What's Nuevo???

New junk I just got around to scanning

Je suis famous!

First off, didja see the latest (February 2000) issue of Barbie Bazaar!?! Well, if you haven't seen it yet, by all means, sit down and give it a read next time you're in B&N. The Pacific Northwest's own Scott Arend has an article about his fave rave doll pages on the web, and he was kind enough to mention my silly page! Too cool!

Rose of Versailles

Lady Oscar

Once upon a time, way back in the 1970s, there was a shoujo-to-top-all-shoujo romance called "The Rose of Versailles." It was set in pre-Revolutionary France, and concerned a sword fightin' girl, who'd been raised as a boy by her dad. She basically pranced around Louis's court, dressed in drag, and served as Marie Antoinette's body guard. (And, one might argue, not a terribly effective one, considering what subsequently happened to Marie Antoinette. My husband still jokes as to whether the line will include a guillotine playset.) Anyway anyway, a way back when, a company called Asahi-Toy made RoV dolls, big and small. So, I was ever so slightly anticipatory when Takara announced that it was bringing out an anniversary edition Lady Oscar doll. They done good! The packaging is beautiful. Here's a shot of the front of the box. Here's some artwork from the back. The doll itself is pretty stunning too. But, look at her face. Is it just me, or does Lady Oscar seem a bit pissed off?

Cuties Fashion Dolls

Suntan Chiaki

These dolls are manufactured by a company called Cuties, which I believe primarily makes figure models. This doll is a hoot! Remember Suntan Tuesday Taylor? Or even better, Malibu Barbie? This is kind of like Malibu Chiaki. Besides a too cool, Austin Powers-esqe outfit, she's got the suntan and bleached blond hair I haven't seen on a doll since the glorious 70s, before we were all afraid of wrinkles and suchlike. Here's a close-up of her face.

Kogal Chiaki

One thing I love about doll collecting, it's a great way to capture a sociological moment. F'rinstance, some time in the 1990s, Japanese schoolgirls started to hike up their skirts and wear big ol' sloppy socks. The result? A kogal, like young Ms. Chiaki here. Here is a macro of the doll's face.

Kogal Franciene Reika

And, as every sociologist knows, schoolgirls come not singly, but in giggly packs. So, here is Chiaki's bud, a girl with the improbably name of Franciene Reika. As you can see, Franciene share's much of her friend's fashion sense, not to mention probably her head mold. A close-up shows the neat paint detailing in the eyes.

Jenny Millennium Madness!

Caught any Y2K bugs yet? (Hey, neither did that panel of experts we paid $200 billion--same as the cost of the Vietnam war, with about equally effective results.) As my officemates were bravely stocking up on bottled water and ammo, yours truly was stocking up on pre-apocalyptic Jenny dolls.

Anna Sui doll

"Anna Sui Power--Make Up!" OK, so she's not a henshin hero, but this Anna Sui doll does come with cosmetics for YOU! You may or may not be able to see it in this picture, but she's in a cool little hippy outfit, with moccasins, and a peasant blouse. Here's a closeup of her face. In real life, Anna Sui is a designer who clothes folks like Courtney Love.

Jenny's Club S Charles

Woo-hoo! This exclusive Jenny boyfriend was only available throughJenny's Club S. Before you get too excited, I believe club membership is limited to residents of Japan. AWWWW! Here's a head shot, so you too can marvel over dreamboat's kissable lips!

Takara Bako Rie

Speaking of exclusives (does this seem to be an annoying theme this month?), check out this Bako Rie, which was exclusively available through the Takara Bako web site. Rie is a.k.a. Bob Girle Lie, alias, Kisara. That is, Rie and Kisara share the same head mold. I believe we once tried to figure out on Casual Jenny what makes a doll a Rie, and what makes her a Kisara, but I think the answer was, "Whatever Takara says." Here's a close up of those great side-glancing eyes.

Sommelier Naomi

Tired of all these exclusives? Jenny also has friends to wait on all her exclusive pals! This Naomi doll comes dressed as a wine steward, with little accessories like wine bottles, glasses, and a menu. Here's a close-up of her face.

Surfer Kaori

Kaori is one of Jenny's new friends. She comes with a lot of cute accessories, including an extra outfit, and a little pink snorkel. But, hmmmm, she seems to be missing something essential, like say.....a surfboard! Here's a close-up, so you can see her cool pink lipstick.

Takara Barbie lingere set

As we all know, before there was Jenny, there was Takara Barbie, and boy, did that gal know how to dress! This is a little lingere set made for Takara Barbie--you may be able to see that she even has a teeny-tiny English-Japanese dictionary! The back of the box shows Jenny wearing various outfit combinations. I love the photography on this old packaging--Jenny and her friends almost look like real girls!

Nurse-chan

Now we get to one of my favorites. Nurse-chan is an older doll, another friend of Licca-chan. Here's a close-up of herface. I especially like the packaging on this one, with Nurse-chan bravely chasing away those nasty germs. The back of the box shows a great doctor's office playset, so Nurse-chan can conduct scientific experiments on your Licca dolls!

Super Doll Licca-chan miniature

CUUUUTE! This is a little mini-figure from the anime Super Doll Licca-chan that Corky sent me. Isn't she great?

Anime Dolls

Magical Princess

This doll is from the anime Akazukin Cha Cha, and is made by Takara. I haven't seen the show, but it looks pretty cool. She comes with some neat accessories, like a crossbow. It looks like the doll may use a Jenny body, but I don't believe that's a Jenny head mold. Here's a close-up of the doll's face. The back of the box show other toys from this series, including a Cha Cha doll.

Queen Emeraldas

This dolly is from our old friend Marmit, in their "Super Excellent" series. ('Cause you wouldn't want something that's merely excellent, would you?) It's actually more of a figure than a doll, with limited posability. She's still pretty cool, huh?

Young Emeraldas

And here is Young (ie, pre-scar) Emeraldas. I've been looking for a doll to date my Captain Harlock!

UFO Catcher Prizes

Made it all the way down here to the end of the page? You're in for a treat! It's time for UFO prizes. As you probably know, a UFO catcher machine is kinda like a claw machine here in the US ("The claw! You have been chosen!") The most well-known prizes are the superdeformed style plush toys, but there are also a variety of other prizes, such as the little CCS capsule figure I've shown below.

Doremi Plush

Don't know much about this series, but aren't these plushies great?

Doremi

I believe the pink witch is the leader

blue witch

orange witch

Cardcaptor Sakura School Plushies

AFAIK, these were the first set of CCS plushies.

Sakura-chan

Tomoyo-chan

Li-kun

Kero-chan

Proof, you can't be too rich, or have too many Kero-chans!

Cardcaptor Battle Plushies 2

This is the second set of catchers that show Sakura's many battle costumes.

Green outfit

Pink outfit

Yellow outfit

Cardcaptor Capsule Figures

These are called capsule figures becaue they literally come in little plastic capsules, kinda like those old plastic Easter eggs.

Sakura in cheerleader outfit

Sakura in pink cat battle costume

Sakura in school uniform

Sakura in pink battle costume with wings

Kero-chan