Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse

My 6 yr old started watching the show and it was just on in the background. I caught a snippet of one show and laughed at the jokes Barbie makes at her own expense. Soon I found myself paying more attention than my daughter. I was surprised to find myself laughing during every episode. From Ken's "Barbie Sense" (like Spidey sense, but specifically for Barbie) to the ongoing "Shlond Poofa" joke, this is not your standard kid-cartoon. Frequent jokes include Barbie's many, many career choices, and her seemingly weekly anniversaries with Ken. The series is stylized as a mock reality show featuring confessionals of the characters in between scenes.

Having worked in the computer animation industry, I sometimes check out shows to see how good (or bad) their CGI is. And that's how I stumbled upon this show on Netflix. A lot of shows targeting younger audiences really cut corners, so it was a complete surprise when I checked this out and discovered that the computer animation is very well done, the editing is tight, audio mix is clear and clean, and the writing is brilliant.

Rounding this is off is an excellent set of pop-culture references, including Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Star Trek.

The characters are all unique from one-another and the writer clearly put a lot of effort in distributing lines to as many characters as possible (not an easy task). The comedic timing is spot on, with plenty of little details to the character's actions and facial expressions.

Now I'm curious to know more about the team that worked on this show.

Nicely done and hopefully something that will set the standard for other programming of this type to live up to.

Turned on this show for some mindless background noise but soon found myself actually paying attention- the jokes are surprisingly clever for a kids show! Most of the episodes kind of make fun of the Barbie doll stereotypes, so because of that I can see this show as something adults genuinely getting a kick out of it while watching it with their kids! It's not just another Barbie animation about "dreams and friendship and magical butterflies"- so if you're used to that being the general (and serious) theme of most Barbie movies, this show might catch you off guard at first (which I think has been the case with the negative reviewers on here.)

This show is funny & very clever. It appeals to young & old alike. We see Barbie deal with the real world like any 11" doll would do. Plus we get to meet new friends and learn more about her old ones. We even get to learn more about her pets and their thoughts and feelings about living with Barbie. We watch as Barbie over comes challenges, helps friends and even turns enemies into friends. It's the life you knew your own doll was living when you weren't around. And questions are answered. For instance: "How big is Barbie's closet?" "Where does Ken live?" "How does Barbie afford all these accessories."

The previous reviewer of this series unfortunately totally missed the point of this show. It is MAKING FUN OF the "OLD" stereotype of Barbie. It is NOT trying to say it is the way things should be. I have two girls (aged 7 and 3), and BOTH of them understand the humor (in different developmental stages). The 3 year old just thinks they're funny. My 7 year old laughs and asks questions and understands how a doll's life is nothing like real life.

The original reviewer's issue, it seems, is that she does not understand that and wants Barbie to be the shining example of how a girl should be.

I agree that previous Barbie movies have tried to put Barbie in a better life and showing values, but she still has an endless supply of money and is basically NEVER struggling to get the thing she wants (Except for not being GOOD ENOUGH at it or overcome the evil-doer). My two little girls would LOVE to ride horses all the time. They can't. So Barbie is a horrible role model, and Mattel should be shamed! I'm joking of course.

I actually applaud Mattel for allowing this take on Barbie to be made. They're making fun of themselves, and wonderfully so.