Strawberry Shortcake and the Other Epic Ladies of the 80s

I’ve got a girl crush, or several girl crushes, rather.  And it will never, ever matter how old I get or how many Bratz dolls or Polly Pockets hit the scene, my love for Strawberry Shortcake, Rainbow Brite, My Little Pony and the Care Bears (though The Bears are rather androgynous in general, so don’t know if they count as a “girl” crush).* Anyone who can rock a white horse with a multi-hued mane or emit 24 hr./day strawberry-scent is forever aces in my book.  As previously mentioned, corporations such as Old Navy and Hasbro know that the original generation of colored ponies fans is now procreating and readily cashes in on this–“Oh how cute!  They came out with a whole new line of Strawberry Shortcake dolls?!  And there is a Bitty Berry Market to go along with them!  Not to mention the matching tee?!  Quick honey, get me the computer so I can begin my obsessive online bargain shopping for adorable toys for our daughter despite the fact that she is way too young!”  In any case, getting ripped off or not, I have a strong suspicion that the Care Bears will be having a very big 30th anniversary celebration in our house in the form of stuffed animals, cheap sleeping bags and maybe even a bed tent, if we go really crazy 😉  All hail the 80s gal pals.  They were classy, they were cool, and above all (unlike today’s girl heroes), they were clothed–at least the human characters 🙂