Scaremester "Invisi Billy" by Monster High--A Guest Review!

I have two neat guest reviews for you this week, but they are about two very different things, so I decided that instead of doing a Review Fusion post, I will publish the reviews separately with a little break in between.

This first review is written by Ana, a new friend of mine from Italy.  I always get extra-excited to share reviews from different parts of the world, because I think they highlight the universal and timeless fascination with dolls in our culture--a phenomenon that makes me really happy.  Ana and her six-year-old daughter Ellie are fortunate to share a passion for dolls, and are both particularly fond of the Monster High characters.  Ellie is a girl after my own heart, and has an impressive collection of the Monster High werecats and werewolves.  Ana's own favorite dolls are Scarah and Venus, who she likes for their beautiful personalities.  From the short time I have known Ana, I can tell you that her personality is equally lovely.

Ana is just the right person to review one of the new Monster High boy characters, Invisi Billy, because she has an extensive collection of ghoulish guys and a keen eye for their similarities and differences.  Without further ado, I will turn the post over to Ana!

"Invisi Billy" by Monster High.

Monster High Ghouls Alive Dolls--A Joint Review!

I have been wanting to review a Ghouls Alive Monster High doll for quite a long time.  When the first wave of these dolls came out, I would look at them in the store and consider buying one (Clawdeen was my favorite), but it seemed like there was always a problem with the dolls in stock--dirty outfit, funny hair, banged up box, malfunctioning electronic features, things like that.  Also, I found the original near-$30 price tag off-putting, and good reason to select a simpler doll.

Several months ago, a reader named Eoin wrote to ask if I would be interested in a Ghouls Alive guest review, and I was very excited to have a way to finally learn more about this group of dolls.  After I read what Eoin wrote about Ghouls Alive Frankie Stein, however, three things happened: I got even more curious about these dolls, the older characters went on clearance at Target, and two new Ghouls Alive characters were released!  This prompted me to finally purchase a few of the dolls myself.

So...Eoin and I will show you several of the Ghouls Alive Monster High crew.  Eoin will review Frankie, and I will take a look at Toralei and Deuce.  I'll also throw in a quick look at Clawdeen, since she was my early favorite.  To begin, I want to turn things over to Eoin--a wonderful doll enthusiast from Great Britain, and perhaps the most patient person on the planet.  Thank you Eoin, for your help and inspiration with this post!  It would never have happened without you.

Ghouls Alive Deuce Gorgon, Clawdeen Wolf, Toralei Stripe and Frankie Stein.

Ever After High "Ashlynn Ella and Hunter Huntsman" Set

I reviewed Ever After High's Apple White doll back in July, and while I wanted to be super-enthusiastic about her, she left me feeling underwhelmed.  Her round head and plain features were not as pretty as I had hoped, and her outfit was nowhere near as creative as it could have been.  On top of that, many of you reported that there are widespread problems with the facial screening on these dolls, leaving some of them unacceptably wonky-eyed.

Despite these issues, Apple has enough good qualities that I was cautiously optimistic about the arrival of my favorite Ever After High character--Cinderella's daughter, Ashlynn Ella.  When the first pictures of Ashlynn were released, I was disappointed to see that she comes in another short generic princess dress.  I was hoping for something more original.  On the other hand, I was thrilled to see that Ashlynn comes with the first male doll in the Ever After High lineup, Hunter Huntsman, who is the son of...you guessed it, the Huntsman:

Ever After High "Ashlynn Ella and Hunter Huntsman."