We have had amazingly bad weather here in Sydney lately, so on the weekend I've found myself taking my two young kids to a shopping mall to get them out of the house. We visit shops and Freya - my four year old - tells me all about the sensory overload she is constantly afflicted by. We went into a toy store and I found myself overwhelmed by the following:
Her reaction was simple: "Look! Ugly babies!" and then she was off to marvel at other toys of mass distraction. I stopped and stared.
Is it just me or do they look evil? In one alternate version of reality I could see these things end up in unsuspecting families and when the time was right, they'd take over the world. In another I could see them one night break out of their packaging, wrecking toy horror on the other dolls and subsequently the staff as they came in the morning. Scenarios kept piling up in my mind.
I quickly left the shop, feeling their alien eyes tracking me as I disappeared from sight. If I ever decide to write a toy horror film/book I will visit them again for inspiration - if they let me live.
