Hey Mattel! Now you can put Bratz to sleep once and for all
After a hotly contested court case between huge toy conglomerate Mattel and MGA Entertainment, it looks like Mattel might actually be given back profits and the intellectual property that comprises the entire Bratz line.
Here's the thing though: I hate the entire concept behind the Bratz toys and am frankly aghast that any parents buy it.
Hold on, before I rant too much, let's have a bit more detail about the lawsuit itself:
"A U.S. District Court jury in Riverside, Calif., found toymaker MGA Entertainment guilty of contract interference and copyright infringement when it hired doll designer Carter Bryant away from Mattel in 2000."
Who knew that doll designers were to be courted and stalked like secret agents?
Analysts estimate, by the way, that the Bratz line brings in over a billion dollars in sales annually, which must look very nice to Mattel given that its cornerstone doll line, Barbie, is down 6% in sales.
Nonetheless, that doesn't change my basic objection with the toy line, that it glorifies and "sexifies" teen girls in a way that's alarmingly exaggerated. Even the name is a play on "brats", which no parent in the world would want their child to be, would they?
Looking at their pouty lips and general posture and attitude, it's a surprise that MGA Entertainment didn't just call them "Slutz" and cut to the proverbial chase.
If the brand intellectual property does transfer to Mattel, then I dream of a press release announcing that Mattel is going to shut down the entire Bratz line and replace it with something like "Angelz", a similar line of toys that are themed after nice girls that behave well, not bratty girls that are self-indulgent gits.
But it's quite possible I'm alone in my deep dislike of the Bratz line. I mean, 1.1 billion in annual sales suggests that some people are buying the stuff. I just don't have a clue why that is...
Posted by Dave Taylor at July 18, 2008 10:58 PM
Dave - I couldn't agree more. We wonder about morals is society today. Evidently, the profit dollar is more important than the future ethics of our world.
Even TY is slowly learning this lesson. Look at their TY Girlz - first wave of dolls were "slutz". Second wave softened up the look a little and their outfits were less "street corner". The new third wave have removed the overbearing eye shadow and softened the pouty lips - the outfits now are presentable main-street fashion.
BRATZ are clearly an affront to common decency. I share your dream of them being delegated back to the street corners they came from.
Absolutely agree! Those "dolls" have long been banned in our home. Ridiculous, and no doubt sends the exact opposite message most parents are trying to impart on their daughters today.
You're definitely not alone in your deep dislike of the Bratz line! It's shocking that so many people buy them. I feel sad in a profound way when I see them all over the place, sort of like when I hear what the average amount of screen time is for kids these days.
On a more positive note, the new Kit movie, based on the American Girl doll of the same name, is outstanding, according to my nine-year-old daughter, two of her friends, and the three Kleenex-wielding adults of both genders who accompanied them to the theater. American Girl is also owned by Mattel ...
To all of you concerned parents and Dave.
Dave, MGA came against our tradmark for ANGEL BRATZ in 2002 and although our concept was much more of a teaching and message doll concept I did not fight them. The fact that you mentioned "ANGELZ" in your commentary shocked me because we change our name to "SPAZE ANGELZ" www. Ohkidz.com. After posting our website in January 2007, MGA Bratz came out with "BRATZ SPACE ANGELZ"in December 2007..."How ironic". This time they are not going to get away with their plagerism...Mattel taught them a lesson and now we are going to do the same. The people involved in MGA reflect the unscrupulous demeanor of their product. Please visit our web site www.OHKIDZ.com I believe we are on the same page. "KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK".
Ugh. Put Bratz to sleep...or to death?
Thanks for keeping us up to date. Love the blog - and the design.
Laura
wildparenting.com
i hate those dolls too and won't let my 6 yr old have em. in my novel the grandma gives her granddaughter one and the mom throws it away- she doesn't want to give it to goodwill and inflict it on those kids either :)
Dave,
I saw that you read my reply to you but I cannot find where you replied back. I so appreciate that you are sending the parents our web site. It is not going to be easy to prove that MGA ripped us off AGAIN! My daughter is the cartoonist along with a brilliant cartoonist, Bill Mimms. Our ANGELZ promote the best in children and MGA is not going to take the name SPACE ANGELZ from us. We have been working on this project since 1998 and it is rightfully ours...Please write us back, because we need all the support we can get against MGA. We fear that Mattel is going to squash BRATZ and MGA is going to run with Space ANGELZ. We cannot let that happen. I would like to speak with you personally, our offices are in Los Angeles, again "keep up the good work".
Dave,
I saw that you read my reply to you but I cannot find where you replied back. I so appreciate that you are sending the parents our web site. It is not going to be easy to prove that MGA ripped us off AGAIN! My daughter is the cartoonist along with a brilliant cartoonist, Bill Mimms. Our ANGELZ promote the best in children and MGA is not going to take the name SPACE ANGELZ from us. We have been working on this project since 1998 and it is rightfully ours...Please write us back, because we need all the support we can get against MGA. We fear that Mattel is going to squash BRATZ and MGA is going to run with Space ANGELZ. We cannot let that happen. I would like to speak with you personally, our offices are in Los Angeles, again "keep up the good work".
I can't stand 'em either...who'd want a Brat for a role model?
