It’s a little hard for us to take Mattel’s absurdly pricy American Girl line seriously considering that one doll and its accessories can easily set us back what it costs to feed a family of four for a week.
Still, the popularity of the dolls is undeniable, with hordes of little girls frothing at the mouth come Christmas or birthdays. Now Mattel is hoping to get little boys in on the overpriced action with a new boy character: Logan Everett, who arrives complete with limpid gray eyes, Bieber-like brown hair and his very own drum set.
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This is the first time American Girl has let a boy into the girl-power-for-a-hefty-price club. Along with the coolest little drummer boy ever, Mattel is introducing a pal for Logan, a new girl doll — Nashville singer Tenney Grant. Both new characters will be released later this week, just in time for the industry New York City Toy Fair.
But will Tenney like Logan and slip notes into his drum kit? Will Logan like Tenney and wait by her locker? Will the other girls gang up on Logan and do a ritual American Girl NO BOYS, NOT EVER sage-cleansing ritual and spear him with his drum sticks? It all remains to be seen.
If you don’t know American Girl, you are a childless person with a modicum of disposable income, and we salute you — American Girl has bankrupted at least one-third of our writing staff. The brand launched in 1986 with a line of historical-ish characters, like Victorian-era Samantha and colonial feisty-pants Felicity. But recently, the brand has been shifting its focus to more contemporary characters, because who needs history?
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Logan’s introduction — and his tongue-tied, shy drummer, cute-new-boy-at-school appeal — is part of a toy industry trend to push gender limits (thanks, Hasbro, for the gender-neutral Easy-Bake Oven). Nerf and LEGO have been rolling out lines designed to get more girls shooting foam bullets and making sure that parents of girls also suffer debilitating LEGO-related foot injuries in the middle of the night.
But Logan, well… we’re not sure who’s going to play with Logan. He could appeal to young girls, but maybe he’ll surprise us all by starting his own all-boy band. Keep an eye on that young man. Also, keep an eye on your wallet, because boy or girl dolls, American Girl is happy to bleed you dry. (Thank God boxed mac and cheese is usually on sale.)
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