My Scene: Barbie's Hard-Partying Parallel Universe

[@lispeaks]

a few notes: Diva Starz is actually Mattel. For some reason there were several sources that claimed they were distributed by MGA and since they weren’t the focus of this video i didn’t look into it further. Second, this video omits a series of spanish/portuguese webisodes that I had to overlook due to time constraints. I plan to cover those in a future Patreon-exclusive video!

[@NataliasClips]

Looks like Mattel does have the one arm up for being the first to make a webisode series for dolls!

[@ragdollrose2687]

I desperately need a Diva Starz episode! I still have mine and I used to love the online games, but I pretty much never hear about the line. I need to know more!

[@pollyflores418]

Oh thank god you mentioned the Latin episodes! When you said “and then there is no more media” my heart broke, those episodes were my favorites

[@minimousemichelle3836]

PLEASE review the Generation Girl International High Barbies - they are so iconic and they walked so My Scene could run

[@sarahni]

I had no idea the Myscene episodes I grew up with were latinamerican exclusive, my life is a lie

[@marytalavera6895]

My dad refused to let me play with anything bratz meanwhile I was allowed to own multiple myscene dolls so Mattel’s mission was definitely accomplished.

[@stickitydoodah]

Same but I was allowed to have barbie, I didn't know abt Myscene at the time. But no Bratz. My parents threw away a Bratz shirt someone gave me when I was a kid lol

[@robineee9353]

Yeah same, and my sister was obsessed with jammin’ in Jamaica

[@katwood9041]

I wasn't allowed Bratz or myscene😢 just Barbie and Polly

[@sauceissilly]

DUDE my mom thought bratz dolls would turn me into a WHORE HAHA

[@KingOfGaymes]

Slay

[@gothtarrare]

As a fellow black girl, if some white guy was like "I bet I know allll your beauty secrets..hair extensions!" And then pulled my hair like a spring coil..yeah I'd shove him in a locker too. Right on, Madison. God, I miss My Scene.

[@kimberleywilliams7802]

Madison was my gril fr.

[@imspidermanbro.]

as a black girl named madisen, knowing she exists makes me so happy lmfao.

[@shortcakeemoji]

WHY DO I STILL REMEMBER THAT

[@noragami97]

Right? Get his ass!

[@AnInkStick]

I’m not even a black girl and if a guy pulled on my hair in general I probably do the same as well lol

[@DriftingLightOfTheWoods]

"Except for Nolee who's boyfriend has been discontinued so she gets packaged with the lounge" has no right to be as funny as it is oh my god

[@Ravenna.E.Blackbird]

Right, I bursted out laughing 😂

[@Dani_1012]

Lmao that practically hinted at alcoholism 😂

[@x_oda]

poor nolee, had her boyfriend discontinued…and is now an alcoholic…girlie needs a therapist

[@gracedavies915]

i’ve always explained the age discrepancy by using the idea that MyScene is just a Gossip Girl Barbie universe

[@shelby6]

Also they could still be in highschool, 18 and allowed to drink/club if we pretend they aren't in America and are anywhere else lol

[@PenelopeSnowe]

Yup, they’re in New YORK. They have fake IDs. Their guy friends have a weirdly dope band and play club shows. Maybe Nolee’s dad is a big time record exec or something. They follow weird little signs throughout the city to find a secret show for their fave band. No, this is not the plot of Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist. Don’t be ridiculous 🙄🫣😗

[@samanthanorton4538]

​@@shelby6 18+ clubs exist in the US. Also these dolls came out around the time when teen nightclubs were a big thing until they all shut down because it was a nightmare. They could be referring to those.

[@luvabletiger94]

"While the myscene girls go off to the club and do poppers." literally has me in tears

[@polkadada]

When I was a kid, my older sister and I printed out a picture of Nolee from the makeover game and for whatever reason she cut it out and folded it into an origami balloon. Nolee's face being distorted and isolated by being folded into a little cube was so wildly funny and we kept it for a really long time. It just sat on the windowsill in our kitchen. One time my sister was feeling frustrated and having a hard time with her homework. I had this idea in my kid brain that I would fill the Nolee balloon with water and throw it at her, to make her laugh. I tried to fill it with water and was overwhelmed with devastating regret, realizing that it was just made of printer paper and was now totally ruined, and also realizing that throwing a water balloon at my sister while she did homework would NOT be funny. I really shamefully threw the Nolee balloon away. I felt such intense guilt, I remember feeling nauseated. But yes, if there was an option to print, we DID print.

[@nimrodgrrrl]

Oh my god what a journey. What did your sister say when she found out you’d destroyed it?

[@shelby6]

Make another one for her and include it in a gift for her birthday this year, she will loooovveee it and probably really appreciate the sentiment and trip down memory lane

[@sbu_englishclub]

I’m obsessed with how extremely specific and terribly relatable this manages to be at the same time

[@PenelopeSnowe]

Trauma!

[@sunny-gt7qw]

wtf is an origami balloon?? how In the world did you ever think that it WASNT just printer paper?? were you three years old when this happened? that’s just embarrassing

it’s crazy to me how there are so many examples of My Scene being edgier than Bratz meanwhile bratz were still getting crapped on. CRAZY

[@prixe12]

*Whispers* Its the racism.

[@br3akstuff]

Yeah the Bratz girls were obviously just "trendy early 2000s teens" but the MyScene girls were doing very adult things! When I was a kid i assumed they were in college.

[@ak.33212]

@@prixe12no tf

[@lillianabright03]

no its legit the racism @@ak.33212

[@fucjk2141]

@@ak.33212i feel like it’s pretty obvious it is lol

[@janjanbinks1710]

Hearing that Barbie was considered the "boring squeaky clean family friendly" fashion doll is weird to me because as an Arab girlie she was considered too "western" and inappropriate that they made a rival doll: Fullah. My mom let me play with Barbies and knock off Bratz to my heart's content since she wasn't conservative, she didn't let me buy Fullah dolls because she thought they were too tradwife-y, but I remember her hating on the MyScene movies I used to watch lol. I didn't always think that these doll tie ins tied into actual dolls since a lot of them didn't make it into the Arab market. I thought that they were just normal cartoons. Great video as always!! Society won't heal until we all have that Chrome Bling car

[@selunescorpio]

Bratz and My Scene were my childhood If Mattel brought back My Scene I could single-handedly fund their entire company for a solid year. We need My Scene to come back

[@ClowncoreisCool]

This would honestly be the best time to so, everyone's obsessed with "Y2K", "Barbiecore", and "Baddie" (Which, let's be honest, is at least kinda inspired by Bratz) aesthetics right now. Plus, easy cash-in on the nostalgia market. :p

[@VultureSkins]

⁠​⁠@@ClowncoreisCoolBarbiecore is kind of fading out, since the hype around Barbie movie has gone down so much. Plus I think Mattel already filled the increased demand for Barbies with… Barbies

[@ClowncoreisCool]

@@VultureSkins Look at either pre or post-movie Barbiecore then look at some of the newer dolls, it's honestly not the same. :C

[@angeliczai]

you do NOT current mattle to bring back MyScene now... maybe as one to one reproductions, but if they came back as new playline dolls it would be a disaster. mattle is not as in touch with trendy fashion as they were before, so the fashion would be all over the place with poly hair unfortunately.

[@KingOfGaymes]

@@VultureSkinsidk I still see barbiecore everywhere, maybe it’s just where I am online

[@Mostie-ev7oh]

I feel so validated that my own tweenage/childhood theory of Kennedy literally murdering Barbie and stealing her life is validated.

[@strawberriefire]

I remember as a kid being so excited to get the Lindsay Lohan doll for Christmas until my aunt gave a disgusted look that caused me to run out of the room crying. I had no idea about her reputation at the time i just thought she was a cool pretty redhead..

[@user-kw7mr6xt9n]

Awww, that's adorable and sad at the same time! I hope your aunt felt bad for making you cry lol 😂 you were allowed to keep the doll, I hope?

[@fuzzycatbutts]

Whoa, your aunt was kind of a jerk

[@100lovenana]

I hope your aunt apologized for scaring you. Don't care if her reaction was towards someone else, she made it look like it was towards you

[@KingOfGaymes]

Damn your aunt sucks

[@fruitpuff9388]

Oh man, that’s the kind of thing that you laugh off as an adult but REALLY internalise as a kid lol

[@timothysmith3361]

I think some context missing is that underage clubs used to be a thing. There was clubs that were 14-18. They don’t really exist anymore, and everyone seems to forgotten about them. But you see little relics of them in media sometimes. Anyway, just thought that might make the my scene highschoolers clubbing thing make a little more sense.

[@sunny-gt7qw]

@@NukkuiskoHyvinVaiPoiswhy tf would anyone go to an underage bar with minors and zero alcohol at TWENTY THREE y/o??

[@NukkuiskoHyvinVaiPois]

@@sunny-gt7qw My og comment was wrong, I don't know anything about underage clubs. The thing that I was thinking is that in here night clubs are usually +21 while the "teenage hells" are +18 bars that imitate night clubs, so of course they're full of 18-20 year olds.

[@AC-bk1jg]

Also a Lot of people sneak into clubs with fake id

[@jadaw644]

​@@AC-bk1jgI doubt Mattel would have even implied they were doing that. The real answer is likely either they didn't care enough to think about it or the teen nightclub thing (which sounds horrific).

[@Abingusbabe]

“Whatever whatever and Dracula” honestly describes my outfit cycle too well😂

[@BinglesP]

At 11:14

[@thenailgod]

As a nail tech, the historically accurate flare frenchies are such a highlight😭 everything you put out is so insanely detailed

[@tulip811]

Weird how they "pushed" the party life on us as children, but we couldn't care less about that as adults 😂😅

[@kristin87425]

Preach. We are all entering our little old lady era 70 years early and fine with it. 🥰

[@benamisai-kham5892]

If I grew up earlier and was an older teen in the late 90s-early 00s then I'd totally be into party life because the dance music was insane in the clubs those days; but alas, instead I like to play bingo night.

[@---6088]

They set party bar so high, nowadays I only collect dolls and every local party sucks for me.

[@bryanna_renaee]

Speak for yourself, I didn’t wait this long to stay home

[@morbi696]

sorry it worked for me

[@thebingus7243]

as always, i really admire how you help preserve the history of girly nostalgic media. even letting your audience know how to play these games again is so wonderful and healing. its incredible how despite the death of flash, so many have come together to keep these pieces of our childhoods alive. i love your content so much, keep working hard li!

[@akaadisaster]

Honestly the most shocking part of this video was learning Myscene coexisted with Monster High ever so briefly, I was sure they were discontinued in 2008. Knowing this now, I think Monster High's success was in my opinion almost certainly the reason Myscene's plug was finally pulled, with Bratz gone and Monster High now Mattel's uber successful alternative to Barbie

[@akaadisaster]

Another thing, My older sister did have a singular doll, Masquerade Madness Chelsea. At least I assume, I have found no trace of the doll in the house or in my memories. I can remember the dog, the detachable feet that I thought were Bratz feet when I was younger due to a lack of Bratz in my house, and the DVD, but the actual doll vanished when I was very young. Doesn't help that myscene was discontinued when I was eight, with my main focus on LPS I was just too young to form an attachement to the brand.That mermaid dog did pair well with our various Ariels. I did play the heck out of those flash games though, long after Myscene vanished and I became convinced the nail game was a standard Barbie game and couldn't find it for years

[@lylukk]

yeah same i did not realise that myscene went on for as long as it did. in my head myscene is so 2000s and monster high 2010s, they just seem like 2 completely separate eras of dolls

[@foundmedia]

my childhood happened at exactly the right time for me to experience both the old myscene, the new myscene, and monster high. i remember when they switched art styles for the website and i was so confused as to why delancey looked like a cleo ripoff. i solely used the website and watched one of the movies, i don't remember ever seeing any dolls in stores. i don't even know if i was aware that it was a doll line, it was just a cartoon to me.

[@SpaceySodaPop]

According to wiki “They were discontinued in the US in 2008, and worldwide in 2011.” So if you’re from the U.S, they were then discontinued there at that time. (If the video said this information already, my apologies, I just saw this comment and I haven’t watched the full video yet).

[@Ashley-lo1xy]

I love the old crunchy audio and animation the 2000s had😭💖that static-y sound when someone would say their Ss, and any computer typing sound🤌

[@nuitetoilee]

You really went all out to match your outfit to the theme and I love it. That's dedication.

[@miguelstarboy5572]

she's cosplaying as barbie on my bling bling 💖

[@shannonreed822]

Agreed. I think that this is one of my fave things about her works. She'll often dress up in the most applicable things to what she's talking about, no matter how silly it is.

[@marinaavant]

I'm feeling that skirt😊

[@shortking-vp9vv]

I LOVED MyScene. It was a big part of my childhood, so it’s weird to see people talk about it as if it’s obscure. I think Kenzie was my favorite because her red hair looked natural. And I was super obsessed with the “city” aesthetic growing up, being in a rural area, so the MyScene sets felt really luxurious to me. Seeing that game page stabbed me right in the chest! I can see why they started to decline after 2008. Their target demographic at launch was becoming teenagers, and the next line of little girls wanted different things out of dolls. I think I was 13 at the time.

[@alynapuhskinti]

I was so obsessed with them I wanted to change my name to Chelsea! Nobody ever knew what MyScene dolls were when I talked about them!

[@sully42O]

when the world needed you most, you returned

[@armchairdefective]

I was just gonna comment on how I was bored and depressed and this made me so excited I got a head ache

[@catrinaandreifernando1616]

She is The Avatar

[@scarecrowjuniper9054]

Honestly, I needed my dose of nostalgia

[@user-jn4oe9sb5z]

I recently read the archive of character journals from the My Scene Wiki. Nolee and Bryant both like each other but it seems like they never got to dating. Barbie is actually really into tech, some interesting journals were the ones about her taking and uploading photos to her laptop, learning that you can hook up your phone to a computer to video conference and designing a website for a charity organization (but her dream is to be an event planner for celebrities). Chelsea liked River before getting matched up with Hudson and Nolee liked Hudson. The flirtation between everyone is too much they might as well all get matching rings

[@kimberleywilliams7802]

LMAO I used to ship Madison with River tho, my head cannon is that when barbie left, Madison made her move and they started dating.

[@samanthawright23]

real!! i always throught the original pairs didnt work

[@sophietessier8998]

My scene art team worked so hard. From the new York theme, the girls names as New York reference, like Madison, for Madison avenue. The art style are so pretty. Any type of work they’ve did was immaculate. The music is really cool. It’s so sex and the city kids friendly and I love it. I would be there for a reboot, I would pay for everything. I just would like the doll face would to look like more like the cartoon and less like bratz

[@Billibab]

all of them have NYC names but Barbie LOL

[@raella]

i love “the sex in the city kids friendly”, now i realize why I loved this line so much as a kid

[@koalamud5087]

Same, their cartoon faces were so unique to their art style

[@bibianaguadalupeislasherre9880]

@@Billibab In 2006, they replaced Barbie with Kennedy, who is inspired by the John F. Kennedy International Airport and named after the 35th President of the United States. In one webisode, it was mentioned that Barbie was moving to California.

[@jonahflores8cinco]

​@@bibianaguadalupeislasherre9880 with how easy it would have been to make an episode in which Barbie feels excluded for not having a name linked to NYC, so everyone decides to nickname her Kennedy in honor of the airport.

[@NotLaurel6578]

Li Speaks Out Of Context: 17:30 Noli gets sent to the void 26:31 Li returns home 36:19 Cowboy Barbie 52:18 Li Speaks uncovering the bi-romantic messaging in 2004 media 53:29 Possession

[@MagicalGirlFia]

Ive come up with a few explanations for their age discrepancy. 1. They’re all immortal time deities who chose to take the form of rich teenage girls (and boys I guess but who cares about them) and they use their powers to change their age and what point in time it is at will to suit their current situation. 2. Schrödinger's cat. As long as they exist in the “box” (the My Scene universe) they’re both kids and adults at the same time. 3. In a time loop after being cursed by a sneaky witch who they wronged. After they turn a certain age time resets and they’re high school students again. Personally, I like this one most because it explains how there are basically 2 canons (and probably more). I can’t think of any other explanations for the weird ages of the characters, nope no sire bob. Not just a way to market to teen girls who think being an adult is just being a teen with more freedom. No way.

[@cindycarter199457]

could also be like Barbie movie logic where they are actors playing characters but it's always the same characters or maybe the movies are told non-chronologically jumping back and forth between their adulthood and teenage years. None of this explains the constant clubbing tho.

[@mesekkai]

I think they are 18 exactly because they can go to night clubs but also able go to high school as seniors in my area you can go to clubs. At 18

[@MagicalGirlFia]

@@mesekkai NO!!! Immortal time deities and sneaky witches!!!!!!!! I will have no “making sense” in my replies thank you very much. (/j - tbh you’re probably right)

[@thapelosishi]

@@MagicalGirlFiayou’re so goofy😭I love it

[@valerie5831]

different reality where teenagers can go clubbing but it’s also safe to do so

[@augustalavenderblue7353]

I think, and maybe this is just me and my experience, that people way, way, way underestimated how much parents would hate the idea of allowing their child to play with something that had "brat" in the name. A brat was pretty much the worst thing a child could be described as to me when I was growing up. Idk why, it just really annoyed the parents I was around. A doll just as skanky but named literally anything else would have been fine with them.

[@bb-nq9ho]

i agree. as a fan of bratz i didn't fully get the insistence on that name. they could've been named "angelz" which they often used anyway

[@ZephyrinSkies]

Omg that makes so much sense lol. I think that's probably a huge reason for the backlash and I don't think most people, like myself, realize that may be why.

[@nanda_]

I think that makes sense because I come from a non-English speaking country where "Bratz" was just a (pretty cool sounding) brand name with no meaning and I don't remember any parental concearns with the branding or the way the dolls looked. I guess, because it was less provocative, it also meant it could never realistically compete with Barbie so there's that too

[@StoneMidori]

The My Scene games were honestly my favorites from Everything Girl. I think I liked them because the colors weren't as aggressive & they were more realistically shaded. The Room Makeover game even had me interested in interior design for a while when I was younger.

[@RoboZombie777]

I once went to an under 21 night club in Ocean City MD and it had the extremely rancid vibes of a bunch of kids who desperately wanted to get crunked up but fundamentally could not because an under 21 night club is an environment where getting crunked up is societally impossible

[@LKHooray]

The fact your makeup is so spot on with the dolls make this everything to me. The actual doll is telling me about the dolls history rn

[@cactust7851]

as someone who was in the target age/gender demographic of these sorts of things while growing up but was a terminal tomboy, i love watching these videos. it's a deep dive into a whole other world i was only marginally aware of due to tv commercials or computer games at my friends' houses

[@socialgutbrain7774]

Fellow terminal tomboy here! I literally never heard of MyScene growing up, but one girly thing I actually did enjoy was Monster High because they were freaking cool monsters.

[@Rabbitmancer]

The way my jaw plummeted to the floor during that Harvey Weinsten cameo 😱😱

[@dianestringham5596]

Time stamp?

[@Meimoons]

@@dianestringham5596 1:02:06 here I think?

[@dianestringham5596]

@@Meimoons thank you

[@LusterDust]

I was too poor to get any of the dolls but you'd better believe I was addicted to the myscene sites. Since I never kept up to date, the switch from Barbie to Kennedy messed with me and I wondered if I just imagined Barbie ever being a part of it to begin with and made it all up or something.

[@sav9373]

My Scene is my absolute favorite of the popular doll brands. It’s the perfect mix of Bratz and Barbie. I love all the characters (except Kennedy bc wtf was that), the dolls were tall and beautiful, the movies are great imo (with gorgeous 2D animation), website and games were fantastic, and an uber-nostalgic and cute web series. Everything was perfect. I so wish Mattel actually cared more about this brand outside of it being a Bratz competitor. I’m BEGGING for a good reboot.

[@sav9373]

OMG I HAD THE CD ROM GAME. i totally forgot about it. i loved these dolls so much 😭

[@plastichearts210]

The dolls were absolutely gorgeous. My favorites were the dolls released from 2005-2006 because holy moly the faces were STUNNING.

[@supremequeenofeverything]

100% agree! My Scene Barbie was my fave, so the Kennedy switch pissed me off 😂

[@kimberleywilliams7802]

I was OBSESSED with Myscene, I engaged with everything but the dolls lol, now that I think about it, i'm not sure i had any, maybe one but idr. Madison was my fav cause she was black and I shipped her heavy with River lol. They always made her seem so thirsty tho lol, having crushes on her friends men.

[@metagasm820]

With these sorts of doll lines, the doll with the black hair was always my favorite because I wanted black hair SO bad as a little girl. So Jade and Nolee were my go-to. It hurts to know how they did my girl Nolee dirty. I played the HELL out of that room makeover game, particularly the party one. That shiny purple dance floor was indeed akin to a magic spell that boosts serotonin on sight. The fact that Kennedy was ever named Barbie had been all but erased from my memory up to this point.

[@sugarbee00]

the website segment literally SLAMMED my soul back in time the nostalgia... the obsession i had with those games.... thank god i never played w their late stage art style id make me hate it lmao i prefer the first version for sure. id spend HOURS making up their outfits and rooms until i moved from the barbie sites to GGG

[@lizziefg10]

Same! Memories unlocked 🤯

[@kimberleywilliams7802]

I feel like Docter strange when he was slammed into the soul plane thingy, I see the games and I'm immediately transported back to my kid years of spending hours on that site.

[@Rukeyuhade]

Fun note: I grew up in Mexico and I have some of the flash animations because they came in a free DVD inside a Kellogg’s cereal box

[@jm-sh6qr]

UPLOAD THE DISC

[@Rukeyuhade]

@@jm-sh6qr unfortunately I don’t think I brought it with me when I moved :(

[@wwndqnwodpwbw]

Oh my God, I absolutely walked around with paper nails lol the Barbie website always had the option to print your results and i was always wasting my parents' printer paper and ink on stupid stuff like that 😭

[@Billibab]

Same! They would get so mad when I'd go through all the color ink

[@madeofcastiron]

growing up, i was a huge tomboy that only dressed in boyish clothes, but god, did i love my scene. we didn’t have a family computer back then, so i literally went to the library every day just to use the computer, go on their website and play their games. my scene was my childhood, so thank you for this in-depth deep dive.

[@subject667]

I love when Li brings up sapphic overtones because it's just so much fun to do with media you grew up with

[@geminajamart]

46:36 WAIT WTF "SPONTANEOUS COMBUSTION" HAS BEEN STUCK IN MY HEAD FOR LIKE A DECADE AND I COULD NEVER IDENTIFY WHERE IT CAME FROM IT WAS MYSCENE???

[@elleanor]

I actually went to a legit premiere for My Scene Goes Hollywood. My mum won a competition in a magazine then we got to go watch it in a movie theatre. It definitely wasn't a huge event just some famous-ish people and their children. I remember we all got the movie on DVD and a gift bag that had these My Scene perfumes in it IIRC they used Madison in the movie but on the perfume packaging she was called Westley. I must say I was more of a Bratz girlie but the movies and the flash games definitely have a special place in my heart.

[@Mostie-ev7oh]

Yeah Westley was apparently the name for the Madison dolls in Europe.

[@iwakeupandboomimarat]

​@@Mostie-ev7ohi wonder why they changed the name??? its not like madison is a super uncommon name in english speaking european countries

[@bloodmoonbunny6837]

It's usually a trademark reason when they do that. Kelly dolls were "Shelly" in europe until she was renamed Chelsea @@iwakeupandboomimarat

[@Ishidalover]

No one can utter the phrase "you know what I mean" without me thinking , "it's my scene, my scene" 😂 I genuinely liked the new style! I suppose I was the target audience though. Now I'm nearly 30 and I'm an artist, so my appreciation for the style has only grown. That sleek look with the bright palette is still cool to me. ❤

[@_evenstar_]

Never owned any of Myscene dolls but to say I was obsessed with their games would be an understatement.

[@natapie8702]

oh yessssss they captivated me like no other girly games

[@Natalie-hg3gh]

Me too!!!!!

[@kimberleywilliams7802]

SAME! I think I had one tho, can't remember.

[@montanajackson3713]

Same here, I had a lot of fun playing games on that website.

[@leticiaigbinazaka2283]

It’s so interesting about the whole ‘Barbie’ being discontinued thing because I remember being given the myscene dolls (from the earlier gen) whilst also having Bratz and Barbie dolls, and I never realised that it was myscene Barbie - just always thought she was the blonde one of the group 😂. In the same way, I remember being so exited to receive this beautiful barbie doll who I thought was one of Barbie’s ‘friends’ because she had this darker skin tone - only to realise years later she was just some tanned ‘island aesthetic’ Barbie

[@MxchiefMaykr]

I HAD THE EXACT SAME EXPERIENCE!!

[@moonbunny24]

I just started this video so idk if this will be covered or not, but it's so funny to me how the identical stranger trope that Barbie loves so much is in this series too since it was basically the entire premise for Kennedy's character. They even made a short where Barbie's friends mistake Kennedy for her. Meaning Barbie has done this trope at least four times (Princess and the Pauper, MyScene, Princess and the Popstar, Princess Adventure) and played off of it twice (Rock and Royals with a switcheroo unrelated to appearance and Big City, Big Dreams where they have identical names). It's really a shame that they cut that joke they were going to do about Margot Robbie and Emma Mackey looking alike from the Barbie movie when "someone who looks like Barbie" is about as quintessential of a Barbie trope as Secret Princess Plot.

[@wdjkncvgdfsbyt34jgvi]

omg good catch

[@ccvv1119]

They abandoned it because they don’t actually look alike when side by side

[@kimberleywilliams7802]

I REMEMBER ThAT!!! That's how I remmeber Kennedy honestly

[@soapytoastpants]

i think the most generous explanation for the ages is that the girls are seniors in high school but already 18 and able to go clubbing because they're in an alternate universe where the drinking age is 18 (ignoring that masquarade madness party is supposedly chelsea's 16th)

[@renasuka]

europe exists

[@systematicirony666]

@@renasuka But they're in new York-

[@soapytoastpants]

@@renasuka i meant an alternate universe where it's 18 in the US

[@rosvokisu]

me, a european, who genuinely forgot that drinking age is 21 in the us: but high schoolers CAN go clubbing if they're already 18??? what's the issue here????

[@Sofiaode18]

Yall, Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan and the other girlies went clubbing since 16. There doesn’t have to be an alternate universe for how this is possible. It literally is possible, especially if you’re rich enough to not get carded or have fake IDs.

[@Noodledoodlefroogle]

Oh, I feel the same sentiment as being around the same target age of getting a my scenes doll but preferring bratz. Growing up black I felt that Bratz better represented me rather than my scenes. With mine scenes yes, they did look great and I do remember really wanting a masquerade madness doll. It’s some thing about how it fully didn’t feel like they were catering to their POC clientele.

[@mythanita4292]

Yeah it's so weird because bratz was popular for its diversity and my scene never caught on that

[@Sunflowerfilledlake]

I always felt that was another thing that I guess “put people off” from buying Bratz dolls. I always noticed that my family members (All bring POC) liked buying Bratz for us but my white friends NEVER had Bratz

[@AC-bk1jg]

But what did bratz do so different? They never really talked about their ethnicities or made it their personality. What I liked about bratz is that they didn’t throw one person in for diversity but instead had only 1 white character which is so rare even today. I still felt more represented by My scene since I’m more brown skinned and what I really liked is that Madison had an Afro comb. We shouldn’t forget how bratz white washed Sasha and left her out sometimes but this has definitely something to do with colorism and racism

[@Sunflowerfilledlake]

@@AC-bk1jg Their outfits were very much aimed more so at clothing that was popular in POC communities (mostly black and Hispanic communities) and since it was so early in the two thousands it still wasn’t often that you would see a group of characters that were MOSTLY people of color.

[@mythanita4292]

@@AC-bk1jg I feel what bratz did different then my scene is the white girl wasn't front and center. It was never chloe and the bratz they all felt equal in mc but it was barbie/kenzie I think? And my scene

[@pell222]

the animation on the movie is incredible. the hair movement is incredibly satifying

[@EspaALSC]

I owned a roller blade controler version! In fact, it was the only My Scene doll I ever owned, but her controls worked surprisingly well! I just needed to take care not to change her movements too fast or she would fall down, but other than that she worked just fine!

[@turtlekarth]

same! I vaguely remember the body leaning back when you drove her forward too fast lol

[@abandit1296]

I had the Madison one! When I tried to use her on carpet it tried it's best, but it worked best on the tile movements. Eventually, I lost the remote and played with her like other dolls. It was bulky compared to the other dolls and it was a struggle to change clothes since you couldn't take off the skates.

[@Ashley-lo1xy]

Of the roller blade line I only had the 2007 happy meal Kennedy toy💀💀

[@valle..]

@@Ashley-lo1xy I had one of those too (it was the blue one, I thinks she's Nolee) and I thought for the longest time that she was a Bratz. I just found out what My Scene is because of this video and was kinda surprised to see her

[@dollminatrix1375]

Okay, you have created a ship that completely flew over my head. Barbie X Madison forever 💕

[@sonamy3]

I can't get over how the revamped style made Delancey and Madison look like human Cleo and Clawdeen, it's all I could see

[@annabays8833]

My sisters and I used to used to print out the nails and tape them to our fingers. It was integral to our favorite game “college kids” in which… we pretended to be old.

[@AndiLang8146]

In "Jammin' in Jamaica", the reason for Delancey coming along for the trip was that her parents (ie Chelsea's aunt and uncle) owned a house in Jamaica, which is where Madison and the boys stay and practice for the concert. Of course, we never actually see Delancey's parents, but Chelsea does mention that she made them swear not to tell the others that she, Barbie and Nolee would be surprising them.

[@ZoeDeRoseDance]

The mention of the existence of the Diva Starz unlocked a portion of my childhood memories ten years of therapy couldn't even access

[@rosegoldhiips]

That Harvey Weinstien cameo literally made me flinch jfc

[@OliviaLeaf]

It’s actually insane how often I think about the MyScene Bling-Bling and masquerade dolls. I still have mine! The outfits are completely iconic. The My Scene Goes Hollywood movie was also a defining moment of my childhood. Rewatched it CONSTANTLY!

[@alltheworldatmyfeet]

The My Scene song brought me back to 8 years old so fast it gave me whiplash. I never had My Scene dolls i think. I had Bratz and Barbies mixed together i made them a big stepfamily. Then i had a 3 foot tall Barbie i never knew what to do with.

[@rorot1210]

this fit makes you look like a completely different person, makeup and hair is magic

[@pearlearplugs]

Their website was EVERYTHING to me! I used to spend hours there. I knew the words to every little “short” by heart and would say them out loud pretending I was them. Delancy was my fav because she could SKATEBOARD lol

[@radiodemongodking4176]

I had my grandma help me print and cut out the paper nails once. She cut the nails out in a strip instead of individually at first because she thought it was a bracelet!

[@TheWizardGremlinCat]

I just have a feeling that in the my scene void, barbie and madison are making out while the rest are just playing uno-

[@GymBunnyQuinn]

A note on the clubbing thing; in England we had (at least when I was that age) what we called nappy nights. Nappy means diaper in the uk, just specifying as I understand that word has other contexts. So nappy night was a club night exclusively for 13-17 year old teens, your ticket price got you unlimited soft drinks, no alcohol was served but the legal age to smoke was 16 at the time so if smoking was your thing, you’re golden. So at least in England you could definitely go clubbing and be at school the next day, I certainly was. Edit: for context I turned 13 in 2004 and I had Barbie (I renamed her Chloe), Maddison, Chelsea and Hudson. The series with the blue and brown suede jeans, chunky brown boots, it’s an early one with the first round heads.

[@witchy90210]

Nolee being packaged with the lounge is very much "Sitting alone in the VIP" vibes

[@emwimm]

Li used my quote from the poll! So glad I could participate in this video. I wasn't allowed Bratz (because obviously they'd turn me into a whore), but My Scene was family friendly, and the only way I could truly experience flashier dolls! Love the video!

[@TitaAguilera]

So I have a very specific memory about the mini game fashion designer. I was out on vacation with my family in a beautiful Mexican city (San Luis Potosí for those that are curious) for the first time but what did I see of that city? NOTHING. The hotel had a free business center equip with (for the time) state of the art desktop computers and… A COLOR PRINTER. Mind you at the time I did not have such luxuries at home so I spent the whole vacation playing fashion designer, printing my paper dolls and playing with them at the room while my family was sightseeing 💀 How did the hotel staff not kick me out of the business center? I have no clue, probably because no one really used it.

[@lorelig]

I feel like more comments need to mention the maximum slayage of your makeup, outfit, and hair!!! Li coming at us with nostalgic doll deep dives AND serving us looks too!!!!

[@montanajackson3713]

The moment I heard the myscene theme song, memories came flooding back. I didn’t have any myscene dolls growing up, but I always had fun playing games on their website.

[@johnalogue9832]

I love it when videos turn media that wouldn't interest me at all into a whole deep-dive, usually including some *very strange choices.* "Wait, that felt weird at the time and *still* feels weird, what happened?" seems like a universal experience of childhood/nostalgia, usually for unseen *business reasons.* I think another reason these videos are great is actually that I'm *not* emotionally invested in the subject, so I can enjoy it without getting stressed in one way or another. No defensiveness, no shared outrage, etc. Just someone who enjoys sharing something enough that it's fun to listen.

[@sailorgoon7570]

Your videos heal parts of me i didn't know need healing! seeing the subway menu screen from the myscene website literally made me kick my feet with excitement. the chokehold these dolls STILL have on me is crazy well done Mattel (for a little while)

[@WoodwindBuddies]

I never had My Scene dolls (I was more G3 My Little Pony and Littlest Petshop), but I LOVED the online Flash games. Wasn’t too into the redesign though or the fact that they ditched Nolee (the only Asian girl).

[@Lisepooh]

I had no clue that they kept producing dolls till 2010. At some point before 2008 it was so hard to find Myscene dolls, so to see that they were still out there making them is cool. ( but also upsetting the quality went down too.) As someone who owned a couple of play sets, cars, and dolls the switch to Kennedy marked the end of my scene for me ( the dolls I had were all Barbie) 😂

[@NikoNiki_KIZUNA]

MYSCENE YESSSSS!!! I love their party aesthetic so much because it gives me major 2000s nightlife vibes.

[@cyclopswrangler9830]

I was a little too young for much of My Scene during the golden era of the dolls, but I remember playing the hell out of the online flash games. Also, I'm downright thriving with the Style Savvy music in the background for some of the video. Also, the horse riding bit in the My Scene Goes Hollywood movie lowkey reminds me of the Secret Agent Barbie games. There's a chase scene at the very end of the GBA game where Barbie chases the Camille, the Big Bad that stole the crown jewels in the beginning of the game, on horseback in Mexico.

[@lovelyhammy]

so excited to see a new li speaks video right when i need it, AND it's on myscene, AND the look slays hard as usual. li, your stuff is incredible and you've become one of my favorite youtubers over the last month while i've been watching your videos during my break at work. your takes are great, your research is thorough, your voice is so pleasant to listen to. you make me want to make my own channel!

[@Enchanterium]

Such a great video! I was a super fan of both dolls and the games on My Scene's website. The hair makeover, outfit choosing and nail painting games are so nostalgic to me, I loved seeing it again so many years later 😭💖 Also, gorgeous outfit Li!

[@509wildflower]

The partying and nightlife scene is exactly how I thought being a teenager was like 😂 In my mind as an elementary child, I always saw them more as college girls though. Definitely agree that MyScene allowed for the fantasy of the fun of being a teenage with the freedom and safety of being an adult

[@strabababerry]

The only My Scene doll I had was actually the Lindsay Lohan one! My mom refused to let me have Bratz dolls, so I think she eventually decided to give me it as a surprise. I'm a redhead, so I think that's why she chose that one. I honestly didn't know who Lindsay was at the time and I was so confused on why my mom got me it back then. I still have her dress and chair, but the doll and her shoes are forever gone lol I despised her weird shoes with feet

[@strabababerry]

I also didn't like how the dress was hard to put on my prettier dolls, plus the shoes couldn't go on them either

[@pebbles.-.._.]

i had one of those rollerskate dolls, the one with the white and blue skirt with pigtails… they worked ok, sometimes they wouldn‘t move smoothly but it was really fun as a kid

[@TheDarkDuchesse]

this video is absolutely serendipitous, I recently went to an old, privately owned toy store, and found a ton of unsold, still packaged My Scene dolls and I've been looking into them out of curiosity, this is a really nice and comprehensive crash course to everything, thank you (yes, they have some of the my bling bling dolls, I stared at them for about 10 minutes because I was so mesmerized)

[@kandizeller1032]

The way I immediately burst into song after the "Spontaneous Combustion" clip came on! I watched Jammin' in Jamaica so much as a kid. Thanks so much for making this retrospective.

[@baileyhagen8754]

I had the Tiki Bar and had no idea it was My Scene! Seeing it for the first time in years brought the memory of having it and loving those chairs the best for some reason. I also realized I had roller skating Kennedy and just forgot she wasn’t a regular Barbie I think lol

[@AsakiSun]

I'm so thankful for this video, and not just because I LOVE your vids. Last week my mother in law passed away, and she and I shared a love of fashion dolls. Her entire collection is at my house for me to sort through, either to sell or to donate to charity. I was watching this video while sorting through the totes full of her dolls. And I found an entire tote full of My Scene dolls that I wasn't expecting! I was never into My Scene so I knew almost nothing about them beforehand. Thanks to your video, I had a way easier time identifying them and their clothes, and figuring out which lines they're from 😂 Thanks Li! Also you look absolutely stunning❤

[@Tina.bina.]

I used to play the hair and nails games sooo much! My sister and I grew up with Barbies and then Bratz became our obsession. We each got one MyScene doll from relatives but Bratz stayed number one for us. However the myscene, Barbie and Bratz websites all were so fun.

[@abbysharp1659]

the tiny western montage during the cdrom segment really showcases why your content is so perfect, the attention to detail and followthrough is always so locked in for the bit and it is not lost on the viewers xx

[@Sophia-gw6bv]

This is my favorite video that you’ve done so far. The glamor, nostalgia, and information richness are unmatched 💖 The fit is amazing too of course

[@iriem329]

i lost it at "whatever, whatever, and dracula" T.T lmfaoooo

[@tay7993]

I had the remote controlled skaters! they actually worked incredible well! I lived in a carpeted area and it still worked pretty well!

[@shannonreed822]

"Dr. Eggman" LI PLEASE (I'm not even done, that just made my choke on the apple I was eating because it was so funny.)

[@SparkOfAsh]

This was so satisfying to watch! The Everything Girl MyScene games gave me LIFE as a kid, especially the makeover one. I'd print out all of my looks and force every one of my family members to view and critique them lmao

[@pharroahh]

BRUH 26:48 gave me CHILLLLZZZ. THAT SCREEN HAS BEEN IN THE BACK OF MY MIND FOR SO LONG.

[@maddy4960]

I'm so glad you went through the doll releases bc it means you covered the limousine! I never paid attention to my scene (i was young and preferred barbie, had some bratz too) EXCEPT for that limo, I thought it was the coolest thing and was sooooo happy when i got it, I was obsessed with the pool in the back in particular :] it was indeed a very cool doll car

[@bunny-yi9cj]

You ate this fit UP and the makeup is everything

[@Painfuldreamer5813]

I wanted that limo since I was just six but knew my family couldn’t afford it, so I waited and searched for years until I got a used one this year. Almost twenty years later and I just about cried my eyes out because that was my childhood dream car and now it was finally mine!

[@devilinred3319]

In my country 18 its the legal age to be an adult in ALL ways (even drinking), so to me my scene were mostly 18-23.

[@CHICAGOTICA44]

The way Chelsea just throws the book at 54:15 , it's just too funny Congrats Li on another excellent videooooo, I love it

[@honeydew661]

I had river and Barbie from night in the town and i remember being sooo enamored with the clothes she was wearing. Iconic and beautiful!! The sparkly ruched skirt was everything to me. Sadly those were the only ones I owned

[@aceowlhedwig]

I played the games on the myscene website in the firm believe that it was just another barbie art style, since I think the dolls never released in my country (germany, could bd wrong tho) And now seeing how much more was behind this is absolutely insane to me. Wonderful job on the video I really enjoyed your channel

[@HikariTheGardevoir]

Dutchie here, though it's possible, I honestly can't imagine they weren't released in Germany! I know they were sold here in the Netherlands, and I got my first myscene doll while on vacation in Spain. Maybe you can find something if you google for German box art or something🤔

[@luka_boi8968]

15:13 I had a fab faces doll a child and woo that little clip brought me right back to staring at it for hours and being so amazed at how 'life like' the expressions were

[@Enchonida]

"discontinued" 😂 nolee killed his ass