EBay Listings, a Quick Hello, and More Mosi ;)

Hi all! :)  Hope everyone is having a good day.

First things first.  Merida wanted to say hello. ;)  

As some of you might remember, "Brave" wasn't my favorite movie (I didn't hate it or anything, but there were definitely some things about it that I found disappointing).  That being said, when I found this cutie at Goodwill this morning, she practically begged me to take her home.  She promised to be on her best behavior.  And doesn't she look adorable perched up there on my computer tower? ;)

Her hair is a little messy, but to be honest I think it's pretty movie accurate that way, don't you? ;)

Okay, but that's not the real reason I wrote a post today. ;)  I wanted to let all of you know that I have two eBay listings up for those of you who are interested.  The first is my original Hearts For Hearts Girls Mosi doll, and the second is the Batman outfit from my Batman Taeyang doll (his review will be up later this week).  You can see both listings HERE. 

For those of you who are curious, I basically bought the Taeyang doll because he was a good price and I liked that he had a more masculine face than some of the other Taeyangs I've seen out there.  I don't mind Batman, but I'm more of a Marvel heroes type myself, so I figured I'd pass the Batman outfit on and try to regain some of what I spent. :}

The Mosi I'm listing is the original Mosi I ordered from Amazon.  I had a difficult time bonding with her from the beginning.  Her bangs were much shorter than the promo photos, and her hair, while still nice and silky, looked stringier than I was expecting.

Then, earlier this month, I saw another Mosi at my local Target, and I completely fell in love.  Her hair was much softer and her bangs were longer.  She is the one featured in my previous post.  I thought I'd share a few photos comparing the two so you could all see the differences (this won't necessarily help to promote the sale of my first Mosi...but that's okay). ;)

Here are my two Mosis.  My new Mosi is on the left, and my original Mosi is on the right.  What strikes me at once is the difference in their hair.  I also think that New Mosi has a rosier complexion.  

New Mosi's fuller hair and longer bangs give her a soft, sweet look.

While Old Mosi is cute too, her bangs look like someone got carried away with the scissors, and her hair lacks the body of New Mosi's.

It was difficult to capture on film, but I also noticed that New Mosi's bangs were cut from a smaller section of hair...

...while Old Mosi's were taken from just about the entire front half of her head.  I think this makes a huge difference in the appearance, too. 

Here is a side view of the two (New Mosi still on the left, Old Mosi on the right).

Here's a look at their hair from the back.  You can see the differences in shine, body, and curl.

New Mosi

Old Mosi

A view from the other side. 

So, long story short, both are cute, but New Mosi far outshines Old Mosi in my opinion.  Just the difference of her bangs and hair make her look much more like the stunning prototype doll we all fell in love with.  It amazes me how much I LOVE Mosi now.  Before, I had pretty much come to the conclusion that I didn't need a Mosi just because I found her so disappointing. 

New Mosi is sooo photogenic! :)

So, I probably pretty much ruined my chances of any of you bidding on my older Mosi doll, but that's okay. :}  I felt it was important to show the differences.  To be perfectly honest, my recommendation (if possible) would be to purchase a Mosi that you've seen an actual photo of to ensure you're getting one you like.  Finding a Mosi with better hair made all the difference in the world for me. :)

Okay, new posts coming later this week! :)  The posts I actually talked about.  Honest. ;)  For now, I have dinner to fix, girls to bathe, and my local writers meeting to go to. :D 

 Hope you all have a great week!

Merida's Royal Celebration Tee for Girls

Hi everyone!  Just wanted to post this for any Merida fans out there.  Today at Walt Disney World, Merida will officially be welcomed into the Disney Princess royal court.  In celebration, Disney Store is releasing a Merida Royal Celebration Tee for girls with limited availability.  You can see it HERE.

I've always thought it would be fun to attend one of the Royal celebration ceremonies with my daughters...not necessarily Merida's.  Rapunzel's would have been awesome. :)  However, I don't really see that happening any time soon.  We'll be lucky to get to Disneyland, which is much closer and still unattainable at this point. :}

I'm still working on the last bits of my Doctor Who post, which is getting so long that it may have to be a two-parter. ;)  So it's still coming...don't worry.

Last night was our "Ladies Spring Event" at our church.  The theme this year was "Hat Nostalgia", so many of us wore hats and all of the items on the program were hat-themed.  I got to sing "Easter Parade" by Irving Berlin which was rather fun. :)  Oldest Gal hasn't been feeling well this whole week, so she wasn't able to go, but Middle Gal and Little Gal both went.  As usual, we sat with my mother-in-law, which is always a treat. :)  This was Little Gal's first Spring Event, and I must say she did a great job, especially considering that the show is normally about two and a half hours long and doesn't get over until around 9:00 PM.  That's a long time to sit quietly for a 5 year old! ;)

I guess that's about all for now.  I'll be in touch again soon. :)

UPDATE:  A few hours after I put up this post, my husband directed me to this article on Yahoo.  Apparently, as part of her welcome into the official court of Disney Princesses, Merida also received a more "princessy" makeover, and a lot of fans are up in arms.  My husband thought it was rather ironic that Disney/Pixar had a unique character that they're now trying to change to fit their marketing.  In a sense, Disney has become Elinor at the beginning of the movie, forcing Merida to be someone she's not.  And I have to admit that the Merida of the movie would not be too thrilled with this new dress:

What's with the off-the-shoulder stuff and the excessive sparkles?

This one I think at least is a little truer to her original image.  The crossed arms and sideways look hint at her mischievous side.

To be honest, I'm not ready to go sign a petition or go too over the top.  Merida, while unique in her personality, was not exactly someone I'd want as a role model for my daughters, at least until the end of the movie when she finally stopped making excuses and admitted her mistakes.  I do wish Disney had nixed the more curvaceous figure and the off-the-shoulder gown in her makeover.  But let's face it:  sparkles and Disney princesses kind of go together, so I'm not exactly surprised this happened.  I just feel sorry for poor Merida.  She probably ran shrieking from her coronation the moment it was through.  I'm almost wishing I had a Merida doll so she could do a good rant on Belle's blog. ;)  At least in the actual celebration she still got to hold her bow, as you can see from this picture.  

What about you guys?  What do you think of Merida's new look?

Disney Pixar Brave Squinkies Coming Soon

I'm not a really huge fan of "Brave" myself, but I thought I'd pass this along for those of you who are. :)  On the Squinkies.com "coming soon" page, it shows this photo of the upcoming "Brave" Squinkies:

It looks like the set includes Merida, King Fergus, Queen Elinor, the triplets in both boy and bear form, Queen Elinor as a bear, Angus the horse, a target for Merida's archery practice, and one more unknown Squinkie. 

I'm not sure when they'll be released, but I'd imagine it will be sometime within the next month or so.  These made great toys for older kids or great props for your 18" dolls. :)

Thoughts on "Brave"

Well, I ended up being able to go see "Brave" with my hubby after all tonight! :D  Happy Early Anniversary to us! ;)  I thought I'd share some of my thoughts about the movie while it was still fresh in my mind.

This is not the post I thought I'd be writing after seeing Pixar's latest installment.  I've come to expect the best from Pixar:  a solid story with a great message, beautiful animation, fairly clean content, and a few laughs.

Most of these things were present in Brave.  The music was lovely, the animation simply breathtaking (especially the scenery and Merida's hair!!  I heard they developed a special program just for all of those lovely red locks!).  The positive message of family, especially as it relates to mothers and daughters, was very touching and made me want to rush home and hug my own girls.

However, there were several issues I had with the movie that left me with mixed feelings as I plodded out of the theater.  Instead of leaving with a huge grin and marveling over an amazing movie, I was left to wade through my muddled thoughts to try to figure out how I really felt about the film.

Honestly, the story itself didn't seem as tightly wound as some of Pixar's previous films.  It's nothing I can put my finger on...just some parts seemed rushed and some parts didn't seem to gel.  It didn't click for me as much as some of their previous works.  This itself is not a huge problem, and it's possible I might not even feel the same way if I saw it a second time, now that I know what to expect.

As was mentioned in Plugged In's review, there was also a bit more crude humor in this one than there has been in the past.  I think the parts that disturbed me the most were the naked bottoms in one quick but still "blech" scene (Really?  Did you guys honestly think throwing in this cheap laugh was a good idea?  Come on, Pixar!  You're better than this!) and a quick joke involving ample cleavage.  There were a few other small things, but these two scenes were the most disappointing for me.  Like I mentioned, both are over in a matter of seconds, but I still wish they hadn't been included.

I also had a hard time with some of the early scenes between Merida and Queen Elinor.  The two exchange some heated, hurtful words, especially in one scene that's hard to watch as a mom.  Later, Merida tricks her mother in order to try to get her to change her mind about forcing Merida to do something she doesn't want to do.  The princess's thoughtless action unleashes unexpected tragedy as a result.

There is also a witch character who is played more for laughs than for fright, but she still comes across as a bit creepy, and one part involving the character is a little intense.  And for those of you who are not into magic and sorcery, you probably want to skip this film.  Potions are made, spells cast, and a deep, mysterious sense of "fate" and "magic" pervades the entire movie.

This may seem like a small thing to some, and I understand that it was played for laughs, but I have to admit it kind of bothered me the way Queen Elinor "wore the pants" in her relationship with King Fergus.  I realize there are many relationships like this out there, and I do appreciate that Fergus was not just portrayed as a buffoon.  However, I'm getting tired of the constant bombardment of the feminist movement in our movies and TV shows.  It's almost like men aren't allowed to be the strong leaders in the relationship anymore.

And finally, this movie had to be, without a doubt, the darkest, scariest Pixar film I've ever seen.  The "demon bear Mor'du" is one freaky critter!  I would have had nightmares for WEEKS if I'd watched this movie as a little girl from his parts alone!

But worse than the just plain scary parts are the scary parts packed with emotional intensity.  MAJOR SPOILER ALERT!!!  DO NOT READ IF YOU WANT TO BE SURPRISED!!!  One of the things I disliked the most as a mom involved Queen Elinor's transformation.  Okay, so by now, between the previews and the marketing, we all know that the Queen changes into a bear, right?  But what we don't know until watching the film (unless you're reading this spoiler) is that during her time as a bear, there are instances where Elinor forgets her humanity altogether and even threatens her daughter.  I get it from a story point of view...I really do.  This frightening occurrence adds a desperation and intensity to the story, and makes it even more vital that Merida find a way to break the spell.  It also adds a huge emotional layer to Elinor's character as she comes out of her "bear mood" and realizes with horror what she's come close to doing.  But having a mother figure turn into something scary and menacing?  That's huge emotionally, especially for a movie that is mainly marketed for children.  It was difficult for me to watch as an adult...there's no way my daughters would be able to handle the emotional scariness of those scenes.  And let's not forget the scenes later on when Merida tries to convince her dad not to kill her mom (her dad is a mighty hunter and thinks the bear has killed the queen).  Once again, the emotional intensity of those scenes is pretty extreme.
END OF MAJOR SPOILER!!!  END OF MAJOR SPOILER!!!

Now, lest you think I despise the movie completely, I thought I'd share some of the things I liked about Brave.

First off, there are quite a few parts that are laugh-out-loud funny.  Pixar is great with comic timing, and this movie is no different.  Between King Fergus, the adorable but full-of-mischief triplets, and the hilarious lords of the land, there are some great scenes that Hubby and I heartily enjoyed.

Another thing I appreciated was the way the movie didn't go the route of the stereotypical overbearing mother and the stereotypical rebellious teen.  I thought they did an excellent job of making both Merida and Elinor layered characters that truly cared about one another but had lost their ability to connect and communicate.  And I loved the fact that both characters had to grow and change in order to make amends.  More and more, I'm learning as a mother that the best parenting involves training your children firmly, but with love.  And it is vital to spend time with them, hear their side of things when it's appropriate, and try to remember how it felt to be their age.  I think that this message is beautifully conveyed in Brave.

And as I said, the animation is simply stunning, and the music instantly swept me away with its haunting beauty.

So, all in all...I'm not really sure what to say.  I suppose it will take me a few days to figure out all I think about Brave.  I can say without a doubt that I would NOT recommend this movie for young children.  And really, even sensitive older children may have a hard time with some of the thematic elements and scariness of some of the scenes.  (Hubby mentioned as we left that while he enjoyed the movie, it's not one that he would be interested in seeing a lot of times or purchasing on DVD, and not one that he would feel comfortable recommending to most of his acquaintances.)

Sigh...it seems like they don't believe in making kids movies actually for kids anymore.

Have any of you, my readers, seen the movie yet?  What were your thoughts? 

Brave MagiClip Doll Review and a Preview of Other Brave Products

I don't know about the rest of you, but I am getting SO impatient to see Disney Pixar's latest offering, "Brave". :D  Unfortunately, it won't be coming out until June 22nd, so I'm just going to have to wait. 

In the meantime, I thought I'd show you some of the "Brave" merchandise that's been released from Mattel this month, just to whet your appetite. ;)  

This first product is one of the Polly Pocket-sized princess dolls with the new MagiClip dresses (they're hard and clip on instead of being soft and squishy like the older versions).  I found this on Amazon.com thanks to a tip from an awesome Disney Doll Forum which I keep forgetting to mention on this blog.  Now's as good a time as any, I guess. ;)  For those of you who enjoy Disney Dolls, be sure to stop by Disney Doll Lovers and check things out.  It's a proboards site, so you have to register to view most things, but it's definitely worth it. :)

Anyway, this Merida was on Amazon.com for $6.82.  You can get your own HERE. :)  I was interested in purchasing her because, as you all know, my Charlie doll collects stuff from all of the Disney Pixar movies.  I knew that this Merida would be just the right size, and she was the least expensive one I could find. :)

Here she is in her package.

And here's the back of the package.

Free from the box! ;)

I took this picture to show you how the new dresses work.  You squeeze the bottom, and the dress opens up, allowing you to take the doll out.

I appreciate that she has painted on undergarments so she's never naked! :)  I also like the fact that her hips are wider than the typical princess hips.  Yay for a slightly more realistic figure, even if she is still super skinny. ;)

Here she is in her other outfit.  I really like her flowing cape in this one.

I thought it was a great idea of Mattel's to include instructions for putting the dress back together if it comes apart.  My 4 year old has pulled too hard on one of these dresses and popped it apart, so it is definitely a hazard of the new design. 

Charlie loves her new Merida!

She can't wait for the movie to come out, either. ;)

I would give this mini doll a 4 out of 5 stars.  She's very cute and a perfect size for the AG dolls.  My only complaints are that she doesn't really look much like herself, and her dresses are not movie accurate.  Granted, it's probably because long-sleeved dresses in hard plastic would have been difficult to get on the doll, but it still detracts from her overall appeal to me...at least a little.  It's also difficult to turn her head in the dress with the cape, because her hair is so close to her body.  Also, for younger kiddos (4 and under, perhaps?), it might be better to go for a doll with softer clothing.  Either that, or you just need to bear in mind that you'll be helping them dress little Merida...a lot! ;)  And don't lose the instructions on how to put the dress back together.  Trust me on this one.

The other day, I was in Walmart and noticed that several of Mattel's mini doll play sets and larger dolls were in stock.  I snapped a few pics with my cell phone (sorry for the lousy quality) and recorded the prices so you could check them out. :)

First, we have the Brave "Story Gift Set", which includes a mini Merida like mine and a Queen Elinor.  It also comes with Elinor as a bear (you can apparently fit the doll inside the bear body), an extra dress and cape for Merida, and Merida's bow, arrow, and quiver.  As you can see from the packaging, this also features the hard MagiClip clothing.  Walmart was selling this set for $15.97.  

Here's a closer look at some of the details:

Next is the Brave "Castle and Forest Playset".  It comes with the castle, some plastic trees, a few pieces of furniture, and mini Merida and Angus.  Walmart was selling this set for $26.97.

My favorite thing about this set was that it came with Angus (Merida's horse)!!  I have a feeling he'll be one of my favorite characters. :)  I just didn't want to spend $27 so I could have the horse, too. ;)

Now we move on to the Barbie-sized dolls.  This one is the generic Merida doll by Mattel.  She comes with a comb, her dress and belt, a crown, and (I'm assuming) shoes.  Her price was $14.97.

For those interested in more detail, there is also "Gem Styling Merida".  She comes with removable gems to add to her dress, a comb, and her bow and arrow.  I'm assuming she has shoes, too.  Walmart was selling her for $20.97.

Here's a closer look.

And for all of you horse lovers out there, Mattel also released a "Merida and Angus" set, selling at Walmart for $26.97.  Personally, I'd rather spend the extra six bucks and get the horse rather than removable gems and a bow and arrow, but that's just me. ;)  My main complaint with this set is that Angus is a REALLY small Clydesdale.  Either that, or Merida had a huge growth spurt overnight. ;)  I know this doesn't bother everyone, but accurate scale is really important to me (it comes from having a model railroader as a father). 

Just look at this picture of Merida and Angus, and you'll see what I mean:

Now, if someone made a horse like this, I would so buy it! ;)  The plush Angus from the Disney Store is better than Mattel's version, but he's still not perfect.  Maybe I'm just too picky. :}

I have to say that I definitely prefer the Disney Store 11" Merida doll to Mattel's version.  I think that the Disney Store did a better job at capturing her look:

Sorry, I know the difference in quality gives the Disney Store version an unfair advantage, but that aside, the face and outfit are just flat out done better.  At least, in my own humble opinion. ;)  

Interestingly enough, my oldest daughter prefers the Mattel version because she has a "sweeter face".  I'm sure there will be others out there who agree.   

What are your thoughts?  Are you excited about all of the new Brave merchandise?  Are you looking forward to the movie?  Do you prefer the Mattel or Disney Store dolls? 

Talk to you guys later!  I'm hoping to get another post up before we leave for vacation, but I'm not sure how my time will go.  I'll at least do a quick update post. ;)

  

Even More New Brave Merchandise at Disneystore.com!!! :D

Hey guys!  I just popped over to Disneystore.com and saw that they had a lot more Brave merchandise listed! :D  You can see everything HERE.

My favorites are the Merida and Angus set (finally...an Angus that actually looks like he's the right size!), the mini doll set, and the 14" plush Angus.  There's also supposed to be a Queen Elinor 12" doll coming, but she's not on the site yet.  What are your favorites? :)

New Brave Merchandise at Disneystore.com! :D

If you guys are anything like me, then you are eagerly awaiting the release of Disney/Pixar's next animated film "Brave", scheduled to hit theaters this June.  I can't wait to see what they do with this story.  :D

I was super excited when I checked online this morning and found that Disneystore.com had finally gotten in some "Brave" merchandise (aside from the 2 children's t-shirts fearturing Merida that they've had for a while).  You can check out the new stuff HERE.

I love the Merida 12" doll, and the deluxe figure play set has some promise, although I'd like to see it in person first.  Sometimes the Disney Store does a great job with their figure play sets (I LOVE the Hawaiian Toy Story set!), and sometimes they just don't quite get it right (I despise the Princess figure playset...bad face paint, weird face molds...the works!).

Which of the new items are your favorite?  Are you planning on seeing "Brave" when it comes out? :)

New Trailer Up for Disney/Pixar's "Brave"

The newest trailer for Disney/Pixar's upcoming film was released today.  Here's a link:

http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/disney/brave/

So, what are your thoughts?  I'm excited to see the movie.  I think it will be too dark for my girls until they're older (of course, most movies I let them watch have the scary parts edited by Mommy and the remote). ;)  The animation is beautiful (I love Merida's hair!!).  I don't know enough about the story yet to know what I think about it, but it definitely looks interesting.  There's one part in the trailer that I could have done without.  I know crude humor is something a lot of people appreciate, but I am much more satisfied when a movie doesn't rely on that for its laughs. 

Are you guys excited about Pixar's first Princess? :)