Monster High Review: Frankie Stein

[leia131]

I mentioned in my last MH review that I bought Frankie and Clawdeen at the same time, and that was because I couldn't decide which one of them I wanted more.



Frankie Stein, 15 (days), daughter of Frankenstein. (Ted Mosby would like to take this opportunity to say that, technically, she's the daughter of Frankenstein's monster, not Frankenstein, but whatever.)

Posing like her namesake.

I would kill to have that dress, and her school girl/punk rocker vibe really appealed to me. In fact, I should probably take this time to mention that even though I only have three Frankie dolls (and the Ghouls Rule ones don't get costume changes), Frankie has the most clothes. I have loved almost every outfit ever made for a Frankie doll, and someday I will RULE own them all! Seriously though, her outfits are the best, imho.

If I had to pick a focal character of the Monster High franchise, it would probably be Frankie. The impression I got from the diaries of the first line of dolls was that the line was kind of about Frankie being the new ghoul at school (and that was the name of the first movie/special too) but I've only seen that one webisode, so I could be totally wrong about that. Frankie, being new to the world, is a little naive and wants to experience everything. That makes her really sweet, and probably one of the most popular characters.

Also, the doll version of Frankie is pretty damn awesome. Her skin is a faint green color (like the classic Frankenstein monster) with stitch details on her arms, legs, and face. Her lip color is a really striking dark red that I looooove no one else really has. She also has bolts in her neck (kind of hard to see in that pic, but I swear they're there), and black and white hair that is surely a reference to her mother. If you knew nothing about MH, and you picked this doll up somewhere, you would probably be able to figure out that she was somehow related to Frankenstein, but at the same time it's not overdone. Mattel walks a fine line there sometimes, but I think it works well more often than not.

Frankie's pet is a dog (mostly) named Watzit that either she or her father built. He's supposedly made from many different creatures, but he's basically a dog with spikes and wings. Another thing of Frankie's that I wish I had.


Showing off Watzit's wings. You can see Frankie's bolts better in this pic, too.

You may also notice that one of the straps on Frankie's shoes is broken... Yeah, what can I say, I'm hard on thin pieces of plastic. Her tiiiiiiiny bracelet is still intact, what more do you want from me?

Besides the breakdown, that is.

Theme: Well, it's interesting with Frankie. In later versions, Frankie's theme is either lightning/electricity, or construction/sewing (you'll see, trust me), or both. This version, however, seems to mostly have the theme of 'school spirit' as she is displaying the Monster High logo on her earrings, tie, and purse.  Also, plaid. Frankie likes plaid, which is probably the main reason I'm so in love with her wardrobe.
Evidenced in: Lightning bolt on her belt, plaid dress.
Favorite thing about the doll: Her eyes are different colors, which took me ages to notice, even though it's pretty obvious. It's a little detail that makes her unique and that I really like. I think I had a made up character once with different colored eyes, but I also think she never made it out of my middle school notebooks, so.
Least favorite thing about the doll: I'm really struggling to think of anything. Frankie is flawless! Umm, ok, umm, well, her hair does have a little of that glue issue I discussed in my Clawdeen review.
Favorite thing about the outfit/accessories: Versatility. Every doll I own looks good in Frankie's dress; it compliments every color scheme. Also, her black and white shoes go with everything.
Least favorite thing about the outfit/accessories: Her earrings. Not only are they not very creative in comparison to most of the other dolls (since they're just the MH logo), they also don't really seem to match anything else she's got on.

Bottom Line: Basic Frankie's outfit is a little less detailed/themed than some of the others, but the doll herself more than makes up for that. Also, even though the dress reads a little like a school uniform, it has just enough punk rocker flair to be really kick ass. If they made this dress in Megan size, I would totally buy one. If you can get your hands on basic Frankie (for less than the $75 she's selling for on Amazon right now, sheesh) you should definitely check her out. If not, there're lots of different versions of her for your buying pleasure. (The Ghouls Rule one is abundant right now, and has a totally killer look, but that's for a much later review.)

Comments

[wolfgenes.livejournal.com]

oh my god, she's so beautiful ;___; ♥ ♥ ♥

[leia131.livejournal.com]

Thanks! You're new to MH, right? There are A LOT of Frankies you could pick up if you're interested in her, and they all have a slightly different charm. :)

[wolfgenes.livejournal.com]

i am new~~ i only have one doll though. my biggest problem is how expensive they are here /o\ the cheapest dolls are around $40, but you can even find ones for, like, $170. it's kind of insane :|

[leia131.livejournal.com]

Oh yeah, I've heard that doll collecting in other countries can be a lot harder than here in the US. I have, however, mailed a doll to Belgium for someone once, so if there's one you absolutely have your heart set on, we could maybe work something out. Because I guarntee it will be less than $40, yikes. :D

[wolfgenes.livejournal.com]

but isn't shipping like, the most expensive thing in the world as well? /o\

[leia131.livejournal.com]

Umm... I think it was only about $10 from here to Belgium, don't know about Brazil. Not nearly as much as I'd thought it would be, in any case.

[wolfgenes.livejournal.com]

oh my god, megan!! this is a fantastic help, thank you so much!! ♥ ♥ ♥ as soon as i have some extra money we can arrange this then, yeah? THANK YOUUUUUUUUUUUU♥♥♥

[leia131.livejournal.com]

Awesome! I also wanted to suggest that you maybe keep an eye on mh_marketplace (http://mh-marketplace.livejournal.com/) if you don't already. There's a lot of stuff for sale there secondhand (and therefore cheaper) and people from all over. :D

[amyofaquitaine.livejournal.com]

I love Frankie!!! (You're right about her being the centerpiece of MH, at least in the beginning. In the webisodes, they do eventually even it out so that there's more of a "Core 5" thing going on with Frankie/Draculaura/Cleo/Clawdeen/Lagoona.) And I totally agree that even if you knew nothing of MH, you'd know she had SOMETHING to do with Frankenstein just by looking at her, which is a plus in my book since IMO he's "THE" monster. As a whole, I think the Frankie dolls are some of the most well-done ones. I always love her hair, especially when it's long & straight. But then again, that Ghouls Rule Frankie is so over-the-top & her hairstyle is such a nod to Bride of Frankenstein (errr, her mother lol)...that's probably my favorite Frankie. I do like the B&W one, though, too! (I was counting last night & I have 17 Frankies. That's a bit ridiculous lol.)

Love these reviews, keep 'em coming!!!

[leia131.livejournal.com]

I think there has never been a Frankie that I didn't like, but I've resisted buying them all because I also need money for food and rent. ;) Also, I think her hair might be my favorite hair design of all the girls... If they made one with super long hair like DDG Spectra, I might actually die.

Are there doubles in your Frankie collection? I tied to come up with 17 different ones, but I only got to 15 (which is... well, Mattel likes her too, don't they?)

[amyofaquitaine.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I have some doubles to wear the fashion packs/extra clothes from the I ♥ Fashion set (I'm not big on changing their clothes a lot, so I got cheap naked doubles on ebay or mh_marketplace to wear the extra clothes & be put on display). I try to style the extras' hair differently so they look like 'different' versions of Frankie. My list...
Basic Frankie
DotD Frankie
School’s Out Frankie
Sweet 1600 Frankie
Gloom Beach Frankie
Skull Shores Frankie (B&W)
Skull Shores Frankie (color from the SS 5-pack)
Classroom Frankie
Day at the Maul Frankie
Dead Tired Frankie
Roller Maze Frankie
Ghouls Rule Frankie
I Heart Fashion Frankie
Scary Tales Threaderella (Frankie)
Skull Shores Frankie (wearing Frankie’s Day at the Maul Fashion Pack)
Dawn of the Dance Frankie (wearing Frankie’s Scream Uniform Fashion Pack)
Gloom Beach Frankie (wearing one of the extra outfits from the I ♥ Fashion set)
Roller Maze Frankie (wearing one of the extra outfits from the I ♥ Fashion set)

[leia131.livejournal.com]

Yup, that is a lot of Frankies. :) I've actually been thinking of trying to find some nude dolls to wear some of my extra outfits recently... But for some reason I never thought to try on Ebay.

[amyofaquitaine.livejournal.com]

I've paid no more than $12 for any of my nude dolls. And that includes shipping because I search for sellers who do free shipping on eBay lol. I have a nude Draculaura (because I bought 2 of the first Dead Tired ones, one was for a friend who asked for it but then ended up buying it for herself ooops), so hopefully they'll come out with a fashion pack soon so I can dress her!