Hasbro's New Disney Mini Kingdom

With a new year comes new toys. Click the link and see what Hasbro has in store for the Disney Princesses.



Once upon a time there was a lack of toys based on the Disney Princess brand. In fact there wasn't even a Princess brand to be found. The only Princess anyone wanted to be was the Princess of Power. However at the tail end of the 80's Disney released The Little Mermaid and a Princess movement was born. Most major toy companies took a chance on developing toys based off fairy tales filled with aging disgruntled broads, princes with little to do, and the princesses that always seem to find themselves in drama. Tyco released a line of Little Mermaid dolls to coincide with the film's release. They did well. In fact I once wrote a story about my tough decision to go home with Hasbro's Jem doll or an Ariel doll from Tyco. Ariel got the rose and it was a rather awful choice on my part, which can be read here.

Either way through out the 90's Mattel carried the torch for 12 inch Disney fairy tale goodness with dolls from a variety of fabled Disney films. They even branched out and created action figure lines to certain films that carried appeal for girls and boys, like Aladdin, Pocahontas, and the Hunchback of Notre Dame. Mattel even added to their Disney Princess line up with the perfect ingredients, six inch figures with rooted hair. A six inch figure with clothing and rooted hair takes my breath away every time.

Not to be outdone by Mattel's strong hold on the Disney princesses, Hasbro and Playmates got in on the fun too during the turn of the century. Hasbro introduced the concept of the Disney Princess Mini Kingdom which Mattel quickly took over with in the mid to late 2000s. Playmates exploded onto the scene with "magic talking" interactive environments and play sets featuring real voices from some of our favorite Disney movies. The line was very similar to their wildly successful Simpsons line full of interactive Springfield hot spots.

Eventually though the Disney Princess brand would be consumed by Mattel and Mattel alone. Their dolls both large and mini were eventually set on a course to the town of Boring. There needed to be a jolt of energy into the license. About a year or so ago I read that the Disney Princess doll license would be moving from Mattel into the eager clutches of Hasbro. I was very intrigued to see how this would all play out.

The intrigue is now fully quenched as Hasbro's take on the Disney Princess toys has made it into stores. There are new 12 inch dolls and of course my favorite: the Disney Princess Mini Kingdom. I have actually done a good job of restraining myself from buying everything I see. I have picked up some items from the Mini Kingdom collection as well as the 12 inch dolls. Most of what I have purchased has featured that little hoarder with a desire for legs. Ariel is my spirit princess and not because I love all versions of the Little Mermaid story.

I love Ariel because I have noticed in my older age that we have very much in common. We both are collectors in an extreme sense of the word. We also long to be part of worlds we have a hard time fitting in with. Neither of us could ever eat crab. I was once a red head. I mean, ya know, shit. I love her.

So let's check out what Hasbro has to offer us for the Disney Princess Mini Kingdom line. (I'll share the 12 inch dolls in a future post!)

The line is broken down into various entry points. Up first are single fashion figures. They come with a princess and few pieces to add to their outfit. First up is Aurora, that lovely lady who has a large share in Ambien.

Slim packaging shape and bubble for the figures in this price point. The item was around four dollars. Some of the design elements for the packaging are reminiscent of Mattel's run on Disney Princesses, but based on the look of the figure it is evident that Hasbro has new ideas for a more whimsical looking line of figures.

Here she is, Sleeping Beauty ready for her slumber in the castle. (Side note, this Imaginext Wizard Tower was recently purchased at Walmart for seven dollars. I love the smell of clearance.)

These figures come in at about three inches. Aurora has a nice expressive face with a look that feels like her appearance in the Sleeping Beauty animated film. I also enjoy the swirling designs on her dress. This feeds into the whimsical idea for me with these toys. Her crown and flowers can pop off and be arranged either on her head or through the holes on her dress.

Here we go, Aurora has all her pieces attached. Her dress comes apart as well in two places. (Not pictured.) The light pink slides apart while the lower hot pink piece slides off her legs. The overall idea of how the clothing works is similar to what Mattel did. The dresses come off easily but there is a nice customization to these figures that was lacking from Mattel. Also the white collar over Aurora's chest can also pop off, though that is not pictured.

Jasmine is the other basic fashion figure I picked up from the mini kingdom line. I was super excited to find her. She seems to be one of the more harder ones to find. I have noticed that in these sets, she comes two to a case while the other Princesses have a higher ratio.

I would have preferred more images of the princesses available to collect. Actually I would have really liked this Mini Kingdom line to be slightly larger in scale. Ya can't get everything you want though.

Jasmine is perfectly fine among the Lego elite.

Like Aurora before, these are the pieces she comes with. The colors are bright and lush with Jasmine. I love the teal.

Pieces snap on really easily. The customizing possibilities are a lot of fun.

Side bar, I have always wanted to put my hair in a ponytail like that. I just can't.

With the single basic fashion sets behind us, let's move on to the fashion change packs. These figures come with a second outfit for a quick change. Tiana was my favorite out of this set. There was an Ariel, but I couldn't find one with eyes I liked. Being picky is a blessing and a curse.

Back of the card features Tiana in both dresses. I'm not a fan of the frog hat as it is very bulky. The designs for the dresses though are just perfect.

Here we go. The whimsical details on the dress are a continued theme like with the other mini figures.

Here's a closer look of the items. I don't dislike the frog hat piece, I just think it's really large. The flowers are lovely though.

See what I mean? The frog hat looks ready to crush her head.

With Tiana's hair being up, you can really see how the upper part of the dress can be removed. There is a tab that slides out and it slips off.

I want this dress in real life. It's so flouncy and fun.

The side bow on the hip is just the best. If I had the ability to make my own fabulous frocks I would in a heart beat. For now I live vicariously through my toy collection. (It's sad when a Disney Princess toy has a better wardrobe than you.)

My first purchase from the Mini Kingdom line! It's Ariel in mermaid form! Did you know I am a mermaid? It's true. I refuse to eat sea food because I can't eat people from my home kingdom. Plus mermaids are just awesome. This is a more deluxe figure set as it comes with a princess, extra skirt, bonus item, and a friend.

Back of the card shows the items as well as some other sets to collect! I can get with that. I want to also express my joy for the new look of these princesses. They resemble their animated counterparts but there is something fresh and slightly different about them that I just really enjoy.

Here's everything out and ready to go! The pearls wrapped around her tail is a nice touch to the hoarder aspect of Ariel as well as a fitting image of the original Little Mermaid story. I seem to recall in the original story the mermaids having jewelry draped around their tails. I could be making that up though so don't quote me on it.

Both pictures show the extra pieces with the set. That Flounder is beyond adorable. The flowers for Ariel are reminiscent of the flower she places in her hair from the film.

There she is all decked out!

Treasure chest opens to reveal coral and more jewelry!

The contents in the chest can be flipped around so that Flounder can be placed on the loot. Ariel's longer skirt can slide on and off over the tail.

I prefer the shorter skirt as it really shows off the tail more. Either look is fun though and I feel will provide collectors of all ages a lot of fun to play with.

Next up is the final item I've purchased from the Mini Kingdom line. It's the vehicle set! This set is very special, and I'll explain why soon.

Back of the card shows a lovely image of Ariel floating in her boat minus the prince, which is perfectly fine! This princess is ready to go on her own adventure!

Have you guessed yet why I love this figure so much? True the boat can float on its own and there are some adorable accessories that come with the set, but those aren't really it.

I love this set because Hasbro has given us an Ariel in a movie accurate dress! Oh my goodness I can't express how many times Ariel has shown up in some type of dress that has nothing to do with her appearance in the animated film, but here she is in a dress that is very familiar from the movie. It's the little details like this that make me so freakin happy.

Check out all the details on the boat!

The little seahorse looks like he is spitting out fancy water.

This yellow fish looks to be flying out of the water (probably to avoid the backwash from the seahorse.) How fun!

You can almost hear this fish singing. There's just a lot of cute little details with this set. I can't help but smile with it all. I must say though, while the boat might be able to float on water, mine will never touch real water. I treat my toys like a Gremlin, they avoid water. Unless the item is dirty or needs hair to be washed. There are always exceptions to the rules.

So lovely! Seriously, Hasbro gets a huge thumbs up for making this Ariel movie accurate! She even comes with that blue bow too! (I added Flounder for the final shot, because why not?)

Here we go, a snap shot of some of the Disney Princesses from the Mini Kingdom line. There are certainly more to collect, but this photo hopefully captures the style and appeal of the new Mini Kingdom. I am a fan and know that the Disney Princess line will still captivate buyers under Hasbro's care. I will eventually get to the 12 inch dolls but for now enjoy these pictures and keep it here. There's more exciting stuff to behold at the Diary. Hope you are all doing very well!