Monster High
Monster High is a media franchise launched in 2010 by Mattel, including nowadays a hugely popular doll line, a web series, short movies and other products. The story revolves around the teenage descendants of the most popular and classical monsters in a modern high school environment.
The MH dolls have achieved great popularity not only with children from eight to twelve years old, the primary focus of Mattel, but also amongst adult collectors not just for the smart designs, but also for the possibilities of customizations these dolls offered and the rather charismatic characters from the series. While the web episodes have rather simple and little developed plots, the longer movies were able to bring some more depth to the characters and to the story, pulling away from the manichaeism usually explored in children's series and teaching about acceptance, respect and empathy.
The dolls feature different face sculptures, hairstyles in various colors and colored skin. Some of the dolls may feature transparent parts or special body parts, such as Spectra's translucid hands and feet, Skelita's skeleton body and a variety of clawed, posed or gloved hands. They come from the factories with a default face painting that can be removed and repainted over, and their bodies can also be unassembled and customized. One can also change the hair by the process of re-rooting or using a wig of their size. While their shoes are made from plastic, their clothing is made from a variety of fabrics and designs.
Most first edition dolls come with a diary and a 'pet', the former not really cited in the webseries nor in the movies. The story from the diaries dates from before the beginning of the school year featured in the episodes and the movies, giving some insight on the characters' families, pasts and relationships. Some may come with other extra accessories and items like sceneries, cars, cafes, furniture and even Ghoulia's scooter are also available.
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| MH Frankie Stein and the classical Frankenstein - from Tumblr |
The MH dolls have achieved great popularity not only with children from eight to twelve years old, the primary focus of Mattel, but also amongst adult collectors not just for the smart designs, but also for the possibilities of customizations these dolls offered and the rather charismatic characters from the series. While the web episodes have rather simple and little developed plots, the longer movies were able to bring some more depth to the characters and to the story, pulling away from the manichaeism usually explored in children's series and teaching about acceptance, respect and empathy.
The dolls feature different face sculptures, hairstyles in various colors and colored skin. Some of the dolls may feature transparent parts or special body parts, such as Spectra's translucid hands and feet, Skelita's skeleton body and a variety of clawed, posed or gloved hands. They come from the factories with a default face painting that can be removed and repainted over, and their bodies can also be unassembled and customized. One can also change the hair by the process of re-rooting or using a wig of their size. While their shoes are made from plastic, their clothing is made from a variety of fabrics and designs.
Most first edition dolls come with a diary and a 'pet', the former not really cited in the webseries nor in the movies. The story from the diaries dates from before the beginning of the school year featured in the episodes and the movies, giving some insight on the characters' families, pasts and relationships. Some may come with other extra accessories and items like sceneries, cars, cafes, furniture and even Ghoulia's scooter are also available.
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