I reviewed a doll from Ever After High's latest extravaganza, "Dragon Games," back in January, with everyone's favorite Princess Knight, Darling Charming. Today, I'm offering you a look at the original rebel, Raven Queen! My review is after the jump.
As much as I like Raven as a character, her dolls have never impressed me. She's cute and fun in the webisode series, but I felt that has never carried over to the toys. So I've never gotten her...until now. I saw her doll's protoype last year, and just fell head over heels in love; I HAD to get this Raven.
Miss Momo picked this up for me during one of her usual toy hunts. This beautiful girl was hanging out at Toys R Us, and was obtained with a cool $19.99.
Ugh, let's not even talk about the box. The dramatic pose she's striking? Pretty cool. It shows off the outfit nicely. Perhaps the ponytail is to the side so it doesn't get crushed against the back of the box?
All of the students at EAH have pets, and we finally see Raven's pet: her dragon Nevermore (haha, Mattel, you're so punny). I am far from impressed with the dragons in this line, since they look like the unholy love child of Lisa Frank and the new Littlest Pet Shop.
I tried to preserve her pose from the box as best as I could. She is looking something fierce, and I just love it. (Also; her head was not plastic-tied into the box. How uncanny is that?) You can see her brush and stand here (which are identical to Darling's), plus her Dragon Games rulebook (which is almost identical to Darling's).
Raven's makeup is on point here. Strong brow game, thick black mascara and silvery lavender eyeshadow, with wine-colored lips. It accentuates her wisteria-colored eyes and pairs beautifully with her plum-shaded hair.
And actually, let's talk about the hair for a bit. Raven's hair is a mix of black and purple, usually leaning heavily on the purple. This time, it's almost all plum purple, but with some black lowlights interspersed. Now, normally this is the only color mix you'll get; but this time, Mattel upped the game by giving her a huge peacock-blue streak of hair. And it. Is. Beautiful. It reminds me a lot of Maddie Hatter's hair coloration, but much darker in intensity.
They've styled her hair into a ponytail, and it works really well. Straight hair looks really cute in ponytails, I've noticed. Mattel gave her a crazy asymmetric ponytail for Thronecoming, but it just wasn't well designed, in my opinion. This is much cuter. Raven has entwined her ponytail with chains, further strengthening the whole punk/metal/Goth kind of vibe. The hair accessory is removable; you can see the clip in the back here.
Part of her hair has been pulled over to the side and secured in another, smaller ponytail. It gives the hairstyle balance, in a way.
An aerial view gives you a better idea of how the hair is constructed. Looks like her hair is layered at the front, which is why it got pulled to the side for the mini-ponytail. I'm not sure how well this style would work in real life, but it might be cute to see!
In contrast to Darling's "knight in shining armor chic," Raven's armor is more death metal-glam. Just look at those soaring shoulder guards! The chain mail sculpting on the front is terrific, as well. I do have to admit that I don't like how discordant all three piece of armor look. The gauntlet just looks cheap and tacky next to them, for all that I like the ornate sculpting. Why can't they at least get the shoulder guards on the same page?
Her clothes, though! The top is black with a metallic, multi-hued feather design in peacock blue, gold, magenta, and emerald. It gleams and shines in the light, and I would love to have a shirt like that for my own.
The shirt has this "skirt" sewed to it at the hem. I guess it's their concession to "traditional femininity," because apparently all girls must wear skirts at all times? I mean, it looks cool and dramatic, but I feel like you could remove it and the outfit wouldn't suffer. The pants have the coolest amethyst design; it looks like paisley swirls. Love, love, love the pattern.
Like Darling, Raven is rocking some knee-high boots, although Raven's are more stylish than protective, with the peep toe and the cutouts on the side.
Her boots are slit open in the back for easy removal. It looks awful, but it's the only way to get them on and off. C'est la vie.
I can't believe I didn't notice this with Darling, but there is a little grip in the back for your doll's hand, so she can actually carry the shield. D'oh! I like that it functions as any accessory for both the doll and the owner.
This gauntlet is so endlessly annoying. It covers her entire forearm, and prevents you from easily moving the arm around in the elbow socket. I had to take it off to twist her arm back into place (you have to remove the hand to get it off, of course), and then almost broke Raven's hand trying to get it back in. The trick is to push the gauntlet as far back on Raven's arm as you can, otherwise it will just keep twisting and sliding around and won't let you get a good grip.
The armor fastenings are in the back. A little difficult to get open the first time, I have to say.
LOOK AT THIS LOOK AT THIS, THERE ARE DRAGONS ON THE HEEL OF RAVEN'S SHOES HER SHOES ARE DRAGONS AAAHHHHHHHH
::ahem::
I am actually more impressed with Raven's Dragon Games doll than I am with Darling's. Overall, this is a glamorous, stylish doll, with a very modern, "alternative" sensibility. It's a really cool concept, and very different from the usual fare of beachwear and party dresses/ballgowns. I'd urge EAH fans to strongly consider this line, given how unique they are. Miss Scarlett, signing out!
Miss Scarlett suggests: If you like Raven, get this doll, if you don't like Raven, still get this doll. Style for DAYS.
