Review: Barbie Wizard of Oz: Wicked Witch of the West
Posted by Lindsay
So my Barbie obsession is getting worse, not better. A few weeks ago there was a sale on barbiecollector.com, with a bunch of new stuff clearanced, everything marked down an extra 20%. I bought a giant box of dolls, some of which you'll be seeing more of here. I'll try to intersperse them with other figures, but I promise nothing. I have a thing for good costuming, okay? This one is, obviously, The Wicked Witch of the West, from The Wizard of Oz. Mattel has been releasing different iterations of this line for quite a few years now, some of which have sound effects, sometimes the line includes Glinda, sometimes not. The only one I wanted that was a reasonable price was the Wicked Witch. She's a Pink Label collector's Barbie. I'm not sure whether to be happy or not that she wasn't quite cheap enough for me to pick up another to customize, you know, in case I wanted to redo this project. |
Appearance and Construction: 9/10
I think this is a gorgeous doll. Now, she doesn't actually look much like the Witch in the movie. The costume is accurate, but not so much the face. On the other hand, she's a perfectly passable double for the lovely Idina Mendzel. (Original cast of Wicked, the stage musical.)
The green skin tone is very nice, the face paint well chosen and clean, including a bit of stylized shading here and there.
The hat is the weakest part of the costume and it is still very nice. I love the gauzy cape attached to the back of the dress, the corset details on the front, the subtle panels of black velvet on black satin at the hips and the puffed shoulders. The shoes are great, she has a petticoat under the skirt, and a little pouch tacked to the side. The hair is gently curled in the front, and the rest is bound up at the nape of the neck. She really is only losing a point here for minor sewing errors; the shoulder puffs are uneven, one of the (hidden) snaps is broken, and a few threads and knots are loose. |
Packaging and Accessories: ---
The box protects the doll well, evokes the movie, matches the rest of the line, and allows you to test the music feature. (More on that in a bit.)
She comes with a straddle stand, which works well, and a broomstick. The broom is okay, but not up to the quality of the doll, and she can't really hold it without help from an elastic or tape. I would have liked a flying monkey, but didn't really expect it from a Pink Label doll.
Play and Display: ---
The costume comes on and off relatively easily, although I haven't gone as far as snipping the thread that holds her hat steady. I think it would stay on her head anyway, but I'm not in a hurry to risk losing the piece.
She has a play feature, a button on the back that plays a ten-second sound clip, consisting of the Witch's movie theme, and her laugh. I was somewhat impressed with the way she was attached to the package so that pushing the button on the package activated the system inside the doll. There is a battery enclosure in her back and speaker in the front.
|
I was surprised to discover that she has an old-style Barbie body.
I suspect this is because they already had an older mold with the speaker and battery pack included. Looking online at pictures of some talking Barbies from the 60's and 70's seems to confirm this theory. |
She has ball joints at neck and shoulders, pin-hinges at her elbow, which was a welcome surprise, standard Barbie three-click knees, and cuts at the hips. The style of the waist and hips is the biggest change between the older-style body and the 1998 body that is now standard. Note that even though she has new articulated elbows, her hands are quite different from this modern-style Barbie, and her feet are a bit different as well.
|
In any case, her body mold is copyright 1966, while her head is copyright 2003.
|
Price Tag and Final Analysis: 9/10
More research has determined that these dolls have been clearanced to make way for yet another iteration of Wizard of Oz Barbies that includes a more “glamorous” Dorothy, and “vintage” looking Witch of the West and Glinda. However, for now you may still be able to snap up certain ones from this line online or at some Toys'R'Us locations.
Originally priced at around 40 dollars, I picked up this one marked all the way down to 20. I think she's a lovely and unique addition to my collection. I'll think about picking up a Witch of the East if they ever get cheap, but maybe I'd be happier just finding a doll that looks like Kristin Chenoweth... Ah-ha! |
Well, it works for now. Yes, that is a Princess and the Frog Charlotte doll.
For more extremely repurposed dolls, check out my past work on The Blue Fairy's Workshop. Of if you can't take one more Barbie today, try some movie reviews over at The Middle Room, or talk about books at The Blue Fairy's Bookshelf.
For more extremely repurposed dolls, check out my past work on The Blue Fairy's Workshop. Of if you can't take one more Barbie today, try some movie reviews over at The Middle Room, or talk about books at The Blue Fairy's Bookshelf.