Mattel secret spells and Sims magick games

[turtlerain46]

So I don't know if everyone knows about these two products but I'm wanting to know what everyone's opinion on them is. The first is Mattels Secret Spells barbie, which comes with a cauldron ect. Although I recently found out that they were pulled due to the christian right. The other one I saw an add for is a new sims online game, in which your character is a teenaged girl, who goes around casting spells for love, money, ect. I personally have very mixed feelings on the subject. On one hand it gives kids a misconscrewed idea of what witchcraft is. On the other hand I love it cuz it means that pagans are making progress. No longer are we green with moles and big noses and doing evil to little girls from Kansas. So it's progress, slow, but things of this nature always are, but it's progress. So what do you guys think is it good or bad.:huh:

[Flar's Freyja]

Yes, we had a discussion about Secret Spells Barbie when she came out - I don't know if they were actually pulled but I couldn't find any where I live. Some of the folks here criticized the idea but I rather like it. As you said, it's a little progress even though it's less than what we really want. I've seen the ad for the Sims magick game - the commercial is really cute! I'm considering buying that one!

[Ahautenites]

Secret Spells Barbie (http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?cgiurl=http%3A%2F%2Fcgi.ebay.com%2Fws%2F&krd=1&from=R8&MfcISAPICommand=GetResult&ht=1&SortProperty=MetaEndSort&query=Secret+Spells+Barbie) on eBay....

[Eudaimonia]

Does someone have a link for the Sims game add?

[MoonDust]

Makin Magic Sims game: http://thesims.ea.com/

$69.00 for a Barbie that’s brand new?!?! No. Target people. Target is still selling 'em. go to target.com if your local one doesn't have it.


I have no problem with the games and toys. I think they’re cute. These toys are not enclosing “Get even with your bad, bad parent” spells or “how to get to boy you love to love you back”. At least I hope not. I’m tired of having to look for the deeper meaning in toys and movies. Toys are what you teach your children to be. A toy gun can be a training weapon if the parent so chooses to use it as such. It’s our job to raise our children. As long as they’re not derogatory then what’s the problem?

[*GrumpButt*]

I think you can thank Harry Potter for the big break out in magic, lol.

I noticed that there was not talk about magic when it came to products like toys and games and such, (books always though), but since Harry come along...
My my 2 cents if you want it or not. (lol)

[turtlerain46]

Yes, we must give credit where it belongs. A big thanx to J.K Rowling for helping the pagan world make some much needed progress :woot:

[WandererInGray]

:wtf: I'm not sure how having a video game and barbie is progress.
Nor do I think that JK Rowling was attempting to further the Pagan exposure when she wrote her books. Afterall, Harry Potter is about a boy going to wizarding school, not about Paganism.

*shrugs and grins wryly* Sorry to be such a wet blanket, just thought I'd put in my two cents.

[Pesha]

Niether of the toys have been sold here in Utah.....oh gee wonder why?? lol. I am sure it does look like a bit of progress in some respects but I have to say that in my eyes it also gives children a false sense of what the real pagan/magickal life style truely is. I saw one commercial where the Sims girl gets two boys to like her by zapping her friends out of the picture....and folks that is not real magick.

BB
DS.

[MammaStar]

I have SIMS!!! :lol:

You play it like all the SIMS games. Make a character and use your imagination.

And yes, I got "Makin' Magic" the DAY it came out. :p

I haven't really gotten any good spells...I did get one. *snicker* "Beauty & the Beast* *snicker* See, what you have to do is...first get your wand. Then you have access to the spell book and charm makers and such. So, I got my wand, then one spell I saw it had three really easy ingredients. That's the other thing, you go to the spell book, look up stuff, the panel shows you the "ingredients" to add to the charm maker or wand charger, then you find out what the spell is. okay, so I added three things of beeswax. And got the beauty and the beast charm. So then, I used the charm and EVERYONE in my house ended up getting the head of a donkey. Even my butler (i have all the expansion packs, I'm a SIMaddict). It was cute.

I also played around withSIMS online, as did other members (i'm looking at you Semele & Xander :lol: ) and i found that there are TONS of Pagans/Wiccans etc. playing SIMS.

[*GrumpButt*]

Well I did not mean that J.k. wanted to further the Pgan advance, lol.
All I was trying to say was:

I don't remember seeing alot of things to do with magic and such untill her books came out. It seems that after they came out, alot of companies/people started taking an interest in magic.
Now I know that the magic in the movies is not the real kind, it is still nice to think about what it would be like if it were!

[ajna]

:wtf: I'm not sure how having a video game and barbie is progress.
Nor do I think that JK Rowling was attempting to further the Pagan exposure when she wrote her books. Afterall, Harry Potter is about a boy going to wizarding school, not about Paganism.

*shrugs and grins wryly* Sorry to be such a wet blanket, just thought I'd put in my two cents.
I wish i went to a wizarding school...looks like fun.
*le sigh*

[MoonDust]

Niether of the toys have been sold here in Utah.....oh gee wonder why?? lol. I am sure it does look like a bit of progress in some respects but I have to say that in my eyes it also gives children a false sense of what the real pagan/magickal life style truely is. I saw one commercial where the Sims girl gets two boys to like her by zapping her friends out of the picture....and folks that is not real magick.

BB
DS.
but it is entertainment. and all these companies look for is profits.

[turtlerain46]

True harry potter, ect arent' an accurate picture of paganism, but alot of these kids will probably end up looking into paganism as they get older, and when they will discover the truth behind paganism, and hence in the future we will have a better educated public and that my friends is the root of all progess

[Phoenix Blue]

You think so? Or will they just stop at the kewl, pop-Wicca that you see on TV nowadays? I hate to say it, but I think the latter possibility is more likely.

I would rather people be introduced to Paganism as adults through true Pagan literature.

[Rense]

I work at Toys R Us and we sell the spell Barbie. We also sell the Sims but that pack hasn't come in yet. I don't think anyone's bought the spell Barbie yet as far as I know. I live in a very conservative area. When I saw it I thought it looked more like Sabrina than anything out of Harry Potter.

[gyroWang]

but it is entertainment. and all these companies look for is profits.

Agreed, thats there #1 concern.

now the sims. its great isnt it :D i made a nice balanced family then threw in some biker nutball to screw it all up, and the nutball went on to become the mayor of sim city!!!!
Ahh fun! :D (makin magic isnt out here yet though)

[Laurelei]

*jams hand in the air and goes into gaming-fan frenzy*

I got The Sims: Makin' Magic! I got it the day it came out as well, lol. I came home after school and there was my dad with it in his hand. I was ecstatic! I've just been playing it for the last 4 hours for about a week now, so howdya like a review from a Sims mad Pagan? (don't answer that, my mind's made up!)

Well, the new features from the supposedly realistic 'peole simulator' (they abandoned the 'realistic' idea with the first expansion pack). Wait, I'm lost. Oh yeah. You've got a Magic Town (to buy ingredients for spells), spells (I've found all the adult ones now :D), new objects and... and... um... did I mention it was the biggest expansion pack ever?

Most of the spells are simply silly, they are instantanious, never bring up the concept of God and send little sparklies everywhere. It is interesting to note, however, that the ingredients used in spells or charms tend to have a symbolic value (e.g. honey for sweetening people up).

Magic Town is a location away from home with creepy theme parks, more creepy theme parks, side shows, magic shows, and places to shop for ingredients. (Wouldn't ya just love a Magic Town in real life?) I can't say much of that is realistic though.

Spell effects, oh yeah. There's Enchant (turn your lawn gnome into a garden helper) which is... fun but a tad ridiculous. Rain of Riches is a spell where it really does rain money (I think they're all ridiculous). The generic 'turn to toad' spell which does no help for the stereotypical Witch in your local neighborhood. The Hypnotise, Banish, Fall in Love, and Relationship Boost spell, which might just work in real life (minus the sparklies and daft little puffs of smoke) but are SERIOUSLY unethical.

Then here are charms. There's the one SugarMags mentioned, Beauty and the Beast, which alters your Sims appearance, Perfect Garden (a spell title that I suppose could crop up in a REAL spellbok), oh yeah, and Of House and Home, where you summon a little ghostie thing to clean your house. I think if some sicko believed that, there'd be much more work for paranormal investigators... and morgs.

I admit, it's a load of rubbish with comparisons to real life. But I won't forget the little tag with the wand in your Sims inventory... (misquote) "be careful who you cast spells around. Sims who have not yet found their magical abilities may not be so understanding towards yours".
Priceless! A wondeful line of writing, and it's probably the most realistic bit in this expansion.
Long live The Sims: Makin' Magic!

[MammaStar]

I love the fact that you can LIVE in magic town. 'course I gotta get "1000 magic coins" first! I need a CHEAT CODE!!! :lol:

Makin' Magic is fun and silly and after all, that's why I personally play games. Because they are fun and silly (some of them...I'm also a HUGE fan of Neverwinter Nights).

[Pan]

I think hubby got that for me on layaway.. but I could be wrong!

I can't WAIT to play it. I want the spell barbie, too, just because it's funny. 8O

[Raihn]

In my personal opinion, I've never found anything incredibly mentally traumitizing about Sims. Barbies, on the other hand...maybe just a little. But, you know, it seems like all these magic/paganistic-oriented products are produced in a harmless light. Though...I would like to see "Man-Hunter, Heathen-Seductress Barbie". I know I'd buy one.

It's all about how the play thing is used. I mean, if the child decides to take his Sims to Magic Town and is later inspired to levitate a school yard playmate, I think that is that own childs choice to discover the voilent truth of reality. Sad as it is. I wish I could walk to the downtown area and suspend someone over unrealistic and oversized swords. And have people clap...with happy thought bubbles over their heads...and gain relationship points.

...I'm suddenly so dissapointed with reality. I think we all are.

But the Spell Barbie is absolutely harmless in my opinion. And from what I've come to find, little girls rarely keep to the intent of the Barbies their mothers buy for them. They instead seem to use them in their own plots and adventures. I do believe that Spell Barbie has more of a chance to become "Stood-Up-By-Biker-Ken Barbie".

Ugh...I wish life came with expansion packs. I wouldn't mind a nice House Party. :)

[Pan]

I know I never used Malibu Barbie strictly for Malibu visits. The girls probably just strip Barbie down and put her in other clothes. That, or make her an evil witch out to destroy the other Barbies?

It's all innocent fun, really. They're just little kids.

[MammaStar]

Ya know, i only had ONE barbie when I was kid and she did everything. :lol:

My brother had requested when my niece was 5 that we not buy her anymore barbie stuff. Not because of the messages it could send. They running out of room for the stuff. :lol:

[Raihn]

Eh, what child needs more than one Barbie? As I was saying, a playset that comes with a plastic bowl and stick would most likely be confused as a cooking bowl...used to feed the ugly, molded babies of Pregnant Barbie.

This is all like the Harry Potter exaggeration. What do children want with spiritual evil? They are their own little demons. *Chuckles* Imagination is harmless. It only creates havoc when adults use theirs in response.