Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Japanese Jenny and Friends by Takara

"So long, it's been good to know you ..."

I've been going through my Takara Jenny and friends dolls. Who is to stay? Who wants to go? Now Takara Jenny dolls usually have this innocent look that I find appealing even though their eyes are larger than the majority of dolls and action figures in my collection. They look sweet without being cloyingly, sticky-icky sweet. And once upon a time, they had the best looking accessories and wonderful diorama settings ... But let's get back to the subject at hand. Who is to go and who is to stay?

Here are the ones that are staying:

Prince Charles. Why? Because he is so adorably stodgy.

Jenny's Club Jane. Why? Because she's a rare grinner among Takara dolls.

Calendar Girl Jenny, July, Regggae Music. Why? Yarn dreadlocks and that over-sized hat.

Two Kisaras, two Linas, Meiren, two Mitsukis, Moe, Naomi, Rie, Sayaka, Shou, Tamaki, three Toms, and Uno Kanda. Why? Because I still like something about them. They appeal to me. They might look inquisitive (Meiren) or solemn (the Toms and the Linas) or lively (Moe and Shou).

And these are the ones that are going:




Left Francois; middle Limited Edition Kisara; and right Life Style Coordination Kisara close up


Left Kaori Chan and right, Olive close up

Angel Garden Slice of School Days Ferice. Why? Too anime. [Not shown here.]

Limited Edition Fransois. Why? Too anime.

Limited Edition Kisara. Why? I don't know. Just not "feeling" her. She's "sunburst" colored (suntanned), and she has streaked AND crimped hair. I should still want her.

Life Style Coordination Kisara. Why? I don't know. Just not "feeling" her either. And I usually like Kisara of the Side-Glancing Eyes. Shrug.

Limited Edition Kaori Chan. Why? Pretty but vacant.

Hajimemashite Olive. Why? I like her outfit, but I can't remember why I bought her.

Life Style Coordination Rosana. Why? Gee, do I really want to sell her? Pause. Cross her off this list. [Not shown here.]

Jenny's Club Tamaki. Why? Can't remember why I bought her. Possibly for her gold-coin colored hair? Now I think someone else would appreciate her more than I. So she should go. [Not shown here.]

I don't regret buying any of these dolls. It's just that my tastes have changed since I bought them. I'll upload photos of the missing Ferice and the missing JC Tamaki in a separate post to follow.

Cost? $15.00 each for the swimsuit dolls; $18.00 for the dressed Olive; and $20.00 for Angel Garden Schoolgirl Ferice and JC Tamaki who was a special order doll. Postage NOT included.

Now I am curious. Do the Takara Jenny dolls interest you? Why or why not?

12 comments:

RoxanneRoxanne said...

Takara Jenny doesn't interest me much, although I do have one winking Jenny with an afro. I'd like to have the Tom with dreadlocks. Maybe one of these days...

V. said...

I've been always interested on those dolls, but they are so hard to get for me! I would love to have Kaori, but I'm short of money right know so I guess I'll have to pass...snif

Unknown said...

Hello from Spain: This collection of dolls are very cute but I prefer the Barbies. The body is not articulated and are in their teens. Anyway sure many doll collectors would like to have them. Keep in touch

TM said...

I like Jenny dolls too for nostalgic reasons, plus they're super cute! I currently own two.

D7ana said...

Hi Roxanne and Vanessa!

@ Roxanne - I missed out on the Calendar Girl Jenny R&B Music - darn - but I'm okay with that because I wasn't sure that I wanted a doll with a closed eye. I love my Toms though. I have a slideshow showing him and some other dolls here. I hope you get one someday; he's cute.

@ Vanessa - It used to be hard for me to get Takara fashion dolls back in the late 1980s when I first saw them, but then I found R&D Dolls and some other International dealers. And other collectors began buying them and bringing them back to the States. Anyway, I hope you are able to get a Kaori soon. Cross my fingers for luck for you ;-)

Black Doll Enthusiast said...

They are interesting dolls but I am not a die-hard Jenny fan. I plan to hold on to the ones I do own: Neo Licca Gorgeous Gold; PhotoGenic Jenny, and Black Licca. I wanted the one with the Afro,but was never able to find her reasonably priced.

dbg

D7ana said...

Hi TM! That's neat. Which two do you have? Oh, I see one of them. She's a cutie although I am not crazy about the Gumby type bodies. What did Takara call them? I had 2 Shions with those bodies and sold them.

Thanks for your input ;-)

D7ana said...

Hi DBG! I think the one with the afro was a Calendar Girl Jenny, R&B Music. Not sure if they had any other Jennys with afros (Hi Roxanne, is that your afroed Jenny?) - I think that they did not.

Anyway, I love some of these dolls. They don't rank as high as others, but they do hold a place in my heart.

Gaggggaaaaaaaa! Getting mushy there, D7ana! Pardon the pap, folks ;-D

Buffy said...

They are just too darn sweet looking for my world. Although I’ve seen some clothing items from them, particularly the sweaters, that were tempting. Do these dolls have wire articulation?

D7ana said...

Hi Robin! Yes, they do look very sweet, Jenny and friends dolls. Some of the dolls are articulated - among my dolls, Uno Kanda and Street Pop Mitsuki. Those bodies are called SAJ - Super Action Jenny. Others have Gumby-type bodies or twist'n turn bodies like 1970s Barbies. I sold the Gumby-types that I had years ago - just did not like that kind of body for dolls that big.

And yes, some of the Jenny jackets and sweaters are well made and can fit other dolls ;-)

Anonymous said...

Hello do you still have francois for sale ? :)

D7ana said...

Yes, Francois is still for sale ;-)

Send me a message at d7ana @ yahoo.com - don't forget to remove the extra spaces - thanks for asking.