Alright, so these Disney cars are floatin’ around all over the place – you got Robin Hood and Hercules in each other’s orbit, Remy and Dug going as a pair more often than not, and the ever more pricey – and elusive – Chip. But there’s another piece you may not have heard of yet; and why not? Because it comes in one of those boxsets that are sometimes released alongside the singles.
I’m not sure if you can find it in stores – had to get mine from Amazon – but if you want to keep your hoard up to date you’ll need the Disney Princess boxset of Character Cars. Included are Ariel, Snow White, Belle, Mulan, and the one worthy of special attention, Jasmine from Aladdin fame. Yeah, it’s a crummy gimmick…it’s like it’s meant for people who don’t follow the whole “Character Car” thing and designed to be passed over by actual collectors.
Several sets have been sold this way, but to my knowledge, only one of them contained an exclusive. It was a Mickey (and friends) themed set that offered up Daisy Duck – and it’s still the only way to get Daisy as far as I know. Back then, the singles were all just lined up in the box. This time though the cars are just in little plastic compartments within the box. This actually irks me a little bit further.
With the older packaging, I can at least sell off the duplicates as “new / mint on card” or whatever and probably recoup the expensive of having to buy 5 cars for 1. I also liked that Daisy had her own packaging aside from the just the box. With the current packaging, if I want to resale, I have to take a huge cut because they’re loose. And once they’re off the card they lose a good deal of value, plus they’re more prone to scratches and nicks. Plus I can’t get Jasmine on her very own card.
At least Jasmine made for a good pick, joining the likes of Aladdin, Genie, and Jafar from Aladdin. The vehicle follows her look fairly well, with the flowy, pastel blue garments, her headpiece, and her long black hair all worked into the design. I like how the wheels are covered by her “dress,” giving the car a floaty, extra delicate and feminine feel.
While I’m not a fan of the sales gimmick at play here, I do applaud the devotion to a Disney Princess set. Girls and women are severely under-represented in the world of “vroom vroom cars are for boyzzz” toys. Not every little girl will gravitate to the next 1:64 scale McLaren P1 or Batmobile, and not every boy will jump at the chance to buy a pink box full of race cars, but I do think Hot Wheels is doing their small part.
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