Doll Names : Orginality vs Characters

i like character dolls but an original would be just as cool~ i originally wanted twingkey but they don't have the themed one anymore =( i'm kind of lazy in the fact that i don't wanna look for clothes, hair, make-up, etc... i just wanna buy one that pretty much all done up already ><

 

If I like an anime series enough, like Angelic Layer, or even The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, I'll want to have a doll of my favorite character (or create one if there isn't one already made). With my own Dollfies, even if I'd never read the books or seen the show, I'd still want a doll. But if I did make my own doll, which I eventually hope to do, I wouldn't really mind if someone used the name I chose. And I guess I'd never mind too much if they based their doll on mine, as long as they were saying that they saw "a doll that looked like this..." even if they didn't know it was mine. I tend to do that with some other aspects of my life, like writing.

I also really want to make a doll of the Captain Teletha "Tessa" Testarossa from Full Metal Panic (love that show!) since she's such an cute character.

 

I had zero interest in dolls (and frankly, most of them repelled me!) but I liked the anime Angelic Layer. I fell in love with Hikaru, even though she was in effect a small telepathically-controlled robot. I thought it would nice to find a Hikaru doll or even figurine, but I couldn't find one in any of the usual okatu stores. However, at each Con or expo there was always at least one table of dolls. I noticed that many of the dolls (like the vampires) were modified, and realized that I could probably have someone modify a "stock" doll to create my dream girl. You can tell I was hooked.
So far, I am laying the groundwork and doing the research, but to get back to your question, I guess I would have to answer like many other doll owners have before me: I didn't choose her, she chose me! On the other hand, by having her highly customized, she will be a unique individual, and over time her story will have less and to do with the original Angelic Layer. By the way, I have no interest dolls of any other character in the anime.
Have I become doll wierd, or what!

 

To owners of these dolls: Why do you enjoy character based dolls? Have you also had a character based doll that ended up turning into an original?

I have a couple of character dolls now, and I have a couple others planned. Honestly, I love character dolls for the very same reason I tend to RP and write canon in fandoms...there are some characters who I just click with, and who I find I can most easily slip into the mindset of. Once in a while, one of those muses gets far enough to the point where they act of their own accord - they tell ME what to write, in a way. Those are the sort of muses that get dolls. XD' The ones who I feel just need their own expression, physical in my home.

My Sylar doll started as a character doll - but has long since twisted into my plotline, my 'canon.' He's still Sylar from Heroes - make no mistake about that - but this version of his character is very much so my own.


To owners of these dolls: Why do you enjoy original dolls? Do you find it distressing or upsetting when people emulate your original doll or copy his/her name without asking? Or do you feel names are just names and are up for grabs.

...On the other hand, I am a writer, and when I create a character, they become near and dear to me. I'm not mean about names if they're relatively commonplace...if they're a name that I didn't make up myself, I don't really mind if someone uses the same name. Now, if someone else used the name "Batnavalli," I might be a bit upset - because I made that one up. XD' But "Claudia" or "Gypsy?" Not so much.

I've never had anyone copy the character of any of my dolls...I suppose I would be a little upset if it was obvious and direct, but if they were only similar in appearance, I wouldn't take it too personally.

 

I lean more towards original dolls. In fact, every doll I plan to own will be original, as is my doll right now. There is just something more pleasing about having a little part of you in the doll, something you created special just for them, rather than create them after somebody else's mind child for the sake of fandom.

Now, if someone were to copy my doll, I would be deeply upset. I try to be original and unique, and once funds have wavered in my direction more, I think I can attempt to do this. But if someone took his name, his likeness, his personality, I would feel personally robbed from something that makes me feel ultimately happy. It would be like taking a part of my brain, or trying to steal a precious memory. My doll means a lot to me, and for someone to copy him and try to make him like their own baby, would be like mindset kidnapping.

Even if they were a fan of my doll. Even if they wanted to be just like me. I don't like sounding mean, but I would not want it.

 

I do love original dolls because they come straight from my imagination. I have to stop and think, use my creativity to come up with a fitting personality, name, and background. I think it's one of the fun parts in first getting a doll.

Of course, I would upset if ever someone would copy my doll. I would be amazed though if the first name AND last name were the same, and it was a matter of just pure coincidence. It would be messy to go through like the situation of who really is the original. I feel that these names that I think up are made for my dolls and no one else's, if someone else would like to name there's the same way than at least they should ask.

 

I would never buy a doll for the sole purpose of having it look like or be an existing anime/manga character. Even if I got a Johnny Depp Minimee or something, he would be an OC that just happens to look like Johnny Depp, he wouldn't actually be Johnny Depp himself. I would much prefer to create an original character for my doll, or buy a doll to fit an OC I've already created than to buy a doll and be like "This is L from Deathnote, same face, same clothes, same personality." I think it's more fun to actually design your character the way you want it to be, giving them a style and personality of their own. However, I don't think there's anything wrong with your OC doll cosplaying an anime character for fun every once in a while either. :]

 

I guess I could say I'm on the fence! I have mostly original dolls but I do also have a few dolls loosely based on existing characters. I think both are equally fun to have and both give a good opportunity to use your imagination.

Original characters are the perfect way to make the characters from your own story or art, real so to speak. It's like taking something you've put on paper in 2-d and bringing it into a 3d reality. You can tweak and develop as you please, changing things as you go. And since it is your character you also have the oppurtunity to create the full personality and the name that goes with it! This comes easy to some but to others it is extremly difficult as it involes a lot of planning and thinking about everything. and it can be pretty difficult to come up with a full history for someone in a short amount of time!

Character dolls have a lot of the personality right there just waiting for you to take it and run with it! They are great to have if you really love a specific character from something and would love it in 3d. They are also great if you have a hard time coming up with ideas. You can take that prexisting character and tweak it little by little until you're happy with it! Character dolls are highly recognizable. Of course though one must keep in mind that many people have preconcieved ideas of how characters like say L from Deathnote should act and sometimes may be upset by your version.

Either way both have ups and downs. I can't really say I have any qualms about either. As long as you enjoy them, I say go for it!

This I totally understand! and believe me, I'm happy to hear other people have done the same as I have, taking a character and tweaking it to be our own, while still being recognizable.

I have both character dolls and originals and though my characters dolls may have the same name as the character they have been changed in ways to suit the storyline they have been integrated into! Whether its changing their appearance or their background somehow I make them my own. I think there is still a lot of imagination that can go into character dolls, even if they are based on an existing form.

This to me is extremely important! I am a bit obsessive about finding the perfect names for my original dolls. sure there may be people that may have the same first or last name. (take Kim for example, possibly one of the most common surnames in Korea!) I know A lot of people have it but I still use it along with their other names to create one that is meaningful to them and accurate to their background. Call me wierd, but I can spend months looking for the perfect name. A name is one of the most important parts of a doll's identity But that doesn't mean you need to go overboard in choosing a name either. Don't worry too much if someone else may have the first name, or if your creation is totally unique. Of if you've seen the last name already on the boards. As long as the meaning suits your character and you came up with it on your own, don't be afraid to use it. there are probably hundreds of people named Blair or Daniel in the world, or people with the last name Yamamoto or Kim. its all in how you combine the names and how the meanings connect with your dolls!

anyway just my two cents

 

To owners of these dolls: Why do you enjoy character based dolls? Have you also had a character based doll that ended up turning into an original?

if you dont count my Ville Valo MNM, i dont have my first character doll yet. the MNM doesnt interact with my resin family...he's a "sit on the shelf and look good" doll. the rest of my boys are all original characters...but ive just recently given in to the need to own a doll based off L from DeathNote. he's not here yet, but i can see him easily able to fit in with the rest of my boys, even if he obviously wont be part of the same "storyline." if someday in the future i decide he's better suited to be a different character, i'll change him. but for now, im really excited to have my own chibi-L! X3

To owners of these dolls: Why do you enjoy original dolls? Do you find it distressing or upsetting when people emulate your original doll or copy his/her name without asking? Or do you feel names are just names and are up for grabs.

my opinions on my boys names...

Alexander and David are obviously common names and anyone can use them...however if another David Riley or Alex Black showed up i might be upset. Ryuji and Soshi are names i found on a public website, another couple up for grabs. my Angels Lucifer, Uriel and all the future ones i have planned are angels existing in religious mythology...anyone who is familiar with those stories can use those names....no big deal. im certainly not the first to use them and i wont be the last.

Wyn is a different story. i made his name up. the full version is Naerwyn...that name took me a long time to come up with, and i love its meaning...if a doll suddenly came up with that name id be pretty sure they got it from me, and yeah, id totally be upset about it.

 

(writing this, though I have no doll yet, )

I enjoy originals, because I can't have children. No seriously, I'm very sure I can't. But it's not because of that.
I have like 300-400 original characters. A lot of them are from stories I've started to write or comics i planned. And of course do i have several just in my head, waiting for a story. But since I have so many I need to "use" it's getting disturbing and many of them are just drawn, but some are so hazy I want other ways to let them live on. This is why I enjoy dolls.
I don't mind character dolls, but as of many other things, I need to connect to the dolls, which I can't if I'm not the one creating and designing the character. Originals end up being my children, characters from anime, film, whatever, doesn't connect to me. I'm like that with all fan art stuff. I can have some 'cause they're cute, but I don't enjoy having them (there's an exception for posters and thing I can use, like pens)
So basically, it's 'cause original characters are my babies. XD
And if someone clones my babies, of course I get upset. But if it's just a name used i don't mind. All my characters (except some demons) have normal names, so it's bound to be someone with the same name, character or real person. So names doesn't matter to me. What matters if the personality and past is the same as my character. If it is I get really upset.

 

(Waiting on my first doll)

I love originals because I love meeting new people!
On the forums here, If I find someone's doll who seems interesting to me, I tend to go bck and look at other pictures of this persons particular doll.
Sure, I love looking at character dolls as well...but they don't appeal to me in the same way.

My boy who is on the way at the moment is a RP character I have had for a while and although I consider him my newest character, I feel he is one of my more developed boys.
I am also saving for my main RP girl who I have had for 9 years (Oh my goodness! Thats the first time I've counted it up!) and I feel she is closer to me than even some of my family (We're not a very close family to be fair anyway)

I think the appeal of bjds IS being able to bring your own character into the real world more.

I dont think I would ever spend this much money on a fandom because my tastes are always changing, and so are my characters tastes~

 

though i posted back in 2007 alot has changed so i thought i'd update.

To owners of these dolls: Why do you enjoy character based dolls? Have you also had a character based doll that ended up turning into an original? i really really love character dolls, cause it's like a really awesome an action figure that i can really play with and design a little bit myself. but i also love fanfiction to death. XD

my current character dolls consist of,
baby kisame
baby kyuubi
puki luffy
puki franky
puki cammie
puki faye

planned:tobais from animorphs 1st grader kisame, heck of a lot more puki one piece. and puki jet. baby zetsu, baby kakuzu. lot's of character dolls. i love them so much.

To owners of these dolls: Why do you enjoy original dolls? Do you find it distressing or upsetting when people emulate your original doll or copy his/her name without asking? Or do you feel names are just names and are up for grabs.

i have several of my own made up character dolls, and really i see things i like and i work with the dolls to come up with the characters. i try and find names that fit the dolls, and their personalities. i pull them out of baby books. i have no rights to my dolls names, i don't care if others use them too.

on the note of coping characters, my freind i, in our last doll talk, realised that we both have planned a fire weilding austrailian aboriginy. neither of us had talked about these characters before.

i made mine up on a whim for my heliot. neither of us accused the other of stealing their character. on the contray we laughed it up and loved it. i mean what are the chances of that one? seriously. lol. besides if someone wanted to copy one of my dolls it would take more work than probably what is was worth to the person. lol. at that point i'd be flattered.

 

I name my doll depending on the character they are representing :3
And those characters were created by me for the fun of it.... They are my original characters..... I named them the way I wanted and with names that fitted them.

I saw some of the names on other Characters/BJD and it does not bother me as it is quite normal.... like my name is "Original" but a lot of people still have it :C

But it would bother me if the name was used on a character that looks like mine :<

 

I think you've got a valid point on that one.

All of my current dolls are original characters, from a story I've been working on for ages now. They've been around long enough that I'm not worried too much about them changing a lot more from this point. My one incoming doll is shaping her own character while I wait for her (she can't reasonably join the current family, since she's a different size).

Now, that said, I AM currently idly considering doing two "fandom" characters now. I've been toying with the idea more and more over the past month or two, and I might actually set up a Minimee order to bring them to fruition. THAT being said... I've loved these characters for 15 years. (I'm not kidding, it was 1994 when I first discovered the show and fell in love with it.) I do have to wonder, fifteen years down the road, if those who are currently in love with Death Note will still have that same fondness for L they do now, or if they'll look at the doll and wonder, "What was I thinking?"

(I'm not questioning those who have L, or any other character, directly, though. This is just a thought I've had. I'm not sure if it's unusual for me to stick with a show or characters for 15 years and have no doubt that it's not going to change; I've had other shows I've liked before and since but wouldn't necessarily want to "immortalize" them as doll characters either. Though... Big Bird BJD anyone? And no, that's not the character I'm thinking of doing, it would just be hilarious.)

 

lol the new euclase would be funny for that. XD i'm getting close with my tobais doll. he will be bird and feather covered.

 

I enjoy making original characters more. I think anyone could do a decent copy of an already existing idea or concept. Making up something completely original is, well...original! Although I think it would be fun to make a character of someone who you really like or admire, or someone who you think would be fun to make! But of course this day and age nothing is TRULY original anymore. Ideas are taken from everywhere and everything, and influence everything we do, say, think....everything.

 

I don't think I'll ever get a character doll (I don't even like to do fanart, most of the time), but I still like looking at other peoples' and understand the difficulties of doing one.

All of my characters are original, and their names are kind of uncommon -except Lulu- (I "made them up", but y'know, the whole 'no originality left' thing) and I don't think any current dolls on DOA share their names...
Nayo, Lye, iiru, Kellion, Zafael (and Lulu, but her name's pretty common)
I have no idea how I'd react if someone's doll had one of those names :/
I'd either get kind of upset or I'd be like lolletsbefriends.

 

I've never been any good at coming up with original characters until I saw BJD's, and now they're arriving in my head and bringing cohorts and relatives with them! So far, all my plans are for original characters, but I wouldn't necessarily object to having a character doll. It'd end up with my own version of it's personality anyway, in the end.

The name thing is kind of a concern, to me. None of the names my dolls have are so unusual that it would bother me if someone else had the same name (I'm an Amy, so I'm used to knowing tons of people with the same name), I think Riddick is the most unusually named of them all - all but one of my dolls have last names too and it'd be unlikely anyone would choose the same first and last name for them. My characters names kind of came to me, with the last names being chosen later, but I had the first names pretty quickly. Unfortunately, I keep running across dolls on the forum with the same names I'd chosen! Sometimes for the same sculpt! I think I've seen a grand total of 4 Dolkot Days on the board, and one of them was named Crow, which I discovered after I'd chosen Day as the sculpt for MY Crow. Fortunately they look completely different, the other I've only seen in a few photos, and there's not any chance of confusion. I briefly considered trying to find another sculpt, or changing his name, but in the end I stuck with my plans, he wouldn't have been Crow any other way and that's not his "real" name anyway. I am trying to figure out what to do about the Puki I'm planning to get, though. She was going to be "Sprocket" but I think there's another on here with that name. I'm not entirely sure what to do about that - I need to keep thinking for a new name, I guess.

 

I've chosen to try and get originals, in that I'd style the dolls after my characters.
I think this is partly because I don't have the chance to dress like them, and partly because I can't draw very well.
I also just like making minature clothes, so I guess my choice isn't surprising. XD

 

Sure, but the dolls can ALSO change! You can change them as often as your fandom tastes change... that is the beauty of these customizable things.