Category — Kids' Trends

Pocahontas is a relatively new appointee to the Disney Princess pantheon, but she is one of my all-time favorites. And not just because I “am” Pocahontas, according to the “Which Disney Princess are You?” quiz. Pocahontas is also a favorite because she’s cool, smart, independent and conscientious, yet has some attitude and ingenuity. I am a little disappointed, though, that she doesn’t get as much attention or merchandising as other Disney Princesses. You’ll find Pocahontas on items that feature multiple Disney Princesses, but there aren’t very many exclusively Pocahontas items. I think it would be really cool if there was a Pocahontas backpack and tent set or a Pocahontas fishing pole or snowshoes or something like that, because Pocahontas is very outdoorsy, and it would be great if there were more outdoor toys that appeal to girls.

Here are some more links about Pocahontas the Disney Princess and Pocahontas the historical figure:

• Disney Archives: Pocahontas
• APVA: Pocahontas
• The Pocahontas Myth
• John Smith’s Letter to Queen Anne Regarding Pocahontas
• Virtual Jamestown: Pocahontas

Snow White, like Cinderella, had a long and illustrious Disney career before becoming one of the 6 original Disney Princesses in 2000. I was never really into her because I have always had a weird issue with her dress (I think it’s that crazy collar), but millions of current and former little girls disagree with me on this point, so she remains a favorite Disney Princess. She so popular, in fact, that even Rachel Weisz wanted to be Snow White:

Disney Bridal also has a line of Snow White gowns for women who just can’t get enough Disney Princess action in their lives. None of these gowns suggest Snow White to me at all (or Disney for that matter), but if it works for some people, great. The girls’ dresses are super cute, but most little girls I know will call you on it if you try to tell them it’s a “Snow White” dress, so I’d recommend not even mentioning it to avoid tantrums.

The coolest thing about Snow White is that she (like Cinderella) was an environmentalist and animal rights supporter long before it was the trendy thing to do. Right on!

My apologies that it’s been so long since my last Disney Princess post. With all the news about recalls, BPA and The Baby Borrowers, I guess I got distracted. So anyway, let me resume the Disney Princess discussion with one of my all-time personal favorites, Cinderella. The movie Cinderella is a classic rags-to-riches tale, in which the long-suffering but hardworking and never-complaining girl is finally rewarded by marrying a prince and escaping her awful life. It’s also chock-full of catchy songs like Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo, so it remains a perennial favorite that will undoubtedly be requested at some point by the little girls in your life. Cinderella is also a key part of most Disney Princess-branded merchandise like Disney Princess bedding, so you will most likely become very familiar with her face.

Like the other Disney Princesses, she has parental issues. Her mom died early on and her dad remarried a woman with two daughters from a previous marriage, which was fine and dandy until her dad died and her step-mother revealed her truly evil nature. Cinderella becomes a slave to the step-mother and step-sisters, basically confined to the house by the endless list of chores they set for her. Luckily, Cinderella doesn’t seem to be too effective of a housekeeper, or otherwise she may have exterminated the mice that later go on to help her land the prince. Instead, she talks to the mice and birds and other animals, which are pretty much her only friends.

At some point, the King announces he wants to find a bride for his son the Prince, and so there is going to be a big ball at which all the eligible young bachelorettes in the kingdom can meet said prince. Cinderella of course wants to go but her stepmother wants one of her biological daughters to marry the prince, so they sabotage Cinderella’s dress before heading to the ball. But Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother appears, and with the help of the animals, essentially offsets any of the sabotage, ensuring that Cinderella finally connects with Prince Charming and eventually lives “happily ever after”.

I like Cinderella because I like the underlying message that hard work eventually gets recognized and rewarded, but I am not sure that marrying out of the situation is really a reward. It seems in some ways like a lateral move to me, simply because in either case, there are probably many restrictions about what she can do with her life. But as a metaphoric reward, I guess it will do.

Anyway, the next Disney Princess up for discussion is Snow White, so stay tuned!

Between the Strawberry Shortcake and My Little Pony makeovers, I didn’t think I could get any more depressed. But then I read about the second coming of the Cabbage Patch Kids, just in time for their 25th anniversary. There’s been a new release of Anniversary edition Cabbage Patch Kids with “vintage” hairstyles and facial expressions. The collectible anniversary edition dolls depress me because they call attention to the fact that Cabbage Patch Kids have changed quite a lot since I was a little girl. I really wasn’t aware of the Lil’ Sprouts or the Fun to Feed Baby that “licks” ice cream cones until just a few minutes ago, and I am stunned. They hardly look like Cabbage Patch dolls to me at all.

The Cabbage Patch Kids have also been cross-promoting pretty heavily with Carvel Ice Cream and Burger King, and that sort of bugs me a little too. Since they are CABBAGE Patch Kids, shouldn’t they be “eat 5 fruits and veggies a day” role models? Childhood obesity remains a significant health issue, affecting 32% of American children, and yet children are rewarded for eating junk food with Kids Meal toys and entertained while mindlessly slurping down ice cream along with their doll. That’s really messed up.

It seems like Strawberry Shortcake’s makeover has inspired the folks at Hasbro to give the My Little Pony fillies some superstar styling updates. While not as dramatic and heart wrenching as the Strawberry Shortcake debacle, this is still a bit unsettling to me, mainly based on the celebrities that have been chosen to design the new My Little Pony toys. James Spader, William Shatner and Danny Aiello are on the list, and I can’t help wondering how and why. I mean, I can understand LeeAnn Rimes and Deborah Gibson doing designs. They probably played with My Little Pony toys themselves and have some sentimental relationship with the figures. I can even understand the selection of artists like Junko Mizuno and Catalina Estrada since their whimsical styles seem like they would really compliment the My Little Pony aesthetic.

But what does William Shatner know about My Little Pony? Or Danny Aiello for that matter? And since James Spader tends to play somewhat creepy characters that weird me out, I don’t even want to think about his My Little Pony. Anyway…

Hasbro is also having a My Little Pony design contest that has categories for both kids and adults. There are some great prizes, so check it out. Entries must be submitted by June 30th- the countdown is on!

A word of warning in advance: the PBS Kids’ Word World website is a bit chatty, so adjust your speakers accordingly before you visit. That said, Word World a great educational site that complements the PBS Kids show of the same name. There is also a very cool line of Word World toys for ambitious toddlers. Learning toys like Word World’s awesome dump truck are so fun kids won’t even realize that they are *gasp* educational.

You can call them Barbies and Bratz dolls and fight about the distinctions between the two if you’d like, but I prefer to call them “The First Serious Knock to a Developing Girl’s Self Esteem.” First of all, there is the body type which is biologically impossible to possess without extreme plastic surgery. If Barbie were human, she’d look like a Vegas stripper, and the Bratz’ lollipop heads and stick bodies absolutely scream “severe eating disorder”. Already, these dolls are creating an impossible goal for young girls to aspire to, but the dolls don’t stop at catalyzing body dysmorphic disorder and self esteem issues.

The doll pushers take it a step further and add hooker clothes and matching make-up to the dolls, as if to obliterate any connection to the “reality” of the female body. These dolls are designed for the male fantasy as much as Playboy is, even though they are intended for little girls. I have to admit, though, that Barbie comes across as more of a high-end escort, while the Bratz seem more like the less wealthy but equally slutty friends of Paris Hilton.

I intended this to be more of an informative post than a rant, but obviously I have some unresolved Barbie issues that need to be addressed before an informative post on these dolls can happen. So, more later…

The Cars phenomenon is even better than the Power Rangers for providing child-focused entertainment that adults can tolerate. The movie was nominated for 2 Oscars and actually won a Golden Globe and is packed with memorable celebrity voices like John Ratzenberger and Cheech Marin, which add to the humor of the talking cars. Cars also has amazing animation that somehow hypnotizes children into stillness while the movie is on, then transforms this hypnotic state into a residual post-film Cars obsession. Not content to rest on the laurels of $1 billion + in merchandise related retail sales that Cars has already accumulated, the Disney/Pixar crew is already busy working on a sequel, due in 2012.

This is actually good news for people who have kids in their lives. It means that Cars themed merchandise and parties will continue to be relevant and “cool” with kids for years to come. Some of the cooler Cars items:

The Disney Cars Twin Bed - an update of the classic Silver Spoons race car bed.

Cars Video Games - Mater National Championship is the most recent, but Cars: The Videogame is also a lot of fun.

And of course, there are plenty of Cars toy cars!

For decades, kids have loved the Power Rangers. I have to admit, even as an adult, I really like the wacky Power Rangers costumes and the ridiculous villains and battles, so I find the Power Rangers less annoying than most other kid trends. The Power Rangers also inspire a lot of devotion and loyalty among people who have grown up watching their spandex wearing majesty.

The Power Rangers are teenagers, but I think that is only to lend slightly more plausibility to the story lines. It doesn’t add much plausibility, but at least it is more reasonable than trying to accept children spending all of their time fighting alien monsters without adult supervision. Also, I would imagine there are some laws regarding what kinds of stunts kids can perform for TV shows, and obviously there is no way those stunt doubles would pass for children. Their chronology not withstanding, the Power Rangers otherwise act like smart kids. They are very innocent and noble in their intentions and seem generally uninterested in normal teenage concerns beyond school and fighting aliens. So my overall recommendation is to stock up on some Power Rangers DVDs the next time you babysit and then relax. The kids will be entertained, and you’ll be amused by the sheer camp appeal.

Princess Jasmine first debuted in Disney’s Aladdin, but she since has become a key member of the Disney Princess crew. According to Wikipedia, “Jasmine holds the record for appearing in more media than any of the other Disney princesses, as well as being the first Disney princess not of European descent, plus not to marry a prince (suggesting that’s she is a liittle (sic) less materialistic than the first five).” Talk about raising the bar! Jasmine is a triple threat! Even Jennifer Lopez wants to be Jasmine!

Much like other Disney Princesses, Jasmine’s mother is absent and her father is a dominant, controlling figure in her life. Jasmine is like Ariel in that she chooses to rebel from her father’s attempt to choose her husband. ( Hmmm, another flash of insight…I wonder if there is a link between the headstrong temper tantrums of some little princesses and the headstrong nature of the Disney Princesses…something to ponder…because my nieces can throw some crazy tantrums…) But, at least Jasmine’s demonstrating independent thinking.

Like all Disney Princess toys and accessories, anything emblazoned with Jasmine’s image is bound to be a big success with little girls.