A couple of years ago, Addie and I discovered the series of CGI-animated BARBIE movies that Universal has been releasing one or two times a year. Much to my surprise, they’re not bad – and now having viewed many of them, it’s incredible to see just how much the quality has increased over the years. The first massive hit here at Rock Father HQ was PRINCESS AND THE POPSTAR (which really needs a follow-up), and it was nearly trumped when Addie found out that there were some BARBIE mermaid movies as well. She loves mermaids, and now that Little Finley is in on the aquatic action as well these days, when Mattel sent us a copy of their latest film, BARBIE: THE PEARL PRINCESS, along with a couple of dolls inspired by the movie (they arrived back in May), excitement was abound, and it’s carried well into summer.
The film itself carries some familiar themes, as mermaids and princesses have been well-established in cinematic BARBIE lore in recent years (keep in mind, I’ve seen BARBIE in RAPUNZEL, in FAIRYTOPIA, a pair of MERMAID TALE movies, the aforementioned PRINCESS AND THE POPSTAR and the earlier PRINCESS AND THE PAUPER, among others). Here we have BARBIE as Lumina, a mermaid that longs to be a princess… and the key to unlocking that destiny lies within the magic pearls of which she already possesses. It’s nothing groundbreaking, but it’s a fun, solid movie with a good-hearted story.
But when it comes to BARBIE, it all goes back to that iconic toy line, and THE PEARL PRINCESS is no exception.
We received the 2-in-1 Barbie as Lumina doll and the blue variant with “wrap and style” hair – both of which have become regular bath tub and swimming pool companions this summer. And they make good nighttime companions as well…
All that said, the film and toys are all available now and make a fitting segue into what’s coming next… BARBIE AND THE SECRET DOOR. The next film in the series will arrive from Universal Studios Home Entertainment on September 16th, and the toy line for that should be shipping right about now. From what I’ve seen thus far, the next one may be the cornucopia of all the BARBIE goodness my girls are into. Princesses… Unicorns… Mermaids… Fairies… they’re all on-deck.
BARBIE AND THE PEARL PRINCESS items are available now via my affiliates, Mattel Shop and Amazon:
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Bonus: The Battle Continues!
