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Note to our readers -- the image has been revealed; please see our update, Dora the Explorer's New 'Tween' Look Revealed!
Nickelodeon's popular sweetheart Dora the Explorer will be getting a new and more grown-up look, thanks to a new Dora doll by Mattel that will hit the shelves in fall 2009. Although no pictures of the new tween Dora have been released, silhouette teasers reveal a very slender, long-haired Dora in an above-the-knee length dress and trendy ballet slippers. The new fashionista Dora, whose look is comparable to the controversial Bratz dolls, is moving out of the jungle and into the city, where she will be exploring her new urban empire, her new middle school--yes Dora has aged--and perhaps puberty.
Whether one agrees that Dora's new appearance represents an advance, there's no doubting the doll's advanced technology. Dora can be connected to a home computer via a USB port, where owners can make her hair grow, change the color of her earrings, and make other modifications to the actual doll by simply clicking a button on Dora's Web site. The Web page is also full of exploring and mystery-solving games--paying at least some homage to the essence adventurous spirit that's made Dora so popular.
But many parents aren't taking the news so well. "Let's Go: No Makeover for Dora" (http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/Dora_Makeover/) is a new Web petition created by Lyn Mikel Brown, Ed.D and Sharon Lamb, Ed.D. for angry parents who insist that the creators of Dora are selling out to Mattel just to make a profit.
"On TV she wears shorts. She has a sidekick monkey. She has a map and a compass and a backpack! She solves problems and explores the world in Spanish and English," says the online petition's text. "[With the new doll] girls are told to forget the outdoors and adventure into the same old same old: shopping, fashion, makeovers, and jewelry. . . if the original Dora grew up, she wouldn't be a fashion icon or a shopaholic . . . Maybe she'd become a world-class runner or follow her love of animals and become a wildlife preservationist or biologist."
Despite the uproar, Mattel continues to defend the tween Dora, contesting that Dora the Explorer, which has run very successfully on Nickelodeon for 10 years, is growing up just as her audience is--the target audience for Dora's original presentation is preschoolers. Long-time fans will have their friend Dora to experience tween life with. Still, parents argue that new Dora will continue to be watched by preschoolers that will no doubt be subjected to her new body image and superficial habits.
The doll, which has been cast by some as a "Tickle Me Elmo" for 2009, will sell for $59.99. As it won't be available until fall, it remains to be seen if this grassroots parental effort will have any sales impact.