Dora, don't grow up!

By now, most parents know that Dora the Explorer is getting a makeover . I just got a sneak peek of Dora's new look from MomLogic. Apparently Dora is moving to a different jungle -- the urban jungle -- and attends middle school with some fancy new friends and fancy new outfits. Check out her transformation....

From this.....

..... to this!

Yep, she definitely wouldn't be able to swing from vines in that outfit. And no way she's going to play with Boots the monkey now, he might splatter mud or bananas all over that pretty pink tunic.

So, what do you think about all the uproar? After all, Dora isn't the first character to undergo a makeover. Look at Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck: they look radically different now from when they were first created by Walt Disney in the 1950's. Even boys' cartoons like The Transformers have undergone, uh, transformations. But for some reason, marketers seem to think that girls need to grow up sooner and sooner. Check out these girls' cartoon characters:

Here's the 1980's cartoon icon, Strawberry Shortcake, looking all cute and vintage-y, just like I remember her from when I was growing up...

She was given a makeover several years ago to give her a more modern look, but she still looks like a spunky little girl.

And here's her latest look, circa 2008. Now she spends more time with her cellphone than her pet cat, Custard.


How about this one from the 70's.... Holly Hobbie? This must have come out in the Philippines at the height of the "Little House on the Prairie" TV series, and I remember how everyone just had to have Holly Hobbie pencil cases and stationery!

Here's the Holly Hobbie of the 21st century... no longer a little prairie girl.

Last one...check out the new Care Bears!

What's up with that? Interesting how all these characters now have sultry, long hair, sexy clothes and a hint of lipstick. Oh, and it looks like they've lost all their baby fat, too.


Personally, I think tweenie Dora looks a lot better than preschool Dora -- I always thought Dora's head and hair looked weird -- but I'm not a 3-year old. Why not let little kids look like litte kids? Hey, not every character has to look like Barbie! I understand that they're trying to grow Dora along with their audience, but there will always be preschoolers to take the place of the ones who turn 5 and 6 and 7. Can you imagine the 7, 8 or 9-year olds abandoning High School Musical and Hannah Montana to go back to Dora, just because she has earrings and a hip outfit? Nuh-uh. Are they going to keep preschool Dora and tweenie Dora? Confuuusing!