Extra #1: Review

Well, as most of you undoubtedly are aware, Mattel has come out with some new, colorful dolls: Barbie Extra. And boy, they live up to their name. They’re very, very extra. This is a promotional image, a screenshot from the promo video from Mattel (obviously these are computer generated images of the dolls):

Here’s their description:

“Barbie® Extra dolls rock bold fashions and bright colors, and they make big statements! Each Barbie® doll has their own unique style that’s playful and over the top. And their pets -- each different and all adorable -- have tons of personality, too! Barbie® Extra lets kids explore self-expression through style and offers an exciting fashion and styling play experience with posable dolls. They are all about having fun with fashion with glitter, gummy bears, emojis and stand-out hair -- bringing EXTRA vibes wherever they go. Each sold separately, subject to availability. Dolls cannot stand alone. Colors and decorations may vary.”

I was really only drawn to two different dolls from this series:

#1: The rainbow clad African American doll, because I love her face shape and I think she has great potential
#5: The pastel-rainbow haired, Latina doll, because I actually like her hair (rare for me with unnatural colors)

Sadly, I haven’t been able to find #5 anywhere, seems I’m not the only interested party, which is no surprise. The rainbow clad lovely got here earlier this week, and oh my goodness, she’s SO pretty! My apologies for the torn packaging, I may have been a bit over-enthusiastic.

Mattel wasn’t kidding when they said these dolls made big statements and each had unique, playful, over-the-top styles and I don’t regret my purchase one bit!

The coloration in the pictures is about to shift, sorry about the jolt. Our hobby room is in chaos at the moment, so I dug out my light-box for most of these pictures.

As per the usual method, because I apparently have minor OCD, shoes. Or, in the case of this doll, boots:

Not just boots, but badass, grey boots with reflective silver glitter spattered over the top, and yes, even on the stilleto heels. Not something I’d be able to pull off, but this doll is fierce as fuck - she’s got this.

For what it’s worth, the heels on these shoes actually feel stiffer than the usual heels on Barbie shoes - is Mattel listening? Thank you! These are much less “bendy”, which is great as it means the dolls will have an easier time standing up reliably while wearing these shoes. Yay!

Next up: Earrings.

These are actually really cute, golden, curled hoop earrings. I was really excited when I saw these in person, pleasantly surprised to discover they had a bit more heft to them. No complaints, there.

However, my joy was short-lived. For whatever reason, these were extremely challenging to remove from the doll and, as such, I actually damaged one of them (sigh). This doll now has a tiny plastic bit rolling around in her head. Thankfully for the sake of the earring itself, I have little jewelry-making kits, and I should be able to salvage it.

Because this is an “extra” Barbie, we’re not done with her accessories, not by a long shot. Next up, check out these cheeky shades and the little plastic necklace:

Neither of these are at all my style, but like I said before, they work on this doll. I don’t see myself using them much for dressing the doll in the future, though.

I’m very on the fence about this cloud-shaped purse, but oh my gawd, I love this ring!

The ring isn’t metal, but the cool thing about this ring is that it’s not creating a hole on the doll’s hand – this is available for many different dolls to wear, as it just slides on over the fingers. In a word: brilliant.

For those who have poked holes in their doll’s hands in order to wear rings: your dolls can wear this ring, too, it’s big enough to cover up any damage to the hands. Enjoy, I know I will. Nicely done, Mattel. Nicely done.

The last accessories for this extra doll are a plastic bobble-headed dog, wearing sunglasses, and pink high heels, a blue purse, and a few bone shaped accessories.

Due to the size of the dog’s head, this poor pup can’t remain upright. I had to keep the little plastic blue purse in front to offer it some stability. If you’re thinking I should host another giveaway of the things I’m not a huge fan of: I’m way ahead of you.

We’re going to pick apart the outfit now and, if you hadn’t already guessed, the real shining piece for this doll, in my opinion, is her coat. I actually really like her bright, rainbow-colored, furry (long hair?) coat. Gleam!:

I’m getting major nostalgia for Rainbow Bright (showing my age again). I’m eager to get Anne into it – I think it’s right up her alley. So cute! It’s well made and lined, save for the arms, in yellow, soft fabric.

As for what’s beneath the lavish coat (which yes, it absolutely sheds), she’s wearing a red, long sleeved crop top and a pair of matching biking shorts featuring a black band with “LOVE” written on it. Which, I have to admit, I like.

But what about the doll herself? She is, in a word, adorable.

She’s cute as a button, I really love her big brown eyes and her golden makeup. I’m not a huge fan of the lips, but as with so many of my other dolls, she’ll likely eventually end up with a makeover.

Now, for those of you who don’t like the pixelated, printed-on look for doll faces, I have some bad news.

I’m sorry to say, she’s quite pixelated in her printed face.

Now, for me, this isn’t a deal-breaker as she’ll be repainted. That, and my eyesight doesn’t really catch this stuff unless I’m staring at it at an uncomfortable level of closeness. I mean, she and I just met, after all.

As for her body, she’s a standard, articulated fashionista - which is sad, as I was hoping she’d be made-to-move or BMR1959 level articulation. No such luck.

That said, she seems to be a fairly close match, skin tone wise, with the BMR1959 petite - I may have to order another in order to rebody her…then again, I’d be missing out on the petite BMR’s adorable face - argh. I will be looking for another skintone match in the made to move dolls, fingers crossed.

Sadly, her body came with quite a bit of damage, including strange scratches and even a gash in her upper stomach - was she in a knife fight? - and some very strange texture changes and discoloration on her legs.

I’m disappointed in the quality control displayed here, hopefully other folks will get luckier with their purchases.

I hope you enjoyed this review, if I left anything out you’d like me to answer, please leave a comment. Happy Monday.