She's A Barbie Woman

Last year toymaker Mattel was widely and rightly criticized when it broke up the one celebrity couple everyone could count on staying together: Barbie and Ken. Seems America's favorite impossibly-proportioned doll had a new boyfriend, a metrosexual Australian boogieboarder named Blaine, with his blond locks and hemp necklace and expensive Hollister cologne. Now Mattel has inflamed outrage again by introducing a new line of Barbie-themed clothes for adult women, on the thinking that bright-pink plastic dresses will be just the thing this fall. (It's our no. 10 news story today, and the feminist indignation is here.) This blogger, who blames the patriarchy, describes Barbie as "vile," while on this blog, sarcasm is the order of the day: "Well, what a refreshing thought; feminists have purchased Mattel and are marketing clothing actually made for women who don't have eating disorders or frequent flyer miles at the liposuction clinic. Oh, wait. That's not what they're doing." Meanwhile, this blogger cynically asks "Do the accessories include inflexible plastic, pink shoes as well? With impossibly high arches?" No word on that, nor is there any indication if there'll a giant pink Corvette, a Dream House (with elevator!), or the opportunity to marry a prince or be a corporate CEO.

Posted by Philip Ewing at October 17, 2005 11:59 AM

Category: The vast electric lunchroom