Review: Some LOLs, fewer surprises can be found in LOL Surprise! The Skate Dance Movie

My mom was a kindergarten teacher for many years, and one of the weird perks of that was getting intel on what the cool new fads were with kids. She'd often come home and ask, "Have you heard of [random toy]?" My answer was invariably a resounding "no" because I was not spending eight hours a day with a bunch of five year-olds. These days, she still provides on this front because of the kids she knows at her church, which I think might be how I have a cursory awareness of LOL Surprise! as a brand. I've definitely seen the toys at stores before -- spherical blind capsules with borderline creepy dolls inside. But it's not something I, as a 34 year-old man, know well.

(Note: it doesn't seem to be consistent across the brand if it's LOL or L.O.L. so I'm going with the former because it's easier to type.)

So LOL Surprise! The Skate Dance Movie, with its absolute mouthful of a title, is my true introduction to the franchise. These dolls, like many, are a little strange-looking, with proportions somewhere between bobble-heads and Funko Pops. Big heads and eyes, relatively smaller bodies. There are the tween characters who are taller and have hair that looks like hair. Then there are the babies who are super tiny (and very cute) and have hair that looks like plastic. It's one of the fun visual details that really make this feel like a world of toys come to life, like the plastic cut-out palm trees and boba drinks that look like the contents are just stickers wrapped around the cups. 

This movie hones in on Ali Dance, who -- appropriately for a doll, I think -- wants to do everything. Think Barbie, who has had every job under the sun. Ali, in this case, takes on the lead role in the ballet (called Swan Pond...LOL indeed) and as a skater in the upcoming Skate Fest, where she's trying to tackle the hardest skateboard trick in the world: the Feather Flip 180 Dragon 900. It's a classic conundrum for a girl who wants to do it all. She's got people counting on her for both performances, they land on the same day just mere hours apart, and she's striving to be perfect in every way.

But perfect isn't possible. And it certainly isn't fun. The way things escalate go about how you'd expect, with Ali leaving her friends and little sister (one of the background dancers in the ballet) high and dry as she completely fails to manager her time wisely, and spreads herself ever thinner. This leads to a breakthrough from a character named Hoops Cutie who's always asking Ali to play basketball with her: what's important is to have fun and do what you love. It doesn't matter if you're perfect. Hell, you don't even have to be good. The revelation that Hoops Cutie is horrible at basketball is great gag, and I think a great message for the audience that this movie is intended for. (I guess I'm assuming it isn't intended for 34 year-old men.)

The animation here isn't much to write home about, but it gets the job done. I love the color palette, which feels very 90s-inspired: a lot of pink, teal, powder blue. Patterns that look like they could've been pulled from movie theater carpets. Neon signs and wild fashion (the closest thing we have to a villain, Fancy Girl, wears some incredible triple-heart sunglasses that had me gagging). There are some fun visual flourishes here and there -- I especially liked the video tape filter that goes over some skating footage early in the film.

All in all, I had a pretty pleasant time watching this. I don't know if this is the typical quality of the franchise, but based on this, it might have its spot alongside more legacy doll-based series like Barbie and Strawberry Shortcake, which both have turned out some true hits during their long and storied careers. It's also great that this is available to watch on YouTube. Always nice when a movie is so easily accessible, especially one that goes down easy and has a positive message for young girls.

If you care to check it out for yourself, here you go: