The New Disney Princess

[spacecaps]

I've always thought Disney often makes questionable choices. I'm not saying this is a good or bad thing but they had to have known this was going to irk a lot of people out there.

I also like what one of the comments in the article said: "Merida officially becomes a "Disney Princess" tomorrow, but there's still no love for Princess Eilonwy from Disney's The Black Cauldron. I guess if the movie flops, they don't get into the sorority?"

http://shine.yahoo.com/parenting/disney-princess-makeover-sparks-outrage--merida-petition-goes-viral-175251230.html

[Zemo]

What do they care, there Disney, they just tried to trademark a Holiday. Headline. imo the figure is fine.

[toys2cool]

some people are ridiculous...i bet all those daughters of the parents complaining have princess dolls of the rest of the characters...I don't see the big deal, it's a freakin cartoon

[kingdom warrior]

Some people seriously need to get a grip to reality......with everything that's going on in the world, Worrying about some freeking Cartoon getting a makeover? BFD!!!!

[YoungOnce]

"For the parents who say that Merida is “only a cartoon,” asking, “Why does it matter?” Danckaert says, “It’s sending a message,” which is one that puts forth a very narrow definition of beauty. “This is how children pick up cultural messages about what is important,” she adds. “Young children don’t really distinguish between reality and fantasy, and these characters are their role models.”

Above quote is from the article.... As a dad with two daughters who are not shaped like models, I can see the point of the blogger. Disney already has oodles of princesses that look like Barbie... Why not leave this one as she is?

[HardyGirl]

As a woman, I'm inclined to agree w/ this. Why did they have to change the character? She wasn't a helpless female waiting to be saved, she did the saving. Is Disney saying that princesses are only skinny, sexy, pretty people? By definition, princesses are the daughters of royalty, and Merida was that already. So why change it? They already make more income than should legally be allowed w/ all the movies, merchandising and the Disney channel. Did they really need to make this character sexier to sell more products?

[Zemo]

They already make more income than should legally be allowed w/ all the movies, merchandising and the Disney channel.

Do you really feel that way?

[jwyblejr]

Maybe the look translates differently depending on the art format?

[The Toyroom]

There's really not that much difference between the two images...it's not like one's a nun and the other is a hooker...Geez

[megomania]

Is Disney saying that princesses are only skinny, sexy, pretty people?

Throughout the history of time, that's what sells. Magazines, posters, Barbie dolls. Disney is a marketing machine and they know what consumers will eat up. Anyone outraged by this should be banned from all Disney parks forever!

-Chris

[Rallygirl]

There's really not that much difference between the two images...it's not like one's a nun and the other is a hooker...Geez

I agree.

[Nostalgiabuff]

the real difference is that she is no longer carrying a weapon. i would be interested to know if they still have the archery set up in Magic Kingdom where the kids can meet Merida and shoot arrows at targets

[toys2cool]

the real difference is that she is no longer carrying a weapon. i would be interested to know if they still have the archery set up in Magic Kingdom where the kids can meet Merida and shoot arrows at targets

I'm sure they will, except this time it'll be with a hot *** redhead! I think I'll be getting in line next time I go

[Bruce Banner]

They look pretty much the same except one is wearing eyeliner and the other one isn't.

[Earth 2 Chris]

There's really not that much difference between the two images...it's not like one's a nun and the other is a hooker...Geez

Agreed. And while she is weaponless, she does exude that "don't mess with me" attitude still, even in that pose.

It looks more like a change in the art style than anything. Nearly all the images of Merida up to this point are the actual CGI model from the film. This is a 2D interpretation of that.

I will say, that recently, Disney has altered the look of the Princesses in their style guide somewhats. Basically their hairstyles are a bit more modern looking, and they do look a bit sexier. But their cleavage isn't hanging out or anything. It does look like a concentrated effort to keep the characters relevant, but in an age of Monster High and Bratz, you can kind of understand the thinking behind refreshing them a tad bit, especially older characters like Snow White and Cinderella. It was a little jarring when I first saw it, and I'm not sure I entirely agree with it, but I'm not going to start a protest group over it.

Chris