Almighty Hat (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
hat_plays_dolls) wrote2019-01-28 09:48 pm
hat_plays_dolls) wrote2019-01-28 09:48 pm
Entry tags:
Doll Review: Monster High Swim Class Creepy Coast Beach Beasties whatever Draculaura
Second of the three dolls I got from Mattel to replace my jacked-up Lunchtime Ghouls, Beach Beasties Draculaura (officially on my packing slip as '2013 Swim Draculaura') is wearing one of the very few Draculaura outfits I wanted, but didn't already have.
And that's how nice Mattel's CSRs were-- I wrote in and explained the problems with the Lunchtime Ghouls set (which, remember, I got at Tuesday Morning for $10), Mattel wrote back and said 'oh no that's not good AND we don't have that set in stock, can I interest you in I Heart Shoes Draculaura and Haunted Twyla?' I replied saying those were such great dolls that I got them retail the first time around and is it rude to ask for different replacement dolls, I keep meticulous lists of what I have vs what I need would you like a list? Mattel said send the list, I sent an abbreviated version of my wishlist, and Mattel sent me three dolls off of it, with a total MSRP of, like, $42? $47? Somewhere in that zone.
They knew I paid $10 for that two-pack. I think maybe they were just really, really nice to the person who wrote them in December saying things like 'is it okay if I' and 'take your time, I'm not in any hurry' and 'thank you for your patience!'
Okay, doll.
The 'gimmick' of this line was bright colors and clear plastic details.
Not much in the way of lore on the back of the box, but, cute art! And it's easier to see which shoe molds Draculaura (and Lagoona) use-- Lagoona's are her Sweet 1600 shoes.
Open but attached! I legitimately like the background here, and not just for how it makes that hot pink confuse my camera a little less.
That's right, I got the Draculaura without the fang paint app! I'm probably not as excited by that as I should be, because if I keep this Draculaura (and I might), she's gonna get turned into a Gory Fangtell custom.
As a budget doll, Draculaura doesn't come with a stand or a brush-- she's got her bathing suit, sunglasses, translucent shoes, a towel, SPF 500 sunblock, and a cute plastic bat-bow-web tote, which packs a lot of imagery into one blob of neon pink plastic.
Her hair is soft kanekalon rather than saran.
And the suit! Mine is a little crooked-- nothing I can't probably fix if it really bothers me, but I think part of it is just... not being put on flawlessly at the factory level. And although my Draculaura is on a Bunni Blanc body, this suit does still fit! Goes around the hips and everything.
Accessories! The towel has the same pattern as the suit, only with the stripe colors inverted-- black with narrow white stripes instead of white with narrow black stripes. The sunblock is her Gloom Beach sunblock, just cast in translucent hot pink plastic with a clear black-printed sticker on the front. I will forever love the detail of "SPF 500" for one of Draculaura's go-to beach and pool party accessories. The shoes and bag are really hard to see, as my camera took one look at that color and went, "It's glowing, right? Literally glowing like a neon light?"
Listen. How cute is this? It's so cute. The black linework is even vaguely stained-glassy.
You can see some of the bag detail here. How much detail is there? Okay:
The handles are shaped like lips with fangs, and also, like hearts. The outline is kinda like a bow and kinda like a bat, the mesh is spider-webby. And that bar in the middle? Yeah that's got LACES sculpted onto it.
For something this hard to look at, there is a LOT going on there.
That Draculaura is a real hoopy frood who always knows where her towel is.
Yeah. Trust me, those are her Sweet 1600 shoes. You just can't see any of the detail because they're hot pink and translucent and they just sort of glow past my ability, anyway, to pick out what's going on. And especially my camera's ability.
The sunglasses are another story-- lots of web and bat detailing here again, on the arms as well as the frames, but the plastic is clear enough that the edges of the sculpting sort of glow with it instead of being swallowed by it.
You can actually see that little heart detail!
I don't know if this is the first use of these sunglasses-- it might be-- but I know they were used again for Draculaura's skating accessory pack in yellow and the barely-seen lab partners two-pack in gray.
Draculaura herself, no sunglasses! She was made in China, so although she's very pretty, she looks... kind of distant and chilly. I actually legitimately like Reboot Draculaura's face more than Classic Draculaura, but the more I look at this one? The more I can see Gory.
Indonesian Draculaura always looked happier, younger, and closer to on-model among Classic Draculaura painting styles. Chinese Draculaura is always very pretty but... not always very Draculaura. How many times can I write Draculaura in one paragraph, it's a lot of times.
And it wouldn't be Monster High without a small quality control issue! That's a nothing problem, though, I can fix that easy.
Am I happy with Swim Class Draculaura?
Well, I didn't pay for her, so I certainly can't complain about the price. I love her accessories, as usual, though the shoes lose a lot due to the neon. Although it may need some straightening out, I genuinely think her bathing suit is cute-- silly, but cute, certainly more visually interesting than either Gloom Beach or Skull Shores. As for the doll herself, well, hey, the perfect candidate for a Gory (new lips, fangs, new eye color, re-root, and a spare pair of Jackson glasses and boom) landed right in my lap!
I'm very happy Mattel chose to send me this doll.
If you're looking to buy this Draculaura, pay close attention to actual-item photos, as the biggest problem she seems prone to is keeping her ruffle-halter lined up with her stripes.
Oh also lookit her accessories fit in the tote!
Also also, in the 2013 Swim line, I now have (the outfits for) Draculaura, Lagoona, Venus, Rochelle, Holt (also the doll-- wrists!), Spectra, and Jinafire-- meaning I only need Frankie and Clawdeen. I had no particular feelings on 2013 Swim Frankie and Clawdeen until I realized they're the only ones I don't have. This is why I got Dayna, Batsy, Ari, Manny, and Iris, this completionism.
There's one more doll Mattel sent in their mission to overkill my Lunchtime Ghouls issues, but that'll have to wait for tomorrow.
Like what I do and want to help me feed my cats, but don't need anything I have for sale on eBay? You can always support me on Patreon or throw some change in my tip jar.
And that's how nice Mattel's CSRs were-- I wrote in and explained the problems with the Lunchtime Ghouls set (which, remember, I got at Tuesday Morning for $10), Mattel wrote back and said 'oh no that's not good AND we don't have that set in stock, can I interest you in I Heart Shoes Draculaura and Haunted Twyla?' I replied saying those were such great dolls that I got them retail the first time around and is it rude to ask for different replacement dolls, I keep meticulous lists of what I have vs what I need would you like a list? Mattel said send the list, I sent an abbreviated version of my wishlist, and Mattel sent me three dolls off of it, with a total MSRP of, like, $42? $47? Somewhere in that zone.
They knew I paid $10 for that two-pack. I think maybe they were just really, really nice to the person who wrote them in December saying things like 'is it okay if I' and 'take your time, I'm not in any hurry' and 'thank you for your patience!'
Okay, doll.
The 'gimmick' of this line was bright colors and clear plastic details.
Not much in the way of lore on the back of the box, but, cute art! And it's easier to see which shoe molds Draculaura (and Lagoona) use-- Lagoona's are her Sweet 1600 shoes.
Open but attached! I legitimately like the background here, and not just for how it makes that hot pink confuse my camera a little less.
That's right, I got the Draculaura without the fang paint app! I'm probably not as excited by that as I should be, because if I keep this Draculaura (and I might), she's gonna get turned into a Gory Fangtell custom.
As a budget doll, Draculaura doesn't come with a stand or a brush-- she's got her bathing suit, sunglasses, translucent shoes, a towel, SPF 500 sunblock, and a cute plastic bat-bow-web tote, which packs a lot of imagery into one blob of neon pink plastic.
Her hair is soft kanekalon rather than saran.
And the suit! Mine is a little crooked-- nothing I can't probably fix if it really bothers me, but I think part of it is just... not being put on flawlessly at the factory level. And although my Draculaura is on a Bunni Blanc body, this suit does still fit! Goes around the hips and everything.
Accessories! The towel has the same pattern as the suit, only with the stripe colors inverted-- black with narrow white stripes instead of white with narrow black stripes. The sunblock is her Gloom Beach sunblock, just cast in translucent hot pink plastic with a clear black-printed sticker on the front. I will forever love the detail of "SPF 500" for one of Draculaura's go-to beach and pool party accessories. The shoes and bag are really hard to see, as my camera took one look at that color and went, "It's glowing, right? Literally glowing like a neon light?"
Listen. How cute is this? It's so cute. The black linework is even vaguely stained-glassy.
You can see some of the bag detail here. How much detail is there? Okay:
The handles are shaped like lips with fangs, and also, like hearts. The outline is kinda like a bow and kinda like a bat, the mesh is spider-webby. And that bar in the middle? Yeah that's got LACES sculpted onto it.
For something this hard to look at, there is a LOT going on there.
That Draculaura is a real hoopy frood who always knows where her towel is.
Yeah. Trust me, those are her Sweet 1600 shoes. You just can't see any of the detail because they're hot pink and translucent and they just sort of glow past my ability, anyway, to pick out what's going on. And especially my camera's ability.
The sunglasses are another story-- lots of web and bat detailing here again, on the arms as well as the frames, but the plastic is clear enough that the edges of the sculpting sort of glow with it instead of being swallowed by it.
You can actually see that little heart detail!
I don't know if this is the first use of these sunglasses-- it might be-- but I know they were used again for Draculaura's skating accessory pack in yellow and the barely-seen lab partners two-pack in gray.
Draculaura herself, no sunglasses! She was made in China, so although she's very pretty, she looks... kind of distant and chilly. I actually legitimately like Reboot Draculaura's face more than Classic Draculaura, but the more I look at this one? The more I can see Gory.
Indonesian Draculaura always looked happier, younger, and closer to on-model among Classic Draculaura painting styles. Chinese Draculaura is always very pretty but... not always very Draculaura. How many times can I write Draculaura in one paragraph, it's a lot of times.
And it wouldn't be Monster High without a small quality control issue! That's a nothing problem, though, I can fix that easy.
Am I happy with Swim Class Draculaura?
Well, I didn't pay for her, so I certainly can't complain about the price. I love her accessories, as usual, though the shoes lose a lot due to the neon. Although it may need some straightening out, I genuinely think her bathing suit is cute-- silly, but cute, certainly more visually interesting than either Gloom Beach or Skull Shores. As for the doll herself, well, hey, the perfect candidate for a Gory (new lips, fangs, new eye color, re-root, and a spare pair of Jackson glasses and boom) landed right in my lap!
I'm very happy Mattel chose to send me this doll.
If you're looking to buy this Draculaura, pay close attention to actual-item photos, as the biggest problem she seems prone to is keeping her ruffle-halter lined up with her stripes.
Oh also lookit her accessories fit in the tote!
Also also, in the 2013 Swim line, I now have (the outfits for) Draculaura, Lagoona, Venus, Rochelle, Holt (also the doll-- wrists!), Spectra, and Jinafire-- meaning I only need Frankie and Clawdeen. I had no particular feelings on 2013 Swim Frankie and Clawdeen until I realized they're the only ones I don't have. This is why I got Dayna, Batsy, Ari, Manny, and Iris, this completionism.
There's one more doll Mattel sent in their mission to overkill my Lunchtime Ghouls issues, but that'll have to wait for tomorrow.
Like what I do and want to help me feed my cats, but don't need anything I have for sale on eBay? You can always support me on Patreon or throw some change in my tip jar.