>>7615686Would I recommend Kenna and the rest of the Wild Hearts Crew? The $15 price ain’t bad and the only major flaw the doll has is the dumb molded on undies. Articulation is fine, paint and hair is fine, clothes are fine. But I wonder if $5 more in clothes and accessories would have pushed these dolls from being just “Okay” to something really great.
I could have also used some more in-depth flavor text of Kenna’s dumb slut mind being overwhelmed by UFO conspiracy theories. Maybe stuff like how she’s in the woods in the middle of the night vectoring in UFO’s to land with her flashlight and a tub of strawberry ice cream to welcome the Visitors. Now there’s some MH style comedy gold right there.
Speaking of conspiracy theories, I’m not liking the whole SJW vibe that’s running undercurrent of this toyline. Philosophical issues aside, woke-ism does not lend itself well to a highly visual and tactile medium as toys. “Beautiful in any shape” philosophy does not work with dolls. There are limits, both visual and practical, as to how “diverse” a doll can be without losing their appeal to a broad market. And while Mattel can push the lofty idea that “This WHC character is gender fluid,” customers can come back and say, “She’s not in my head cannon when I play.” Or worse, just not buy the doll because of those forced-upon ideas.
The WHC doll line gets a mild disrecommendation from me. If you like the looks of one of the girls, then get her. For $15 you’re not going to regret it. I still plan on getting Rallee as soon as I spot her. But the bland visuals on the surface and woke undercurrent just doesn’t appeal to me to collect them all or be with the line for the long term like I did with MH. Unless Mattel really steps it up in the color & fashion variety of these dolls along with some better defined character traits, I can see these dolls at the discount chains within a year from now.
