Monster High Review: Forbitten Love
Apr. 29th, 2013 11:40 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
leia131This is a very special Monster High review, because not only did this set come with two dolls, but it also introduced to me my very first boy doll.
Well, they do, and I own a bunch of them. As a preface, when I first got into MH, I wasn't really into the boys. There are a variety of reasons for this (which I will discuss in more detail when I review Deuce, because it just fits better there) but suffice it to say that it took me a while to buy a boy doll. And, in fact, I didn't even buy the first one myself; Andrew bought this set for me for my birthday.
Anyway, I saw the promo pics for these two, and I was in love. Draculaura's outfit is all button themed, her pigtails are so cute, and polka dot tights! Also, for once, I was like... I MUST HAVE THE BOY DOLL. Plus, even though I hadn't seen any of the webisodes or movies at this point, I was charmed by the idea of a vampire/werewolf romance that wasn't Twilight. And finally, because of my undying love for Clawdeen, how could I not also collect all her siblings?
Here they are, just come home from the store:
For starters, how awesome is that box? The perfect blend of pink and blue, but the blue is actually teal because full on blue would probably be too cliche. I just really love the art on this box. (I also love the color teal, so that doesn't hurt.)
Here's a picture I took of the pair of them fresh out of their package:
Draculaura is every bit as as adorable in person as she was in the pictures. I quite like Clawd too, but Andrew's first impression was, "Whoa. Is she a vampire or a beard?" Whatever, Clawd is fabulous and he's not ashamed. You have to be a snappy dresser to date Draculaura. And, indeed, they are a couple, which is why this set is (although not officially, I don't think) referred to as 'forbitten love'. MH and I both love a good pun.
So. Let's take a look at Clawd, our new character, first.
Clawd Wolf, 17, son of the werewolves, brother of Clawdeen, and all around cool... wolf.
Clawd is pretty damn awesome right off the bat, because his name is excellent. It's maybe too similar to Clawdeen's, but real life parents do stuff like that all the time, and how could Mattel resist that obvious pun? As far as his outfit goes, his shoes slip right off (which is a definite plus, because both Deuces have shoes that are a HUGE pain in the ass to remove), his clothes all match, I love the teal color, and his hat is removable (another big plus.) Without the hat his ears look a tad oversized, but I think that's also a cute detail on a character who otherwise seems quite confident. He is young, after all, like a puppy with paws that are too big. Under the hat he has real hair, which I have to say I did not expect; Mattel makes Ken, after all, he of the plastic coif. Real hair is a really nice touch though, especially for a werewolf.
Also, even though he's ridiculously thin and lithe, there's something undeniably masculine about his design. It might be the sideburns, the big shoes, his large watch, or a combination of his looks and clothes, but he's definitely all man. (Well, maybe the ascot isn't super manly, but then again maybe it's a bandana. You know, like robbers would wear.)
ANYWAY, I love Clawd's hat. I love that it's removable, I love the color, I love that he can tip it like he is in his art, and I love that you can put it on other dolls (Yes, some of my Clawdeens have worn it. NO REGRETS.)
Clawd also comes with a pet, his very own gargoyle bulldog named Rockseena. (I don't know how Rochelle feels about him having a gargoyle as a pet... Has that ever come up?) This is, sadly, probably one of MH's weakest pets. It's a dog pet for a werewolf, which is a little weird, it's a gargoyle for no reason I can discern (if there's a link between gargoyles and werewolves, I don't know it) and her name isn't even all that great. Also, the figure is extremely top heavy, so she pretty much falls forward on her face at every possible opportunity. It's ok though, because Clawd is still awesome. And, we still have another whole doll in this set!
Here Clawd is demonstrating his ability to both tip his hat to you, and hold hands with Draculaura, even though (unlike the girls) the first MH boys didn't have articulated wrists. They do have articulated ankles though (unlike the girls) so that's... almost a fair trade? (Not that the girls should have articulated ankles, because they wouldn't be able to stand or get their tall shoes on.) The newer MH guys do have articulated wrists, so I guess I wasn't the only person who thought that'd be a good idea.
In that picture you can also see Draculaura's freaking adorable outfit, with the button details on her shoes and dress and earrings, and the wicked bright pink and yellow color scheme that I usually wouldn't like but which Draculaura is totally rocking. She also has extra perky pigtails, which are not only super cute but also functional! Behold:
Remember when Mattel released Basic Draculaura, and she came with an umbrella (because, vampire), but it was closed and I was like, "how awesome would it be if her umbrella opened?" Yeah, well, Mattel heard me. And you know what? It is awesome. However, it's kind of hard for her to hold it up... unless you balance it on one of her perky pigtails. See? Functional.
Here's Draculaura from the side, so you can kind of see her earrings and shoes better. The earrings are buttons with bat hearts dangling from them (like so) and the handle of her umbrella (which is removable, for easier storage) matches. The heels of the shoes are made to look like a stack of buttons, and I don't think it will come as any great shock that I wish I owned these shoes in Megan size. I'm also impressed with how Mattel manages to give Draculaura outfits that are totally appropriate for a vampire (that is, they cover up all her skin) but that still look youthful and so cute you could barf.
Breakdown time!
Theme: Pink and buttons for Draculaura, teal and, well, teal for Clawd.
Evidenced in: Draculaura's shoes, earrings, dress, and polka dotted tights, Clawd's hat, ascot, and belt.
Favorite thing about the doll: Draculaura's perky pigtails, Clawd's giant adorkable ears.
Least favorite thing about the doll: Draculaura's bangs are a little stiff? I don't know, I don't really have a lot of bad things to say about her, and she's not drastically different from basic Draculaura. For Clawd it's got to be the lack of wrist articulation, since it makes it a little hard for him to put his arm around Draculaura in any sort of natural way.
Favorite thing about the outfit/accessories: Draculaura's umbrella, Clawd's hat.
Least favorite thing about the outfit/accessories: I like the design of Draculaura's shoes, but they tend to fall off her feet and are too big to stay on without tights. Clawd's ascot/bandana never lies flat and usually just gets in the way.
Bottom line: This pair of dolls is nearly flawless, totally adorable both as a couple and on their own, and were an excellent birthday present as well as a great way to break into collecting male MH dolls. I would highly recommend them... But because boy dolls tend to be comparatively rare, this set is selling for an absolutely ludicrous $175 on Amazon at the moment. You never know where you'll find a second hand set though, and they're well worth a little extra money. (Not that much extra money though, yikes.)
Song quote for tonight: Fly the ocean in a silver plane, see the jungle when it's wet with rain
Answer to last Monday's song: Larger Than Life, by The Backstreet Boys. No one guessed this. :(
Well, they do, and I own a bunch of them. As a preface, when I first got into MH, I wasn't really into the boys. There are a variety of reasons for this (which I will discuss in more detail when I review Deuce, because it just fits better there) but suffice it to say that it took me a while to buy a boy doll. And, in fact, I didn't even buy the first one myself; Andrew bought this set for me for my birthday.
Anyway, I saw the promo pics for these two, and I was in love. Draculaura's outfit is all button themed, her pigtails are so cute, and polka dot tights! Also, for once, I was like... I MUST HAVE THE BOY DOLL. Plus, even though I hadn't seen any of the webisodes or movies at this point, I was charmed by the idea of a vampire/werewolf romance
Here they are, just come home from the store:
For starters, how awesome is that box? The perfect blend of pink and blue, but the blue is actually teal because full on blue would probably be too cliche. I just really love the art on this box. (I also love the color teal, so that doesn't hurt.)
Here's a picture I took of the pair of them fresh out of their package:
Draculaura is every bit as as adorable in person as she was in the pictures. I quite like Clawd too, but Andrew's first impression was, "Whoa. Is she a vampire or a beard?" Whatever, Clawd is fabulous and he's not ashamed. You have to be a snappy dresser to date Draculaura. And, indeed, they are a couple, which is why this set is (although not officially, I don't think) referred to as 'forbitten love'. MH and I both love a good pun.
So. Let's take a look at Clawd, our new character, first.
Clawd Wolf, 17, son of the werewolves, brother of Clawdeen, and all around cool... wolf.
Clawd is pretty damn awesome right off the bat, because his name is excellent. It's maybe too similar to Clawdeen's, but real life parents do stuff like that all the time, and how could Mattel resist that obvious pun? As far as his outfit goes, his shoes slip right off (which is a definite plus, because both Deuces have shoes that are a HUGE pain in the ass to remove), his clothes all match, I love the teal color, and his hat is removable (another big plus.) Without the hat his ears look a tad oversized, but I think that's also a cute detail on a character who otherwise seems quite confident. He is young, after all, like a puppy with paws that are too big. Under the hat he has real hair, which I have to say I did not expect; Mattel makes Ken, after all, he of the plastic coif. Real hair is a really nice touch though, especially for a werewolf.
Also, even though he's ridiculously thin and lithe, there's something undeniably masculine about his design. It might be the sideburns, the big shoes, his large watch, or a combination of his looks and clothes, but he's definitely all man. (Well, maybe the ascot isn't super manly, but then again maybe it's a bandana. You know, like robbers would wear.)
ANYWAY, I love Clawd's hat. I love that it's removable, I love the color, I love that he can tip it like he is in his art, and I love that you can put it on other dolls (Yes, some of my Clawdeens have worn it. NO REGRETS.)
Clawd also comes with a pet, his very own gargoyle bulldog named Rockseena. (I don't know how Rochelle feels about him having a gargoyle as a pet... Has that ever come up?) This is, sadly, probably one of MH's weakest pets. It's a dog pet for a werewolf, which is a little weird, it's a gargoyle for no reason I can discern (if there's a link between gargoyles and werewolves, I don't know it) and her name isn't even all that great. Also, the figure is extremely top heavy, so she pretty much falls forward on her face at every possible opportunity. It's ok though, because Clawd is still awesome. And, we still have another whole doll in this set!
Here Clawd is demonstrating his ability to both tip his hat to you, and hold hands with Draculaura, even though (unlike the girls) the first MH boys didn't have articulated wrists. They do have articulated ankles though (unlike the girls) so that's... almost a fair trade? (Not that the girls should have articulated ankles, because they wouldn't be able to stand or get their tall shoes on.) The newer MH guys do have articulated wrists, so I guess I wasn't the only person who thought that'd be a good idea.
In that picture you can also see Draculaura's freaking adorable outfit, with the button details on her shoes and dress and earrings, and the wicked bright pink and yellow color scheme that I usually wouldn't like but which Draculaura is totally rocking. She also has extra perky pigtails, which are not only super cute but also functional! Behold:
Remember when Mattel released Basic Draculaura, and she came with an umbrella (because, vampire), but it was closed and I was like, "how awesome would it be if her umbrella opened?" Yeah, well, Mattel heard me. And you know what? It is awesome. However, it's kind of hard for her to hold it up... unless you balance it on one of her perky pigtails. See? Functional.
Here's Draculaura from the side, so you can kind of see her earrings and shoes better. The earrings are buttons with bat hearts dangling from them (like so) and the handle of her umbrella (which is removable, for easier storage) matches. The heels of the shoes are made to look like a stack of buttons, and I don't think it will come as any great shock that I wish I owned these shoes in Megan size. I'm also impressed with how Mattel manages to give Draculaura outfits that are totally appropriate for a vampire (that is, they cover up all her skin) but that still look youthful and so cute you could barf.
Breakdown time!
Theme: Pink and buttons for Draculaura, teal and, well, teal for Clawd.
Evidenced in: Draculaura's shoes, earrings, dress, and polka dotted tights, Clawd's hat, ascot, and belt.
Favorite thing about the doll: Draculaura's perky pigtails, Clawd's giant adorkable ears.
Least favorite thing about the doll: Draculaura's bangs are a little stiff? I don't know, I don't really have a lot of bad things to say about her, and she's not drastically different from basic Draculaura. For Clawd it's got to be the lack of wrist articulation, since it makes it a little hard for him to put his arm around Draculaura in any sort of natural way.
Favorite thing about the outfit/accessories: Draculaura's umbrella, Clawd's hat.
Least favorite thing about the outfit/accessories: I like the design of Draculaura's shoes, but they tend to fall off her feet and are too big to stay on without tights. Clawd's ascot/bandana never lies flat and usually just gets in the way.
Bottom line: This pair of dolls is nearly flawless, totally adorable both as a couple and on their own, and were an excellent birthday present as well as a great way to break into collecting male MH dolls. I would highly recommend them... But because boy dolls tend to be comparatively rare, this set is selling for an absolutely ludicrous $175 on Amazon at the moment. You never know where you'll find a second hand set though, and they're well worth a little extra money. (Not that much extra money though, yikes.)
Song quote for tonight: Fly the ocean in a silver plane, see the jungle when it's wet with rain
Answer to last Monday's song: Larger Than Life, by The Backstreet Boys. No one guessed this. :(
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