Do you think the American Girl mini-me dolls are an astoundingly disturbing waste of money? We-ell, the Far East has once again outdone the West with its superior technology and fetishism. Ball-jointed dolls (or "BJDs") have poseable limbs, customizable eyes and hair, and anatomically correct bods. The (often-goth) playthings usually resemble Manga characters, schoolgirls or elfin superheroes.
The collectibles have become mainstream hits in Japan and South Korea. Now they're gaining ground in the States, even rating a Dollectable BJD convention in San Francisco this summer.
Serious fans drop serious cash: Figure in clothing costs, add-on charges like $30-$100 for new eyes and $35-60 for makeup (or "face-up," as collectors say). The eBay BJD guide estimates an average BJD runs about $600, though the taller Super Dollfies often fetch more than a grand apiece.
Also on Lemondrop... To celebrate the creepiness factor of this new craze, we put together a collection of the most unsettling dolls ever. They're not BJDs, but they sure are terrifying.
Creepy Dolls
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Friday 19 September
By ron
you guys forgot the KRYPT KIDDIES ,,some amazingly creepy dolls
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Thursday 02 October
By Cecilia
Can I please buy a life size Brett Michaels doll...."anatomically correct"....insert evil smile here...lol
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Thursday 02 October
By Cee
you also forgot the "Living Dead Dolls" who should have been on this list!
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Friday 03 October
By Sara
Where's the Chuckie doll? I used to have a doll that looked exactly like him when I was little. After I saw the movie (yeah, started horror movies at age 4, lol) I'd carry it at arm's lengh by the shoe 'cuz I was scared to death of it. My mom threw it away lol.
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Wednesday 08 October
By Vicky Wiley
The Living Dead Dolls definitely should've been on the list! By the way, I can't even see the list. How do I get to it?
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Wednesday 08 October
By Patriciann
Apparently, Colleen Kane needs an education in collecting dolls. Perhaps actually talking to real collectors before writing such a piece would have been a better idea. Your uneducated opinions do a great injustice to all the designers, sculptors and collectors who make this hobby hum. Seriously, most of these dolls photographed are rescues from salvage. A skilled collector on a budget would restore these dolls to their original playfulness. As a collector of fashion dolls myself for nearly 30 years, I find the hobby a welcome release from the pressures of work, and a refuge from the economic catastrophy now at hand. Certainly beats drugs or alcohol, and is a nicer turn on my money that emptying out over the throne. To quote a friend, the Internet is a 21st century Wild West and anyone with a gun (mouth) is free to shoot at anything that strikes their fancy. Next time, do a little more in-depth research.
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Wednesday 08 October
By Kai
I am a collector of BJD and i feel they are not represented NEAR properly in this article. while some are expensive most are not as expensive as outlined and the 600$ is mostly for the largest dolls from the largest companies. some dolls are much cheeper, the smaller dolls are also cheeper. Faceups dont have to be expensive if you learn to do it yourself they just cost alot because its hard to work on such tiny faces with such detail. My doll's eyes also cost me only 4$ and they are lovely eyes "Super Dollfies" are just the Volks, the pioneer ABJD company and they do cost more. but something like B&G dolls cost considerably less and it dosent mean they lack quality. And one last thing, to us our dolls are not meerly Playthings, they are art. like paintings sculptures and photographs they are loveable posable artwork that we can make and call our own.
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Wednesday 08 October
By JOY A COCKERELL
poppies! poppies will make them sleepy!!!
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Thursday 09 October
By jessica
your dolls are so ceepie looking and scary i think youll should put them in use for hallowen
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Thursday 09 October
By ms.r
i too had a chucky like doll we didnt know we had around . my sis was on the phone one eve an i slowly opened the door an peeked it in an said in a funky voice hi there .. she freeked haha
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Thursday 09 October
By Lolita
My daughter had a "My Sister" doll, girl version to "My Buddy" back in the early 90's and she hated it and was afraid of it. Course I would pretend to make it walk by itself as if it were real.
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Thursday 09 October
By Heather
Dn't forget about 'Patty Playpal'. My sister had this doll when we were kids...hated it! It was eactly what the Chuckie doll was...her mouth and eyes moved as well and she had blonde hair.
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Friday 10 October
By jonathan
i didn't see the chucky doll come on now he was the most frightening doll of them all
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Friday 10 October
By kim
You forgot Robert The Haunted Doll. http://www.squidoo.com/Robertencounters
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Friday 10 October
By Mandy
Wow the writer of this blog/article is ignorant. I'm used to logging into to aim and my aim dashboard having random articles. But the ones usually referencing hobbies and such usually have someone that knows what research is. If you are going to criticize something learn to research. As a doll collector. Of not just ball jointed dolls but other types too. Its distressing to me that the only research put forth by the writer is an ebay search. Well I guess thats what you get from a blog. *rolls eyes* At least NPR put forth an actual publication on ball jointed dolls in a positive light.
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Friday 10 October
By Cassie
alright, i thought Barney might be the creepiest thing to walk this planet, but damn, was i wrong. those things are scary!!!!
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Friday 10 October
By Sonja
Regarding the BJDs part of this, it seems that they didn't even do their research. Even in a satirical or sarcastic article, you should at least TRY to get something right besides the prices.
Fortunately, my BJDs arent' anywhere near as creepy as so many of those western made dolls... x.x;
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Friday 10 October
By z-kun
Okay. I don't collect the resin ball-jointed dolls (I collect 1/6 scale plastic ones that are more action figure-like; most resins just aren't to my tastes), but I can tell you that your article is rife with inaccuracies.
First, ball jointed dolls are actually have European roots; they aren't an Asian invention. It's just that Asian markets have popularized BJDs.
Second, just about all those dolls in your slideshow are western dolls, not eastern dolls. There are generally fundamental differences in style, material, and techniques, and other than the "creepy" factor, which is completely subjective, are unrelated to your subject. With only one or two photos of Asian BJDs, This is bad journalism. By failing to provide adequate, on-topic photos, you are not allowing the readers to come to their own conclusion very well.
Many people also create original characters, or even fan-dolls based on more than just manga characters. For example, I know of some custom Dr. Whos, several Severus Snapes, Spock, Trent Reznor (singer for Nine Inch Nails), and several other western icons, just to name a few that I've seen. You make it sound as if the scope is fairly limited, but there really are infinite possibilities.
And really... elven superheros? o_O What? There's a difference between high fantasy and superheroes, Deary.... I'm sure there probably are some elven superhero characters, but that's not one of the staples that I'm aware of.... Elves, yes. Superheros, perhaps (I know I've seen some, but usually superheroes are done in the action figure sizes, not the BJD sizes), but elven superheroes? I don't think there's as many as you think there are....
Also, apparently you failed to notice that the price range also goes lower than what you imply. Some companies offer dolls for less than $200 with face paint and eyes included in that cost. I have also seen eyes for as low as $7.
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Friday 10 October
By blkn3ko
Wait...Are YOU serious? 13/20 is a Japanese sex doll. How is THAT creepy?
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Friday 10 October
By kate
ikr?