A close look at Scala dolls
Posted by Huw,
In this article, the second in a short series looking back at the Scala dolls sets released in the late 1990s I examine the figures that came in them.
Until I started researching this article, hadn't realised that there were so many variations. There's only one male -- Christian -- but a multitude of both adult and juvenile females who differ in height, face and hair length/colour.
The instructions for the 1999 sets show a family consisting of father Christian, aka 'My dad', mother Olivia (below) daughters Emma and Maria, both of whom have blonde hair, and baby Thomas. Other characters, including friends of the daughters and an aunt, were also introduced.
I know wearing green shoes with red and orange is a crime against fashion but I couldn't find any other others to fit her because she has slightly larger feet than her daughters, as you might expect, so most of those we have are too small.
I think dad is wearing his daughter's trousers: I had to pull them down a bit to cover his ankles. I couldn't find any of his in our collection!
The adults stand about 15cm tall and the girls 13cm, so they are much smaller than Barbie and her like, who are around 29cm tall, I believe. Nevertheless, they dwarf minifigs.
Their shoes have anti-studs in the heels which allows them to be affixed to the baseplate (more of which in a later article).
All the figures have a typical Caucasian skin tone except for the one on the right here, Carla, who has slightly darker skin. Most of the girls have blonde hair, too, except Carla, and Andrea next to her.
Their bodies appear to be made from ABS. Their heads, however, are formed from a much more supple plastic which can be squashed easily using fingers. Because of this, their facial features are not particularly well-defined. They are well printed, though.
Poor Christian only has plastic hair but all the females have 'realistic' hair of various lengths. Being played with and time have not been kind to it in most cases, as you can see in the photos above. This version of Emma with short hair, below, is the only one with tidy hair that we have now.
Baby Thomas is a single piece of plastic with no articulation.
The others, however, have an impressive level of articulation in every joint you'd expect it except for the ankles and wrists.
The neck and waist rotate slightly and the shoulder, elbow, knee and thigh all move to allow realistic poses, like this one showing Christian after he slipped in the shower...
Dressing up dollies is a popular activity for little girls of course and LEGO created dozens upon dozens of outfits for them. Not only could you buy the dolls separately fully clothed, but there was also an extensive collection of sets consisting of nothing but clothing, such as 3140 Dancing Circle Dress for Girls and 3138 Fashion Wear for Ladies. Even Christian could expand his wardrobe with 3137 Casual Wear for Men.
There's nothing even remotely LEGO-like about anything shown in this article except the baby's pram wheels. However, they are not entirely incompatible: they can hold parts with a standard 318 bar in their hands.
The one thing they do have in common with regular LEGO is of course quality. The dolls are virtually indestructible, the joints are stiff enough to hold a pose but not so much that they can't be moved, and the clothing is extremely well-made.
In the next article I will examine the various connection methods uniquely employed by Scala parts including the distinctive 2x2 'flower' studs.
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65 comments on this article
Why does the baby have an older looking face than the adult dolls?
Thanks for the look at the Scala dolls, Huw. The articulation is impressive, but it is the quality of the clothes that really stands out to me. Those little sweaters look like they were hand made by a little Scala grandmother! Also, your daughters took great care of them:)
Christian may be smiling, but those crow's feet proclaim a hard life.
You know, Christian doesn't look any less creepy out of his sarcophagus.
I want to try those clothes on miniland figures.
"in a short series" :-O
I'd have thought Huwbot would demand at least one Scala article per day for a year ;-)
These would have been terrifying yet hilarious if they were included in either of the LEGO movies
So interest that they are slightly less than half a Barbie’s height! Would not have guessed.
The ability to attach them to baseplates was so unexpected...yet so very LEGO! Can’t wait to see a close-up of the soles.
Thank you for sharing these. So incredibly entertaining and informative.
I’m actually impressed those clothes still look that good after what must be the better part of three decades. Normally fabric in toys wears out, discolours, frays, but all their outfits still look fab
It’s truly something special but unfamiliar to visit Brickset and find an image of dolls on top of the front page. ;-)
These clothes indeed look very impressive. I’ve not seen anything like this for dolls before.
googled my name and nude pics and ended up here.. lol not really :D
LEGO trying to get on Barbie's turf wasn't that successful after all.
Those clothes !!!
When I was a kid my Mum used to make some of my clothes. Any left over material she would make a little matching outfit for my Sindy Doll.
I think it was comedian Peter Kay who did a sketch about his Nan knitting jumpers and making sensible corduroy trousers for Action Man.
Looking at these I think my Mum and Peter Kay's Nan were the designers for these !!
@MissJaneJetson said:
"So interest that they are slightly less than half a Barbie’s height!"
Scala: Hobbits of the Barbie world :~P
Out of curiosity were these the same scale as Galidor? Could he pop round to hang out with Christian?
These seem a similar size to Judy dolls. They were sold in Zodiac Toy Shop (UK) in the 80s. Any fellow Brits remember them ?
@bookmum said:
"Out of curiosity were these the same scale as Galidor? Could he pop round to hang out with Christian?"
Absolutely not. The Scala adult figure is 15cm and the average Galidor figure is about 20cm.
I couldn't find a link to the first article on Scala dolls.
There is only one male? In that case: I think Thomas is an unusual name for a baby girl!
@bookmum said:
"Those clothes !!!
When I was a kid my Mum used to make some of my clothes. Any left over material she would make a little matching outfit for my Sindy Doll.
I think it was comedian Peter Kay who did a sketch about his Nan knitting jumpers and making sensible corduroy trousers for Action Man.
Looking at these I think my Mum and Peter Kay's Nan were the designers for these !!"
My mum knitted a Superman costume for my Action Man!
@DavidGraham said:
"I couldn't find a link to the first article on Scala dolls."
I think he means this review: https://brickset.com/article/57318/review-3144-horse-stable
Not sure why, but the picture of the adults with baby in push-chair makes me think of the 50s cold war/nuclear testing videos
There's a link below in the related articles area, David.
@Reinier said:
"There is only one male? In that case: I think Thomas is an unusual name for a baby girl!"
LOL, I didn't include young Tom as he's just a lump of plastic, and a fairly unrealistic one, too :)
Cast them into the fire...
@TerryWright a knitted Superman outfit is just awesome !!
My sister had a Scala set, 3270, and we loved playing with it together. People like to hate on the line but having a doll house that you could totally rebuild and reconfigure in so many different ways was amazing.
My daughter has a lot of these, she played so much with it and it still looks as new. Very good quality.
@Huw said:
"There's a link below in the related articles area, David."
Wow, I've been reading Brickset for 10+ years now and had to go hunting for what you were talking about. I've never noticed that there's a Related Articles section below the comments! I never scroll down past the "Add a comment" box. Might be worth considering moving Related Articles up between the end of the current article and its comments section?
ahhh , just another fine look at Lego history, i like it .
Since the shoes have anti studs, could we please please please get a picture of a doll stuck to the side of a building with exposed studs? Like Christian on the side of the Palace Cinema tower 10232, or Doctor Strange's Sanctum Sanctorum 76108?
Still waiting for the "3220: My Dad" review, hopefully that is the conclusion to the short series.
^ Unfortunately we don't have 'My dad' but he differs from the father above in clothes only.
@Jelippo said:
"Why does the baby have an older looking face than the adult dolls?"
It is an old soul! :)
@MissJaneJetson said:
"So interest that they are slightly less than half a Barbie’s height! Would not have guessed.
The ability to attach them to baseplates was so unexpected...yet so very LEGO! Can’t wait to see a close-up of the soles.
Thank you for sharing these. So incredibly entertaining and informative. "
Galidor figures also attatch on base plates, even the McDonalds ones believe it or not... The clutch power is non existent but they slide over studs perfectly.
Which set is the green sweater from? Couldn’t find it in the database?
@Harmonious_Building said:
"Cast them into the fire..."
NO!!! Hasn't this review convinced you that those are some pretty high quality toys?
@wwward said:
"Which set is the green sweater from? Couldn’t find it in the database? "
3290 The Big Family House (The mother from The Big Family House came straight out of an episode of the original Dynasty.)
This is getting out of hand. Now there are five of them!
I actually think Lego's problem wasn't so much releasing a line of dolls, it clearly did well enough for them to continue with it for a few years, but rather their decision to create so many new parts in so many new colours, sometimes unique parts in unique colours just for one set. Most of the Scala parts were massive compared to existing Lego parts as well so we're talking a lot of logistics/warehousing to get this right.
I can't quite tell, but these look to be about the same scale as Dazzle Dolls, which my wife was very into when she was little (they were late 70's/early 80's).
Put them in the creator expert vehicles or the technic supercars
@Huw Please keep these articles coming!
Don’t forget, Christian has optional “tough clothes”.
“I don’t want to wear those clothes. They look terrible!”
“Tough.”
@Jelippo:
Poor little guy has been crawling in his hands and knees for how many decades now? That’ll put a lot of unnecessary wear and tear on your body. He’s got arthritis so bad his joints have all seized up!
@Rare_White_Ape:
Or out of his clothes...
@Huw
Do you know if there's any significance to the name "Scala" ? Is it just a word made up by Lego, or does it have a Danish meaning?
Also how is it pronounced?
Skay-la, Skah-la, or Skal-la? (or maybe Ee-vyl?)
I've no idea about the origin of the word but clearly LEGO likes it.
I pronounce it skah-la.
Scala means 'scale' in Danish according to Google. So it's almost like they couldn't actually think of a proper name...
I'd really like to see an article comparing figure heights with:
* Those 70's pre-minifig figures
* Original fixed-limb "mini-figure".
* Current mini-figure
* Original horse
* Current horse
* Fabuland figure
* Galidor figure
* Bionicle figure
* Technic figure
* Scala baby
* Scala adult
* Scala horse
* Belville baby
* Belville figure
* Belville horse
* Legoland big figs
* Minifigure clocks :)
Did I forget any?
I keep thinking of that video you might have seen where it compares starship sizes by starting with small ones and then zooming out until you see ridiculously sized ones like the Death Star and Halo.
@bookmum said:
"These seem a similar size to Judy dolls. They were sold in Zodiac Toy Shop (UK) in the 80s. Any fellow Brits remember them ? "
I had a pippa doll, I wonder if that was similar to your Judy?
That baby is frightening
@Flowerpotgirl from my doll research I believe the Pippa dolls came earlier. I discovered you could buy a doll from Debenhams in the 70s that was the same as the 80s ones called Judy (she had a different name in Debenhams but seems to be the same doll). I think Judy/Debenhams Doll was essentially an 'own brand' version of Pippa.
@PDelahanty:
Don't forget the various types of Duplo Figures, the Quatro Figure, Jack Stone figs, HO Scale people, Modulex figures, Homemaker Figure, Statue/Microfig (from Games), Trophy/Nanofig, minidoll, Brick-built Giant Man/Ares/Grawp, Buildable Star Wars figures, BrickHeadz, Mario, Plush Minifigs, "Retractable" pen figures, Watchband minifigs, Minifig babies, Minidolls, Minidoll kids, Disney storybook figs...
I'm sure there are more still.
Andrea has a wild haircut!
@PurpleDave said:
"Don’t forget, Christian has optional “tough clothes”.
“I don’t want to wear those clothes. They look terrible!”
“Tough.”
@Jelippo:
Poor little guy has been crawling in his hands and knees for how many decades now? That’ll put a lot of unnecessary wear and tear on your body. He’s got arthritis so bad his joints have all seized up!
@Rare_White_Ape:
Or out of his clothes..."
You must know that "3158: Christian in Tough Wear" is a set.
@Huw said:
"I've no idea about the origin of the word but clearly LEGO likes it.
I pronounce it skah-la."
Hold on what? I dont know what to make of this... my entire world has been flipped upside-down. I always read it as "skay-la"
Other than the baby, which looks kind of creepy, the others aren't too bad actually.
I can't be the only person who finds baby Thomas to be absolutely terrifying, right?
Aside from the face sculpts, LEGO did an amazing job with these dolls. The quality of the build and workmanship, as well as the design (and durability) of the joints is far superior to old Mego, Breyer (about the only 8" figures I own; a vet and a cowgirl), new Mego, or even things like the Zica Toys Yvonne/KC's Galloping Gals Gracie. Basically, anything else in the 8/1:9 range.
I think most of the Breyer riders have ball-jointed heads. But, I would like to see if that I could body swap to a Scala body. Better articulation, but not as fragile as Gracie (albeit, not as much articulation as the former). The Breyer riders don't sit in a saddle very well, and the wrist and elbows are flimsy. While Breyer recently gave the figures more doll-like headsculpts (which I don't like), they are still staying with the body used on the Brenda figure 45 years ago! I recently tried the vet (Laura) on a Yvonne/Gracie body, but the neck was a little too loose. It fit, however.
@PDelahanty:
@BrickTeller:
Bionicle figures grew significantly over time, not to mention the first year alone the Toa, Turaga, and McToran characters were very different sizes. I'm not sure what "LEGOLAND big figs" are (Miniland characters?), but this list is still missing the giant molded minifigs that stand about 20" tall, the brick-built giant minifig set, flashlight minifig keychains, luggage tags, large plush minifigs, human-sized minifig costumes, Build-a-Bob, Construct-a-Buzz/Zurg, Toy Story 3 tall figs, minifigs with short or midi legs, all the many characters sculptures and event co-builds produced by the model shops, Hagrid, big-figs, Gentle Giant SW minifig statues, Hallmark ornament minifigs, various Happy Meal characters (I know of Bionicle and LEGO Batman runs), and I think there were even some desk lamps that incorporated minifigs. I know Simon Liu scaled up Benny's Spaceship, Spaceship, SPACESHIP! to a Benny that's not covered here, but I don't remember what it is. I've go the one that has a retractable pen hidden in his neck, so it's not that. They never made a Benny clock minifig, either, but this was somewhere between the two.
@Jotahesse1:
They look terrible.
@magmafrost:
That's because the "a" is upside-down in Australia.
I don't think I've ever seen something from Lego as violently anti-Lego as this.
No thanks.
> Baby Thomas is a single piece of plastic with no articulation.
Thanks for the nightmares
So Brickset is making posts about dolls now? How about sticking to Lego?
I definitely agree with the general sentiment that these dolls were too far removed from the "LEGO System" or the creative design philosophy that goes with it to have been a good fit for the brand. At the same time, I can't help but wonder if LEGO could ever manage to find a way to reconcile "LEGO style" creative play with the sort of "dress-up play" that has given fashion dolls such lasting appeal among girls.
Having grown up as a huge fan of Bionicle, I have a great admiration for how that line (as well as subsequent ones like Hero Factory) were able to combine "action figure" style play experiences with a very LEGO-appropriate level of creative building potential. Since then, various other sets and MOCs have demonstrated how much possibility there is for posable LEGO "action figures" even with much less of a need for specialized parts than most "constraction" themes have had. So to me, it doesn't seem outside the realm of possibility that "buildable fashion dolls" that offer more "dress-up" play potential than the minifigure or mini-doll could also be very real possibility for the future.
It's not easy to find the perfect balance between those two styles of creative play, though. Fashion dolls typically use flexible doll hair and fabrics that can move in a lifelike manner, whereas both the traditional LEGO System and the Technic-based systems used in many "constraction" sets are based around more rigid components. This makes it hard to recreate many types of hairstyles and outfits without impeding posability.
Also, even the most heavily stylized fashion dolls typically feature bodies and clothing with curved, organic-looking contours. The blockier, more geometric designs of most LEGO parts are often not too well suited to this.
But I'm still committed to exploring various possibilities for creating brick-built "dolls", and hopeful that LEGO will do the same. And it would be especially advantageous for them to do so if the doll market experiences a resurgence like it did several years ago, when the Monster High brand opened toymakers' eyes to new directions that the category could take to draw kids' attention in a way that traditional fashion doll brands like Barbie were struggling with.
@Aanchir:
Bionicle did start out with a good mix of action figure and LEGO construction, but they lost their way with the CCBS switch. Not only did the scale get much bigger than it started out, but the construction became more like an action-oriented paper dolls.
And minidolls do kinda create that same paper doll experience. At that scale, real clothing is simply unfeasible for anything more complex than capes, but they've gone so crazy on different outfits for the main girls that a full collection probably beats the literal pants of what most kids ever got with paper dolls.
Real cloth is tricky, though. People give Mattel grief for how unrealistic the proportions are on their Barbie dolls, but the weird truth of it is that it's necessary. If they made the proportions realistic, the clothing wouldn't hang right. In scale, Barbie clothing is like being dressed in a sundress made of heavy canvas.
People don't make as big a fuss because it's hard to screw up a new car's self-image, but Hot Wheels cars do the same thing. What looks like an aggressive curve on a real sports car reads very differently when you reduce it to a few inches long, so they exaggerate the curves to make them more noticable.
An interesting article. I've never seen a 'live' set of Scala myself, even when I visited toy stores back in 1990s and 2000s. However I remember, that I saw the first pictures of Scala in Quelle catalogues.
I never saw Scala in UK shops back then. But I did see them in the catalogues....What size are the figures?