OK, so the ad had Licca dolls on it. Or, to be precise, a Licca doll and her...boyfriend (or husband?) doll, whatever his name is. [Disclosure: Actually, at first I thought it was a Jenny doll, because all these dolls look the same to me. And to be honest, I thought "Licca" (リカ) was spelled "Rika", but oh, how ignorant I am.]
And I was like...oh. OH. O. M. G. The young people of Japan are turning into Licca dolls!!!
It's true, folks—or, at least, in my eyes, it's true. The more I looked at the ad, the more I felt like I was seeing merely doll versions of countless couples and young women and men that I had seen walking around in cities of Japan. People with brown hair. Huge eyes. Pale skin. Super skinny limbs.
According to Wikipedia, Licca dolls were developed in the '60s by Takara, with Jenny dolls following suit in the '80s. They both have their backstories (and wardrobes full of pretty clothes), but you can probably imagine the kinds of gender ideologies that have been packed into them over the years.
And of course, since they were manufactured as Japanese versions of Barbie dolls, there's also a particular racial element to that ideology as well. And these have taken on additional layers with globalization and media marketing that spews out all sorts of funny beauty ideals for people all over the place.
I felt more than slightly disturbed. There's nothing wrong with these things, really—dyed hair, makeup that makes your eyes look like those of manga characters. I mean, I think it'd be cool if I could actually learn how to use eyeliner. But...it's also kind of creepy, this whole...looking more and more like a plastic doll thing.
No no, that's not quite what I mean. There's nothing wrong with these things, really—when in ISOLATION. Dyed hair: fine. Makeup techniques that yield astounding before/after photos: fine. Skincare regimens that make your skin look clear, bright, and "white": fine. Plastic surgery of all types: fine. (Well...hmm.) But when taken all together, something about it just unsettles me. But it's also so real. Whoa.
Oh, just listen to me. I sound like such a naysayer. ::sigh:: It's cool, people. Don't mind me. Please carry on looking like the happy plastic couple in the picture. I'll just sit over here in a corner being weirded out...
[But actually, all this thinking about Licca dolls and Jenny dolls has reminded me of my experience with Barbie dolls—or, just one doll, to be precise. I am now itching to tell that story. Maybe next Friday.]
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