The collecting dynamics

Growing up, I always thought my collections would last forever. I'd get more and more things over the years and somehow I had the idea that one day it would be complete and I'd have everything there was to collect on a certain subject (My Little Pony, DVD's, anime and manga) and I'd be happy having it all. Of course, that's not how it ended up working.

As I started collecting things through the internet, the most fun part of collecting was not actually getting new things (while that was fun, too); it was the interaction with other collectors, the trading and making new friends, that made it so addicting. And as much as I enjoyed buying new things, at some point I had so much I began to lose track of what I had and everything went from a fun collection to a cluttered house.
So instead of only buying and trading, I began to sell parts of my collection.

And I loved it. It was awesome to go through my things and select only those that I really wanted to keep and ship off other things to other people, making back some money in the process. I loved seeing my trader feedback grow and I loved using the money I had made selling things to buy new things I enjoyed more.

But lately I haven't been buying much at all; I'm only selling and the size of my collections is shrinking rapidly, and I'm even selling off some things completely. I'm currently in the process of selling my Monster High dolls (all of them) and I'm planning to sell at least 200 ponies because the truth is, I enjoy my stuff more when I only have those things that I really, really want. I used to keep adding things to my collections just for the sake of making them complete, but that just lessened the amount of joy I got from them because they consisted of things I didn't really want.

This doesn't mean I will stop collecting or that I don't enjoy toys or other collections anymore - I most certainly do. I just don't want them to be in every single part of my house and there's so many other things I want to do more lately (writing courses for example). But I am still very much enjoying collecting. Selling, too, is part of the whole collecting experience for me and I love to interact with other collectors on forums and in real life. Besides, I feel like my collections grow stale if I don't go through them every once in a while to make sure I still really want all of it.

And the truth is, I feel like I enjoy everything so much more now - appreciating other people's collections, the few things that I still do buy, the news about upcoming new products; I no longer feel obligated to get it all and I can just be very picky about the things that I add. And it's great to let things go once in a while. Sometimes you just get bored with a toy line or it doesn't evolve in the direction you like and it feels refreshing to say "okay, I'm letting this go and I'll focus on something else", which is how I feel about Monster High now. And sometimes I just feel like selling stuff just so I get to meet new fellow collectors!

Both

This year I entered a writing contest for the first time, the Fantasy Strijd Brugge! I was pretty nervous as I discovered the contest close to the deadline so I didn't have much time to come up with a story, and I haven't written in Dutch for -years-, something I was eager to pick up but which I didn't have much experience with.

I ended up 65th out of 213 entries, something I was really satisfied with as I wasn't that confident in my story!! The jury report was pretty positive all in all, too, and their remarks I all agree with, so I'm pretty satisfied for now! I'm really hoping to improve!

Anyway, here is the complete story I entered. As it was a Dutch contest it's in Dutch (obviously), but I might translate it into English one day =)

Beiden

“Sylus...”
“Het boek zegt dat we naar links moeten.”
Ik wil je zeggen dat er daar niets is, alleen maar bomen en struiken, maar als het boek je zegt dat we naar links moeten dan heeft het toch geen zin. Waarom zou je naar mij luisteren als het boek, dat we al wekenlang volgen, je zegt dat we hier naar links moeten? Dus ik zucht en volg je van het pad af, dieper het bos in.

De lucht heeft een zieke kleur.  Alsof er iemand daarboven melk heeft gemengd met bloed en het tussen de lichtgrijze wolken heeft uitgesmeerd. Zou het boek daar ook wat over zeggen? Je kijkt zo geconcentreerd naar de weg dat ik het je niet durf te vragen. Je houdt het boek open en ik zie de tekens langzaam veranderen met elke beslissing die je neemt. 

Het boek is gebonden aan je, dat weet ik ook wel. Je hebt de prijs er voor betaald. Ik hoor je nog schreeuwen, daar in die donkere kamer in de kelder van de universiteit. Het bloed liep over de vloer terwijl de ketting van tekens in je armen sneed. Ik wilde je helpen maar je schreeuwde dat ik weg moest blijven. Ik wilde je helpen... en toen was het al voorbij. Bloedend lag je daar, maar je lachte, je lachte terwijl je je boek vasthield. Sinds die dag heb je het niet los gelaten. 

Gisteren zagen we nog een boerderij in de verte, maar zo diep in het bos leeft niemand. Af en toe kijk je naar het boek. Ik wil je zo veel zeggen. Dat we naar huis moeten gaan, dat we genoeg gereist hebben, dat je het boek niet nodig hebt. Maar ik heb dat allemaal al zo vaak gezegd, en ik zou niet weten waarom je deze keer wel naar me zou luisteren.

Met het boek op je hand leid je me diep het bos in. Ik twijfel er niet aan dat je precies weet waar we heen gaan, ook al zijn we hier nog nooit geweest. “Het boek zegt... Hier.” Nog twee stappen en ik zie de verlaten silo tussen de bomen. Het dak is ingestort en er groeit een jonge boom naar buiten. De muren staan scheef en zodra we dichterbij komen zie ik dat er geen deur meer is. Waarom staat er hier, midden in het bos, een oude silo? Ik zie geen teken van een verlaten boerderij of iets dergelijks.

“Is het hier?” “Ja.” Geen uitleg. Het boek weet alles. Maar ik kan het me nog maar moeilijk voorstellen. Op deze verlaten plek, nadat we zo veel hebben doorstaan, hebben meegemaakt, is het hier? Het object dat we nodig hebben om weer terug te kunnen, om het boek te sluiten zodat het je eindelijk de waarheid kan vertellen waar je al zo lang naar verlangt. Hier?

Zodra we voor de silo staan slaat het boek zichzelf dicht. Ik hou mijn adem in, kan me niet eens herinneren wanneer het boek voor het laatst dicht ging. Zelfs als je slaapt is het open. Ik heb de tekens gezien die veranderen terwijl je droomt. 

Natuurlijk laat je het boek niet los, maar ik zie je twijfel als je naar binnen stapt. Ik zie alleen je donkergroene cape en je halflange zwarte haar terwijl je langzaam naar voren loopt. Als de veer hier is... Dan is het allemaal voorbij. Over. Dan kunnen we terug. Hoeven we niet meer te vechten tegen de woorden in je hoofd... 

Zodra ik je naar binnen volg zie ik het. Ik snap niet waarom jij het niet ziet. Het licht... Rood licht, uit het boek. De band bedekt het, maar de pagina’s lichten rood op ook al is het gesloten. Je had dus toch gelijk. Hier is het. Wederom herinner ik me de kelder onder de universiteit. Het bloed, het rode licht... Het kan niet anders dan dat het hier is. Het boek klampte zich vast aan jou en nu staan we hier op deze verlaten plek.

“Het boek...,” fluister ik als ik zie dat je blijft rondkijken. “Ik weet het. Maar het is...” Een oorverdovende kreet en ik ren naar je toe. Ik zie je vechten om het boek dicht te houden, maar het is sterker dan jij bent en vliegt open. Een moment zie ik niks behalve het rode licht dat me vanaf de pagina’s toesnelt. De tekens bewegen sneller dan ik ooit heb gezien, en ze zijn niet meer zwart, maar rood alsof ze met bloed in plaats van inkt zijn geschreven.

Het boek ligt nog steeds op je hand als je door je knieen zakt en het nogmaals uitschreeuwt. Bloed druppelt uit je neus. Ik probeer je vast te houden, maar net als toen duw je me weg.
“Raak me niet aan!”
“Laat het los! Laat het boek los!”
“Denk je dat dat nog kan?!” schreeuw je terwijl je wild met je arm begint te zwaaien. Nee, je laat het boek niet los. Het boek laat jou niet los. Diep van binnen wist ik het wel, maar op dat moment dringt het pas tot me door dat jullie één zijn. Er is geen jij en er is geen boek; er is alleen een eenheid waarvan ik besef dat ik het niet echt ken.

 “Het moet hier zijn!” De veer. Het is het enige wat we nog nodig hebben. De inkt... jouw bloed, en het boek. De veer waarmee het boek ooit geschreven is, het enige object waarmee je controle kan krijgen over wat het boek je vertelt. 

“Het moet hier toch ergens zijn!” Terwijl het boek druk heen en weer bladert zie ik je zoeken. Onvrijwillig zoek ik met je mee. De veer... Je zei dat het boek vertelde dat het hier was. Maar er is niks in deze vervallen plek behalve de jonge boom in het midden. Alleen aarde en onkruid. Het boek bladert sneller en sneller en als ik je hoor schreeuwen neem ik onvrijwillig een stap naar achteren. 

We hebben de veer nodig. Je wilde die dag niet meer wachten. Niemand wist waar de veer was, maar jij wilde niet meer wachten en zoeken. Je moest het weten, wat er die dag gebeurd was toen je van huis vertrok en terugkwam bij niets meer dan een hoop as. Je eigen zus met de noorderzon vertrokken, je hele dorp in puin. Waarom?! Met je eigen bloed als inkt bond je het boek aan je met een gewone veer. Hoopte, dacht dat je sterk genoeg was. Maar het Boek der Waarheid zegt je niks zolang je het niet kan dwingen.

Het is te laat. Je ligt op de grond, het boek  nog steeds in je handen. “Sylus!” Je naam heeft geen betekenis meer nu je er niet meer op reageert. De tekens sijpelen langzaam uit het boek, langs je armen onder je kleren over je hele lichaam. “De veer...” fluister ik terwijl het tot me door dringt dat het hier niet is. Het boek heeft ons niet naar de veer gebracht. Natuurlijk niet. Waarom zou het boek ons naar het enige object brengen waarmee we het onder controle kunnen krijgen? 

Ik neem een stap naar achter als je bloedrode ogen openspringen. “Sylus...” Je bent er niet meer. Dit zijn niet jouw ogen. Ik weet niet wie het wel is. Het boek? Ik volg je al sinds je me meenam uit het verlaten huis. Ik volgde je, en beetje bij beetje begon ik je te snappen. De wanhoop die je dreef, de uitzichten waar je zo van genoot, de toekomst die je voor je zag.

Maar het boek heb ik nooit begrepen, hoe vaak je het er ook over had. Je wilde het hebben, je wilde het per se aan je binden omdat het het enige ter wereld was wat je de waarheid kon laten zien. De waarheid die je nodig had om te overleven. En nu kronkel je op de grond, schreeuwend, kruipend...

Ik heb je ooit een belofte gedaan waar jij niks van wist. Terwijl je lichaam rood kleurt van de tekens neem ik langzaam een stap naar voren. Je schreeuwt iets, maar ik versta het niet. Ik weet niet eens of het wel woorden zijn. Je waarschuwt me dat ik weg moet blijven, misschien. Alsof dat nu nog een mogelijkheid is.

“Sylus...” Waarom je me meenam heb ik nooit begrepen. Misschien omdat je wel wist hoeveel ik om je gaf, wat ik voor je zou doen. Misschien omdat je begreep dat ik het alleen niet zou redden. Ik kruip naar je toe, hopend dat je me herkent, hopend op een teken... De aarde zit om je heen, je kleren zitten onder... De boom achter je heeft al zijn bladeren verloren. 

“Ik beloofde je...” fluister ik terwijl ik naast je kniel, “dat je bij het einde niet alleen zou zijn.” Ik leg mijn hand op het boek en het valt uiteen in duizenden asdeeltjes. Het heeft geen papier meer nodig.

Bronies and Fangirls

Okay so first of all I have to say this out loud somewhere: I absolutely -love- the Avengers! I've seen it in cinema 4 times now and I kind of want to go for another round (I love the number 5) (it's like a rollercoaster ride, that movie).I'm usually not the superhero kind of person, I prefer characters with a bit more background and depth, but the Marvel cinematic universe has really succeeded in giving these heroes a believable and layered personality while still having them being fun superheroes you can root for, and all of this comes together in the Avengers. Great job, Joss Whedon and Marvel studios!

Recently I've been having fun over at Tumblr (shameless self-advertising). I'm still figuring that stuff out but it's such a fun way to share things you like with people who like similar things (and to discover new things in the process). Through Tumblr I've kind of fallen down the avengers-fandom-rabbit hole. And oddly enough, this fandom consists of mostly women (on there, at least), who have a whole different reason for liking Avengers.

It's not really about these heroes (and villains, let's not forget fan-favourite Loki) being heroes and fighting bad guys and being cool. It's not even about saving the day. Fans have turned these characters into almost romantic versions of themselves who sacrifice their own wants and needs for the good of others and who have a romantic interest in each other or other people. And, of course, about how horribly attractive these people are (both the characters and the actors). Can't argue with that one.

This entire thing has reminded me of bronies and their struggle to have people accept that they like a show not intended for them. Now I have absolutely no idea what older Marvel fans think of all these girls swooping in and romanticizing their superheroes, but I do see some similarities; an audience not meant as the target audience comes and makes a product their own through fan-made products (pictures, stories etc.).While the subject is different and the groups of fans are different I think there's a similar trend going on.

I love it. I love seeing franchises being able to break down gender-stereotypes and being able to appeal to both boys and girls, men and women. Of course everyone enjoys a fandom in their own way or with people who enjoy it in a similar way, and I think it's awesome that people come out and say "Hey, I like this show in a certain way" and find other people with the same ideas. I think it's one of the great things the internet has brought us, the ability to find things you like and find other people who like the same things in a way that's easier than in real life. It doesn't and shouldn't replace any offline interests and friendships, but it's a nice addition.

The card game contradiction

This weekend I attended a Legend of the Five Rings Kotei, organized by my boyfriend and his friends. Legend of the Five Rings is a story-driven trading card game with an Asian theme and a kotei is an official tournament where the winner gets to influence the storyline behind the game in some way. I made myself useful in the months leading up to the event by taking charge of the Facebook and Twitter profiles of the tournament, but to be honest I didn't play the game. No matter how awesome I think collectible card games like Magic the Gathering, Pokémon and Legend of the Five Rings are, I can never get myself to actually playing them beyond a casual game once a year (which I always lose, of course).

The lore behind these games, especially Legend of the Five Rings, is amazing and constructed really well. In Legend of the Five Rings there are 9 clans in the Empire and each player aligns himself with one of these (you can switch of course but your deck of cards usually works with one clan). Every clan has its special traits and characteristics and there's a lot of dynamics going on. With players being able to influence the storyline somewhat it keeps things fresh and there's really something you achieve when you win a tournament beyond just winning a prize. There's loads of little stories about characters you can play which can be read on the official site and there's also a really amazing roleplaying game which allows you to further explore the lore of this game, which I've played with friends a couple of times.

But the card game itself... doesn't work for me, which I am pretty sad about because every time I see my boyfriend and his friends play they just have so much fun! The truth is that L5R is a rather complicated game with so many different ways to play (there's 2 decks you play with and 4 ways to win a match, to start with), but that's not the real problem for me as I can't get myself to play easier games either. The fun of any card game lies in the time you invest in it; if you play a lot, you'll get better, and by learning the game you understand not only your own but your opponents cards better, how they work together and how they interact. I think for a lot of players one of the fun aspects of card games is discovering the strengths and weaknesses of their cards and utilizing those, which I think is awesome, but it's just not for me. I just can't get myself to invest this time in it, because I rather spent my time on my other hobbies such as writing or photography. But if I can't have an equal match with my opponents I don't really enjoy playing, so I end up not playing much at all because everyone is a lot better than me (really, I have no insight in this stuff whatsoever).

That being said, I love Legend of the Five Rings for so many other reasons. I love the story as I mentioned and the roleplaying game is a lot of fun, and it always makes me so happy when I see people I care about enjoy playing. But also, maybe most of all, I love the players. Every time I tag along to a kotei I'm amazed how friendly everyone is and how comfortable I feel. A lot of players are pretty loyal to the game and I've seen them at tournaments for over five years now! I'm not a big fan of big groups and events in general, but the kotei is always an exception to that. I think it's kind of fun how I can enjoy this game without actually playing it!

The living picture

The other day I was in the park, enjoying the nice weather of early spring and taking doll pictures. A little girl of about 10 years old came up to me and asked me what I was doing. When I explained that I was taking pictures of Japanese collectible dolls she looked at me like I was crazy and asked "What the hell I did that for". I kind of laughed it off and just said I liked doing it, but when I got home and was editing the pictures I started wondering what I was doing it for, apart from the general 'I like it and it's my hobby'.

The truth is that photography became my hobby only after I started collecting dolls. Not that I didn't like taking pictures before but I never really cared much about settings or camera's or composition until after I got into doll collecting. I saw all these wonderful pictures of pullips online and I wanted to show off my dolls too, because they're simply gorgeous and I wanted to share them with everyone else! However, as with many other new collectors, I found my own pictures lacking. They just weren't good enough, and not just because I was using an old camera or because I didn't know how to use light properly (still figuring that out now, btw).

The truth was, my dolls looked like dolls. I realized this when I was re-reading my old picfic the magic chronicles. Their poses were unnatural because I was forcing them into positions their plastic bodies simply couldn't make. I was posing my dolls in ways that were impossible for them to do naturally, so they looked fake, like dolls. Which is not what you want to achieve when you want a picture that's colourful and alive.

So I started doing things differently. Instead of forcing my dolls to stand in the way I wanted them to, I decided to go by what they can do naturally. How far can you push a doll and still make it look natural, alive instead of like a puppet? Of course, this depends on body type. What some bodies can pull off easily, others can't do at all. I'm really beginning to understand why people obitsu their dolls because it just makes them so much more poseable, but it's a fun challenge to see how you can make the stock bodies look natural as well.

And this is exactly why I like photographing dolls. It's a challenge to make such an unnatural plastic object blend in the environment and make it look like it's there out of it's own free will, like it's alive, like it has a story and a reason to be where it is. It's a creative process that goes beyond the picture; it's creating a story, creating a scene that looks natural, taking your limitations into consideration.

I'm not there yet, not by far. There's so much more I have to learn, both technical and inspirational. But I love learning and criticizing my own work. And through this, my love for photography is expanding beyond photographing dolls into other fields like animals and nature. I also really want to try taking pictures of other toys in different environments, out of the lightbox. It's an amazing learning curve and I'm happy with the progress I've made so far! It's fun to enjoy my collection like this, outside of just having them on display and generally looking pretty.

The brony issue

So I recently joined a Dutch brony forum after some Dutch bronies were featured on a tv show. I don't really consider myself a brony - I absolutely love FiM and the gen4 toy line, but I would have loved it without the wholy brony hype anyway. I've been a MLP collector for 20 years, and I don't suddenly label myself differently just because My Little Pony is the hot thing right now. However, I think it's absolutely amazing that my little pony has gathered so many new fans in such a short time - and from a completely different audience no less! It's great to be able to say I love my little pony without being considered completely insane right away, and my non-collecting friends also like the series, so that's absolutely fun!
However, this new fanbase seems to exist almost separately from the more traditional my little pony fans. They have their own sites, their own fora. Now this isn't all that weird considering that the bronies are completely different people than the original collectors (young men vs. women in their early 30's, generally speaking) and because they are interested in different parts of the MLP universe. Bronies focus almost solely on the TV show, while collectors seem to be more into the collectibles and consider the show only a part of the gen4 franchise and gen4 only a part of a larger MLP legacy.

None of this is weird. Or eye-opening. And there's nothing wrong with it. What does amaze me, however, is the animosity I feel between bronies and collectors sometimes. Bronies bash the older gens (just look up some clips of the older tv show on youtube) and collectors feel like bronies are taking over their hobby.
To illustrate, let's look at the recent New York toy fair. A group of toys based on characters from the tv show were announced, together with a castle playset with the first boy MLP in over 10 years. These ponies were quickly dubbed the brony-set because it is widely believed that Hasbro created these ponies to cater to the brony fanbase. This in turn upset some collectors who felt that Hasbro was only listening to bronies now.
In my opinion, the problem isn't that there will soon be a "brony set". In fact, I think it's great that Hasbro is considering other demographics than just their target audience of little girls - and to be honest, I can see this set being very popular with girls as well! I don't believe for one moment that girls only want pink and princesses. The problem, however, is that bronies aren't the first who ever asked for less pink, more variety and boy ponies. Collectors have been asking for this for over a decade (ever since the gen3 launch) and Hasbro didn't listen even once. In fact, they did the exact opposite thing from what was asked; they released the core 7 which meant more pink and less variety.

So, of course collectors are annoyed. I know I am. Not because of the bronies; I think they're great. But because Hasbro never once listened to people who have been a fan of this line for over 20 years, who have young daughters themselves, who buy their products and have done so for a very long time, who have seen this line change and evolve all the time and who know what works and what doesn't, and yet a new but vocal group comes along and they have more success than the collectors in only a year.
Judging by the response online to this new set, it's bound to be a success. So why did Hasbro wait this long to release a set like this? Why do they seem to listen to bronies more than they did to collectors? Is it because bronies are simply a lot more vocal than collectors are? After all, collectors generally keep to their own fora and websites, while bronies seem to spam My Little Pony all over the internet. Maybe collectors have been too timid and polite all this time, and Hasbro never considered them a group large enough to make profit of to warrant a large release like the brony-set.

Or is it a gender thing, like some female collectors seem to fear? I have heard the argument that bronies are trying to make MLP less girly because they don't want to be seen as girly men who like pink toys, and are upset that bronies can't accept that MLP is a strong female brand. Personally, I think this isn't true for most bronies; they like FiM for what it is right now, a girl show with a lot of universal appeal. I think it's also a bit silly considering collectors have been asking for less-girly toys for ages as well. Why would it be okay for women to ask for less pink but not for men? My Little Pony is a brand for girls and will always be. That's not going to change because of some hype, and if it did I am pretty sure the hype will die out soon enough. It's a show and a toy line for girls that appeals to both genders at the moment; this is great! When a show for boys appeals to both genders, you don't hear any complaints about there being some more girly aspects, so I don't see why it should be a problem the other way around.
Or maybe Hasbro just needed proof that there was a different demographic for their line and simply couldn't believe that My Little Pony could have such a universal appeal until they saw it happen. Whatever the case, it's bound to be an exiting year with these upcoming MLP toys. I just really hope that Hasbro will also reconsider some other ideas collectors have had for a while; for example, release collector edition sets, make the fair pony a gen1 pony, more variety in the line with for example sea ponies or maybe a gen4 release of other gen1 ponies like Applejack? I'm exited to see what Hasbro comes up with and I think it's amazing that they seem to hear the voice of fans more nowadays!

Sylvanian Families

I think everyone agrees that the last thing I need is something else to collect, what with my Ponies and Pullips and Monster High and all. Unfortunately late last year my boyfriend decided to introduce me to Sylvanian Families which is just about the cutest thing ever.

The basic idea of Sylvanian Families is pretty simple; it's just families of anthropomorphic little animals (bunnies, dogs, cats, mice, hedgehogs etc.) that live in beautiful houses and mansions. Of course there's also schools and shops and cars and all available. These families are available in sets of four (a mom, a dad, a baby boy and a baby girl) but many playsets also come with their own little character like the Village Gift Shop set which comes with a saleslady and a customer.
Sylvanian Families figures are pretty small (the tallest ones are about 10cm), can move their arms and legs and have flocking, so they're all really soft. They all come dressed in quite traditional clothing (or in the case of theme packs, clothing appropriate to the job/holiday/school activity) which is usually of nice quality.

This toy line is originally from Japan and known as Calico Critters in the USA. It's kind of nice to realize that the American and Japanese lines carry different versions of (or altogether different) products, so it's a nice challenge for collectors to hunt down those pieces that they want for their collection.
What I absolutely love about Sylvanian Families is the innocence of it all; they're just cute critters living in a brightly colored world where they do happy things like shopping and going to school and camping and such. Their playsets really make the world come to life. You can buy their houses, shops and accessories for those separately which is both frustrating and nice. Frustrating because it costs a fortune to collect enough furniture to decorate a house but also nice because you can buy whatever you like personally and you're not stuck with extras you don't need.
There is a large variation of playsets and themed sets, so this line really has something for everyone.  The nursery and baby lines really put more emphasis on pastel colors and cute but not very realistic buildings and toys, while for example the Regency Hotel has furniture that is based on real furniture and the entire set seems to be targeted towards collectors. Needless to say the latter is pretty high on my want-when-I-am-rich list!

I am amazed with the quality of these toys. Not only are they sturdy, well-made and properly packed (without using excessive plastic like I have talked about in my previous blog post), but also because of the details. Especially the smaller playsets come with so many little things that you're not wanting for anything if you want to make a display or scene come to life. To illustrate, the Village Gift Shop (pictured at the top of this post) comes with all the little things you can see on the packaging! Downside of this is that it's ridiculously easy to lose any of this stuff because it's so small; I'm sure especially kids who play with these will easily lose things.
One of the things that I both like and dislike is the traditional family message this toy line is carrying out. On the one hand it's a nice contrast between all the battle- and fashion oriented toys that flood the market nowadays, but on the other hand families don't just exist out of a mother and father anymore.
What about single parent families, or same-sex parents? Those are real families too, but this toy line is staying far away from it, which is a shame in my opinion. Not only because I think it would be a wonderful and positive message to show children that a family can consist of different members, but also because I think a lot of children grow up in a reality nowadays where there's simply not just a dad and a mom and a sibling. I'm not sure if this is something that belongs to this kind of toy line, but it was one of the first things that came to my mind.
All in all, I really like this innocent, cute toy line which I'm sure inspires creative play in many children and which is a great collector's item. Toys that manage to appeal to both collectors and children, without having to create special collectors editions, usually are of a special quality and this line definitely qualifies!