The Eighth Wonder of the World
Like many of my generation, I became a Wonder Woman devotee thanks to the ’70s TV show starring Lynda Carter. I was lucky enough to have the Mego doll of Wonder Woman that was the same scale as Barbie, but as a Barbie-head you know I was disappointed there was no Mattel version. (I now wonder why I never took the Mego outfit and put it on a black-haired Barbie.) Eventually in 2000, Mattel finally did release a Wonder Woman Barbie, and there have been three more releases since and an upcoming one with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. (I really wish it were called Batman v Superman v Wonder Woman v Snuggle.) I also feel lucky to have the 2000 WW Barbie. I had to. It was my childhood wish come true.
Now I’ve taken that wish a bit further and customized a Barbie into Wonder Woman. I can’t say she’s a true OOAK. More like a TOAK. Because I’m paying homage (the fancy word for rip-off as Joe Bob Briggs says) to an OOAK WW collection I saw via a Google image search. I love all of Instagram user urrgghh’s WW dolls (some official) but especially the one with the shield and the one in the blue pants and silver boots. So I decided to combine the two and then add my own take.
The one in the blue pants you may recognize as Coach Barbie. I’ve long admired this doll for her beautiful face and gorgeous hair. I’m glad to have an excuse to use her. But I had to change her eyes to blue. I used the 2003 Barbie as Wonder Woman’s outfit.
Greek mythology captured my heart in the sixth grade when I happened upon one of Edith Hamilton’s books in the school library. Did Wonder Woman have anything to do with that? In any case I wanted to honor WW’s Greek roots when making this doll. So I gave her lace-up golden sandals (similar to an early incarnation of the comic version, though those were red) and have her carrying a bow and arrow in tribute to the goddess for which she was named, Artemis (albeit the Roman name for her, Diana).
Lest you think I stole everything from urrgghh, here’s a WW redesign I drew circa 2005, complete with upper arm bracelets:
Here’s Wonder Woman without jewelry:
Just for fun, here’s Diana Prince in a Twin Peaks-inspired outfit:
“I am the only daughter of Themyscira, island of warriors, poets, and scholars.”
Emma in the sky with…
I was watching Cosplay! Crafting a Secret Identity and saw a stunning Emma Frost (of the X-Men books) AKA White Queen cosplay photo:
I just love her Canadian Lynx! That led me to Googling other Emma Frost cosplays, which led me to this:
I thought this mid-transformation-into-diamond Emma was so neat! Many cosplayers have done it, but this was the first time I’d seen it. So I decided Barbie was going to cosplay in one-sixth scale. Presenting my custom Emma Frost Barbie:
I always liked Emma’s costume when she was co-leader of Generation X the best. So that’s what I based my doll on. Her diamond power manifested later, but, hey, it was the whole reason I even decided to make the Barbie. So I basically did a mashup of sorts ;)
I regret that my camera’s not the greatest quality. I’d really love to show off her sparkle. That’s why some of the shots are a bit dark. It’s an attempt to really highlight those carats!
I have the power originating from the left side of her brain because (spoiler alert for the Age of Apocalypse comics — highlight between the following brackets to view) [that’s the side where Emma is lobotomized in order to render her powerless].
I’m a real scaredy-cat about painting my Barbies, but there wasn’t another good way to do the Diamond Queen. You are looking at a minimum of 20 layers of paint here!
Some other fun I had before Emma starting shifting into diamond:
Why do you think it’s run by a woman called Frost? (I sometimes enjoy how snobby Emma is, founder and CEO of Frost Enterprises. And I always enjoy her furs.)
“If that’s your boyfriend, he wasn’t last night.” (Emma smack talks Jean Grey.) To be honest, though, Jean+Scott = Marvel’s X-Universe OG OTP. So I’m a tad bothered by how things have panned out for the couple.
It is way more difficult than I envisioned to find a corset/bustier for Barbie. Corsets with chokers are so ’90s, but I’m tickled by the look.
Ms. Frost simply had to have these boots with the très cool zipper detail.
This will probably be my last X-Barbie for a while. I have five other dolls/figures to finish, from the genres of horror, science fantasy, fantasy, and Japanese science fiction — and one who doesn’t readily fit into any category. Time to get back to work ^_^
Equestrian Psylocke Barbie
I got the idea for this doll after I completed this drawing of the X-Men’s Psylocke riding her horse Imogen side saddle (but off-side because Betsy likes to keep things ~*challenging*~. (Quick note: I made all this up, including what she’d name her horse, for funsies ;))
This custom was no work at all because I simple redressed my OOAK Psylocke doll in — who else — English Barbie’s side saddle riding habit. (Even if she currently inhabits a Japanese body, Betsy is English born and bred.) In fact, my Betsy’s been going around saying, “Who’s the real English Barbie now?”
Shall we ride?
How Betsy looked as she was getting ready.
Like I said, this “OOAK” was way too easy and almost cheating, but I am really happy with it because it was a way to sort of bring my drawing “to life.” =)
Children of the Atom’s Eve
Rounding out the trio of OOAK dolls that is a tribute to my X-Men fandom is my custom Jean Grey Barbie:
Professor Xavier’s first student and the first female X-Man, Jean is the de facto first lady of the X-Universe. She is (obviously) one of my top three favorite X-(wo)Men. Even though Ms. Grey has a very operatic and convoluted character history, I’ve always liked her personality. She just seems like a shining example of a Good Person — making the Phoenix and Dark Phoenix sagas all the more shocking, IMO. Her strength, integrity, and love for her family (birth and adopted X-version) endeared her to me.
I love her powers, which include telekinesis, telepathy, and astral projection. Jean also comes across as very graceful, something I first noticed with her balletic moves when playing Mutant Academy for PlayStation. In fact, I had originally decided to do this Barbie in the classic green Phoenix costume based on how comely I thought she looked in that game. But my plan changed.
As you can see, I ended up making Marvel Phoenix. Or Phoenix Girl. <grin> I took the elements I liked from Jean’s Marvel Girl and Phoenix costumes and combined them. My decision to use Marvel Girl’s costume was inspired by this wonderful artwork by Morry Hollowell (the first photo in this post is an homage to his image).
Jean springs into action!
As you can see, the Phoenix symbol securing her sash is actually based on the symbol from the chest of the classic green Phoenix costume.
I don’t usually go for the toothy smile Barbie face molds, but this one is so girl-next-door and lovely and Jean-like. I’m really happy with it. I believe it is a Generation Girl head mold. The red hair, green eyes, and natural looking makeup complement Jean well, too.
So there you have it: the three X-Ladies that I admire…for their strength, loyalty, resilience, and perseverance.
Comments always welcome, no matter how old this post is.
Slice like a ninja, cut like a psychic blade
Tomorrow marks the 15th anniversary of the X-Men film U.S. premiere. Twenty years ago I got into the X-Men in a big way. So I’ve declared June, July, and August the Summer of X as I celebrate and enjoy being an X-Fan. I’m currently reading the very first issues of the comic with plans to dig out my collection for a re-read. I just finished viewing for the first time(s) the X-Men Japanese anime, Wolverine and the X-Men, and X-Men: Evolution Season 1. I’m in the middle of my umpteenth rewatch of the classic ’90s X-Men animated series. Tomorrow will begin a three-day movie marathon of X1, X2, and X3.
I’m also celebrating the X by making Barbies of my favorite X-(wo)Men. I started with Rogue. Now, Rogue’s my girl, but I’ve been a casual Psylocke fan since she was heavily featured in the 1991 title relaunch. Her powers are cool (psi-blade!); her story is tragic but crazy in a soap opera-y way; her purple hair and leotard-cum-ribbons costume are striking; she’s a telepathic ninja wielding katana/swords. ‘Nuff said.
I describe myself as a casual Psylocke fan only because at the point in the comics when I got into the X-Men, Betsy was hyper-sexualized. That’s a hazard for female characters, period. And the X-Women have it done to them in spades. It’s not easy as a female reader to trudge through that. But Psylocke’s portrayal was over the top, obviously fan service (or worse). So I kept the character at arm’s length, but still considered her one of the X-characters I liked.
And then I ran into a purple-haired Barbie…
I wanted her uniform to have that darker blue look it sometimes had, like in this Jim Lee drawing:
I also thought the darker color was better camouflage for a ninja. Didn’t want her too matchy either. So the gloves and boots match but the leotard is a different shade as well as the thigh and arm ribbons. I never had a problem with a ninja wearing such an outfit. I can imagine it really allows for maneuverability.
A lot of people seem to think Psylocke’s arm and thigh ribbons are “ridiculous.” They don’t bother me in the least. In fact I quite like them and think they are distinctive. Note that a similar design on the thighs is found in Cyclops’ X-costume (as well as the full team costumes that seem to be based on it).
Ms. Braddock, Ms. Braddock, let down your hair…
I decided to go with a more modest leotard for my Psylocke.
I love when my Barbies need swords — or in this case, katana.
For fun, I did her Crimson Dawn eye tattoo. While I liked the eye tattoos in the Age of Apocalypse storyline, I’ve always been ambivalent about Betsy’s.
Alternate version with pink sash.
When telepaths attack…
I have one more X-Lady in the works. Very much hope to finish her before my Summer of X gives way to autumn.
The Barbie Aisle 