What Happened to Strawberry Shortcake!
Comments(0) I may be dating myself with this one, but I couldn’t help but post it as it sent a deep and painful pang to my stomach, which caused be to gasp at a very loud volume. What could be causing me such anguish you ask? The makeover they’ve given Strawberry Shortcake - revealed just yesterday.
Yes. I get it - Strawberry Shortcake came out in the 80’s and its now 2008, but I really don’t see what was wrong with the old image.
What made the makeover worse were all the mean things the creator said about the 80’s version of Strawberry Shortcake.
Apparently the 80’s image was:
- Too candy-obsessed
- Too ditsy
- Too fond of wearing bloomers.
In my opinion, Ms. Shortcake was not ditsy. Furthermore, what is wrong with wearing bloomers?
Nonetheless, this is what they are saying about the 2008 version of Strawberry Shortcake:
- She prefers fresh fruit versus gumdrops
- Appears to wear just a dab of lipstick
- Spends her time chatting on a cell phone instead of brushing her calico cat, Custard.
What the hell kind of substance is that!
On a more serious note, the Shortcake transformation makes the double standard clear. When male action figures go through transformations to make the character current, the changes are minimal and more so have to do with changes to colour or texture - but it is never about the action heroes personality, likes and dislikes. Why then do toy makers equate making a girl/female child character more current, to having her make adult or womanlike lifestyle changes?
Beverly Crandon | women 2.0 | Toronto Co-founder