Well, would you look at that – actual nail art on this nail art blog! However, owing to the fact that my brain now seems to be permanently stuck in Disney auto-pilot mode, you know there’s gots to be some House of the Mouse in here somewhere.
This is Vampirina. She may be blue, with pointy teeth, but she’s just like you! Or she’s like the three to six-year-olds who are her target television audience, where she has a cute namesake show about her family’s spooky adventures in Pennsylvania. It’s a Disney Junior production, though fairly new, which means the kids haven’t quite lost their wee minds over Vampirina and her friends as much as they have over, say, Doc McStuffins or those weirdo PJ Masks critters. Give it time; I feel like this one is going to be big.
I’m a good 35 years off Vampirina’s targeted age range, but I just find it utterly adorable. Vampirina Hauntley’s a spooktacular little baby goth, and she’s the kind of thoughtful, self-possessed and totally normal kid anyone would be delighted to call their own. That she’s a blue-skinned, pointy-toothed vampire from a strange country filled with unfamiliar customs is a metaphor for anybody who may think of themselves as an “other,” although the show doesn’t whap you over the head with its message of acceptance and friendship and understanding. Or maybe it does and I’ve just been brainwashed after staring into Vampirina’s unmoving purple eyes for too long (my one complaint with the show – the animation is flat, although the rich colours and design of the show are straight out of a Tim Burton movie.) It’s a terror-ifically delightful and non-irritating children’s show with a kind heart, a great message and a colourful gothic look, and I love it for it, child(-at-heart) or no. Also, James Van Der Beek voices Vee’s father, Boris, Lauren Graham her mother, Oxana, and Wanda Sykes Vampirina’s 473-year-old gargoyle best friend, Gregoria. It’s so insanely charming.
I nearly gave myself a case of the battys when we walked out of a ride on a recent trip to Hollywood Studios and Vampirina was right across the street holding a character meet-and-greet! We jumped into line and didn’t feel the least bit weird about the fact that we were the only adults around. 🙂
And oh my gosh, she was SO cute! On the show, Vampirina plays guitar in a band with her human friends Poppy and Bridget. The Ghoul Girls thrash out in Vampirina’s stone tower bedroom, and Vampirina’s all about those rawk fingers. She actually got so excited here after we asked about her band that she nearly stuck her devil horns straight up Mr. Finger Candy’s nose!
Is there something wrong with us that we’ll stand in line to meet real life plushie representations of fictional animated characters? Yeah, probably! But it’s a lot like Vampirina unlocking her inner ghoul – it feels good, so we’re doing it. Family motto of the last 365 days, actually. So glad we got to meet this cutie – one day it will probably pay off in cool-loser Aunt Sandra stories for some delighted six-year-olds. 😉
Finger Candy 
We just started receiving some of the Vampirina books at the library, so far the trendy moms are checking them out-a sure sign you’re right about the next big Disney junior following. Although, her message is a good one, always relatable and aw, she’s a ballerina too-no wonder you identify;)
Vampirina the Ballerina is one of my favourite episodes! She plays the black swan, naturally. 🙂 I would have been all the heck over something like this when I was a kid, if something like this existed; glad I’m in with the cool mommies, though. 🙂