Katniss. Barbie. Those two names couldn’t summon more disparate images. Katniss — the main character from “The Hunger Games,†if you’ve been living under a rock — is a badass warrior who could care less about her appearance and just wants to be outdoors in open green spaces. Oh yeah, she’s also lethal with a bow and arrow. Barbie, on the other hand, is pink perfection. She’s all about style and beauty, with a side of brains (she became an architect last year). She’s a fun California girl living a life of luxury in a dream house and driving around in a pink corvette. She’s not lethal with anything.
But get used to hearing “Katniss Barbie†paired together because Mattel is planning to release a doll based on the “Hunger Games†character.
We imagine that some fans of the book might be upset to see their tough heroine embodied in Barbie form, but we think it could be great. What better way to show that Barbie has evolved into a strong woman than to show her as a weapon-wielding teenager who is out to save the world? Of course that will depend a bit on how she’s dressed. Mattel has yet to release any images of Katniss Barbie, but we imagine that she’ll come in one of the dresses that she wears when introduced to the Capitol. We hope that she also comes with the plain clothes she wears in District 13, the jumpsuit she wears into the arena, and, of course, her trusty bow and arrow.
So far, the “Hunger Games†product tie-ins that we’ve seen aimed at female fans include beauty products (nail polish, eyeliner), bedding, books, and social gaming. Nail polish hardly says “strong female role model.†Admittedly fashion is a focus of the book, the movie, and (we expect) the Barbie tie-in, but unlike the other products associated with the books and movie, Katniss Barbie has the potential to also remind girls of the brave, assured character who faces dramatic situations with grace and confidence. We disagree with critics who think pairing Katniss and Barbie is blasphemous — she reflects Millennial women’s desire to be both pretty and powerful.
This is uncharted territory for Barbie, portraying a woman forced to kill to save her own life, but we think she can pull it off. After all, she’s already learned the skills to be an astronaut, a teacher, a doctor, a mother…
