by Chris Varaste

Pop divas landing on red carpets in alien “egg-ships” or hurtling through space in fiery comets?! It must be back-to-the-future on planet Earth because even Barbie^® is turning to sci-fi for fashion inspiration! As Goddess of the Galaxy^™ Barbie^® Doll, she’s a space-travelling astral-femme in silver bustier and sparkling net!

When it comes to space-age couture, Barbie^® had her sights on Venus long before 2009’s Star Trek dolls, when the supermodel donned 1965’s Miss Astronaut.

Space travel was a perfect excuse for fashion exploration, and Barbie^® doll’s design team continued to create futuristic fare well into the 1980s, a period that saw a peak in sci-fi blockbusters like ET, Blade Runner and The Empire Strikes Back.

In 1986, under the Astro-fashions banner, eight ingenious costumes debuted with catchy names like Space Racer, Galaxy A-Go-Go and Welcome to Venus. The Astro line was an instant sensation, filling a void in the doll market for innovative futuristic design. The appetite for space-oriented fare was whetted a year later when Barbie^® fans met Spectra, Tom Comet and their pals — dolls that virtually landed on store shelves direct from outta space! The Spectra line of dolls featured extraterrestrial features that surprised Barbie^® collectors, begging the questions, “who, what and where?!”

The alien teens hailed from Shimmeron and sported clear, tinted plastic bodies and ultra-stylized makeup — perhaps too radical for the period. Revolutionary in their own way, the dolls and fashions are still highly collectible over 20 years after their introduction. Spectra was a retro-fabulous, space fantasy similar in concept to today’s sophisticated Goddess of the Galaxy. Both are idealized visions of a fashion-conscious diva ready to rule the universe!

Chris Varaste started out in Manhattan as a segment producer for Don Mischer Productions putting on award shows (Emmys, Tonys, Grammys). An avid fan of pop culture, he now lives next door to the Hollywood sign and loves creating colorful, fun web content. A published author/photographer, he is currently editing a young adult thriller and promoting independent cinema for Spotlight Cinema Networks.