Monster High

Monster High features a variety of fictional characters, many of them being students at the titular high school. The female characters are called "ghouls", and the male characters are called "mansters". When the franchise was first introduced, the characters were generally the sons and daughters of monsters that have been popularized in fiction; in later years, it expanded to also feature characters inspired by other various types of mythical creatures, such as figures from folklore, mythology, and pop culture.

The franchise's official website at the time listed characters in four categories: "original" – the main characters who were introduced the earliest, "ghouls" – the female characters, "mansters" – the male characters, and "Frightmares" – characters who are half-centaur and half-monster.[9] The original characters are:

A group of people cosplaying as Monster High characters at San Diego Comic-Con 2011

• Frankie Stein (voiced by Kate Higgins from 2010 to 2016, Cassandra Lee Morris from 2016 to 2018 and iris menas from 2022 onward)[10] is the daughter of Frankenstein's monster and his bride. She is the central character of the franchise. She has white hair with black streaks and light, mint-green skin. Frankie is a simulacrum, meaning that her body is made of many different parts. She is clumsy, sweet, and always kind to others. She has a crush on Neighthan Rot. In the series, she used to date Jackson Jekyll and Holt Hyde, but this is different in the diaries, where both characters are in a relationship with Draculaura instead. In the first two incarnations of the franchise Frankie uses she/her pronouns, while in the 2022 reboot they are non-binary and use they/them pronouns.
• Draculaura (voiced by Debi Derryberry from 2010 to 2018[11] and Courtney Lin from 2022 onward) is a vampire who is the daughter of Dracula. She is in a relationship with Clawdeen's older brother, Clawd Wolf. She is a vegetarian who faints at the sight of blood.[12] The diaries show that she used to date Jackson Jekyll and Holt Hyde. She has fangs and typically dresses in pink, black and white.
• Cleo de Nile (voiced by Salli Saffioti[13] from 2010 to 2018 and Kausar Mohammed from 2022 onwards) is the daughter of the mummy pharaoh Ramses de Nile, and is 5842 years old at the start of the series. She is the captain of the "fearleading" squad. Cleo prefers to accessorize with light-gold bandages or mummy wrappings. She is based on Cleopatra, while her older sister, Nefera de Nile, is based on Nefertiti. She is the queen of the social scene and has a boyfriend named Deuce Gorgon.
• Clawdeen Wolf (voiced by Salli Saffioti from 2010 to 2018 and Gabrielle Nevaeh Green from 2022 onward[11]) is the daughter of a werewolf. She is described as outgoing and sweet. She likes fashion. She has a bit of a temper at times when messed with, but can easily control it when coaxed properly. Her wolf ears are pierced in multiple places. In the 2016 reboot of Monster High, she develops mutual feelings for Raythe.
• Lagoona Blue (voiced by Laura Bailey from 2010 to 2015,[11] Larissa Gallagher from 2016 to 2018 and Valeria Rodriguez from 2022 onwards) is the daughter of a sea monster. Lagoona is from "Down Under" and speaks with an Australian accent. She can talk with water animals. She is in a relationship with Gillington "Gil" Webber.

Monster High dolls

The original line of Monster High dolls released in 2010. From left to right: Clawdeen Wolf, Lagoona Blue, Cleo de Nile, Deuce Gorgon, Frankie Stein, and Draculaura.[note 1]
Type	Fashion doll
Inventor(s)	Garrett Sander
Company	Mattel
Country	United States
Availability	2010–2018, 2020–present
Slogan	"(Where) Freaky Just Got Fabulous!" (2010–2011) "Be yourself, be unique, be a monster!" (2011–2016, 2022—present) "How Do You Boo (Be Out Of The Ordinary)?" (2016–2019) "Everyone Is Welcome!" (2017–2020)

Fashion dolls were the first franchise product to be released, with the media and other merchandise following soon after.[17] The first line, which included the original six characters, was released in 2010.[18][19][20] Mattel was experimenting with a new business strategy which consisted of launching a new franchise by releasing the toy first—without a "traditional entertainment property first"—and then following up with the media and entertainment.[17] The original packaging boxes were designed by Garrett Sander himself.[21] According to a social media post made by Sander in 2020, the very first prototypes of the dolls during its development were made using head molds from another Mattel doll line that was never officially released, bodies from Barbie collector dolls, and with some accessories from My Scene dolls. A good amount of the initial design remained unchanged, but the actual dolls ended up looking drastically different.[22]

Over 750 different dolls have been released since its 2010 launch.[23] They vary in size, features, materials used, type of packaging, types of accessories they come with, country of manufacture, etc. Most of them are about 10.5 in (270 mm) tall. Some dolls, particularly the ones which were released a long time ago or in limited quantity, are rare, collectible, and therefore expensive.[20] Most Monster High dolls were marketed to children as toys to play with, but some "collector's edition" dolls, priced higher and aimed at an older audience, were also made.[24]

In 2016, Monster High underwent a reboot, which was likely an attempt to make the brand appeal to a younger age category.[25] The sales were low that year,[26] and the line was eventually quietly discontinued in 2018.[27] In 2020, however, the franchise made its comeback when two new premium-priced collector dolls—dubbed "Skullector" and inspired by characters from the horror movies It and The Shining—were made available for purchase just in time for that year's Halloween.[28] In 2021, a new set of two Skullector dolls inspired by characters from the movie Beetlejuice was launched exclusively through the "Mattel Creations" section of Mattel's website[29] alongside a doll inspired by the film Gremlins 2: The New Batch.[30] In 2022, Mattel presented a new Monster High line called "Haunt Couture" (wordplay on "haute couture") which consisted of five new collector dolls: the five main characters of Frankie Stein, Clawdeen Wolf, Draculaura, Cleo de Nile and Lagoona Blue. They featured details such as rooted eyelashes and were priced at $75, and similarly were only available through the website.[31] On Friday, May 13, 2022, Mattel released a new "Booriginal Creeproductions" line of Monster High dolls which were a tribute to the original 2010 line. It featured four of the main characters dressed in their original outfits and packaged in boxes that took heavy inspiration from the original packaging. They were priced at $25 each and at first available exclusively at Walmart outlets in the United States, and then also worldwide through the "Mattel Creations" section of the Mattel website.[32] They were aimed at older consumers who grew up with the original dolls prior to their 2018 discontinuation.[33][34]

Various other Monster-High-branded products have been released: they include collectible vinyl figurines, Halloween costumes, plushies,[35] stationery,[36] children's clothing, accessories,[37] and makeup,[38] perfume,[39] and more. In February 2022, American fashion designer Maisie Wilen collaborated with Mattel to create a pair of earrings inspired by one of the main Monster High characters' style; they were available for $50 exclusively through the "Mattel Creations" section of the Mattel website.[40][41] In April 2022, Mattel collaborated with Hot Topic on a clothing collection inspired by the aesthetics of the franchise.[42]

Monster High: Kowa Ike Girls (Japanese: モンスター・ハイ こわイケガールズ, romanized: Monsutā Hai Kowa Ike Gāruzu; Monsutā Hai and Gāruzu being transliteration of "Monster High" and "Girls", respectively) is an 8-episode series of 3-minute Japanese animated shorts produced by Shougakukan Music & Digital Entertainment,[50] and animated at Picona Creative Studio.[50][51] The shorts were broadcast as a part of TXN's morning children's television programming block Oha Suta beginning on October 22, 2014.[52] Mattel Japan's official YouTube account later released the shorts online.

The theme song, simply titled "Monster High" (Japanese: モンスター・ハイ, romanized: Monsutā Hai), was sung by Japanese teen idol girl band Amorecarina, featuring Kaede (from another idol girl band, Chu-Z) as a rapper. It was included in Amorecarina's debut single of the same name, along with an instrumental version.[53]

The Kowa Ike Girls shorts were released in Japanese only.

Video games based on the franchise were released to accompany the audiovisual media.

The first game released was Monster High: Ghoul Spirit for the Nintendo DS and the Wii consoles on 25 October 2011, which includes a special "Ghoulify" feature for the Nintendo DSi. The game revolves around the player being the new 'ghoul' in school and must work their way through activities and social situations to finally be crowned 'Scream Queen'.

Another video game for Nintendo DS and Wii titled Monster High: Skultimate Roller Maze was released in November 2012. This game allowed players to experience the Monster High sport - Skultimate Roller Maze. Teams compete their way through a hazardous maze of obstacles.

The third video game for the Wii, Wii U, Nintendo DS, and Nintendo 3DS named after Monster High: 13 Wishes was released in October 2013. In this game, players take on the role of Frankie Stein who must free her friends from a magical lantern by collecting thirteen shards of a magic mirror.

Mobile apps Ghoul Box and Sweet 1600 are available on iTunes for the iPad and iPhone devices. The Monster High website has also released a series of catacomb-themed web games: "trick or trance", "phantom roller" and "scary sweet memories". In November 2015, Monster High: New Ghoul in School was released for the Xbox 360, PC, PlayStation 3, Wii U, and Wii.[54] The PC version was de-listed on Steam in 2017.

Lisi Harrison, a Canadian author known for writing popular book series; The Clique and The Alphas, wrote some young adult novels based on the franchise using a different fictional universe than the web series and deal with the Regular-Attribute Dodgers (RADs) and their struggles with love, social life, school and not to be outed as monsters to humans.

Mattel released Harrison's first Monster High novel on 26 September 2010. The book revolves around Frankie Stein and Melody Carver. The second book in the series, The Ghoul Next Door, was released at the end of March 2011[55] and features chapters on Cleo de Nile.

The third book featuring Clawdeen Wolf is titled Where There's a Wolf, There's a Way and was released on 29 September 2011. The fourth novel titled Back And Deader Than Ever was released on May 1, 2012[56] and features Draculaura. Another Monster High book called Drop Dead Diary was released on January 19, 2011; it was written by a pseudonymous author Abaghoul Harris.[57]

Author Gitty Daneshvari has written a Ghoulfriends series focusing on Monster High characters Venus McFlytrap, Robecca Steam, and Rochelle Goyle. The four books include: Ghoulfriends Forever, Ghoulfriends Just Want To Have Fun, Who's That Ghoulfriend? and Ghoulfriends 'Til the End .

A book series by Nessi Monstrata was released covering five of the main franchise characters.

A book series by Misty Von Spooks was released that featured the Generation 2 franchise characters.

Monster High has some controversy and criticism, citing that the dolls' unrealistic bodies, often revealing outfits, and characters' focus on romantic relationships were a bad influence on young children.[96][97] They were criticized for being "hyper-sexualized" and reinforcing gender stereotypes about women; it was even implied that children could develop low self-esteem and eating disorders due to the presentation of unattainable body types.[95]

Inspired by the commercial success of Monster High, other toy manufacturers — namely some of the biggest competitors in the toy industry which is the field of franchise owner Mattel[98] — launched their own toy lines with a similar premise and/or aesthetic. In 2012, MGA Entertainment launched Bratzillaz (House of Witchez), a spin-off of the Bratz brand;[99] it featured a similar theme centered around the paranormal, and was seen as MGA's attempt at capitalizing off of the success of Monster High.[100] The same year, MGA also launched Novi Stars, a sci-fi-themed line of fashion dolls that featured extraterrestrial humanoids.[99][101] In 2013, The Bridge Direct launched Pinkie Cooper, which featured a humanoid Cocker Spaniel of the same name; in an interview with CNN Money, analyst Gerrick Johnson named both Monster High and Novi Stars as "competitors that come closest" to the dog-headed fashion doll.[102] Also in 2013, Hasbro launched My Little Pony: Equestria Girls as an anthropomorphized spin-off of the 2010 incarnation of the main My Little Pony franchise;[103][104] it featured the counterparts of My Little Pony characters in human-like silhouettes with non-human skin colors; it was regarded as Hasbro's take on Monster High.[105]