The live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast starring Emma Watson as Belle opened Friday, took an estimated $170 million at the US box office for the weekend, and is expected to break the all-time opening weekend for a PG-rated movie (full story here: http://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/news/%e2%80%98beauty-and-the-beast%e2%80%99-bows-with-record-breaking-dollar170-million-opening/ar-BByo4Ww?li=BBnbfcL&ocid=iehp). I’m interested in seeing it, but I’m not too impressed by the tie-in merchandise offered-especially Disney Store’s Emma Watson doll, which looks surprisingly masculine. Hasbro’s version looks more feminine and a bit more like her, but still doesn’t quite capture her beauty; and Disney Store’s other merch just isn’t really speaking to me. However, last year for my birthday I got the deluxe doll gift set that DS came out with for the original’s 25th anniversary. So, in honor of the live-action release, here are some pictures of my set!

She’s very pretty and very movie-accurate (not that this blurry picture makes it easy to see that), but so far my 2015 DS Belle seems to be a bit more versatile and expressive in photos (she’s my primary Belle, at least for now). Once the weather here gets more consistent, I plan to do some experiments with settings, angles, and outfits to bring out the best in Gift Set Belle, and then hopefully she can be featured more.
Here’s a picture of the 2 Belles side-by-side.

The Beast.


Last year, during JoJo’s season of The Bachelorette and the following summer’s season of Bachelor in Paradise, the standout character was Daniel, a Vancouver-born personal trainer who projected a comically self-absorbed persona and listed his occupation as “Canadian” in his contestant bio. I felt the perfect job for Daniel would be to play Gaston at Disneyland, where he could really ham it up (although he’d have to bulk up a bit to get a better resemblance). I also see something of Daniel in this Gaston doll, so outside of any BATB-themed photo shoots I may do in the future, he’ll serve as a miniature version of Daniel within my doll world.
Here’s a group shot of Lumiere, Cogsworth, Mrs. Potts, and Chip.

Philippe! He’s a bit small, but who cares when he’s this cute?

In addition to all the major characters, the “deluxe” means extra outfits and accessories. Here are the outfits: Belle’s village dress and ballroom clothes for her and Beast.
One of the birds from “Something There” (I stuck it between the outfits and the accessories because it’s neither an accessory nor a major character):
The magic mirror and (very glittery) enchanted rose.
Belle’s book and basket.
I did an enhancement job on the mirror and the book’s spine to make them look a bit more accurate.


A group shot of the major characters (minus Gaston/Daniel, who was cluelessly hitting on one of my other dolls).

I even managed to make Belle ride Philippe (sidesaddle, because of her short skirt).