Disney Princess

In the same way that Hasbro created Anna and Elsa dolls that look exactly like they do in the film, their goal with the Disney Princess franchise was to make each character feel true to the original classics. At Mattel, they all felt like relatives of Barbie. At Hasbro, the dolls are different heights with facial and body shapes tweaked to make each doll represent the character better than they have in the past. The launch wave of dolls features Snow White, Cinderella, Aurora, Ariel, Belle, Jasmine, Pocahontas, Mulan, Tiana, Rapunzel and Merida, all of which are now available in the Royal Shimmer collection of dolls.

Variations on these same characters will continue to be released over the course of 2016. Similar to the Magical Story Cape Frozen dolls, Disney Princess will have a Magical Story Skirt collection. The wave will feature Rapunzel, Merida, Snow White, Belle and Cinderella. I love the way the water brushes are themed to each character. Merida’s for example looks like a wisp and Belle’s is a rose. Of the images that appear, my personal favorite is Belle whose skirt reveals the stained glass window of Bell and Beast from the film.

Another way Hasbro will allow kids to interact with these characters is with a doll and ribbon collection that allow for some creative play. Ariel and Rapunzel will be the initial launch, each of which come with hair clips and ribbons that can be added to their hair. They come with a salon chair for the doll to sit in and feeding the ribbon into a crank machine allows kids to fray and split the fabric to create new styles. I love the way they’ve incorporated Pascal and Sebastian into the base.

Hasbro has already released a few play sets that work with the scale of the dolls and a few more are on the way. Kids can relive Cinderella’s coach ride to the ball with the upcoming coach and horse play set. Parents might appreciate that it’s not big and bulky, with Hasbro electing for a more collapsed design. But the most fun feature is that kids can spin the center, transforming it from a pumpkin into a coach and back again.

Just in time for Christmas comes the ultimate play set for any fan of Disney Princess, a castle. All of the princesses live here, with design elements that reflect many of their stories. One of the tourets is actually Rapunzel’s tower, the clock is approaching midnight for Cinderella, the library features a few of Belle’s friends, the dwarfs are helping Snow White in the kitchen and the bathroom is fit for any princess who wants to go “Under the Sea.” As a kid, my favorite thing about doll houses was the working elevator. In this castle, Hasbro has stepped up the wow factor with a working Magic Carpet! A lever raises it up and it spirals down to a graceful landing. What more could a princess ask for?

The Disney Princess collection of Little Kingdom makes Mary Blaire’s influence even more apparent. Many of these figures are already available and like the Frozen collection, they come in individual, multi-pack and play set options. The rubber skirts feature some customizable elements and many of the fashions can be swapped between figures. Later this year, Hasbro will release a carrying case which doubles as a play set with castle interiors for the figures to play in. The photo gallery highlights some of the more adorable moments within the collection.

Moving away from dolls and figures, Hasbro has a few board games on the 2016 schedule that incorporate these characters. I’m most excited to see Disney Princess Monopoly, which features the new snap-board style. This is the full Monopoly game, not Monopoly Jr., making this more accessible for adult Disney fans. Other Hasbro games receiving the Disney Princess treatment are Guess Who? and Connect Four.

A New Disney Princess Play-Doh play set is also on the horizon this year. Ariel fans will love the ability to give her new fin fashions. They can also send waves of Play-Doh splashing out of her base and can sculpt the statue of Prince Eric. “Why Eric… run away with you? This is all so… so sudden…”

Continue to the next page for Descendants, Elena of Avalor and Moana.