Well, when the show originally
aired in the United States in September of 1995, Bandai America
decided to join in on the merchandising. Unfortunately they made
the ugliest dolls known to man. I don't know if they thought American
girls didn't care what the dolls looked like or if American Moms
wouldn't buy the slightly more expensive Asia or Japanese dolls.
What they came up with where dolls with no noses, hulking bodies
and huge feet. The dolls were the standard 11 1/2", US fashion
doll height, but were unable to were certain 'Barbie' clothes
and none of 'Barbie's' shoes. The dolls did have bendable legs
and TNT waist.
Two sets of dolls were released.
The first were dolls with incorrect shoes. They had all the Scouts
in boots. Within a couple of months, the problem was solved and
Mars, Jupiter and Venus had the correct shoes on.
Bandai America Sailormoon
dolls
After Bandai America quit producing
the dolls in early 1996, a toy company in Canada, IRWIN, took
over the North American licenses. Sad to say, Irwin continued
to use the UGLY face mold. They did change the body type slightly,
thinning the doll a little and making the legs of a slightly more
flexible material.
I wouldn't want to pretend to guess
about all the dolls that Irwin made. I believe I have a Moon,
Tux and Chibimoon. I know they made dolls with spinning bases,
light-up tiaras, and extra clothes. Irwin was EXTREMELY smart
and picked up where Japan left off. They made villain dolls. If
I remember correctly, they made Esmerude, Diamond, Saffire, Professor
Tohme and Kaori Knight. They also made a Neo-queen Serenity and
Prince Endymion. However, they all had the ugly faces.
Canadian
Irwin
Sailor Monn
Whatever the reason, in August
of 2000, Irwin released for sale in the US, new Sailormoon dolls.
Although they still have the yukky bodies, the dolls have the
Bandai Asia face molds and look pretty darn good. In addition,
they changed the package, Wands, pleated the skirts, and turned
out a fairly nice version of the Moon dolls. The packaging shows
a Tuxedo Mask doll, but I have not yet been able to find one.
