Mattel/FP really went the lazy route on the new line. It looks like they did the minimum in shaping and painting. In know when it comes to items like this, Mattel uses a 'parts' rule, that the item can't go beyond a certain number of parts or steps in manufacturing. I'm not too surprised by the previous poster mentioned staff/cost cutting. I read a recent report that stated the reason why most toy companies, as well as some retailers who cater to kids, are struggling because of the low birth rate in this country, the explosion of tech toys and children involved in so many external activities, they don't really have time to themselves to 'play' as we did when we were kids. ToysRUs was indirectly affected by this phenomenon, although TRU had larger financial issues which shut them down.
