News/Updates 

       

Toy Fair Day 2: But...These are for Girls

Earlier this week, K'Nex sent out press release about their new Mighty Makers line of construction toys. Geared towards girls, the line is especially cool for featuring non-traditional careers such as pilot, architect, and marine biologist. It's part of an overall trend of companies finally recognizing that girls are interested in more than pink dolls and shopping (despite what the TIAA thinks).



Laurie Peterson was there to unveil the newest sets from Build & Imagine, a series that lets kids create their own environments using predecorated modular walls. Their previous sets were primarily backdrops, but they are starting to move towards 3D accessories with the addition of a rope ladder and slide in their upcoming Tree House. The themes of friendship and universal fun activities continue, the art remains clean and vibrant, and the whole world benefits from Laurie and her team's commitment.



IAmElemental seeks to create a line of female action figures with more noble powers than super punches and a 34G bust. The seven figures in series one—Bravery, Energy, Honesty, Industry, Enthusiasm, Persistence, and Fear—represent some of the most easily recognizable and useful traits that children can use as springboards to create their own adventures. The figure designs and art are very slick, and the makers are looking to expand the line in 2015 thanks to a positive response from fans and parents.



Although Monster High may not seem like it goes with some of the other names here, Mega Bloks has provided a reason for more construction-minded girls (and their parents) to celebrate. The fashion dolls had already eschewed the typical "girl" color schemes in favor of a more goth look, and thanks to the realities of block production the Bratz-esque proportions have been all but eliminated. Further helping is that the sole car in the first wave is not a sporty coupé or a family-friendly sedan, but a vintage phaeton hot rod that would fit right in with LEGO's Monster Hunters series.



The big name in "girls are awesome" continues to be GoldieBlox, just coming off a year that included both a Superbowl advertisement and a float in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. It's great to see people reacting so positively to Debbie Sterling's simple but fundamental idea that girls can enjoy traditionally "boy" activities. The momentum has even caused larger companies that were stuck in a 1950s-era mindset to reexamine their toy lineup, and with that kind of shift it's no longer foolishly optimistic to imagine a better toy aisle for everyone.


Trackbacks


No Trackbacks

Comments

Display comments as (Linear | Threaded)

No comments

Add Comment
Enclosing asterisks marks text as bold (*word*), underscore are made via _word_.
Standard emoticons like :-) and ;-) are converted to images.
E-Mail addresses will not be displayed and will only be used for E-Mail notifications.

To prevent automated Bots from commentspamming, please enter the string you see in the image below in the appropriate input box. Your comment will only be submitted if the strings match. Please ensure that your browser supports and accepts cookies, or your comment cannot be verified correctly.
CAPTCHA

Submitted comments will be subject to moderation before being displayed.