I just had to buy one of the new Novi Stars from MGA (makers of Bratz, Lalaloopsy, Bratzillas, and Lil' tykes) Aliens? Yes Please! I was enchanted by all of them and had a really hard time deciding which to bring home, but in the end Una Verse won out. She is a fan favorite and I can tell why. Her lovely muti-tone blues make her a very striking alien babe. She cost me 20 bucks plus shipping from Toysrus.com. She took 6 days to ship :/
Here's Una with everything she comes with.
Her, a bubble dress and shoes, a necklace, bracelet, and ring, Molecule, stand, and headband.
I inspected her face first. The Big Glittery Eyes are her best feature. They are placed perfectly, no wonkiness here. I had seen pictures of Unas with their lip screens placed really high, making them look very smug (here). Luckily my Una's lips are in place.
Unfortunately, her blush is not. The left side is all the way by her eyelashes, the right is very close to her lip. It isn't really obvious and doesn't bug me. Neither does the slightly eschew eyeshadow. What does bother me is the scratch on her right cheek. (look for a white squiggly in the pic, yup that's it) The tips of her bangs look like fiber optics which is cool :)
She has a print of what many people are assuming is Saturn in her inset eyes. I like to think its a planet near her home world. All Novis come with seriously long eyelashes (like Ru-Paul long!) Una's are coated in glitter glue, I can see this coming off with water.
Her eyebrows are cute dots. I had to move my Una's bangs to see them (some Unas have bangs that are cut above them, luck of the draw and all that) She also has another scratch that is covered by the fringe. I think the eyebrows make her look sweeter.
Una has cute pointed (SPOCK!) ears. they aren't very detailed and are covered by her hair, but still... Spock.
Her hair is long, rooted nylon. (you can see a discussion on nylon vs. saran here if you are not familiar) It is very nice feeling after you wash out the glue. Most of it is a frosty white with two blue streaks rooted on her crown. If you brush it the streaks will disperse throughout her hair. You can also see that her screw antennae are not centered.
The tips of her hair were kind of frizzy, so the frosty mass was quickly braided to avoid further damage (think my little pony circa 2005) If your kid likes to play with hair be prepared for a mess (and DONT get Ari Roma for a future hair dresser. omg)
Its very thinly rooted in the center..
and rooted quite thickly around the edges
Her antenna are not removable (you could probably pull them out if you don't care for them) and swivel around. You can point them out to the side for a sweeter look...
or forward for a more alert look.
Una is 7 inches tall, her stand and shoes boost her to 7 and a half
I love her body! Granted her joints are minimal (read- practically nonexistent) but it is sculpted beautifully. She has organic curves that remind me of Osmosis Jones. And goo girls ;)
hmmmm, I didn't know aliens were from China...
The water goes up to her waist. there is a sealed plug to keep it in. Her legs are fused together right above her knees (so pants and shorts are out)
Her legs are a (fantabulous) blue/ yellow gradient. I like the yellow, it breaks up all the blue and makes her look like a jolly rancher. There is peachy orange glitter settled in the bottom. Shake her like a Polaroid and you get this... oooh glittery!
There are star flecks in the glitter, I counted about ten of them.
her body isn't perfectly smooth there is some "tooth" to her, its interesting (read- cool to touch)
Her hands have four fingers, which was very Little Green Men of MGA. They have itty bitty nail beds that I didn't even notice until I looked at the pictures of them. I'm a fan.
Her toes are equally adorable and gimmicky.
She can't stand on her own due to Barbie toes. The glitter ends right before her feet.
Una's arms are attached with pegs (think monster high). They come out without much of a fight but they don't just fall out. they have one hinge shoulder joint that allows her to raise and rotate her arms.
The crooked arm allows her to hold things, like Molecule.
Her head has a ball and socket joint at the neck. It gives her decent articulation (she can exorcist)
here she is looking forward...
and up...
down...
and to the side.
Her head pops off fairly easily, but it doesn't go back on without a fight. It distorts her face in scary ways in the process (it goes back to normal once the head is on, but I've heard horror stories of stretch marks on the plastic. I would remove her head only if you really need to)
*a note for customizers* there is a VERY small hole going into her head, rooting is going to be a bitch. Her eyes won't fit through it so you will have to pull them out of the socket (stretch marks anyone?) and the eyelashes are ROOTED into the acrylic eye. so good luck folks.
Novi Stars are TINY, your redressing possibilities are slim. Here have a line-up
(please excuse the Brat, she is an experiment of my sister's)
Her dress is a cute silvery confection that supports Una's floaty theme. The tulle is backed with black (probably to conceal the fact that aliens don't wear underwear >.>)
All of the edges are hemmed, but there are a few loose strings. her packaging caused that crease across the bodice.
The dress closes with Velcro down her back and a small piece at her neck. The neck closure isn't too effective...
It holds together better with the necklace in place. The necklace is one piece that looks like layered teal, lime, and blue rings. I pulled it off immediately because it restricts all head movement.
The rose ring is sculpted beautifully! It is held in her hand by a peg. If you remove it there is a pretty big hole in her hand.
Her shoes are basic blue wedge heels that hold her into her stand with pegs.
She CANNOT stand in them, there isn't enough surface on the bottom to make up for her huge head and hair. On top of which, the bottoms are at an angle.
here are her shoes in between some (awesome) monster high shoes and barbie. The monster high shoes can stand on their own, barbie and novi cannot. They are about the same quality and size as the barbie ones. Novi Stars feet are more similar in size to barbie feet, but are shaped like monster high feet.
In fact she can fit the Monster High because the curvature of her feet is so similar. (like baby monster high feet)
Her stand is in the shape of a planet. There are swirls and stars and dots and...stuff decorating it.
Una cannot use the stand without her shoes (or with any of the shoes from the fashion packs) so DON'T LOSE THEM! She leans at bit in the stand but I haven't had any problems with her popping out (some people have, luck of the draw again.)
The headband is cutesy but I wouldn't wear it out. There are small pegs left from disconnecting it from the box. The combs are thick and might not hold in thinner hair.
Molecule is...an alien creature. lol, he looks kinda thrown together. I really dig his horns though. His blue and yellow match Una.
You can see through his head, which rotates.
He has a hole in the back of his body that attaches to a peg in the Novi Stars Pod (sold separately)
Here's a line up comparing him to some other animals in his range...
With horns he just under two inches
So there you go. Plenty of people are asking if they are worth the 20 bucks. And well, that depends. I don't feel jiped. I love her tiny body, big eyes and antennae. I am impressed by her separated fingers and toes and her sculpted ring. Una is ULTRAsuper cute (provided you get one without painting defects) and I can see myself really enjoying making up stories about her time on earth. I LURVE aliens. I am buying the gimmick. BUT for people who need articulation and lots of clothing options (and noses) it might not be worth it. I wouldn't recommend her to customizers or children who are rough with their toys (what if she sprung a leak?). For alien enthusiasts she is a must (she will look super hot next to your little green men) and for those who just need a little Jolly Rancher eye candy for their doll shelf.
speaking of eye candy, have some :)
