The cool space fighter above was created with bricks from Lego Friends’ Butterfly Beauty Shop, Olivia’s Invention Workshop, Stephanie’s Cool Convertible, and Emma’s Fashion Design Studio. It proves one thing: feminists criticising the new Lego Friends sets just don’t get it.
When I first saw the new and controversial Lego Friends I hated it too. It wasn’t the colours — I like the colours — but those stupid figurines and the branding. I found them as nauseating as the branding and styling of dolls like the Bratz. How could Lego argue that they spent millions in researching these? They were horrible and stereotyping.
Except they are not. Not really, after you play with them.
The pieces on the sets are fine. They are just Lego pieces. Interchangeable, functional, flexible. Neutral. They are not special for girls. The instructions are ok too. Sure, they are for making a beauty shop or a pastel convertible. But kids don’t have to follow them.
In fact, they will break them and create new stuff, as it always has happened. That’s the whole point of Lego.
I know because I’ve been building them since the late 70s, the golden era of Lego, when I was a little kid putting bricks together with my brothers and my sister.
A backdoor to kids’ rooms
But the branding and the figurines still suck. They are “girly”. They are far from the Lego ideal, a toy that spans through genres and generations, treating everyone equally. This genius ad is a good proof of this ideal. Does Lego believe that there should be Lego for boys and Lego for girls?
No. Their most popular sets — Lego City, Pirates, Castle, etc. — are bought for both boys and girls. They are genre neutral. Parents buy them and kids are happy with them.
The way I see it, Lego Friends was created to fight the typical toys for girls, stupid and garish. The dreadful Bratz and Barbies of this world. Those are the toys that many girls are asking for. Parents, older siblings or family may try to steer them away from those brainless toys and fail. Just the same way they try to steer boys from other brainless toys and fail. At the end of the day, many girls want the Bratz or whatever is in fashion that year. And many boys want a beeping reproduction of the Millennium Falcon. At the end of the day, they are useless pieces of plastic.
But Lego Friends, as Lego Star Wars or Lego Harry Potter or Lego Sponge bob, are a way to sell Lego to a wider audience. To fight the stupid toys. To give tools to build anything to all those kids. All of the sudden, kids who would never consider neutral Lego themes, like Lego City or Lego Castle, want these Lego sets. They want the walls of Hogwarts and the cute pastel convertible.
And that’s good.
Those branded themes are great cash cows for Lego, sure, but they are also the way kids get into Lego. They are a backdoor. Once the radioactive Lego brick bites them, they become hooked. The next time they will want one Lego set just because it seems cool or more complicated. The space shuttle. A Lego creator building. A Technic car. Both girls and boys would pick those and build whatever they want with them.
This Brothers Brick review of these new sets reminded me that it just doesn’t matter what’s on the box cover. What matters is what kids create with them.
Imagination, my friends, have no sex.
MDolley
Wednesday, January 4, 2012 at 8:36 AMThis story only really needed 1 of it’s sentences – “Those are the toys that many girls are asking for”
I am inclined to trust 4 years of market research done by a huge global company. This new friends range is an additional line, it doesn’t take away any theme that girls might have previously been interested in.
Somebody pointed out that one part of the Friends sets that people overlook is that the characters have names, stories and personalities. That is apparently important to girls.
Also, the inventor workshop is an awesome set and if even one girl becomes a scientist because of it then that is awesome.
Neil
Wednesday, January 4, 2012 at 8:40 AM“I am inclined to trust 4 years of market research done by a huge global company”.
Then you don’t know much about market research. It is amazing how much money is wasted on research that a psych grad student would laugh at.
oleary
Wednesday, January 4, 2012 at 9:15 AMBut are the girls asking for them because they want them, or because they’ve been conditioned by companies like this?
Is it a cycle, where kids want things that companies tell them to like, which then comes up in market research that they like them?
Also, Lego seriously needs to get back to its creative roots. Less instructions. Less sets created for one purpose (I love Star Wars lego, but what happened to standard parts?)
MDolley
Wednesday, January 4, 2012 at 9:45 AMYou can still buy just bricks – http://shop.lego.com/en-AU/Individual-Bricks-ByCategory
oleary
Wednesday, January 4, 2012 at 10:30 AMsure but that’s not really my point. My point is, it’s so heavily marketed at making one thing only out of each set, and so many of the parts (I think?) are specific. Like, specific star wars parts, etc.
MDolley
Wednesday, January 4, 2012 at 10:50 AMI agree with you that a lot of sets are designed to be a specific thing for the most part, but there are alternatives if you want them.
All of the creator sets include instructions for 3 different model using the same parts. What I like about that is the fact that it teaches kids that it’s a good thing to pull a model apart and build something else.
I disagree that the Star Wars sets contains specific parts. All of the parts should have standard connection points. I can’t confirm that 100% because I avoid licensed themes.
Regarding “specific parts” take a look at the new Dino line for 2012. They come with large single piece moulded dinosaurs – but they still have standard connection points such as studs on the back.
olearymo
Wednesday, January 4, 2012 at 4:13 PMSorry, didn’t explain well. I know the alternatives are there. But do KIDS know the alternatives are there?
I never really kept up with lego, tho some projects tempt me. But what concerns me is the idea of kids getting this stuff and missing out on the inventiveness. It shouldn’t really be ‘out there’ for them to look for, because they won’t know to look for it.
Also I didn’t mean connection points, I think I got a bit lazy there. What I meant was, an X wing canopy, or a targeting computer, or a TIE engine… they’re only made for those things, y’know?
I did forget about the creator sets. I have to say, those things are AWESOME and kind of render some of my concerns moot. Thanks for reminding me!
MDolley
Wednesday, January 4, 2012 at 4:38 PMI see what you are saying, and I think it is a valid concern. I figure it’s the job of parents to inspire creativity. Come up with ideas for creations together, that sort of thing. “Let’s see if we can make this house into a space station”
Aaron
Wednesday, January 4, 2012 at 3:57 PMLego is Lego. I never though of it as gender specific in anyway.
But enough talk, to the toyshop! And bring ALL my credit cards!
MDolley
Wednesday, January 4, 2012 at 4:29 PMI wholeheartedly agree with your intent, but the toy shop is probably the worst place to buy Lego. Australian prices are crazy high.
Sally
Thursday, January 5, 2012 at 1:12 AMOh yes, they sure are, here is an example from lego.com US site and lego.com AU site.
Mercedes-Benz Unimog U 400 – $329.99 AUD – $199.99 USD ($193.92 AUD)
That is a $136.07 (68%) markup, for what?
Big Windows
Wednesday, January 4, 2012 at 8:28 PMWow… Insightful stuff… I have a couple of sub 5(five) year old kids and the validity of what is said here scares me… So much to take into account when buying toys for the Spuddlets… Damn!