Barbie BMR1959

A few years back if someone said Mattel would be blowing Integrity out of the water with stuff in their playline price range I'd have dismissed it out of hand. But, hey, here we are and Barbie has better joints (!), better diversity, and - arguably, sure - better fashions than the top end collector dolls.

Released in Autumn 2019, the 90s streetwear inspired line retails for just £24.99 each. Less, with some sellers. Each doll is fully articulated and comes with well made clothing, plastic shoes / boots, and a few accessories. I love the reduced plastic packaging, though sadly the girls are still anchored in with plastic head ties, and they all ship with their own special BMR1959 stands for display too.

The second wave of four dolls was released in July 2020.

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GHT91

I'm still not completely sold on the little bun thing, but everything else is on point. Even those hot pink trainers! Initially, I wasn't sure whether I would keep this one in tact or use the body for one of my floating heads. Having it in hand, though, the face has some real attitude and the braids look great.

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GHT92

The face paint on this one is so pretty and naturalistic - the detail in her eyebrows is awesome! I love the outfit too; it puts me in mind of the United Colours of Benetton Barbies from the early 1990s. This doll uses the tall made to move body.

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GHT93

Fully articulated Ken - what more do I need to say?

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GHT94

I'm not sure about the head yet, but the body was worth the purchase on its own. The boots are really nicely detailed too, though I'm selling on the outfit. It's well made but just doesn't do it for me.

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GHT95

This is my least favourite doll in the line up but, again, the promise of a fully articulated petite body was enough to crack open my purse strings. I swapped the head out as soon as it arrived with the Spring '19 Fashionista with the green mohawk. The skin tone of this body is noticeably darker than the Fashionista head, unfortunately, but it'll probably be fine once it's redressed. And her green fingernails now match her hair. ;)

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GHT96

How cool is this doll!? Also, I was really impressed that Mattel gave him plastic undersleeves to protect against any colour transfer from the jacket. It's details like that which are really setting Mattel apart these days.

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GPF14

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GPF15

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GPF16

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GPF17

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