I think there's a bunch of "problems" with Jess.
As has been said, she's not as relatable as Marisol. She doesn't dance, which I think we'd all agree was a HUGE draw for Marisol. And she doesn't have anything else that's much of a huge draw to little girls right now.
Jess needs more stuff. Perhaps they haven't yet felt like making any because she has underperformed as of now, but there's nothing GREAT in her collection. I bought the doll, her Meet accessories, and her PJs, and would love to get a few more actual outfits for her. No one wants just a shirt/top outfit, and a swimsuit for their doll! Right now, everything she has is pretty weird if you didn't read the book.
I don't think the new face mold is going to mean much to most little girls. Unless AG mentions it somewhere, "Our first new face mold since Kaya's!" but that'll just be drawing attention to how few molds they currently have, lol.
I hope people are reading her book before they write her off (which they wouldn't do at all if they read the book). The book is great, and is SO much better than Marisol's, and I think the book, on its own, makes Jess great. She's spunky, but not annoyingly so, and she has a "pet" monkey, and a "pet" bird, how could you not love her?
I wish that since AG added a bunch of random stuff to Marisol's collection, they'd give some things to Jess that weren't in the book (of course after giving her some that WERE). Personally, I'd love to see them make use of her being half Japanese and give her a kimono. I really found it unfair that Marisol got an Hispanic name, and had her culture reflected in her story (even if it was just a little), but Jess gets a totally American name, and her Japanese and Irish ancestry isn't really as important. AG knows how much people want an Asian American girl [img]frown.gif[/img] , and they pretty much give us another white girl with slightly almond shaped eyes.
I really hate to think how this bodes for an Asian-American historical [img]frown.gif[/img] . I really hope AG isn't going to take it as the fact that people aren't buying an Asian doll, but instead just want fun fancy stuff for the today girls, (which, honestly, also bums me out, because I'm getting bored of fancy dresses and skirts. I didn't have very many for my dolls when I was little, either).
From now on, they'll make the LE girls have "things" that are popular with little girls. One will be a horse lover (No thanks! [img]graemlins/sure.gif[/img] ), another will be a figure skater, who also does gymnastics on the side, another a swimmer (they could have done this with Jess, though), and we can probably forget about less girly sports: tennis, basketball, soccer, etc. And after recycling through those, they'll start all over (hey, who would even remember dancer Marisol in 10 years?!)
I'm definitely in the minority. I want more girly girl. That doesn't mean I want everything pink and purple (definitely not). I just want pretty dresses and feminine things in a wide range of colors and styles. And a bit of sparkle here and there would be a nice added touch.
I like the fact that we can only vote once so we get a nice authentic poll.
Curly, I want a tennis girl, too. I've been playing tennis since I was 7, and it's the only sport I love. I'd buy the girl in a heartbeat. However, aside from it being not as girly (or popular) as ice skating, or gymnastics, it's more of a High School sport, than a little girl's one [img]graemlins/cry_smile.gif[/img] The two AGT tennis outfits they've made are both great. I love the current one, but I like the old one, as well. So if you do want to make one, it should be fun. I should do that, too. Wonder which AGT would be the best for that, lol.
I don't *mind* more girly girl stuff, I'd just prefer there to be a nice balance. Right now there isn't. Even the not as girly things are normally in girly colors, or something, and the girly items far out-number the normal outfits that little girls would actually wear. I do love the girly outfits, but to me, they're more costume-y.
<font color="#33CCCC" size="1">[ April 18, 2006 06:28 PM: Message edited by: cami713 ]</font>
I like Jess's collection better, I didn't care much for Marisol's, but then again, my Marisol is a boy. But I think that Marisol is one of the prettiest dolls they've ever done. Jess is to chipmunky looking. That might be a turn off??? Or maybe not. But I agree with Cami, I think they should make more of her ethniticy. [img]graemlins/thumbs_down.gif[/img] I as well have my heart set on an historial Asian, and so hope that this deosn't put off Mattel as well. Maybe their mold is just not pretty enough???
i guess time will tell. That's odd that their sales are down. maybe it's all the returns from their low quality..... just a thought. [img]graemlins/whatever.gif[/img]
I do think that AG often times comes out with dreadful-looking girly girl items. I hope I don't offend anyone by saying this, but I think the "paisley print PJs" are just awful. I also have passed on the available "gala" outfit not because it's dreadful but because it's lacking something. It should have come with a sparkly mohair-looking shrug or something. To me, it looks like an unfinished outfit.
I think the current "on-the-go" outfit is a great combo outfit because you can either make it girly girl or semi-outdoorsy. I would love to see more combo outfits like that.
I also wish that AG would introduce a package of several pairs of different colored leggings, tights, etc. but I would like to see it include some blacks and textured grays, etc., not just the standard pink and pastels.
I guess I'm in the minority as well. I much prefer girly things to outdoorsy type stuff. I love pink and purple, but other colors would jive just as well on a girly type outfit for me. I so loved dressing my girl's up for spring this weekend. They all looks so happy and girly.
This is not to say that I prefer Jess over Marisol at all. I love them both.
I like the idea of this poll, but not really the way the options are worded. I like outdoorsy stuff, but that doesn't mean that I hate everything with glitter or frills. I do think that AG has been producing too much "girly" stuff lately, but I certainly don't think it's all hideous (although, IMO, some of it is). I also don't think everything "outdoorsy" is wonderful. I'm sure the same goes for people who adore "girly" things. They don't (well, mostly, anyway) love everything with glitz that AG produces, and they don't hate everything outdoorsy. "Sissy" and "girly" are not really the same thing, IMO.
But, back to the actual topic. More girl can relate with Marisol than they can with Jess, because so many girls dance, and not many have flown to foreign countries for their parents' archaeological dig [img]confused.gif[/img] . Also, Marisol got more outfits. So far, all Jess has are a swimsuit, some PJ's, and some accessories. Not everyone has enough room for the tree swing, and seeing as the dolls are not supposed to get anywhere near water, the kayak wouldn't be much fun for a child. I'm sure some more outfits would increase Jess's sales.
I love both Jess and Marisol, although Jess does appeal to me more (Jess, not her collection [so far]). I did like Marisol's outfits (see? I like glitter and girly stuff, too!), and I'm sure I'll like Jess's, too, assuming they add a hiking outfit or something. Jess definitely needs more clothes added to her collection for more girls to really get interested. She's a beautiful doll, but for some girls, that's not enough. It kind of disappoints me that Marisol did sell SO much better then Jess is selling. You'd think that even with Jess's so-far accessory-driven collection, her new face mold and hair color would attract more buyers [img]frown.gif[/img] .
I agree with everyone, Jess needs more outfits! I only have her meet outfit, and the only thing I really like are her pajamas, but I don't need any more. Her kayak is just too big, these things I have no room for. And all her clothes are for warmer weather- I'd like to see something for the cold times. A cover-up like the one in the 3-in-one beach outfit would be cute, or a hoodie. The only thing I liked about Marisol was her meet outfit, nothing else really.
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I agree on this. The wording which equates "girly" with "sissy" isn't right. I'm an outdoorsy type too. I love skiing, white water rafting and hiking. Growing up I spent more time outside than in the house. Exploring alone in the woods for hours was my thing. But if I had a sparkly pink top to wear at the same time, then all was right in the world. [img]wink.gif[/img]Originally posted by Dreaming of Dolls*:
I like the idea of this poll, but not really the way the options are worded. I like outdoorsy stuff, but that doesn't mean that I hate everything with glitter or frills.... "Sissy" and "girly" are not really the same thing, IMO....
Julia
That sounds like me! I thought my mom was going to kill me, a few days before my bat mitzvah, I decided to "explore" the woods with friends looking for birds nests. Well, lo and behold, the day of my bat mitzvah, I woke up with a bright red face and poison ivy all over me!
-Jordyn
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