Moxie Girlz: How Many Licks Does It Take....?

Related entries:
Get Your Moxie On! Introducing....Moxie Girlz (06.15.2009):
http://cannellefraiche.bratzheaven.com/b2evolution/blog1.php?p=32

Moxie Schmoxie: Moxie Girlz Revealed.... (06.18.2009):
http://cannellefraiche.bratzheaven.com/b2evolution/blog1.php?p=33

Moxie Girlz: What, Barbie Worry? (07.2.2009):
http://cannellefraiche.bratzheaven.com/b2evolution/blog1.php?p=39

These Girlz Got Moxie: I Found The Moxie Girlz At Target! (07.22.2009):
http://cannellefraiche.bratzheaven.com/b2evolution/blog1.php?p=43

Robyn Barnette: "I Will Not Do A Moxie Girlz Fan Website" (08.4.2009):
http://cannellefraiche.bratzheaven.com/b2evolution/blog1.php?p=45

How many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop?

I'm sure you're wondering what that question has to do with the Moxie Girlz, the brand new fashion doll line developed and manufactured by MGA Entertainment. Ever since it was first announced back in June 2009 that Moxie Girlz would be replacing Bratz, there has been plenty of speculation about this fashion doll line — specifically, is it a worthy successor to Bratz?

Over the past few weeks, I have written a few blog entries about the Moxie Girlz. I have also seen photos of the Moxie Girlz dolls and playsets. Based on what I have seen so far, the initial Moxie Girlz product lineup is impressive and much better than what I had originally perceived it to be. All right, so the Moxie Girlz dolls look like 10-year-old little girls. Fine. I can appreciate these dolls which look like 10-year-old little girls having their own passion for fashion, their own diversity, their own individuality, their own style in expressing themselves, their own personalities reflected in their fashion passion....

So why am I still not supporting this brand new fashion doll line by MGA Entertainment?

This goes back to the question I asked about how many licks it takes to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop. The Moxie Girlz is like licking that Tootsie Pop without ever getting to that Tootsie Roll center: It has everything other fashion doll lines in the market currently have, but it's lacking that one feature which makes it stand out. It's especially lacking that one feature which makes it stand out from Bratz.

Now some might point out that the slogan "Be True! Be You!" is what distinguishes the Moxie Girlz from all other fashion doll lines past and present. However, Bratz has similar messages about positive attitude, confidence, courage, energy, and just being yourself. So does Barbie. So do a lot of other fashion doll lines that have come and gone.

Yet, Bratz was the exception, because these dolls were unlike anything anyone had ever seen before in the toy industry. These girls with a passion for fashion were not afraid to stand up and express themselves in making their reputation known, not afraid to take risks, not afraid to elevate themselves to a newer and higher plateau, not afraid set new trends that were well ahead of their time. They had funk, they had style, they had grace, they had attitude, they had audacity, they had it all. And, just like world-renowned supermodel Tyra Banks once stated, they were FIERCE. The Moxie Girlz dolls don't blow you away like Bratz. Upon first glance, they're....plain, generic, ordinary. There's nothing edgy or sassy about them.

I think there are a number of issues affecting the potential success of the Moxie Girlz. I'm sure that there are many more issues than what I have noted, but here are three of them:

First, MGA Entertainment rushed through development and manufacturing of the Moxie Girlz. It seemed like the company didn't really put forth a concerted effort in creating a quality successor to Bratz. Instead, it was all about creating a Bratz replacement, in the event that MGA Entertainment lost all exclusive rights and ownership of the Bratz franchise to Mattel. If the company established a timeframe of approximately eight to ten months conducting research, design, planning, development, and focus group testing on the Moxie Girlz, perhaps this brand new fashion doll line would have created a bigger impact. MGA Entertainment is hoping that the Moxie Girlz will compensate the imminent loss of its Bratz franchise to Mattel once the litigation is finalized at the end of 2009. However, losing ownership of the biggest competition that knocked Barbie off her pedestal will be enormously devastating for MGA Entertainment. It will take years before the company fully recovers and returns to glory and prominence once again.

Second, the Moxie Girlz dolls themselves look like the demographic that MGA Entertainment is targeting with this brand new fashion doll line: Preteen girls between the ages of 10 through 12 (i.e. "tweens"). The dolls will certainly appeal to them, but....what about the young adult and older doll collectors, especially those who loved Bratz? Well, they'll probably be less than enthusiastic, although I suspect that the select few of them will purchase the dolls anyway — likely because they want to support MGA Entertainment and save the company from spiraling into financial ruin. What will make it difficult for the Moxie Girlz to emerge a serious competitor is that other fashion doll lines developed and manufactured by other toy companies have evolved too big for MGA Entertainment to compete against. Without proper promotion and building of the Moxie Girlz to help set the brand apart from other fashion doll lines in the market, Moxie Girlz may find itself overwhelmed by the competition. And let's not get even started on Barbie: Mattel has warned the entire toy industry that any fashion doll line which competes against Barbie is in danger of being litigated into bankruptcy and destruction. The Moxie Girlz is no exception, as Mattel is already conceiving a war plan to cripple this brand new fashion doll line and eliminate it from the marketplace.

Third, the Moxie Girlz dolls may have their own passion for fashion, their own personalities, their own flair for expressing their style....but the comparisons between Moxie Girlz and Bratz should have ended there. MGA Entertainment should have separated everything else about Bratz from the Moxie Girlz and made it a different fashion doll line with ORIGINALITY. All MGA Entetainment did was simply transfer certain features from Bratz into the Moxie Girlz, such as the snap-on/snap-off feet, the straight outward arms, and even the names of the characters (e.g., one of the characters in the Moxie Girlz "core four" is named Sasha, who is an African American like the Sasha character in Bratz). The Moxie Girlz dolls may bear little resemblance to Bratz, but the similarities are still present. Replacing an established fashion doll franchise such as Bratz with a recycled watered-down version is not going to please many Bratz fans, much less inspire them to purchase the Moxie Girlz products and collections.

To be fair, there is one collection in the Moxie Girlz initial product lineup that demonstrates the potential for this brand new fashion doll line to do well: Moxie Girlz Art-titude. Yes, I know the collection name sounds cheesier than Kraft Cheese & Macaroni, but it was this collection that made me give the Moxie Girlz a second look. I like the colorful artistic fashions that each character in the collection comes with. It would have been nice if each doll in the collection came with two fashions, lots of fashion accessories, and tons of art-related materials such as crayons, pencils, watercolor paint, a sketch pad, and a coloring book.

Instead, each doll in Moxie Girlz Art-titude comes with a second fashion, a bicycle accessory, two markers, and a couple of plastic earrings. Not much, but better than nothing, I suppose.

During the early years of the Bratz franchise, each doll would come with tons of fashions and accessories crammed inside each package. You would get so much bang for your buck when you purchased a doll from those early Bratz collections such as Wintertime Wonderland, Slumber Party, Formal Funk, Girls Nite Out, and a few others. For instance, check out what each of the Bratz Wintertime Wonderland dolls came with:

• Two tops
• Two bottoms
• Two winter jackets
• One scarf
• Snow hat
• One pair of mittens
• One pair of tights
• One pair of earmuffs
• Two pairs of winter boots
• An exclusive "Sport 'N Style" winter-active item
• Tons of other stylin' wintertime accessories

That was in 2003, when the Bratz franchise was well on its way toward dethroning Barbie and becoming the most successful fashion doll property in the world. It sounds more like 1993 now that I've written it down. Today, you would be lucky to find a Bratz doll with even ONE bonus accessory. Heck, you would be lucky to find a Bratz doll, period!

Sadly, the glory days for Bratz are long gone. Even MGA Entertainment is not really committed in promoting and building the Bratz franchise anymore. But if Moxie Girlz represents a new beginning for the company, are the people behind the development and manufacturing of this brand new fashion doll line going to be the best damn organization to create some of the most innovative consumer products in the marketplace? Because that's going to have to be the catalyst behind MGA Entertainment's success — and survival.

I don't anticipate that the Moxie Girlz will generate the type of response where preteen girls will storm their local Target department stores and purchase the dolls and playsets like crazy. The last time I ever saw that type of response to a toy line was with the Power Rangers fifteen years ago. Furthermore, I'm not discouraging anyone from purchasing the Moxie Girlz. Consumers, including Bratz fans, are free to purchase whatever fashion doll lines satisfy their interests and makes them happy.

I wish the many wonderful people at MGA Entertainment the best of luck in their promotion and marketing of the Moxie Girlz. I hope everything works out for them. But if you're wondering how many licks DOES it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop, well, it's the same as if I asked how long will it be before I have a change of heart and support this brand new fashion doll line: The world may never know....