Kinky or Cool? Barbie Black Canary Comic Book Collector Doll and Other Weird Dolls

When it comes to the world of collector dolls, sometimes there can be a thin line between what is considered classic and what is simply seen as kinky, bizarre or sick. Lately, the Black Canary Doll (recently listed at the Toys R Us website as a Barbie Collector Doll, Black Label) has been causing its share of controversy and debate.

As of this writing, you can see that doll by going to the ToysRus website at: www.toysrus.com/shop/index.jsp
and put the words, Black Canary or Barbie Collector Doll Black Label in the search form to see the latest doll that is causing so much debate- and even disgust- when it comes to doll collectors, parents and others.

Although far from a doll expert, I've sold my share of them on various auction sites such as Ebay and other venues. I've also bought collectors' dolls for gifts or simply because some of them struck me as odd or unique or set off waves of nostalgia. Stay tuned for a trip down some of the weirder twists and turns in doll history as I've seen them through the years. But first....

Some basic info about the Black Canary Collector Doll

If you haven't already checked out the various photos of her online or at the ToysRus.com site listed above, it helps to know something about the reason the doll was created. Her genesis is a character in a DC Comics series who not only fights crime but has special powers. She is also something of a bombshell, with flowing long hair, an impossibly thin waist, black gloves, some of the wildest black boots around (not only made for walking but kicking and stomping, from the looks of them) and a black leather-like jacket.

Oh, yes, there are also those fishnet stockings, also raising eyebrows, perhaps because they lead up to a pair of very short shorts - or perhaps a bodysuit. It is a bit hard to tell from the photos.. Clearly, however, this doll isn't wearing much.

Why people are fussing and fuming over the Black Canary Barbie Collector Doll

When it comes to dolls, perception is often in the eye of the beholder. What seems lovable, endearing or cute to some is just strange, weird, perverted or sick to others. Also, there is the DC Comics connection, a series that has had plenty of various comic book characters, some of the pretty strange or odd looking.. Also, collector dolls - and Barbie dolls - have gone through a lot of changes through the years. Some are clearly marketed to adults. But people can't seem to separate the idea of a Barbie doll from images of the older and more traditional versions made for little girls.

This isn't necessarily that sort of Barbie and some parents wouldn't dream of having this one anywhere near their daughters. This is a female that seems to come with an attitude.But is that bad? Is this doll likely to serve as a terrible role model for young girls or teens? She's certainly grabbed people's attention!

While debates rage about whether she embodies a kick ass attitude full of strength and female empowerment, others feel she needs far more clothing and...well, a less kinky or S & M appearance. The reviews, easily seen online at Amazon and other sites, indicate that a certain amount of potential buyers are turned on by this Barbie - and some of them are male.

Black Canary Barbie isn't the only strange collector or artists' doll I've seen or owned

I have to admit I couldn't get too worked up about this doll. Why? Because when it comes to odd dolls, this is certainly not among the weirdest, kinkiest or even most perverted I've seen. Other examples of strange dolls include the pregnant doll put out by Mattel, There was the Barbie Happy Family Collection, still available on Ebay (if you want to see what it looks like). I once owned one of these, given to me as a gag gift when I was either pregnant or about to adopt a child.

That doll had a magnetic and removable plastic stomach. Current listings note that the doll was controversial and pulled from store shelves. I don't know if that is true but I did own one and may still have it, somewhere in our attic. I have to admit there was days when I had to stuff that unopened box containing the Happy Family Doll (mint, never opened, new, still in box) somewhere in the back of a drawer. Maybe it was the glowing look on the doll face. Whatever. She creeped me out....but, trust me, it wasn't the pregnant stomach look that did it. It was the total, unending calm.

Black Canary Barbie and reborn dolls

Reborn dolls have also had their share of controversy. For those not in the know, reborn dolls often started out as traditional dolls. Then various doll artists would take them and change them to look just like real, living newborn babies. Depending on perception, this was seen as either wonderfully artistic or genuinely creepy. Some of them were modeled on real babies which had died. Some artists would create these babies to honor a baby who had died. They were - and are - so realistic that in a recent case of mistaken identity, a cop reportedly shattered a car window to rescue what they thought was a real baby. It was simply a "reborn" doll.

Which is creepier? Black Canary Barbie or The Birds Barbie, based on the Alfred Hitchcock movie?

I'm more freaked out by The Birds Barbie, offered for sale on Ebay. Check it out there. You can see a doll which looks amazingly like the lovely blonde-haired Tippi Heddren, almost as if she'd stepped out from the movie, looking terrified as birds attack her. In an amazing recreation of a seminal moment, she is frozen in time, birds swooping at her hair and pulling at her jacket and skirt. That movie scared me as a child and it still gives me an odd moment of deja vu - and a jolt - to see a part of the movie recreated in doll and plastic bird form.

So there you have it. People are buzzing about Black Canary Barbie today but who knows what strange doll will come along tomorrow and knock her off her temporary moment in the spotlight?

Sources:
1. Personal doll collection and experiences as an occasional doll collector and seller
2. Mistaken Identity: Cops Rescue Doll, WTOP News, online version, July 15, 2008, www.toysrus.com/shop/index.jsp
3. ToysRUs site: www.toysrus.com for listing of Barbie Collector Doll Black Label
4. Amazon site for listings of DC comics and Black Canary items
5. Ebay for listings and info about The Birds collector dolls and reborn dolls