Barbie: Fairytopia is a 2005 animated fantasy film directed by Walter P. Martishius and William Lau and written by Elise Allen and Diane Duane[4][5] that premiered on Nickelodeon in the United States on 6 March[3] and was released on VHS and DVD two days later. It was distributed internationally through Universal Pictures Video and Entertainment Rights.[2]
The fifth installment in the Barbie film series and the first to have an original storyline not based on existing material, the film follows Elina, a wingless flower fairy who goes on a journey to save the enchanted land of Fairytopia from the evil fairy Laverna. The film is followed by two sequels; Barbie: Mermaidia and Barbie Fairytopia: Magic of the Rainbow and two spin-offs; Barbie: Mariposa and Barbie: Mariposa & the Fairy Princess.[6]
Barbie plays the role of Elina, a flower fairy who lives in Fairytopia with her puffball, Bibble. Unlike all other fairies, Elina does not have wings, for which she gets frequently ridiculed. Elina and her friend, Dandelion, learn that one of Fairytopia's guardians, Topaz, has been kidnapped.
Topaz has been kidnapped by Laverna, the evil twin sister of Fairytopia's benevolent ruler, the Enchantress. Laverna reveals that she incapacitated her sister with poison and plans to capture all seven of Fairytopia's guardians. Meanwhile, Laverna's minions spread her mist-like formula on Fairytopia, weakening all winged creatures.
In the morning, Elina and Bibble awaken to see her flower home, Peony, and the other fairies in the meadow sick from Laverna's formula. Elina, Dandelion and Bibble seek help from the closest guardian, Azura. On entering a forest, Dandelion inhales some of Laverna's formula, and is forced to return home when she is unable to fly.
After being turned away when they ask to see Azura, Elina and Bibble sneak to Azura's house, where she is discovered by Azura. Seeing a rainbow in Elina's eye, Azura invites them inside. She explains that the rainbow in Elina's eyes means that she is destined for great things. Elina, who does not believe in herself, disagrees. Azura tells her that all of Fairytopia is in trouble because of Laverna, and in the morning, she will leave to speak to a dryad named Dahlia, a former follower of Laverna; she asks Elina to take care of her magic necklace.
In the morning, as Azura is about to leave, she is kidnapped by a Fungus, one of Laverna's henchmen. Elina awakens and is accused of being responsible for Azura's disappearance, but gets rescued by Hue, a giant butterfly. In Laverna's lair, the Fungi arrive with Azura, but Laverna is angered when she finds her necklace missing. The Fungi tell Laverna that a wingless fairy had it. Realizing that a wingless fairy would be unaffected by her formula, Laverna orders the Fungi to find Elina.
Hue and Elina are pursued by Laverna's firebirds. They evade them with the help of merman Prince Nalu, who gives them seaweed that allows them to breathe underwater. When the group finally reaches Dahlia's home, she is reluctant to help because the other guardians mistrust her. However, Elina convinces her to do the right thing. Dahlia tells Elina that Laverna has found a way to suck the powers from the fairy guardians' necklaces and transfer them to herself, stating that the "union point" would be its weakness.
The group arrives at Laverna's lair planning to find the union point, but Elina insists on going by herself, for she has Azura's necklace. While her friends cause a distraction, Elina makes it inside. She finds the guardians and her friends captured by the Fungi. Laverna agrees to let them go if Elina returns Azura's necklace, which she refuses. Laverna promises that she can give Elina wings in exchange for returning Azura's necklace. Hypnotized, Elina walks toward Azura with the necklace. The union point — a crystal embedded in Laverna's throne — absorbs the power from the guardians' necklaces. As Elina is about to return the necklace, Azura's words reach her, and she snaps out of her trance. Rejecting Laverna's offer, Elina hurls the necklace at the union point, shattering it. The guardians' power overwhelms Laverna, and she vanishes.
Back in the Magic Meadow, the fairies and the flowers are cured. Elina and her friends are visited by the recovered Enchantress. She thanks Elina and her friends for saving everyone, and rewards her with her magic necklace. The necklace magically bestows Elina with her pair of wings. Overjoyed, Elina and her friends go flying together.
Barbie Fairytopia: Mermaidia, or simply Barbie: Mermaidia, is the first sequel to Barbie: Fairytopia and the 7th Barbie film.[9] It premiered on Nickelodeon on March 5, 2006, and was later released to VHS and DVD on March 14, 2006.[10][11] Lau and Martishius reprised their roles as directors. The plot involves Elina (Kelly Sheridan) who travels to Mermaidia to save her friend Nalu, the merman prince. Prince Nalu (Alessandro Juliani) has been kidnapped by Laverna's henchmen to learn the whereabouts of a special berry that will make Laverna the most powerful fairy in Fairytopia. Elina must work together with Nori (Chiara Zanni), a headstrong mermaid who does not trust outsiders, to save Nalu.
Barbie Fairytopia: Magic of the Rainbow or simply Barbie: Magic of the Rainbow, is the final movie of the Barbie: Fairytopia trilogy and the 10th Barbie film overall.[12][13] It premiered on Nickelodeon on March 11, 2007, and on DVD on March 13, 2007. Lau reprised his role as director. The plot focuses on Elina and other fairy apprentices who are leaning how to create the first rainbow of the season using magic, the annual "Flight of Spring." But the evil fairy Laverna (Kathleen Barr) returns for her revenge and tries to stop the Flight of Spring, threatening to plunge Fairytopia into ten years of bitter winter. With their different gifts and personalities, Elina and her new friends must learn how to work together to defeat Laverna and bring the rainbow to life.
A soundtrack for the film was released on March 13, 2007.[14][15] Composed by Eric Colvin, it features songs inspired by the film and an instrumental track. The soundtrack's track list is as follows:
Barbie: Mariposa, alternatively Barbie Fairytopia: Mariposa, Barbie as Mariposa and Barbie: Mariposa and her Butterfly Fairy Friends, is the first spin-off film to Barbie: Fairytopia and the 12th Barbie film overall[16][17] which was released on February 26, 2008, and it made its American television premiere on Nickelodeon on March 2. Conrad Helten replaced Lau and/or Martishius as director, and would also be the first in his long line of directing Barbie films. The plot involves Mariposa (Chiara Zanni), a butterfly fairy who loves to read and dream about the world outside her home in the land of Flutterfield – which is protected by their queen's magical lights. But the evil fairy Henna (Nicole Oliver), in her scheme to overtake the kingdom, poisons the queen, resulting in the special lights dying out one by one. Mariposa, together with the twin sisters Rayna (Kathleen Barr) and Rayla (Erin Mathews), journey beyond the safe borders of the city in search of a hidden antidote that will save the queen and the kingdom.
Barbie: Mariposa & the Fairy Princess, sometimes colloquially referred to as Barbie: Mariposa 2, is the second and final spin-off film of Barbie: Fairytopia which serves as its conclusion or epilogue and the 25th Barbie film overall[18][19] which was released to DVD, Blu-ray and "Digital HD" on August 27, 2013, and it made its American television premiere on Nickelodeon on November 24. Lau returned to his role as director for this film. The plot focuses on Mariposa (Kelly Sheridan) becoming the royal Ambassador of Flutterfield and is sent to bring peace between her fairy land and their rivals, the Crystal Fairies of Shimmervale. Despite not making a great first impression on their king, Mariposa immediately befriends his shy daughter, Princess Catania (Maryke Hendrikse). However, a misunderstanding causes Mariposa to be banished from Shimmervale. As Mariposa and her puffball Zee return to Flutterfield, they encounter a dark fairy named Gwillion on her way to destroy Shimmervale. Mariposa rushes back and helps Princess Catania to save her fairy land.
Sandie Angulo Chen and Nancy Davis Kho of Common Sense Media gave the films three stars out of five on Barbie Fairytopia: Mermaidia and Barbie Fairytopia: Magic of the Rainbow. Chen says that "undersea Barbie adventure will enchant little ones," and Kho says that it was "simple story with positive messages, lush animation."[20][21]
