Amazon and Ebay Goodies, and Your Opinion Needed! :)

Okay, I totally succumbed. to temptation.  I went on Amazon.com last week and they had my Mattel Prince doll for a good price...so I bought him.  I also found a Belle book in the Disney Princess chapter book series that I've been wanting to try, as well as a book I remembered from my high school years.  My order came in the mail today, along with something I'd purchased on eBay.  Yay!  It was like Christmas in February!  So, without further ado, here are the pics.

First I'll share my eBay order.  I found this lot of Disney Tangled postcards.  I knew they'd make great posters for my dolls, and they were so cute! 

I love how this one looks just like the movie poster.

Emma and Hailey are very excited about their new Tangled posters! :)

Here is the Belle book I found.  It should be just about the right reading level for my oldest daughter (she's a big reader), so after I've read it first I'll pass it along to her. :)  I'll be sure to tell you what I thought of the story.

This is a book, as I mentioned before, that I remembered really enjoying in high school.  It's all about a girl named Katelyn and her experiences when she moves to a new town.  The story is written in journal form, from Katelyn's perspective, which makes it interesting.  I'll reread it and share my thoughts. 

And now we come to my Prince doll.  It's funny, there are some things I really like about him, and some things that were a disappointment.  Sound familiar?  Maybe I'm just too picky.  Would it be too difficult for someone to make a high quality doll that also looks nice?  

Anyway, here he is in his box...

...and here's the back of his box.

He's nice looking, but in his photographs he tends to look rather somber or even a bit snooty. His facial features are more delicate than my other Prince doll's.  His hair is molded, and although it gives the appearance of the Prince's hair overall, it does not have a ponytail in the back.  

His clothes are not the greatest quality.  His jewel looks nicer than my other Prince's, but the material is pretty shoddy.  I doubt it would hold up well to hard play...especially if he was played with by someone like my girls.  They change their doll clothes about every 5 minutes or so! :}

 

He has jointed elbows, which is nice.  My biggest disappointment with this doll, though, is that he has the same hollow, hard plastic legs that many of the new Ken dolls have.  It makes them easier to dress, but much lower quality.  After posing him for the pics I took, it already felt like his hip joints were wearing out.  I don't think he'd last long for a child.  

This cracked me up when I first opened his box.  He came with instructions on how to get his Beast's head on.  After I'd tried it though, I wasn't laughing nearly as hard.  It is no picnic getting this guy in his Beast's head!  I see now why they opted for jointed elbows.  I don't think you could get him in his head without them.

I like the Beast face and the way it is painted.  That's about the only positive thing I can say about it, though.  Getting the Beast's head over the Prince's head is a real chore.  I probably won't have him wear it again.  It's such a tight fit that I run the risk of taking paint off of the Prince's face or hair. 

Also, as you can see from the pics, there's a pretty big gap between his head and his shoulders.  Hmmm, seems it's a common problem with newer Beast dolls.

This side profile shot is a hoot.  Realistic looking?  I think not!  Looks like the Beast went on a diet!  If he was in a hard wind, he'd fall over, he's so topheavy.

And how about these stick arms? 

Okay, so lets just move on.  I've included some comparison pics of the two Princes:

So my overall thought is that my new Prince is nicer looking, but Robby (my old Prince) looks kinder.  My original thought was to use my new Prince for my Disney Store Belle doll, but now I'm not so sure.  I'm curious what you, my readers, think.  Which doll should Belle choose?  Robby, or Ben (my newest Prince)? 

And don't worry, whichever doll doesn't end up with Belle won't be alone.  I have a vintage Mattel Belle doll that's single. :) 

To help you decide, here are some pics of Belle with each Prince. 

And here are pics of the Princes with my older Belle doll.

 

What are your thoughts?  Would Belle (in the green) be better with Robby or Ben?  I'll take your opinions into consideration as I work on her story.  Shhh...just don't tell her we're voting on her future over here. ;)  She was already mortified enough posing for the pics.  :)

P.S.  A few thoughts on the Princes.  Maybe Ben is like Mr. Darcy:  stern at first, but wonderful once you get to know him.  And Robby may not be the most handsome doll, but he has a kind face.  He seems like the type that would be very caring and sensitive. :)  Okay, now you guys are getting scared by my weirdness.  But you have to figure out a doll's personality before you can develop a story for them. :)