BARBIE Foreign Magazines and Current Comics

Though Barbie's publishing history in America is somewhat irregular...

...in Europe there has almost always been some periodical starring the fashion doll who was, in fact, based on a European fashion doll!

The magazines tend to feature materials about the dolls and related products along with teen lifestyle articles and fumetti starring the dolls themselves...

I don't remember American Barbies having spacesuits (or ray guns) like these, so they may have been European market exclusives, or custom-produced for the fumetti!

Note that while these pages are in sequence, they're not consecutive.

BTW, that last word means "end" in Swedish, not what it means in English!

(Get your minds out of the gutter!)

Meanwhile, in America, Barbie's been in a publishing revival since around 2015, with an interesting twist...

The character, as portrayed in current comics, is younger than the 18-25 year old adult previously-shown...

...and her adventures are far more fantastical!
And speaking of "fantastical"...

See Barbie when it opens in theatres this weekend!

Next Week:

The Story of a Rival 1960s Fashion Doll Who Had Her Own Long-Running Comic Book Series!

(and yes, there's a surprise twist to the tale!)

You'll Cry Your Eyes Out If You Miss It!

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Barbie and Ruth

The Story of the World's Most Famous Doll and the Woman Who Created Her

BARBIE "Designing Woman"

In 1991, Marvel/Star (the "young readers" line) introduced two titles about Barbie...

Barbie (without Ken in the title as the first comic had done)...

...and Barbie Fashion!
(Both covers by John Romita Sr)

Unlike the 1960s Dell comic, these books didn't use the concept that Barbie was a doll whom little fan club girls told tales about, but portrayed her and her friends and relatives (including Ken, Christie, Midge, and little sister Skipper) as straightforward comic book characters.
Both titles had healthy half-decade runs, but have never been reprinted.
Here's a tale from #10 (1991), which includes some rather pointed insights into haute couture, written by Lisa Trusiani, penciled by James Brock and inked by Roy Richardson...

Next Week:

Another Never-Reprinted Story About Barbie!

You'll Cry Your Eyes Out If You Miss It!

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Barbie and Ruth

The Story of the World's Most Famous Doll and the Woman Who Created Her

BARBIE & KEN "Wedding"

For girls of the late 1950s thru early 1970s, Barbie and Ken dolls were fashion icons...

...so it was inevitable that there would be a comic book about their adventures.

 But, as it turns out, Barbie and Ken were secretly married the entire time!

It's true!

Here's the story from Dell Comics' Barbie & Ken #1 (1962)...

Surprised?

To be fair, the never-reprinted tale, illustrated by Norman Nodel, details the little girls in the Barbie Fan Club telling their own alleged experiences with Barbie and Ken...which are no doubt fantasies since they cover Barbie being a nurse, a ballerina, and a stewardess, as well as getting married!
Except...who is the kid going off with Patty?
As you might have guessed, Mattel had play sets (clothing and props) showing Barbie doing all those things!
BTW, note that Nodel deliberately kept both Barbie and Ken "on model", looking very much like the actual dolls...except they could bend their arms and legs (which the dolls couldn't do until the late 1960s)!

Next Week:

Another Never-Reprinted Story About Barbie!

You'll Cry Your Eyes Out If You Miss It!

And Now a Word from Our Sponsor...

Please Support True Love Comics Tales!

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Barbie and Ruth

The Story of the World's Most Famous Doll and the Woman Who Created Her

Pride in Print DREAM DADDY "Much Abird About Nothing"

We conclude this month's Pride theme with...

...daddies.

Single daddies...who just happen to be gay.

Gee, they seem like...well...typical guys!

And, to answer an obvious question, the bird in the story's title is about to steal a couple of fries, but since that's a multi-page plotline, we suggest you get the graphic novel (conveniently-listed below) to see the rest of the tale!

Written by Wendy Xu and illustrated by Ryan Maniulit, this is from the first issue of an Oni Press 2018 six-issue mini-series about an interactive computer gaming app called Dream Daddy: a Dad Dating Simulator which allows the player to create an on-line character to interact with a number of existing characters whose backstories are told in this series!

Next Month:

July is dedicated to...

...with stories from both the 1960s Dell comic and the 1990s Marvel comic!

You'll Cry Your Eyes Out If You Miss It!

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Dream Daddy

A Dad Dating Comic Book Book

Pride in Print GOTHIC TALES OF HAUNTED LOVE "Fazenda do Sangue Azul"

Though set in contemporary times...

...this short story touches on "uncomfortable truths" of both the past and present!

Written by H Puero and illustrated by Dante Lulz, this feature (whose title translates as "Blue Blood Farm") from Bedside Press' Gothic Tales of Haunted Love (2018) is a fascinating mixture of genres involving American history created by a pair of Brazilian creatives!

Next Week:

Another Tale of Forbidden True Love!

You'll Cry Your Eyes Out if You Miss It!

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Gothic Tales of Haunted Love