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Comments

• [1] Rochelle from Jersey Shore March 09, 2009 - 10:14AM

  I know it is fun to mock Barbie and her impossible body but she deserves some respect. She was the very first career doll. She gave little girls an opportunity to dream beyond motherhood. To this day, she is always attempting new jobs (vet, pilot, rock star etc.)

  And, though she is misproportioned at last she is not lude like Bratz dolls!

  now Matell...that's another story (didn't they try and crush American Girl dolls and now they have acquired them..another version of distruction.)

  
  
• [2] melissa from teaneck, NJ March 09, 2009 - 10:46AM

  My daughter went through a Barbie phase as a 6-year-old. As the one who bankrolled her Barbie obsession, I learned that buying more Barbies was actually as cheap or cheaper than buying more outfits. The result was that she amassed around two dozen Barbies, in various skin hues, by the time she lost interest. One day I found she had taken off their clothes and arranged them in a starburst pattern, according to skin tone, with their tiny toes pointed to the center. If she had been an adult, I'd call that a post-modern comment on race, gender, commercialism -- or all of the above.

  
  
• [3] Mickey Bitsko from Downtwon Manhattan March 09, 2009 - 01:42PM

  Thanks, Mattel, for covering our planet with plastics and other worthless toxic pollutants. And thank you, humans, for buying and throwing away this junk for decades.

  
  
• [4] Amy from Brooklyn March 09, 2009 - 01:48PM

  Barbie didn't invent women's desire to "improve" their figures. Think if corsets, of course; but even in my mother's day, the '40s, women used amphetamines to lose weight - legal at the time - and did exercises to increase the bustline.

  
  
• [5] Seth from Upper West Side March 09, 2009 - 01:49PM

  How can a 5" tall plastic doll have more influence over a young girl than her environment (i.e. parents, siblings, family dynamics, family eating habits, television, internet, friends, etc.)?!

  I do not doubt that the modern day Western warped standards of beauty are reinforced by the toy, but surely

  environment is a more powerful force.

  
  
• [6] Rochelle from Jersey Shore March 09, 2009 - 01:51PM

  I don't mean to be contrary but many great fashion designers do not know how to sew. They take their concept to a pattern maker who "designs" the item. This guy seems really of the mark.

  
  
• [7] Christina from Long Island, NY March 09, 2009 - 01:53PM

  One point that is not being talked about is the target market has dropped down to three year old girls and their mothers. Besides being inappropriate for the 4-5 year old age group, the young girls cannot manipulate the tiny clothing and the moms end up 'playing' with the dolls.

  
  
• [8] Laura from sunnyside March 09, 2009 - 01:55PM

  What about the rise of the hispanic consumer demographic to explain the success of the Bratz dolls?

  
  
• [9] marnie from NYC March 09, 2009 - 03:04PM

  My brother used to put raisins in my Barbie's toilet.

  
  
• [10] jenny from brooklyn March 09, 2009 - 03:05PM

  It's my understanding that Barbie's proportions were not a statement on idealized women's bodies, so much as a practical answer to fitting "human" fabric to a tiny doll. The fabric used for her outfits is thin, but it's still grossly disproportionate to her tiny body. When you allow for folding over and creating seams, it adds substantial bulk to her frame. So, when you look at her fully clothed (which was the intention) yes, she has a small waist, but it's not SO crazy for a time when girdles were the norm. If they made her normal human proportions, she would be like a little tube, no shape at all, once you had her all decked out.

  
  
• [11] bob from Los Angeles March 10, 2009 - 11:02PM

  I worked in Barbie for 5 years--

  Make no mistake-- Mattel is a FOR PROFIT company.

  Mattel goes through regular annual layoffs-- not just in "down turn" economic times.

  It is a stress filled environment- thus having cut throat employees is the norm--if you don't perform you get the axe- a pretty standard US way of doing business.

  The best way to describe Mattel is that is is "just like a playground"- with Bullies- (Marketing) Teachers- (the directors) small click's of kids (the different groups in Mattel)-- There are "expulsions" and grades so you always have to "watch out"--Most of the executives behave JUST LIKE KIDS-- grudges and all !!!!

  So if you dis-Barbie you need to look at society first-- Mattel knows how to "sell"

  Keep Playing :)

  
  
• [12] Angela from maine March 20, 2009 - 01:39PM

  im 14 and im a child who used to play with barbies and to add too it i even had polly's and i still like polly's and i like bratz too still

  i wrote this and i expect all parents to please read it cuz none of you morons about this bratz and barbie fued

  http://angelblackroses.deviantart.com/ - read the journal part

  and if anyone would like to copy and paste the journal from a child point of view on the fued

  
  
• [13] Renata from mexico March 23, 2009 - 08:37PM

  Barbie is just plastic... you give it the power you want to... !!! I think that sometimes we get a little bit serious about a piece of plastic.

  
  
• [14] t-rex from NYC April 04, 2009 - 08:28PM

  barbie is ugly instead of putting bratz out if bussniess you can buy bratz entetainment