I'll let you in on a little secret and tell you I've never owned a Barbie. My parents were convinced it would counter act all healthy female ideals they had instilled in me and I have to admit, I don't blame them a bit. Consequently, my reaction to the Chat Diva Singing Barbie Doll might be a little biased.
Apparently, the new Barbie Chat Diva doll talks on her cell phone and lip-synchs and bobs her head to the music when you plug her into a MP3 player or CD player. Chat Diva Barbie comes with three preprogrammed song clips and a doll-sized microphone. According to Wal-Mart, "This is more than a doll: it's a cool electronic toy of the future..." Need I continue?
Wow. Is it just me, or do toys for kids these days take away all the fun and leave you with something boring and generic? That Barbie could never be anything more than a doll that yaks on her cellphone and dances to music. When I was a kid, my Barbie could be ANYTHING: a dancer, an astronaut, a secret agent... Heck, if I wanted her to be a lion, she would oblige by putting my sister's orange tube socks around her neck.