It's actually quite hard to get a good group photograph of my Second Edition Holograms, because they live in the highest possible place in my collection - on top of the Jem cabinet. Though it's not easy to see in the image above, the box behind Aja is my MIP Raya, who came from the Netherlands. I felt it was best to have Raya in box rather than loose because of the problem of tracking down those sticks.

Again, my set is missing one of the three Jem dolls from this year. I don't really mind that fact, though if I had to have one to stand with them, it would probably be Glitter N Gold Jem, since she's the best option of the bunch. Still, no Jems, so on we go.

I have never made any secret of the fact that, despite being a hard and fast Misfit fan, Second Edition Shana is the doll I consider the prettiest out of all of the original Hasbro Jem line. I have actually seen lots of pictures of Integrity Shana, but in my humble opinion, despite all the delicate artistry of these new dolls, I still don't think she's as pretty as the original and never will be. This Second Edition Shana doll is my proper display doll, but she isn't the first one that I ever had, nor is she my favourite for that reason. You'll see her competitor on the Glitter N Gold page, but that's for later.

One key thing to mention about my Second Shana is her jacket. This is a known variation for Second Shana, and it is not the blue jacket, because my sister's doll (in storage at present) has the blue jacket instead. Mine came with this one, along with all her accessories and - I think - somewhere in my cupboard I also have her box. I don't actually remember how much she cost me, but I have the impression she came in a lot of dolls, and therefore was probably more reasonable when all costs were broken down. Even now, Shana's beauty makes her highly sought after - and no wonder, considering ;)

As regards the other two, Aja has something of a chequered reputation in my collection. When I first had her, she distinguished herself by somehow managing to shove any dolls she sat next to on the old shelf onto the floor. It didn't matter who sat next to her, they generally ended up taking a dive. We did start nicknaming her "Evil Aja", but since she got the rest of her accessories and was displayed with them properly, she's more or less behaved. We did have one incident where Shana went flying off the top of the cabinet, and Kimber likewise, but I guess that was just coincidence ;)

Kimber is the version with the pink streaks. I bought her like this, complete, from Canada. She has the green trousers version - I have the other trousers somewhere, but I think they belong more with Red Kimber. My Red Kimber, of course, is on the Flipside page.

I am much more a fan of the Second Year Holograms than I am the first, although the first year dolls are more true to the cartoon series.

Danse and Video come under the umbrella of Second Year Holograms,too. I always want to count them separately, but apparently Hasbro thought otherwise. I no longer have my loose Video doll (though you can see the MIB one in the Misfit image below, yay for awesome arrangement fail), but Danse was a doll I got pretty early on in my collecting and for some reason I have never felt the desire to part with her, even though I think I have a boxed doll somewhere tucked away. I always thought it was a shame that Danse the doll was nowhere near as pretty as Danse is in the cartoon. Oh well.

 

 

 

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Misfits

Unfortunately, I really need to coordinate my MIP dolls better, because as you can see, the doll behind the Misfits on display is Video and not Stormer. I don't have a loose Second Stormer any more, on account of having the MIB one, but you'll just have to take my word for it for now because she is the next doll along on the shelf and not visible in this image ;)

I'm not so fond of the original Misfits' outfits and I never really did like that Hasbro didn't update their clothing much, whilst the Holograms got a whole new wardrobe. I felt a bit cheated by it, and I've never made a secret of the fact I dislike Jetta's barcode outfit, too.

Still, I'm a Misfit fan and I do consider the Second Year dolls the prettiest Misfits available, especially the Roxy doll. It can be harder to identify a First from a Second out of package, but they are generally paler, with fluffier hair. Roxy also has a slight variation on the pattern on her trousers, and I think Pizzazz's sock is a different shade. Stormer - who you can't see - has the tights from You Gotta Be Fast instead of the fishnets.

For some reason Clash got omitted from the image I took of the Second Misfits together, and I guess there's something funny about that considering her sidelined position in the cartoon after Jetta joins the group. Still, as I said on a different page, I like the Clash doll. I think she's pretty. My Clash was one of my early Misfit dolls, and she has all of her accessories. That jacket is still highly odd to me, and the thing she has round her neck still a mystery, but the purple/pink hair mix works for me so I'm not complaining.

Bugbear of the Second Misfit release? A few. Firstly, Jetta not appearing on the group boxes, and coming almost as an afterthought as a doll, despite her appearance from the start of season 2 of the cartoon. Second, Stormer still has a guitar, not keys. But the saving grace of the release? Jetta's awesome saxophone. I think it might be my favourite instrument of all of them. Maybe I'm biased...

Clash aside, all these dolls are really just display dolls. My special Misfits you'll meet on a different page.