Direct link to view photo:
http://cannellefraiche.bratzheaven.com/photos/robyn-bratzstrutitmeygan.jpg

Meygan is my all-time favorite Bratz character. I have more Meygan dolls in my Bratz Doll Collection than any of the other Bratz characters. However, I remember purchasing Bratz Strut It! Meygan from KB Toys in January 2005 and being so unhappy with it, because the doll was "not the Meygan I had grown accustomed to seeing." Much of that was attributed to the first Meygan doll I purchased, Bratz Wild Life Safari Meygan. Hands down, it is the best Meygan doll ever manufactured by MGA Entertainment, because it illustrates what Meygan is really all about: Wild, fun, tough, reckless, and one bad-ass MF who'll smash you to pieces if you mess around with her. What an amazing return after Meygan "moved out of town" in 2003!

Bratz Strut It! Meygan is not wild, tough, or reckless like Bratz Wild Life Safari Meygan. But this doll is fun, especially when it came to capturing this photo on March 11, 1991. Okay, okay, I'm lying: It was actually March 11, 2009 when I captured this photo of my Bratz Strut It! Meygan doll. I wanted to make this photo appear as though it was captured 18 years ago, to give it that old-school appearance. For the most part, this photo of my Bratz Strut It! Meygan doll looks like something captured in 1991. And regardless of any negative impressions I had about this doll, I feel very fortunate that I purchased it when it was available.

The most noticeable aspects about Bratz Strut It! Meygan are that the head mold, eye print, and lip print look substantially DIFFERENT than similar features from the earlier Bratz collections (e.g., Bratz XPress It!, Bratz 1st Edition). I compared this photo of my Bratz Strut It! Meygan doll to a few photos that I captured of my Bratz XPress It! Jade doll for my "Plain Jade" Bratz Photography Project on Bratz Heaven. The dolls looked very different from one another, and aside from their funky fashion passion, I did not see any other similarities between them.

I also love the bracelets on Bratz Strut It! Meygan, and I thought it was ingenious that the designers at MGA Entertainment made the bracelets look like something normal preteen girls would wear. There is a very tiny elastic thread that holds the tiny bracelet beads together, and I'm always worried that this thread is going to break whenever I fasten the bracelets on the doll's wrist! The fashions are also "lighter" than the fashions from Bratz XPress It! Jade, and likely because this was a Spring 2003 release (Bratz XPress It! is from Fall 2002). Yet, the attention to detail on those fashions on Bratz Strut It! Meygan is amazing.

This photo of my Bratz Strut It! Meygan doll is actually part of a new Bratz Photography Project that I was working on. I had completed capturing all the photos of Bratz Strut It! Meygan for this project in April 2009. However, I never got around to completing the project in its entirety, since it was too time consuming to age the photos, as well as construct the project's corresponding video slideshow. But I did not abandon this project. And since I want to compensate for what I missed out on when Bratz was released during the franchise's early beginnings from 2001 through 2003, I do intend to complete this Bratz Photography Project devoted to my Bratz Strut It! Meygan doll sometime during the fall or winter of 2009.

Since purchasing Bratz Strut It! Meygan, my attitude and perception toward this doll has changed. I now have a much greater appreciation for Bratz Strut It! Meygan, and I'm grateful to own it and the other characters from the Bratz Strut It! collection (i.e., Yasmin, Cloe, Sasha, Jade). When I look at this photo of my Bratz Strut It! Meygan doll, I'm transported back to a time when Bratz was about attitude, individuality, expression, and style — aspects about the Bratz that were true then and that will forever be true when Bratz is retired and gone. These dolls were certainly ahead of their time, and Bratz Strut It! was one of those collections that exemplified how ahead of their time they were. Bratz Strut It! Meygan is one of my favorite old-school Bratz dolls, and I'm happy that it belongs where it should: In my Bratz Doll Collection.

Just a quick update to inform everyone who is accessing my Bratz Heaven Blog that there was a recent upgrade performed on the blog software. However, the upgrade ran into some technical difficulties and inadvertently crashed the database that contained all my previous blog entries (as well as comments to those entries). I was forced to rebuild the entire Bratz Heaven Blog from scratch. Fortunately, I was able to retreive most, but not all, of the blog entries and have reposted them in a slightly different order than what they were originally posted in before the upgrade took place.

I hope to retrieve all blog entries that have been posted to my Bratz Heaven Blog. In addition, I will post new versions of those previous blog entries that were lost during the upgrade and database crash.

My Bratz Heaven Blog will continue to be updated whenever and wherever necessary. I will keep you informed of any updates as they emerge.

Thank you all for your patience and understanding, and I sincerely apologize for any inconvenience.

NOTE: Cannelle Fraiche: The Bratz Heaven Blog uses software from B2Evolution. I do NOT do LiveJournal.

Related entries:
Wal-Mart: Different Store, Same Old Story (04.26.2009):
http://cannellefraiche.bratzheaven.com/b2evolution/blog1.php?p=16

Wal-Mart: "No Comment" About Selling Bratz For Fall 2009 (07.7.2009):
http://cannellefraiche.bratzheaven.com/b2evolution/blog1.php?p=41

Remember this?:

Sabina And Dresden Found! Guess Where? (04.28.2009):
http://cannellefraiche.bratzheaven.com/b2evolution/blog1.php?p=17

Or better yet, remember THIS?:

Wal-Mart No Longer Selling Bratz After July 2009 (04.20.2009):
http://cannellefraiche.bratzheaven.com/b2evolution/blog1.php?p=13

For the past four months, I have been criss-crossing throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, visiting many Wal-Mart stores to purchase Bratz Passion 4 Fashion Spring 2009 Sabina and Dresden. I have traveled far and wide to purchase as many sets of this collection as possible, in an effort to help Bratz fans obtain Bratz Passion 4 Fashion Spring 2009 Sabina and Dresden so they don't have to travel long distances or endure many hardships to find it. Make no mistake about it, these two Bratz dolls are absolutely the most difficult Bratz dolls to find in the eight-year history of the Bratz franchise. What I endured trying to find this collection was the most excruciating and brutal experience of my entire natural born life.

Among the many Wal-Mart stores I visited during my grueling adventure was the Wal-Mart Supercenter in East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. This Wal-Mart store is located 32 miles from my home, and when I visited this store toward the end of April. I purchased one of three sets of Bratz Passion 4 Fashion Spring 2009 Sabina and Dresden that were in stock.

Fast forward to today. I went to visit that Wal-Mart Supercenter in East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. I knew that Wal-Mart was not ordering Bratz for Fall 2009, but I wanted to see if the store still happened to have Bratz Passion 4 Fashion Spring 2009 Sabina and Dresden in stock, much less a Bratz section. If any select people out there (and you know who you are) thought that I was making up "fairy tales" or saying anything to "draw attention to myself" about Wal-Mart no longer carrying the Bratz License Modular Merchandise after July 2009, this store confirmed that I was correct.

The Wal-Mart Supercenter in East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania was resetting its toy modulars for Fall 2009, and I was saddened to discover that the store had removed the Bratz section. I was even more saddened to discover that there were NO Bratz dolls to be found anywhere! Not even in the clearance aisle! All the other dolls for Fall 2009 were in stock — among them, the Moxie Girlz, the brand new fashion doll line by MGA Entertainment that's replacing Bratz; BFC, Ink., the other new fashion doll line by MGA Entertainment that's nowhere near as good as Bratz, let alone Moxie Girlz; Disney Fairies by Playmates Toys; Liv dolls by Spin Master, Ltd.; Hannah Montana by Play Along Toys....and, of course, the most evil fashion doll line ever manufactured in the toy industry (not to mention, the bitch responsible for killing Bratz), Barbie.

At least I saw a sign indicating where the Bratz section used to be. As for the Barbie section, it was moving to another aisle — and with it, a brand new modular shelving unit reserved for all the Barbie product lines released during 2009. One full section devoted to nothing but pink. It's enough to make anyone nauseous.

It broke my heart to see that the retailer where I purchased my first two Bratz dolls five years ago were not selling Bratz anymore. There were no Bratz dolls at this Wal-Mart Supercenter from five years ago or even five days ago. As for Bratz Passion 4 Fashion Spring 2009 Sabina and Dresden? They disappeared much faster than a Criss Angel Mindfreak illusion. The ONLY remnants of Bratz that I saw in stock at this Wal-Mart Supercenter were those awful Kidz Snap-On Funny Faces, which are part of a new "4-Ever" line.

4-Ever? What in the holy frickin' hell is 4-Ever? And, why should I care? Well, Judge Stephen Larson of the United States Ninth Circuit Federal Court in Riverside, California ordered MGA Entertainment to forfeit all Bratz assets to Mattel. This includes every registered copyright, trademark, and patent of the Bratz brand, as well as the Bratz brand name itself. Larson did, however, allow MGA Entertainment to keep the Bratz Kidz and Bratz Lil' Angelz. But because the Bratz Kidz and Bratz Lil' Angelz were no longer to be marketed as a Bratz product, they were respectively renamed to 4-Ever Kidz and 4-Ever Lil' Angelz.

I spoke with an associate in the toy department and asked him what happened to all the Bratz dolls the Wal-Mart Supercenter in East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania used to have in stock. Even though I had already known what happened, I wanted to hear it straight from the associate himself. And based on his response, he seemed to be aware of the situation with Bratz, the litigation between MGA Entertainment and Mattel over the rights and ownership of the Bratz franchise, and Wal-Mart's announcement earlier this year that the retailer was no longer carrying the Bratz License Modular Merchandise after July 2009.

"We no longer sell Bratz anymore," the associate informed me. "Any Bratz items we used to have were all sent back to our warehouse."

"Did Wal-Mart inform you why it was no longer selling Bratz?" I asked. "I mean, it's one thing for Wal-Mart to not order Bratz for the fall campaign, but at least it could have continued selling Bratz at their stores for the next few months until it was all gone."

"Well, Wal-Mart is selling Bratz online, if you're still looking for them," the associate replied. "But if you're looking for Bratz at the stores, I think some stores may still be selling them, but the majority of them aren't. Bratz wasn't meeting sales quotas, and that's usually the reason why Wal-Mart removes any product line from its store. Then there was also the issue with the maker of the Bratz dolls getting sued, and Wal-Mart decided it was not in the company's interest to continue selling the line, so....that's it."

That's it all right. In summary, Wal-Mart has no plans to order Bratz for the remainder of 2009 and is either exhausting any Bratz merchandise the stores have available or sending it back to their distribution centers (and once that merchandise is sent back to Wal-Mart's distribution centers, there is no possible way for the stores to ever retrieve it again). However, it is up to each Wal-Mart store to decide what it wants to do with whatever remaining Bratz merchandise it has available — a change from what was posted back in April, when Wal-Mart was planning to remove ALL Bratz branded merchandise from all its stores.

Also, if I have not mentioned this already, I should point out that the Wal-Mart stores in the United States are the ones affected. For the Wal-Mart stores in Canada and elsewhere, they can continue to order and sell Bratz through December 31, 2009 (at least, to the best of my knowledge they can, even though the Bratz sections at those stores are not exactly overflowing with Bratz merchandise). Eventually, Wal-Mart and all other major retailers everywhere will have to remove any unsold Bratz merchandise on the Bratz' final date of availability on January 21, 2010. After that, they must return that unsold Bratz merchandise to MGA Entertainment, which must then turn it over to Mattel.

That Wal-Mart Supercenter in East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania was a great store to visit. It always had an outstanding and diverse selection of Bratz dolls to choose from. It also had those certain Bratz dolls which were considered rare and hard to find (such as Bratz Passion 4 Fashion Spring 2009 Sabina and Dresden). Now, Bratz is gone from that store, never to be seen again — unless you consider those "4-Ever" products Bratz merchandise. I sure as hell don't.

Robert Eckert (Chairman & CEO, Mattel, Inc.): You are nothing but scum. And for all the damage you and your company did to the Bratz dolls, there WILL be hell for you to pay.

NOTE: I will admit that the following Bratz products and collections deserve to be turned over to Mattel, since they were manufactured by former Mattel employees MGA Entertainment mistakenly recruited in February 2006:

• All Bratz Kidz Snap-On Products (including those new 4-Ever Kidz products)
• All Bratz Lil' Angelz (including those new 4-Ever Lil' Angelz products)
• Walking Bratz
• Bratz Neon Pop Divaz
• Bratz Star Singerz
• Bratz Sun-Kissed (not to be confused with the much better Bratz Sun-Kissed Summer collection from Fall 2004)
• Bratz Spring Time (a.k.a., Bratz Bunny, which was not released in the United States due to bad quality; reportedly, Jasmin Larian, the daughter of MGA Entertainment President and CEO Isaac Larian, hated this collection)
• Bratz Fashion Show (Swimwear Edition, Sleepwear Edition, Evening Wear Edition)
• Bratz Fashion Designerz
• Bratz Magic Fashion Nails (and any other "Magic" gimmick, e.g., Magic Make Up, Magic Hair Color, and Magic Toe Clippings....sorry, that's not a real Bratz line, but it does sound like something Mattel would manufacture and release for its imposter "Bratz" line in Spring 2010)

Before I started this crazy and insane universe called Bratz Heaven, I used to write movie reviews for an old website I did. The following is a review I wrote for the movie "Swept Away."

This movie review is being presented as is, with no editing changes.

Date of "Swept Away" movie review: March 4, 2003

Click here for print version

Swept Away / ½* (R)

By: Robyn Barnette

CAST:
Amber Leighton: Madonna
Giuseppe Esposito: Adriano Giannini
Tony Leighton: Bruce Greenwood
Marina: Jeanne Tripplehorn

Screen Gems presents a film written and directed by Guy Ritchie. Running time: 98 minutes. Rated R (for language and some sexuality/nudity).

I can't believe I actually saw this movie. "Swept Away" is as close as you can get to seeing the worst movie ever made, and still have something remaining on the screen to be considered one of the worst movies ever made. This movie is a pitiful and torturous embarrassment for everyone involved — including Madonna, who has once again proven what an awful actress she is. Madonna has established herself as a legend and cultural icon in the world of pop music; however, when it comes to acting, she brings a wonderful charisma and energy that makes any movie she stars in excruciating to watch. After seeing Madonna's performance in "Swept Away," I hope that this movie marks the end of her film career so that I don't ever see her act in another movie again.

You wouldn't know by watching "Swept Away" that this movie is a remake of a 1974 movie from director Lina Wertmüller titled "Swept Away...By An Unusual Destiny In The Blue Sea Of August." There is not one thing about this movie that should warrant any Madonna fan or any ordinary human being to see it. Not one thing at all. "Swept Away" is so horrible that I sat there wondering why in the world director Guy Ritchie bothered to waste his time and money making a movie such as this. Was it because he was married to Madonna and thought that this movie would serve as a great vanity project for her? Furthermore, "Swept Away" isn't just horrible — it is flat-out despicable. There is a substantial amount of verbal harassment throughout "Swept Away," as well as an unbelievable rape sequence that left a disgusting taste in my mouth. It is difficult to imagine anyone enjoying this movie.

"Swept Away" isn't really about anything....well, actually, it's about something, but does anyone really care what it's about anyway? Madonna portrays Amber Leighton, an obnoxious and mean-spirited bitch cruising from Greece to Italy on a luxury yacht with her wealthy husband Tony (Bruce Greenwood) and a few friends. She always complains about fish and takes her frustrations out on Giuseppe Esposito (Adriano Giannini), the yacht's fisherman and servant. When Giuseppe takes Amber out in an inflatable dinghy for a cave exploration, a thunderstorm unleashes its torrential fury upon the seas of the Mediterranean. Suddenly, Amber finds herself shipwrecked with Giuseppe on this deserted island, which has no phones, no lights, no motor cars, not a single luxury. And like Robinson Crusoe, the rest of this movie is as primitive as can be when the tables are turned and Giuseppe becomes the master, kicking Amber around and bullying her like the worthless piece of trash that she is.

There was one bright spot to "Swept Away," and it came about forty-five minutes after the movie started. During the scene where Giuseppe and Amber are searching for food in the sparkling blue waters off the deserted island, Giuseppe hurls an octopus at Amber. That's when the DVD began skipping on my IBM ThinkPad's DVD-ROM drive. At that point, I wanted to stop watching "Swept Away" and return the DVD to Blockbuster Video; however, my policy for any movie is to watch it in its entirety from the moment it begins until the closing credits. I took the DVD out of my ThinkPad and watched the rest of "Swept Away" on my DVD player across the room. The movie never got any better, and the last fifteen minutes where Amber and Giuseppe were falling in love made absolutely no sense. Watching "Swept Away" was one of the most dreadful and unpleasant experiences I have ever endured. I hated this movie.

Copyright © 2003 Robyn B. OnLiNE. All Rights Reserved

If you wanted proof why Target Corporation was reluctant to sell this particular Bratz doll at most of the 1,600+ stores in the United States, look no further than this photo shoot.

Finally, a Bratz Photography Project that is not really a photo project! No special backgrounds, no special method on how to capture photos, no rules, no restrictions, no regulations....just me capturing ordinary photos of my Bratz Spring Break Jade doll in some very sexy and somewhat provocative poses. That cute black leather bathing suit of hers played a big role in the perverted photo ideas I came up with.

Some of the photos I captured of my Bratz Spring Break Jade doll are sexually suggestive. Despite that my Bratz Heaven Blog is one where I am free to express myself through my writings and my talents, even I have my limits: A few of the photos were too risqué to be posted in my blog. However, for the photos of my Bratz Spring Break Jade doll that made the cut and that are featured, let's just say that these photos represent a middle finger to all those right-wing ultra-conservative religious people out there (and you know who you are) who believe in the status quo of upholding strict moral and ethical standards.

This photo shoot is about intentionally pushing the envelope to establish a new standard of artistic freedom where I violate every tenet of conservative values I possibly can. Based upon the content featured in these photos, I have crossed the legal threshold for any type of Internet indecency. So what?

Also, and in my continued effort of utilizing the latest trends in technology, I captured these photos of my Bratz Spring Break Jade doll using a new Kodak M1033 Digital Camera. As the world's foremost innovator of camera photography and digital imagery, Kodak represents more than just a world-renowned brand name — it represents quality. And the quality of the photos I captured of my Bratz Spring Break Jade doll on this digital camera certainly did not disappoint. They are some of the most highest quality photos I have captured in a very long time, and retouching them on Corel Paint Shop Pro XI was a breeze. I was really surprised at how excellent the quality of the photos were, and Corel Paint Shop Pro XI made what was excellent even better!

Enjoy the photos of my Bratz Spring Break Jade doll. I will capture more photos of this doll at a later time and post them in a future blog entry.

Read more »

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

Moxie Girlz: How Many Licks Does It Take....? (07.16.2009):
http://cannellefraiche.bratzheaven.com/b2evolution/blog1.php?p=42

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

Because I have chosen not to support the Moxie Girlz, I have eventually decided not to do any fan groups or fan websites devoted to this brand new fashion doll line by MGA Entertainment.

What I have accomplished with Bratz Heaven has been a remarkable experience, and I will forever cherish everything MGA Entertainment created when this company introduced the entire world to four girls named Yasmin, Cloe, Sasha, and Jade. I never imagined that on July 26, 2004, I would walk into a Wal-Mart store in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and purchase my first two Bratz dolls. And I never imagined that five years after purchasing those first two Bratz dolls, I would see the only girls with a passion for fashion change my life and the lives of millions of children everywhere — and in so many unexpected and unprecedented ways.

When I learned that MGA Entertainment introduced the Moxie Girlz as a replacement to Bratz, I stated that the Moxie Girlz was "doomed to fail" and "would put MGA Entertainment out of business." This was a result of me being upset that the company was unable to develop and manufacture what I believed was a quality fashion doll line that would make any type of transition from Bratz to Moxie Girlz seamless. I have been confined in the Bratz universe for too long to make any transition to Moxie Girlz or other fashion doll lines developed and manufactured by other toy companies.

Although I have chosen not to support the Moxie Girlz, it is not an indication that I dislike this brand new fashion doll line or want to see it fail in any way. Despite my bitter disappointment about the Moxie Girlz replacing Bratz, I believe the potential is there for the Moxie Girlz to become successful. And I am happy that a new generation of doll fans have come together to demonstrate their support for the Moxie Girlz. Moreover, I hope that someone out there will step up to the challenge and create a fan portal devoted to promoting this brand new fashion doll line. I've already done my job with Bratz Heaven, and I will continue to support the only girls with a passion for fashion long after the Bratz franchise arrives at its conclusion. Now I want to be a spectator to the joy and excitement that doll fans are expressing toward four new girls named Sophina, Avery, Sasha, and Lexa.

After everything that has transpired between MGA Entertainment and Mattel over the rights and ownership of the Bratz franchise, the fashion doll market is in desperate need of a fresh start. I am eternally grateful to MGA Entertainment for the tremendous amount of hard work and dedication it accomplished with Bratz for the past eight years, and I wish the many wonderful people at the company the best of luck, as they begin a new chapter with the introduction of the Moxie Girlz. I hope that this brand new fashion doll line can establish MGA Entertainment as a serious competitor in the consumer marketplace — and that the company's President and CEO Isaac Larian can prove once again that fortune favors the bold.