Bratz is the name of a line of 9.5" dolls produced by MGA Entertainment starting at the end of 2001. The goal of the doll line is to reflect the latest trends in fashion and appeal to the Tween market, though fans exist in both younger and older age groups. They are created in both sexes, "Bratz Boyz" having followed Bratz "girls" shortly after the girl dolls entered the toy market. They are characterized by an oversized head with large eyes and lips, a small body and shoes that snap on and off. The original 4 characters were Yasmin (based on CEO Isaac Larian's own daughter, Jasmin), Jade, Sasha and Cloe. Over the course of the lines that followed, Meygan (who "moved away" for a while and then came back), Dana, Fianna, Nevra, Tiana, Kumi, Felicia, and Kiana have joined the "Bratz Pack". Three sets of "Twiins," Roxxi and Phoebe, Tess and Nona, and Oriana and Valentina have also joined the Bratz Pack. Oriana and Valentina were later joined by their identical triplet sister, Sierrna, in a special "Triiiplets" set. Characters May Lin and Katia were only produced once, as special collector dolls (May Lin wearing a kimono as part of the Tokyo-A-Go-Go collection and Katia wearing a gown for the 2005 winter holidays). May Lin sparked a bit of controversy because her name is Chinese, yet the doll was portrayed as Japanese. On top of that, her name is misspelled; a more appropriate spelling would have been something like "Meilin" or "Mei-lin." This made it appear that the design team had not properly researched appropriate names for the doll (as they had for Kumi, who was introduced as a kimono doll) and merely picked a name that would be perceived to be Japanese by the general public (and thereby perpetuating misconceptions about the Chinese and Japanese cultures being one and the same), which did not sit well with more cognizant collectors. As of this writing, May Lin has yet to appear in another Bratz collection, and is probably unlikely to be produced ever again. The Bratz World concept has taken the dolls to Tokyo, in the Tokyo-A-Go-Go collection, and London in the Punkz (boys only) and Pretty n' Punk line, with themed fashions and playsets to match. Two lines which were not officially part of the Bratz World series, but carry on the Bratz theme are Fabulous, a Las Vegas themed line, and Ooh La La, which is set in Paris. 2005 collections include Sportz, I-Candy, Rock It (boys only), Step Out/Step Off, Birthday Bash, Campfire, Midnight Dance, and Rock Angelz. A special collector's edition called Big Bratz features 2 foot tall versions of the Bratz. To date, Yasmin, Cloe, and Meygan have been made as Big Bratz. In addition to the dolls, the Bratz line includes playsets, vehicles, accessories, Lil Bratz, the Bratz Babyz, plush Petz, ("Catz", "Dogz" and "Foxz"), collectible posters and a video game. In August of 2004, a straight to video movie, Bratz, the video: Starrin & Stylin', was released. An album was also spawned by the dolls, entitled Rock Angelz (#79 on the US Billboard 200 in 2005, credited to Bratz Rock Angelz). A single, "So Good", has also reached #14 on the Australian ARIAnet Singles Chart and #23 on the UK Singles Chart also that year. Contents 1 Bratz Pack members 2 Bratz Boyz members 3 Controversy 4 External links Bratz Pack members Cloe, "Angel" Jade, "Kool Kat" Sasha, "Bunny Boo" Yasmin, "Pretty Princess" Meygan, "Funky Fashion Monkey" Dana, "Sugar Shoes" Fianna, "Fragrance" Nevra, "Queen B" Phoebe, "Sugar" (Roxxi's twin) Roxxi, "Spice" (Phoebe's twin) Tiana, (No nickname known) Kumi, (No nickname known May Lin, (No nickname known) Tess, "Solo" (Nona's twin) Nona, "Star" (Tess' twin) Felicia, (No nickname known) Oriana, "Punk Skunk" (Valentina and Siernna's triplet) Valentina, "Pretty Pup" (Siernna and Oriana's triplet) Siernna, "Kickin' Kool-ala" (Oriana and Valentina's triplet) Katia, (No nickname known) Kiana, (No nickname known) Leah, (No nickname known) Lilee, (No nickname known) Bratz Boyz members Cade, "The Viper" Dylan, "The Fox" Eitan, "The Dragon" Cameron, "The Blaze" Koby, "The Panther" Bryce,"The Smooth Operator" Controversy Some parents have criticized the Bratz for being "unrealistic" and claim they promote Materialism and Consumerism. They also claim the commercials show 11-year-olds wearing lots of makeup and scantily clad. Others have noted how each of the fashion-obsessed Bratz seem to have very shallow personalities of their own, with only superficial things such as clothes differentiating one from another. [1] Even some fans of the line have been put off by certain editions, such as Jade from the Style It collection, whose alternate shirt featured a Chinese take-out box with a Japanese flag on it; Sasha, a dark-skinned character, was said on early boxes to be interested in hip-hop music, potentially supporting a stereotype of African-Americans. Plus, when the first set of Twiins came out, they looked exactly the same, and one was "good" and the other one was "evil", thus supporting another stereotype of twins. Other parents are happy to see that dolls with a more realistic body image are becoming popular-Bratz have natural leg lengths, large hips, and very modest chests. Some also praise the Bratz for breaking down female stereotypes reinforced by many other dolls, such as the fairy-tale princess or bride. Others are just glad to see their older children still finding dolls relevant in their lives, or even enjoy the line themselves. Parents, children, and other fans appreciate that there are Bratz characters of many ethnicities, most of no specific background, which are all given their own names and sets of clothing instead of the long-time doll manufacturer tradition of making the blonde and African-American dolls variants of the same character. External links Bratz Pack: The official website Bratz World: A fan-made site with photos, forum, polls, contests and links. The Official Bratz Doll Fanlisting: Provides photos, checklist, articles and links. Bratz TV: A fan-made site with fan fiction, photos and forum. Bratz Checklist: A complete Bratz checklist with picture links. The Bratz Hangout!: The Bratz collectors guide. Bratz Mania!: A fan-made site with wallpapers, news, photo gallery, Doll Maker and links. Bratz v Barbie: The London Times meets the Bratz creators. Bratz Dolls at Twoop.comes:Bratz Search Term: "Bratz" Categories: Dolls