“I love to see a young girl go out and grab the world by the lapels. Life’s a b*tch. You’ve got to go out and kick ass.” — Maya Angelou
Playing with my granddaughter and her Barbies, I noticed something new and exciting.
Now, this is not my first Barbie merry-go-round. I didn’t fall off the Barbie turnip truck yesterday.
I played Barbies with my sisters and my cousins when I was small.
I played with my daughter when she was a little girl.
I played Barbies with my nieces and some nephews when they were small.
And now I am playing Barbie with my granddaughter.
This is the first time that I played Barbies where one of the Barbies is a Supervillain. My granddaughter is what my grandfather would have affectionately called a “firecracker.” She does not half do anything. When we play, we play hard.
My granddaughter always has one Barbie that wants to tell the other barbies what to do. they do what she says or be destroyed.
The supervillain Barbie once ate up all the candy in the world. Every single piece. She did not share with anyone. Because she was a supervillain, she didn’t even get a tummy ache.
Even better, the Supervillain Barbie has a Superhero Barbie foe.
The Superhero Barbie once made everyone have their birthday on the same day, so we had many birthday tea parties that day.
But the villain and the hero are always some of her favorite Barbies. The villain does NOT always lose, sometimes the villain Barbie wins.
Because my granddaughter is the only young child in four families, she has a lot of Barbies. All the Barbies are naked as they bathe with the firecracker every night and never get dressed for the day. I am assuming they may get dressed when she gets older.
We play under the sea with the Mermaid Barbies. Sometimes the villain Barbie will make the Mermaids live on land and beg to be allowed back into the sea. Maybe the hero Barbies will rescue them but sometimes she won’t, and those barbies have to live a miserable life on land.
We have the Princess Barbies. Jasmine, Monea, Anna, Elsa, and Tianna. Elsa and Anna are from Frozen 2, Tianna is from The Princess and the Frog. Moana is from the animated picture of the same name; Jasmine is from Aladdin. The princess Barbies often save themselves.
My firecracker sees the princess’s as strong. (Good job, Disney!) Together they are strong enough to defeat the villain Barbie especially since Elsa has magic.
The Fashionistas are physically bigger than normal barbies. They have bigger waists, thighs, and arms than the traditional Barbies. Although the villain and the hero can come from any group, except Kens, these Barbies are most often the Hero and the Villain to the others.
Then there are the traditional Barbies. One was a vet, and the other was a model Barbie. These two girls will sometimes join with the Fashionista Barbies to try to defeat the Supervillain Barbie BUT they don’t have magic, so no, the Superhero Barbie must come and save them.
Wait, wait. Did I hear a question? What about Ken? Unfortunately, the Ken dolls may not take part in the hero and villain activities. Per the four-year-old, “No boys.”
I attempted to explain to a four-year-old why the Kens needed to take part. She listened to Grandma carefully as I explained gender bias, then said, “No. Boys pull hair. They can’t come.”
The Ken dolls stayed home and guarded the Frozen 2 castle, but they are invited into the bath each evening.
Now, all the Barbies, including the Superhero and supervillain live very traditional lives, going to work, driving around in the Barbie car, being teachers and bosses, having tea parties, cooking food, dropping off and picking up small invisible children. We take turns putting those children to bed and reading them bedtime stories.
But, the most fun I have is when we play Villains and Hero’s. In my granddaughter’s mind, women can do anything. I love it.
It makes me thankful for all the women who fought for equality. We did it. The mindset of our daughter’s daughters is what we wanted all the time.
But, ah, the hero Barbie does not always win. lol. Be careful what you wish for.
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