.kepfeltoltes.hu_.jpg

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    3. I would love a Hercules set... and Classic Herc dolls, too! I'm not necessarily tired of Frozen dolls, I am just tired of the decreasing quality of said dolls. It seems like they have been putting very little effort in recently. My Kristoff has perfect hair but I see where it could be an issue. I somehow missed that part.

      Ahh, that makes sense! Well, her new pink dress looks great. Now I want to go sew!

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    4. I mean I missed the rumor. :)

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  3. I love the Troll Wedding Anna and Kristoff! Their faces are adorable, but their capes are pretty bad. I care the most about how a doll's face looks though, and to me both of their faces are amazing. Are the Troll Wedding dolls 11.5 inch? And are they $130? I'm a little confused, because I've tried to get information on them but almost nowhere has as much information as you do! If you could clear up these questions for me, that would be great. Thanks a lot!

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    1. Hi there, Doll Theorist! I agree, faces are important. Yes, the troll wedding dolls are 11.5 inches tall and they are going to be $130. If you have any more questions, please let me know! I'm so glad you found me. :)

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    2. I've been lurking around on your blogs for quite a while! I first found your blogs through beastsbelle's Belle's Bulletins, and been hooked ever since! You're sort of a blog idol of mine, and I'm so excited to actually be writing back and forth with you! Thank you so much. :D

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    3. Oh, oh my goodness! I am honored that somebody likes my blog that much!!! Thank you so, so much!!

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  4. I think I changed my mind after seeing real photos of FF Anna and Elsa. They are really pretty. I think I like FF Elsa more than the original Snowqueen Elsa since she has less makeup and I'm not a big fan of it. FF Elsa has just the right amount. :)
    When I'll have a job and my own money I'll buy an Elsa so she can be the sister of your Anna. But I guess this is just a dream. :)
    And the mysteri of Aladdins outfit is solved, too: they did a super expensive super limited version of him using the Prince Ali outfit. (It does look like a bigger version of the outfit the Fairytale Couple doll is wearing)

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    1. Personally, I prefer Snow Queen Elsa, but to each his or her own, right? :D

      I remember seeing that... still, I really don't like his face. :(

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    2. Actually I like Elsas look best with bangs so I like the other two LE Elsa dolls better. And if I'll ever be able to get one it'll be the cheapest one. :) But you are right, to each his or her own.
      Maybe a big singing Elsa will be the best solution so Anna can have a penpal. :)

      His face is just odd.

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    3. Elsa does look nice with bangs!! I bet that will be the teenage one released when my Anna was; she doesn't seem very popular. Disney has a new deluxe singing one now!

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    4. She's so pretty!
      And Christmas is coming... but I would be so nervous that I damage her... weren't you afraid of taking Anna out of her box or even touching her? Those gems would certainly love to hop off of the dress and go exploring by themselves
      I have an eye on the singing doll, too, but I dont like her blue hands and I don't really need the singing and lighting up stuff :)

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    5. Yes, I was a little worried, but I knew I'd never enjoy her as much as I should if she just stayed in her box. Her gems are very well secured and I haven't lost a single one! I understand, the hands are a little much on top of all of her other details.

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    6. I wouldn't, either, I'm a deboxer :) I would want to look at her shoes, at her backside and of sourse to pose her...
      I think you take really good care of your Anna :) It's one thing the gems are secured but beeing careful is in my opinion important as well.

      Well, I read a bit too much of Annas blog (and the posts about her here) Here is the result:
      http://kepfeltoltes.hu/151106/ElsaSketch_www.kepfeltoltes.hu_.jpg

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    7. I try. :)

      That sketch is lovely! It actually looks a bit like a friend of mine...

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  5. Well, the newest Limited edition dolls made for the Olaf's Frozen Adventore short have new moulds and new faces and... honestly, they look kind of odd to me and I think the Frozen Fever dolls have prettier faces. The outfits are - as much as I've seen of them - gorgeous. I wish your Anna could dress up in those clothes, she would look perfect :)
    https://c1.staticflickr.com/5/4501/37633781326_f797002361_o.jpg
    https://c1.staticflickr.com/5/4456/37424752890_81236f93a0_o.jpg
    (PS.: I officially started to save up for my Princess Elsa but there is still a long way to go :) )

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