LIBERATION 36: BRANDY

If you’ve visited this site before, you probably know that I really like celebrity dolls. When properly done, I think dolls based on real people can add some much needed variety to a fashion doll collection. Just in time for the holidays, Mattel has shipped this gorgeous doll based on the singer/model/actress Brandy. So far she has shown up at Toys R Us and some KayBee’s/KB Toy Works. Keep your eyes open!

The Doll

This doll is really an excellent likeness of the real Brandy. I could have done without the smile lines, but there’s no denying that she has them. Her eyes are a warm brown. Her makeup is very dramatic: copper lips outlined with a deep plum, big slashes of gold shadow right up to her eyebrows. Her blush is a relatively pale peach color. Her hair is fabulous! They used the thicker, textured fibers, and the plugs around the front root line have been braided into tiny braids. Tiny braid gatherings have also been painted along the hairline. The final touch is gold bead earrings.

This body is a modified Bend and Move body with high heeled feet, first seen on the short lived Beyond Pink line. If you place the doll’s feet in her special shoes and stand and wiggle her hips back and forth, her arms and head move and you can pretend she is dancing. Because of this feature, she has no twist waist, and her legs can never be completely straightened- they always angle out slightly. They also forgot to give the poor doll a navel!

Doll Scorecard
Face: A+
Body: B
Hair:A
Overall: A-

The Outfit

Brandy comes with three mix-and-match pieces suitable for the concert stage. Her blouse is a fantasy creation- a plum sweater with rows of glittering tinsel and a collar of fluffy orange marabou. The knee length pants are orange with gold glitter. The skirt is similarly over the top- orange satin with two inset panels of irridescent red orange, detailed with two orange ribbons. The final touch is the special gold platform sandals that allow her to stand, albeit gingerly, in her special stand. All the clothing pieces use the ‘new’ velcro, which I like- it doesn’t cause unsightly clothing bulges or snag hair or fabric.

Outfit Scorecard
Fabric: A
Style: B-
Execution: A
Overall: B+

The Accessories

There really isn’t much here in the way of accessories. There’s a black microphone, which is actually one of the nicest ones I’ve seen as the doll can actually ‘hold’ it securely, and the gold action stand. The final touch is the ‘autographed’ poster of Brandy shown below. I tried to scan the actual poster in several pieces and reassemble them, but that didn’t work out, so I ended up scanning the picture on the box back. You can trust me, though- the real poster looks just like that!

Accessories Scorecard
Concept: B-
Style: B-
Playability: B-
Overall: B-

The Result

I was looking through my assortment of glamorous outfits looking for the perfect new outfit for Brandy when she made a surprising confession. “You know, I’m tired of dressing up all the time,” she said. “Can’t I just wear something ordinary? Something a normal teen might wear?” After some searching, we came up with the above outfit. The ribbed mock t-shirt came from a Takara Jenny doll, and the cargo pants were originally Generation Girl Tori’s.