NEWS: Rainbow High Series 2

RAINBOW HIIIIIIIIIIIIGH. 

I'm pretty excited about these. You might guess that because I'm making the pictures huge in this post.

I'm not sure where they turned up first, but they're clearly promo images, so it doesn't really matter. They're not the creation of anyone besides the company. 

So Series 2 consists of 6 characters just like Series 1. We've met one of these 6 already: Bella Parker, the pale pink girl. 

In this post, we'll look at 4 of the remaining 5. Wherever these were found, the indigo girl was left out, but she's the one that's gone through the most changes, so it's possible her photos aren't done yet. The poor thing doesn't even have a set name yet. Is she Jett Dawson? I hope not. Is she Krystal Bailey? That's a little better, but still. I'm holding out a smidge of hope for a less generic name. 

SO. This girl is Karma Nichols. We saw a sneak peek of her not that long ago. 

I've already heard complaining that she's suddenly a lot lighter in skintone, but I'm giving that the benefit of the doubt. A lot of these promo pictures are lightened. That doesn't mean the doll is. 

I am going to stop for a moment to note a pet peeve of mine. I've seen a horrible trend lately of people saying these look like white girls with a tan. Like because Karma is a little lighter here, she suddenly can't possibly be POC. I find this disgusting. POC come in a huge range of skintones and none is more or less valid than another. Just shut up about it. 

ANYWAY.

I absolutely love that Pizzazz-colored long straight hair. It is gorgeous. 

She has the best eye makeup hands down. 

I love the darker lips, but I wish they weren't glitter-encrusted. Ew. It's a small price to pay for the rest of her awesomeness though. 

BROWN EYES. Beautiful. They don't all need to have blue or purple eyes. 

Outfit-wise, I love every single piece SO MUCH except for the generic white top and the socks. Those will get tossed aside. I don't hate the socks. They'd be cute with sneakers. Just not these heels. 

I've seen people complain about her skirt length, but...skirts exist in a variety of lengths. All mini all the time is dead boring. I prefer longer. This is an interesting combination of two lengths and I love it. 

I love all the different materials she's got going on, too.

Karma is definitely the one I'm most excited for!

Next up, I've got to go Stella Monroe. Stella made her webisode debut on Friday and she was adorable. I may also be a tad biased because her voice actor just happens to be one of my old friends from the heyday of doll-collecting life on Livejournal. We're talking waaaaaaaay back before Monster High and all that. Pullips, y'all. And Winx Club. So I'm super excited that she's getting to voice a character with a doll!!! 

Stella normally might not be my cup of tea, but she's really pretty. Pink pink pink isn't my thing, yet both she and Bella are so well-styled that it doesn't matter. Both pink dolls have some of the best overall outfits in the line. The only piece of Stella's I don't care for is that little white cover-up top and that's mostly because it would cover up one of the cooler pink tops. Both of her skirts are gorgeous. I like her socks, too, but yeah, they're coming off. 

I love her hairstyle and the blend of pinks, and her makeup is lovely, too. And the little beauty mark!  

Someone in the show better make a joke about the pink girls being Bella and Stella. It just writes itself. Come on, MGAE. 

The name Stella will always remind me of Winx Stella, but this doll is different enough from her that I might just start thinking of her, too.

Ah, the line's first boy. A lot of people are saying he looks young and he does, but not in a bad way for me. I think he's very cute. He's definitely got some Bratz Boy vibes going on. 

So his name is River Kendall. We were talking about this over in the Facebook group I'm part of and laughing. Kendall sounds like Ken Doll. First RH boy, Ken was the first male doll for Barbie. Then we've also got River. River was one of the earliest My Scene boy dolls. The shorts are even a snake print, which hints at Deuce Gorgon, the first MH boy. Not sure if it's coincidence or MGAE poking at Mattel, but if they're trying to poke, all they're doing for me is giving me some serious Mattel nostalgia. 

River's got some nice outfit pieces there. The white tee and socks are dull, but the rest is fun. 

Now this one was a big surprise. We'd all heard that Amaya Raine was going to be a "pastel rainbow" theme, but all she is is a smaller version of the big Rainbow Surprise doll. Not that I'm complaining because she's gorgeous. Her makeup is second only to Karma's. It's excellent. And her hair looks pretty. I'm excited to buy her, while I was bored by the first Amaya. 

Her main outfit is cute, though the shoes and socks are a tad boring. But the second pair of shoes will swap in nicely. That cheerleader uniform will be on her for fast photographs and then chucked in my storage box. It's nice that they gave it to her to fit with the upcoming cheer line, but it's still dull. Thankfully, her first outfit is so great, I'd never take her out of it anyway. 

So those are our first real look at RH Series 2. Minus 1. Who's your favorite?

REVIEW: Kitten Catfe Series 3

I wasn't in a rush to get any Series 3, but when I saw them in Walmart, I grabbed a couple. I like Kitten Catfe, but they are starting to get a tad bit samey. 

This series is bubble tea. I do love that the cups are designed for kids to actually use them. 

The straw comes out of each cup and it's a stamper. There's a white cover inside to keep it covered when not in use. 

Then there's a round ball the meowbles are in, a checklist, a pouch containing the figure, and another pouch with the clothes and accessory. 

I got Lady Purrtea. I do like her hair and I'm always a fan of the patched ones. 

Not sure where the frilly purple bit is supposed to go. She's not shown with it in the art. 

The meowbles this time are translucent. At least my two are. 

And this is Honey Tea Tea. Same hair mold, also a patched cat. Sigh. I mean, they're both cute, but I was hoping for two more different ones. 

I do love Honey's outfit though. Every piece is really cute and the composition notebook is also cute. 

I'll get more of these, though I'm not sure when.

PHOTO CREDITS: Mine.

PRE-ORDER: Hello Kitty & Friends

I saved the four Hello Kitty & Friends dolls in my Amazon wishlist and I saw a few minutes ago that they were up for pre-order. I clicked each listing open in a new tab, but none of them worked. If you click on them now, you just get that Amazon error page with a cute dog on it. But I was able to hit "pre-order" and order all four from my wishlist itself. So they're sort of available for pre-order and sort of not. 

Release dates are saying December 23rd for everyone except Jazzlyn, who's December 30th.

REVIEW: Enchantimals Zadie Zebra

Zadie wasn't supposed to come out til December, but she made a surprise early appearance. 

I don't mind that this is a second zebra character, because she's completely different than the first one, Zelena. 

I'm a sucker for crimped hair, so you know I like this. I recommend keeping it partially tied back though like in the art. I had it loose and a lot of the pieces rose up into flyaways, so it's best contained. 

Ref is super cute. And a great name. 

Insert my usual complaint about the hole in the back of the head.

I love every bit of Zadie's color scheme.

She fits in perfectly on this shelf!

PHOTO CREDITS: Mine.

REVIEW: Rainbow High Series 2 Bella Parker

I got Bella after returning from vacation. 

Right off the bat, I've gotta say she is not my favorite character or design. The rainbow does not have pink in it, so bumping indigo out of the core group of 7 to replace her with pink pisses me off. Indigo is always the forgotten rainbow color. And pink, as you all know, is not exactly my favorite to begin with.

However, Bella really is gorgeous. 

The Series 2 lineup: fuchsia, pink, chartreuse (I'm calling it that anyway), teal, indigo and...pastel rainbow. (Ugh.) 

If you haven't seen the sneak peek of Karma Nichols, the chartreuse girl, look her up. She is stunning and my new favorite RH. 

First outfit: Jacket, skirt, cropped tee, knee-high stockings, headband and heels. I didn't photograph the earrings because they're boring and clear, so they would have just blended into the rug. Why not pink, MGAE? Come on. Clear. Yawn.

Watch out for the earrings in the box, too. Some people have reported only getting one earring. One of mine was in her ear and the other down by her feet, so they're not very secure.

Second outfit: Dress, jacket, stockings and heels. 

Basic RH accessories: Stand, comb and two hangers. 

I washed the gel out of Bella's hair and she's been hanging out air-drying since like Monday afternoon. Her hair came out nicely though. I did like the wavier style of it in the box, but without the gel, it turns into sleek hair going into waves at the bottom. I can't stand gel in the hair, so this is what all the girls I have to wash out will turn into, I guess. 

Her first outfit is okay, but not my favorite.  

It works a little better without the jacket. Sassier. 

This is so cute! Definitely one of the stronger RH looks without having to mix and match between both outfits. 

Getting the shoes on over the stockings wasn't fun though. How do people redress these dolls so often? I hate the shoe struggle. 

I don't care for her first outfit shoes, but these are cute. 

I did not think this jacket went with this outfit, but it surprised me. I actually really love it. 

People take the hands off these dolls, but I've also seen broken hands, so I'm trying to avoid doing it. I managed to get both jackets on with very little struggle, so it's possible!

Bella honestly surprised me on the whole. I'm still really against the idea of bumping indigo for pink, but she is one beautiful doll. Her entire color scheme is perfect and she has possibly the strongest outfit pieces. I think they would all go well together in any possible combination, which I can't say for the other girls. 

I'm really hoping to have Karma Nichols soon and as my next RH review!

PHOTO CREDITS: Mine.

IN BOX REVIEW: Monster High Skullector Grady Twins

I was one of the lucky few who got at least one of the MH Skullector sets off Mattel Creations when they first came out. 

So this here is the print that only the Mattel Creations releases come with. It's pretty big. No idea what I'm going to do with it. 

I'm not deboxing these dolls. They were too expensive to open, but they're also presented really awesomely, so I'm not ruining that.

Here's the outside of the box. The two panels swing open like doors. 

Back of the box. 

Closer shot of the writing, so it's actually legible. 

Here's the box with the front panels swung open. Naturally, they don't stay open very well, hence the LOL box holding one side. 

The hotel presentation is really cool. I hope I can figure out a good way to prop the doors open when I have the box displayed properly on top of one of my bookshelves. 

The more evil twin on the left is so badass! I love her. The one on the right sadly is wonky, but these are so impossible to get hold of and so expensive that I can't see myself being able to replace the set. It's not too horrible anyway. 

Love the hatchet hairclips.

And here are some of the smaller details. Now I want to reread the book. I haven't in decades.

PHOTO CREDITS: Mine.

REVIEW: Enchantimals Snowy Valley Rainey Reindeer & Odele Owl

 
Ah, now this review was a long time coming. I've had Rainey since mid-August, but I wasn't happy with her face, so she's been sitting in my room unopened. I intended to buy another quickly, but that fell by the wayside and she went out of stock. So when she finally came back in recently, I quickly bought two. They arrived today and only this one had a decent face and even hers isn't really centered. The second one looked a lot like my first one and they'll both be going back to Amazon. 

Rainey's ponytail did not survive deboxing. It stuck out weird anyway and I prefer her hair down.

She's sort of like Enchantimals Midge. Or Enchantimals Cady Heron. 

Rainey's deer friends. Both the smaller ones have the clip/hole in the back so they can be held. I still wish they'd stop that. 

The carrots are what was in the little secret pouch.

And here's Odele. I held off on ordering her and then she went out of stock, so I jumped on her when she came back in. Poor thing sat in our package hub for a week before I got her out, since she came in way earlier than I told Amazon to send her. 

Her wings are separate, sort of like a feathered cape. 

I'm glad I did not totally sleep on her. I thought Rainey was the only one I really wanted, but I actually like Odele a lot better.

Her owls are SO CUTE. Especially the white one. only the cream one has the clip/hole. 

The ice creams were in the secret pouch. 

A little better makeup shot. 

Love them both and they have me wanting more now. Need to resist.

PHOTO CREDITS: Mine. 

REVIEW: Cave Club Bashley

 
I've got 4 reviews to spread over tonight and tomorrow, so I opted to tackle two tonight and two tomorrow. 

The first is the one I wanted to do most. 

Meet Bashley! She's the newest addition to the Cave Club lineup. (I'm still hoping they'll sneak Ruly in here somewhere.)

Like Rockelle, she was $15.99 on Amazon. Same packaging style, too.

Better...sort of...shot of the art.

I LOVE Snare.

Accessories first. Comb, Snare, hairclip and keytar. 

The top of the keytar slides in and out so you can make it different lengths. 

LOVE.

She's just so perfect.

Oh, look, it's an instrument the doll can actually hold and look like she's really playing it. 

Yes, that's a hard side-eye in the direction of MGAE.

Her hair is kind of twisted up and held back into one larger ponytail on her left side. 

While this small amount on her right side is loose.

I love everything about her. Literally every single detail. Sorry, Roaralai, but Bashley's bumped you to second fave.

PHOTO CREDITS: Mine.

NEWS: Mattel Barbie Extra line

I wasn't wowed with any of the three previously shown Mattel Extra dolls. The afro puff doll is cute, but I hate the outfit with a passion. The blonde is okay, but nothing special. The curvy pastel Asian girl is really pretty, but her outfit is UGH. Although her makeup is making me consider her now that I'm getting others from the line. 

Which others? 

The two new ones they surprised us with today. 

This gorgeous curvy blue-haired darling is #4. I love her hair, her eyes and her freckles. The outfit is actually cute, though some of those accessories have to go. 

And this stunner is #5. I'll be redressing her completely, although I don't totally hate what she's wearing. I just don't think it's worthy of a doll that beautiful. 

Someone in the Rainbow High Facebook group I'm in asked if we thought Mattel was doing okay in the face of other doll lines and their superiority. 

Yes. I think they're fine. While not every offering is for everyone, you can count on Mattel for diversity. Because as nice quality as Rainbow High is...and don't get me wrong, I do love them...they all have the same body and the same face and they practically had to be forced into giving a character a darker skintone. It's important to remember that there is no such thing as the perfect toy company who always gets it right.

Oh, and by the way, these two are currently sold out on Amazon. So yeah, Mattel's probably doing okay.

REVIEW: Cave Club Rockelle (basic)

Mattel surprised us yesterday by putting up a bunch of new listings and some were even in stock! 

I scooped up the new Cave Club basic dolls. Rockelle is here today, Bashley comes tomorrow. These cost $15.99, which is a little more than the regular basics, but they come with a hair extension barrette that the regular ones don't. Seriously not okaying that costing $3 more, but if it's the only way to get new releases, I'll pay it. 

The style of box has completely changed. Rockelle came in that small individual shipper inside a padded envelope. The outer box is in the above picture. It's completely enclosed, making it impossible to see the doll until you open her. I'm not positive, but this seems like something never meant to go on store shelves. These might be online exclusives. 

Inside, the doll is on a thin cardboard liner. 

Rockelle's accessories are the aforementioned hair extension, a comb, a diary and a Teddy-Rex plush toy. 

That Teddy-Rex alone is worth the $15.99. SO CUTE.

The diary opens up. 

Rockelle is very cute. She's wearing a one-piece romper.

Her hair is similar colors to the first version, but the style makes her look much younger.

Here are both versions. They really do look like siblings more than different versions of the same doll. 

I'm not brushing out the new one's pigtails. I like how curled they are and I know they wouldn't look as cute brushed. 

Comparing faces! Both adorable. 

Hopefully I'll be back tomorrow with Bashley. 

PHOTO CREDITS: Mine.