The New "Historical" American Girl Doll Is From the 1980s, So Elder Millennials Are Officially Old
American Girl is releasing its first new historical doll in three years.
Courtney Moore is a gamer from 1986 whose accessories include a Care Bears sleeping bag and a Caboodle with hair accessories.
Kids who grew up in the '80s are having big feelings about the doll.
For fans of American Girl or the 1980s, the new, historical doll, Courtney Moore, is awesome to the max. Courtney is from the fictional town of Orange Valley, California, and, in true '80s-girl fashion, she loves going to the mall, playing arcade games — she wants to design one someday — and styling her hair in ultra-high curly ponytails.
It's Courtney's accessories, though, that are instantly familiar to anyone who grew up in the '80s. She has a see-through phone for her bedroom. Her room also has a Caboodles carrying kit to organize her scrunchies and her Lip Smackers. Her Care Bears PJs match her Care Bears sleeping bag, ready for sleepovers. There's tiny folders with a neon-colored dolphin and unicorn, mix tapes on cassette with hand-written liner notes, a fanny pack, slouchy socks — it all brings up a nostalgic feelings for '80s kids.
But it also has them wondering ... historical? It seems children of the the day-glo decade are having big feelings about the relics of their childhood bedrooms being treated like artifacts from a bygone era, the way Kirsten's quilt was used to exemplify the pioneer days.
Realizing an 80s-era @American_Girl doll is as historic to modern kids as 50s-era Molly was to 90s kids like me just broke my brain. (We’re old!!) https://t.co/DQdWekouz1
— Jenna Lowenstein (@just_jenna) September 15, 2020
Others feel an instant kinship to Courtney and feel the need to re-buy their own childhoods in miniaturized form.
The new American Girl Doll, Courtney, has the same Care Bear that I had, which means I’m buying myself an overpriced doll-sized Care Bear.
— Amber Lough (@amberlough) September 15, 2020
Of course, others are having none of it and don't care about being labeled a historical relic.
Molly was released in the 1980s and represents the 1940s
Courtney is being released in 2020 and represents the 1980s
if an american girl doll makes you feel old that's because you're old sorry— Emily Palmer Heller (@emilypheller) September 15, 2020
Amid the bangle bracelets and PAC-MAN lunch box, one accessory stands out from the rest: Courtney has her own American Girl Doll. Molly, one of the first American Girl dolls, comes in a replica of a Pleasant Company box, with a mini Meet Molly book and a mini Pleasant Company catalogue. Meta!
The fact that the character Courtney owns an original 1986 Molly doll means that the American Girl Company is canon within the American Girl universe. History has caught up with itself. The cycle is complete. This Ouroboros has swallowed its own tail. pic.twitter.com/PB3LUQHHQB
— Audrey Dubois (@PlatypusInPlaid) September 16, 2020
One thing '80s gamers definitely didn't have growing up: a partnership with Girls Who Code. In honor of Courtney's dreams of becoming a game programmer, American Girl partnering with the organization to support its outreach to girls. When you check out your Courtney doll and accessories, you can also give a $,1 $5 or $10 donation, and American Girl is matching customer donations up to a maximum of $50,000. They're also providing a $5,000 scholarship to four Girls Who Code members. In the words of the 1980s: That's totally rad!
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