Last week, Mattel released a first look at its new line of Barbies. This marks the second time in less than two years that the doll has received a makeover; the first being a new line of dolls that can wear flat shoes rather than the heels the doll has been wearing since it first shelves 57 years ago. This makeover, however, is more dramatic. The dolls, which will not be available for sale until March, will now be available in four different body types; tall, petite, curvy, and original. Besides the different body types, the dolls will also have a variety of hair textures, hair colors, and skin colors. This change comes after Mattel has suffered a decrease in sales as Barbie dolls have been facing much criticism in the past few years. The criticism has been due to the fact that many believe that the doll’s body is giving children unrealistic expectations for how they must look.

Mattel’s announcement has received mixed reactions, with some praising the company for finally creating Barbie dolls that reflect at least some of the diversity of the world. Others believe that the dolls are not diverse enough and Mattel still has much room to grow. And some are against the change because they believe that the dolls should have remained as they have always been.

Many of those who are against the change claim that children don’t care what the doll’s body looks like so it’s not really giving them unrealistic body images; but rather, by changing what the doll looks like and making them reflect different, more realistic features that Mattel has taken away some of the imagination aspect of playing with them. I will agree with the first part; growing up I never thought that I needed to look like Barbie or that the way she looked was the “correct” one; maybe you never thought so either. However, that doesn’t mean that everyone felt the same way that I did, and maybe, for some kids, Barbie's image did affect their own body image. In which case these new dolls will present a new example for the kids that play with them.

Also, rather than taking away the imagination aspect of playing, it seems like they will add to it as the difference in these dolls’ features will give kids more freedom into how they play with the dolls and will maybe allow them to see themselves in these dolls. The Barbie brand has for a long time had the motto, “Be who you want to be," and now with this new line, Barbie can be who kids want her to be. In the past few years, the mainstream media has started showcasing and appreciating different forms of beauty; however, this hasn’t really been the case among things aimed at children. Now that such a popular toy brand is changing, it may be a catalyst for other toy brands to follow suit. It’s been a long time coming, but Mattel is finally catching up with the times and maybe as the times change so will they.