Wow, I'd completely forgotten about this draft post until my previous post about the miWorld set (in which I used Eugene and Rapunzel from this set). I apologize in advance for the less-than-stellar pictures...this was in my earlier days of photography. :}
It seems rather cruel to review a set that is next to impossible to find, but maybe some of you will be able to find a set of these on a secondary market somewhere.
This mini set was released shortly after the "Tangled Ever After" cartoon was released with the theatrical re-release of "Beauty and the Beast". The set was a Disney Store exclusive and included a blonde, pre-haircut Rapunzel, Eugene in wedding clothes, brunette Rapunzel in her wedding dress, and Mother Gothel. I'm not really sure why Mother Gothel was in this set since she was already dead at the time of the TEA short, but then again, blonde Rapunzel was non-existent in the film, too. ;) Each doll is approximately five inches tall.
The back of the box featured this fun artwork from the cartoon.
Mini classic Rapunzel is very similar in looks to her 12" counterpart. She has long blonde hair, green eyes, and freckles. She wears a very simplified version of her movie dress.
Her highlights in her eyes are quite large.
Mini Wedding Rapunzel sports a super simplified version of her wedding dress, a wedding veil, and white slippers that come off way too easily. :} Her hair, while not quite movie accurate in style, is at least brunette and short. ;)
Mine has kinda wonky eyes.
Mother Gothel is really well done for such a small doll.
I had this really awesome idea to use her as a tiny villain for Belle's Bulletins, but I never got around to it. I kind of regret that I didn't follow through with the idea...it could have been really funny. Imagine being angry and evil yet only half the size of the dolls you despised. ;)
Now we come to Eugene, probably my least favorite doll from this set.
His facial detail is great, and his body is done well. They're just not great together. Think his head looks too big here?
Well, how about now?
I love Disney Store dolls, you all know I do, but I'm sorry...this seems like a lazy production decision. I'm sure they could have come up with a better design than this. :{
I thought I'd share a couple of comparison photos between this classic mini Rapunzel and my earlier version that came in the mini playset. The mini Rapunzel from this set is on the left, and the earlier Rapunzel is on the right.
As you can see, the dresses are very similar, although my first Rapunzel's dress has a higher bodice and lace trim at the hem of the skirt.
Their faces are similar (they were even more similar before I removed the freckles on my first mini doll). :} You'll notice that the newer Rapunzel has eyelashes, while the older one does not. This is consistent with the Barbie-sized versions of the dolls and how they changed.
The newer Rapunzel's hair is longer and does not have the iridescent strands of the older Rapunzel's hair.
Overall, this is a fun little set that makes a unique addition to any Tangled collection. I'm giving the set a 4 out of 5 because I really don't like what they did with Eugene's head (although the high neck of his shirt covers the worst of it). I also would have loved to see Wedding Rapunzel's hair done a little more accurately. Still, it's a neat set that is now very hard to find, so I don't regret getting it for my collection. :)
More posts to be released from the vault soon! :)
Ooo! you should totally do a special on the mini villain's exploits! That would be fun!
ReplyDeleteThat would be fun...I'll have to see what I can do. ;)
ReplyDeleteBeastsbelle, there's a restock on the Disney store website for Frozen merch; The mini dolls, figure play set, Olaf plush, and Hans doll are included. Hope this helps!
ReplyDeleteI just found out Elsa is going to be in Once Upon a Time! I don't watch that show but I thought this was kind of exiting! ��
ReplyDeleteThese are neat--I like Mother Gothel the best, but they're all pretty nice looking mini dolls. She would be funny as a tiny villainess--although size isn't everything (Chucky, Gremlins, etc. are pretty scary and they're short).
ReplyDeleteI think one of the reasons that they don't do brown-haired Rapunzel's locks "right" is because rooted hair is difficult to do well when it's that short--unless you put lots of styling goop in it, she'd probably look like a little girl took a pair of scissors to her hair.
Do you have any interest in the LEGO Disney Princess sets? I believe you've mentioned in the past that your daughters like the LEGO Friends toys. Here's three brief reviews of Little Mermaid, Tangled, and Brave sets:
Reviews
You've got to scroll down a bit to see them, as he's reviewing a bunch of toys at once.
I really enjoy this line, too. I'm hoping to snag a set of the Frozen mini dolls the next time they become available through Disneystore.com. :)
ReplyDelete*Shudder* I will NEVER watch Chucky movies or I will have to get rid of all of my dolls. I'm not interested in seeing Gremlins, for that matter. I think the old stop motion animation is even creepier than computer animation. And that sort of stuff that exhibits pure evil in such a way is just not my cup of tea. My Mother Gothel would be a more family-friendly villain if I decided to go with that plot line. ;)
I totally understand the difficulty of getting Rapunzel's short hair to look right. It would be great if someone could figure something out, though. I think I'd almost prefer hair "goop" if it gave it a more accurate look.
I do like the Disney Princess Lego sets. I was able to snag a Rapunzel mini set for about $4 at Walmart...it's still waiting to be reviewed. ;) I'd love to get some of the other sets, but the prices are a bit more than I'd like to pay.
Thanks for the info! :)
Whoops! Sorry, Anonymous and Gracie...I missed your comments!
ReplyDeleteAnonymous, thank you for the update on the Disney Store. I missed this restock by about an hour. :{ Maybe next time. ;)
Gracie, I saw the clip from OUAT and am not surprised they're deciding to use such a popular character for the show. I just hope they don't make her the villain, because that was the feel I got from the clip. :( I know she was a villain in the original story, but I'd rather keep ELSA the way she is. I guess we'll just have to wait for Season 4 to find out...
Yeah, LEGOs are indeed expensive (have you seen the $200 Simpsons house set?) The standard "value" assessment that many collectors go by is that one brick = ten cents, so, if a 50-piece LEGO set costs five dollars, or less, it's a good deal, if it costs more, it's not.
ReplyDeleteGood grief!! I haven't seen that set.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the tip on the pricing. My brother was the one who had all the Legos growing up, and the girls haven't done much with them, so I'm totally out of my depth when it comes to Lego sets. :}