Watch the Queen Conquer: A Boo York, Boo York Nefera De Nile two-for-one!

Well, I mentioned buying this doll a really long time ago, and for some reason, I've just kept pushing off her review...I'm not really sure why, because I really love her and I'm glad to have her! Sometimes I just take so long to review things that I figure everyone has already made up their minds anyways, but then I remember that I really just run this blog for myself, so hey, who cares if newer things are flooding the shelves? Nefera deserves a review! 

I actually missed out on the original Nefera doll, because I'm kind of an idiot, in retrospect. I remember seeing her on shelves, and she even shelf-warmed around here, going on clearance when Zeller's (a former Canadian department store chain) was going out of business to make way for Target (which then also closed...). She was everywhere, she was cheap...and for some reason, I wasn't excited about her. Of course, now I wish I'd scooped up a dozen basic Nefera's, but we all have the one that got away, right? Thankfully, Mattel has finally given us a second Nefera doll, and while she's really different, and I would still love to have the original one, my collection feels a bit more complete with any Nefera at all in it!

But enough about me...Let's look at the queen of Boo York herself!

Sorry for the crummy box photos! I took these at night when I was really eager to open Nefera, but not eager enough to set up better lighting. The actual doll photos were taken during the daytime, so they're much better, I promise!

Anyways, this is the first regular doll I'm reviewing from the Boo York, Boo York line, but I can say that this box is consistent with the rest of the line. I generally really like the Monster High packaging, and though I don't keep anything in the boxes, I appreciate the design and the attention to detail, and this is no exception. My favourite part is definitely the Boo York skyline. All those cool, stylized skyscrapers with Astra's comet shooting over them? So cool!

This is Nefera, with everything that she comes with. She comes with a stand and a brush, and her diary is actually available online, so it doesn't come in the box. Now...I love this doll, and I think she's gorgeous, but this entire line is grievously overpriced in Canada. This doll costs $30-$35 in Canada, depending on where you buy it...and I really just don't think this is $35 worth of stuff. But then, the Scarnival line, which is definitely a "budget" line, is currently $26.97 at Wal-Mart, so maybe I'll have to adjust my expectations. ANYWAYS. This is not going to turn into me ranting about prices AGAIN, so...moving on! :D

Her stand and brush are silver, and have this texture that resembles facets, like the surface of the comet crystal.

Speaking of the comet crystal, Nefera comes with this purple triangle which doesn't really the resemble the crystal shard from the movie all that much, but I assume that's what it's meant to be. Even though it doesn't look like the piece from the movie, this shape does allow Nefera to hold it, and I imagine that's why the decision was made

Overall, I think this Nefera has a pretty simple, but striking look. No, she's not wearing a grand ball gown or anything like that, but I think they still managed to make her look gala-appropriate and very fancy, even if I still don't necessarily think she is quite worth her price tag. I love the deep teal that is repeated all over her outfit, and the shiny gold of her breast plate/corset is really eye-catching.

Her face is, of course, stunningly gorgeous! As I said, I don't have the original Nefera, but there are definitely some differences between the facial screening on these two dolls. The eyes are a bit wider on this new doll, and the eyebrows have a bit more of a sweeping arch to them, which gives her a different look. The eyes make her look a bit less severe, but weirdly I think the sharp arch of the brows takes her right back into fierce b**** territory, so I think it balances out. Her makeup is really very dramatic, with gold and teal shadow going right up to her brows, and thick, swirling black eyeliner. Her lips are a deep, brick red, and something about this lip colour doesn't quite work for me. I like it on its own, but with this look and colours in the outfit, I'm not 100% sure it goes. I think I would've liked for Monster High to take it all the way and giver her lips so dark they were almost black, maybe even a super deep purple to play off her eyes.

Her outfit is actually pretty simple, consisting of a slim-fitting dress with a gold breast plate over top. We'll have a closer look at both of these things in a minute!

Her shoes are translucent teal, and have snakes wrapping all the way up her legs. These shoes are a bit flimsy because of how delicate the snakes are, so I'm probably going to leave the elastic bands on them to keep them in place.

On her head, she wears a large black headpiece featuring snakes and more crystal shards. It comes attached with plastic tags, but I snipped these and it stays on perfectly well without them. I'm glad it doesn't require those tags to stay on her head, it makes her look a little more versatile! Nefera actually wears this outfit in various combinations throughout the movie, and because all the pieces on the doll are removable, it lets you mix and match just like she does in the film.

Her hair is beautiful, soft and smooth and a gorgeous colour. I believe the base of it is the same colour as Nefera's original hair, but instead of gold tinsel, it's shot through with a rich copper tinsel. She also has some black streaks along her hairline, and one large white streak just off centre of her part. The white streak is so prominent and different that I actually expected it to play a part in the movie somehow...but nope, just a new hairdo!

Her earrings are large, gold dangles, with snakes curling up towards her ears and crystal shards dangling below them. I wish these were the same shiny gold as her breast plate honestly. I don't love the mix of the two different golds, but maybe the shinier, harder plastic doesn't work as well for earrings? I imagine the post might be pretty thin and brittle, so I get it, but it would have looked better, I think.

This thing is so shiny, it's tricky to photograph! It's pretty elaborate, with snakes, crystal shards, and what looks like wrapped bandages as the base. It just clips around her waist from the front, and admittedly, it makes me a bit nervous every time I take it on and off. The plastic is pretty rigid, and I don't think it would stand up to less careful fingers taking it on and off a lot. This might be the kind of thing I'd remove before giving the doll to a younger child, or at least teach them how to be gentle with it!

And without the headpiece and the breast plate, we see how Nefera looks throughout most of the movie, and it gives us a better look at the dress itself. It's a tube dress with an asymmetrical hem, and a sort of halter neck in black that continues down the front. The dress itself is shimmery and very dark, though not quite black, with a sort of abstract snake print all over it. I also haven't mentioned yet that Nefera is "wearing" gloves, which of course means that her arms are molded and colour to look like she is wearing teal elbow-length gloves. I'm not really bothered by this, because I don't intend on redressing this Nefera, but I totally get why it does bother people. And to add insult to injury, even if you do have the original Nefera, her arms aren't actually compatible with this version. All of the Boo York dolls have shimmer added to their skin, which has the effect of lightening them slightly, while also making them shimmer, and there is a notable difference if you try to use original Nefera's forearms on this doll. Which is interesting, because Nefera has always had a shimmering golden skintone, so I'm not sure what exactly the point of adding different shimmer was...but hey, I'm not Mattel!

And while we're talking about her arms, yes, she does have the mark on her upper arm that the original doll has. According to Garrett Sander, this is something that Nefera was born with, though he's also referred to is as a scar. So, some kind of birthmark/birth scar. I think this is a really interesting thing to add to Nefera's doll, especially considering it was hidden under a wrap on her first doll. I'd love to learn more about this, since I bet Nefera, who is so concerned with perfection, may not be completely in love with this mark on her body. I always love the details Monster High sprinkles in to their characters, and this is no exception.

And there she is, the true queen of Boo York! It's hard to deny that Nefera is a striking doll, with a face that really just grabs you and holds on. Is this version of her perfect? No, she's definitely not, and I would make a few changes if I was in charge, but overall, I'm very happy to have her in my collection!

I mean, right? She's positively regal! And yeah, maybe she's not the nicest person in the world...but hey, not everyone can be nice, right?

Now that we've had a look at Boo York Nefera De Nile in doll form, I have a little addition to this post! Way, way back in July, a friend of mine went to San Diego Comic Con, and offered to pre-order the Monster High exclusive's for me. I jumped at the chance, and decided to go with the Nefera vinyl figure as I wasn't really excited about Valentine and Whisp (a decision I regret a weeeeeee bit...). So a few weeks after the convention, I received a very exciting box in the mail!

The outer box is pretty awesome all on its own, with the glow of the sunset illuminated the Boo York skyline.

Inside, Nefera is in a pretty cool box that allows her to be viewed from all sides even if you don't decide to open her. I did open her, but I also didn't want to destroy the package, so I extracted her carefully with a craft knife so if I want, I can slide her back in the box!

And here she is! I really love all the vinyl figures, and this one is no exception. She's an adorably stylized version of her doll self.

See? Adorable! The biggest difference is the hair colour, since the vinyl's hair is kind of a purple-teal duochrome instead of straight teal, which is actually gorgeous. Can you imagine if they could come up with a way to do this exact hair on a doll? It would be amazing!

There's not too much else to say about the vinyl figure honestly, since they don't have any articulation or anything, but the important thing is: she is adorable! All of the vinyl figures are, and I just wish I could find them easier here in Canada. We are SO behind on them!

And that's it for this Boo York Nefera De Nile two-for-one deal! What do you think of this version of Cleo's big sister? If you have the original, how does she compare for you? I know that personally, I'm just glad that Nefera finally got a second doll. I'm sure it's been killing her not to be the star of the show for so long! Also, what did you think of Boo York, Boo York? I actually loved it, and thought the songs were hilarious, but in a good way. It was a fun change from the usual!

As always, thanks for reading, and stay tuned! I've got more coming up soon, promise!