Thursday, February 18, 2010

One of the Best Flavas: Choice Awards Tre

Let's go back in time. 2003. Mattel Barbie vs. MGA Entertainment Bratz. Bratz are taking over the fashion doll market. Barbie sales are lagging. What does Mattel do? Create the Flavas line - the Mattel version of Hip Hop. Well, Barbie survives, but the Flavas? Crash and cancel.

I was disappointed. Cancelled. The Flavas had different sizes, coloring, AND face molds. Yes, there was friction from people who disliked the droopy pants and bare midriffs. Yes, there was ire from "Hip Hop" fans who thought the dolls mocked them. Yes, I thought the Flavas female dolls' heads were too big for their bodies. I could re-body them. Need I repeat - new head molds? Sigh.

So, I bought the dolls that I wanted from all the Waves that I wanted except ONE Wave: the Choice Awards Wave. Oh. That was the coolest Wave of all, but I could not find them online or off.

(Eventually, I bought Tawny from another collector. Paid more than she would have been in a store, but she was meant to be here.)

Fast forward to 2005. I'm in a Value City store in Cheltenham. Not expecting anything. Just looking. Bam! Not the Television Chef Emeril. No, that was me. Value City had Flavas Choice Awards Liam AND Tre! $3.99 EACH. The elusive ones. Giddy glad was I. I bought two of each doll. (Since then, I have sold the extra dolls to another collector.)

And for years it was enough just to have them.

Until I started deboxing dolls and action figures and came across my elusive darlings. Sigh. So I have deboxed my Awards dolls. The better to enjoy them. Wow, wow, wow! Enough commentary from me though - check the photos:









For more of my Flavas photos, check my Webshots folder.

For more information about Hip Hop.