The Facebook debacle & other issues

13 hours ago, Islenski said:

He's still going at it on twitter, this time about the difference between constructive and destructive criticism, lol. 1, most criticism people were giving were very respectful and valid concerns about glaringly obvious issues such as quality and pricing, availability, etc. and 2, just ignore "destructive" criticism. This man is acting like he's a small struggling artist, when he's the rich son of a fashion designer running a company with several paid employees, small business size or not, you're a business, stop entertaining every negative thing people could possibly ever say.

And we all know full well that this man does not accept criticism, constructive or "destructive". People are allowed to have criticisms and concerns over their very expensive and flawed products without the rich creator treating them all like cyberbullies personally trying to ruin his life.

For the first time in over a year, I begrdugingly opened Twitter and... wow he sounds like one of those rich fedora kids from my middle school years. One of those know-it-all, 'everyone is just jealous of me' kids whose ego cannot let him acknowledge that he sucks or else he'll implode. The kind that some kids tolerate cuz he gives them cool stuff.

1 hour ago, ExactChain19 said:

It's really refreshing to see such honest conversations around the dolls, and Danny. FB has some expressing disappointment but it's like all actualy critique of the dolls, price etc gets squashed really fast, and it's hard to get enough information to be able to make decisions sometimes. I'm really glad I decided to join the doll hobby and found this forum. I was excited for a boy (didn't really know any of the prior issues with any of it, I'm fairly new to the hobby). I love my girls, but I don't think I will personally be purchasing any more smarties. It was all rubbing me weird with the posts and the back and forth, and it's good to see such frank discussions around it.

This is one of the reasons this thread is so long.... it's about the only place online where people can openly discuss the things that occur with the Smartdoll brand without worry of getting shamed/ostracized or kicked off.  We try to let everyone voice their concerns and opinions about all of this but sometimes things can get heated so the mods will have to step in.  Luckily this forum has a LOT of really great members that can carry on conversations without being rude and crass about it.

We are all passionate about these dolls and we all wish we could get more of the ones we want but it's really difficult when the owner of the company does everything in his power to make it so people either don't want to or simply cannot buy his products.  And that's a real shame.  

 

 

Billy

His fans posting stuff like this in the comments as if the left isn't a perfect encapsulation of everything Choo stands for.

The irony is truly blinding, I don't know how much more of this I can take 😂

1 hour ago, Islenski said:

His fans posting stuff like this in the comments as if the left isn't a perfect encapsulation of everything Choo stands for.

The irony is truly blinding, I don't know how much more of this I can take 😂

On 3/11/2025 at 6:28 AM, HyenaSloth said:

From what I gather the SmD community is fairly isolated; they come in via SmD but don't move into the bigger BJD space, so they aren't aware that there's other options out there, or when they are those options seem scary because it's "those other companies".

I never had a good picture of the Smart Doll cult since I avoided them due to all the bs (see this thread's post count as exhibit A and the entire thread as exhibit B and let there be known that there are other places where people openly express their hatred of the Danny), but to see posts like these in person and after looking more into their communities and how they go about themselves and the shoechild, it is laughable. It really all clicks together, doesn't it?

On 3/11/2025 at 2:03 PM, seth said:

Honestly the comment that made me feel the most insulted was “well most people only see the boys as accessories to their girls anyway” as somebody who only really collects boys ☹️ 

They sure have a strange and awfully juvenile way of thinking.  I only heard the 'boy dolls being accessories' line being said by children (understandable in their case) and in some fashion doll communities (note that a chunk of the cult refer to SmD as fashion dolls), but even then, it's still pisses off a good chunk of fashion doll enthusiasts because they too also want good male dolls.

I am tired that the English speaking BJD community is always waffling about when it comes SmD despite being WELL aware of all of this. It doesn't matter how cute or pretty the dolls are or there's no other options. If you are sick and tired of this crap, stop supporting the loon and his rabid pack of buffoons. There's more options (slowly) coming out over time and methods to get closer to what you want. Want a different color? Dye it. It might not turn out well, but at least your order won't be canceled because Danny wanted to. Want a different head or body parts? 3d print, sculpt....lots of different methods for this one, even if it's going to require a lot of time, effort, and troubleshooting. Want an actual robot BJD? Take up robotics, mechatronics, something...lots of resources over the internet, and you'll probably have something that's at least halfway working, even if it turns out to be crud. You made that with your own effort. It can get expensive, but it's all you at least and you can give your own parts their own 'customer support' if it breaks/damaged cause Danny sure as hell won't despite you also dropping a hefty chunk of money for his dolls. 

Either way, this whole thing sucks.

Edited March 14 by Amapola

14 hours ago, Amapola said:

I never had a good picture of the Smart Doll cult since I avoided them due to all the bs (see this thread's post count as exhibit A and the entire thread as exhibit B and let there be known that there are other places where people openly express their hatred of the Danny), but to see posts like these in person and after looking more into their communities and how they go about themselves and the shoechild, it is laughable. It really all clicks together, doesn't it?

They sure have a strange and awfully juvenile way of thinking.  I only heard the 'boy dolls being accessories' line being said by children (understandable in their case) and in some fashion doll communities (note that a chunk of the cult refer to SmD as fashion dolls), but even then, it's still pisses off a good chunk of fashion doll enthusiasts because they too also want good male dolls.

I am tired that the English speaking BJD community is always waffling about when it comes SmD despite being WELL aware of all of this. It doesn't matter how cute or pretty the dolls are or there's no other options. If you are sick and tired of this crap, stop supporting the loon and his rabid pack of buffoons. There's more options (slowly) coming out over time and methods to get closer to what you want. Want a different color? Dye it. It might not turn out well, but at least your order won't be canceled because Danny wanted to. Want a different head or body parts? 3d print, sculpt....lots of different methods for this one, even if it's going to require a lot of time, effort, and troubleshooting. Want an actual robot BJD? Take up robotics, mechatronics, something...lots of resources over the internet, and you'll probably have something that's at least halfway working, even if it turns out to be crud. You made that with your own effort. It can get expensive, but it's all you at least and you can give your own parts their own 'customer support' if it breaks/damaged cause Danny sure as hell won't despite you also dropping a hefty chunk of money for his dolls. 

Either way, this whole thing sucks.

Will SMD boys, ever be, Kenough?      also crazy, isn't?        cult-ture Japan.

16 hours ago, Islenski said:

His fans posting stuff like this in the comments as if the left isn't a perfect encapsulation of everything Choo stands for.

The irony is truly blinding, I don't know how much more of this I can take 😂

I genuinely saw someone in his Twitter comments saying that expecting Choo to get PR was tantamount to ableism because it would be 'harder for people with ADHD' to trust him or something.

14 hours ago, Amapola said:

Want a different color? Dye it. It might not turn out well, but at least your order won't be canceled because Danny wanted to.

Literally woke up today to a FB post where someone dyed their DD a very beautiful, rich dark brown. They even explained their method, and it looks amazing.

1 hour ago, cinnabunroll said:

I genuinely saw someone in his Twitter comments saying that expecting Choo to get PR was tantamount to ableism because it would be 'harder for people with ADHD' to trust him or something.

sir get PR,  oh look there's a bunny!"    

7 hours ago, cinnabunroll said:

Literally woke up today to a FB post where someone dyed their DD a very beautiful, rich dark brown. They even explained their method, and it looks amazing.

Oooh, is there a link to the post? I wonder if this method will work well for other colors as well.

2 hours ago, Amapola said:

Oooh, is there a link to the post? I wonder if this method will work well for other colors as well.

https://m.facebook.com/groups/dollfiedream/permalink/10160733811946316/?mibextid=RtaFA8

There ya go!

On 3/14/2025 at 3:46 PM, cinnabunroll said:

I genuinely saw someone in his Twitter comments saying that expecting Choo to get PR was tantamount to ableism because it would be 'harder for people with ADHD' to trust him or something.

As a person who has WORKED in PR and has ADHD this is an absolutely wild take.

 

So... well, if you want to see his passive aggressive post he retweeted without opening that hell site:

"Thanks for the opportunity to clarify, and I appreciate you bringing this up for discussion.

Blocking people for sharing criticism would be counterproductive. If we silenced those conversations, we wouldn’t be able to hear the constructive feedback that helps shape our products—just as it did with the development of the Pear body. That’s exactly why I’m sharing your feedback openly.

We all have different tastes, and it’s completely fine to criticize our products—even I look back at some of my past designs and do the classic Picard-facepalm in regret 😉

However, as you pointed out in your “boot-licking” tweet, criticism is often framed in a derogatory way rather than being constructive. Nothing productive comes from that kind of discourse. Just as anyone has the right to block my account, I have the same right to set boundaries and curate the conversations I engage in.

Some believe we shouldn’t respond to criticism at all, arguing that engaging with it means we can’t accept it—that we should simply stay silent. But that expectation is paradoxical—it assumes that while others are free to express their views, we shouldn’t have that same right.

If the purpose of criticism is to help improve a product or service, shouldn’t there be a conversation rather than a one-way exchange? Just as it’s important to ensure that all voices are heard, we too have the right to acknowledge, respond to, and address criticisms. If we truly couldn’t accept criticism, we wouldn’t highlight it for all to see—we value open discussion.

And here’s the irony: those who claim we “can’t take criticism” are often the ones who struggle to accept it when we offer a response.

Regarding your comment about us not helping people with arthritis, we’ve always made accommodations. Our product pages state that customers with such conditions can request pre-attached wigs or bust swaps, and our team has gladly assisted with these requests over the years.

For those facing other challenges, we go even further—providing custom video guides and, when needed, jumping on FaceTime calls to offer real-time support. Additionally, we provide medical supplies at no cost to customers who need them due to medical conditions.

As for the accounts you referenced, many rely on anecdotes or doctored emails that omit key details, making them misleading. All email correspondence goes through Zendesk, where we retain full conversation threads. If needed, we can publish them to ensure full transparency.

Finally, your “boot-licking” suggestion is concerning—not just because it’s misleading, but because it promotes unsafe behavior. Serious pathogens can be transmitted this way, posing real health risks. Blocking such messages isn’t about avoiding criticism—it’s about preventing the spread of harmful misinformation."

I just... you really can't make this up. Like, how passive aggressive and insincere can one person be? His unprofessionalism and mocking are getting more and more exhausting every day.

4 hours ago, cinnabunroll said:

 I just... you really can't make this up. Like, how passive aggressive and insincere can one person be? His unprofessionalism and mocking are getting more and more exhausting every day.

I've took a look at twitter, and it is just all dripping with sarcasm! Being overly thankful over and over in his replies - it's such a joke. Insincerity indeed.
Nah, I'm beyond done and dusted with this toddler and his products. They've got no place in the doll hobby in my universe.

I genuinely have no idea how he's so passively nasty all the time. He's so dismissive and rude, and his saccharine attitude is just so exhausting? I can't imagine it's good for his health to be so underhanded and mean all the time, but, then again... he seems to genuinely enjoy it? With how often he purposely seeks out any and all forms of negativity in regards to himself and his dolls, you'd think he was getting off on it.

It's depressing. I remember seeing Mirai back in 2015, and how badly I wanted her. The dolls seemed so cool and interesting. I was going to save up to buy her, because I wanted her to be my first doll—I really liked her long orange hair, how nice the clothes were, how different she was compared to other dolls I'd seen. I did own a Starlight doll for a little bit, but was so disappointed in the quality that I sold her after a year. And his behavior has been so awful for so long that I just swore off ever buying another SmartDoll, secondhand or not.

On 3/14/2025 at 2:53 AM, Amapola said:

I never had a good picture of the Smart Doll cult since I avoided them due to all the bs (see this thread's post count as exhibit A and the entire thread as exhibit B and let there be known that there are other places where people openly express their hatred of the Danny), but to see posts like these in person and after looking more into their communities and how they go about themselves and the shoechild, it is laughable. It really all clicks together, doesn't it?

They sure have a strange and awfully juvenile way of thinking.  I only heard the 'boy dolls being accessories' line being said by children (understandable in their case) and in some fashion doll communities (note that a chunk of the cult refer to SmD as fashion dolls), but even then, it's still pisses off a good chunk of fashion doll enthusiasts because they too also want good male dolls.

I am tired that the English speaking BJD community is always waffling about when it comes SmD despite being WELL aware of all of this. It doesn't matter how cute or pretty the dolls are or there's no other options. If you are sick and tired of this crap, stop supporting the loon and his rabid pack of buffoons. There's more options (slowly) coming out over time and methods to get closer to what you want. Want a different color? Dye it. It might not turn out well, but at least your order won't be canceled because Danny wanted to. Want a different head or body parts? 3d print, sculpt....lots of different methods for this one, even if it's going to require a lot of time, effort, and troubleshooting. Want an actual robot BJD? Take up robotics, mechatronics, something...lots of resources over the internet, and you'll probably have something that's at least halfway working, even if it turns out to be crud. You made that with your own effort. It can get expensive, but it's all you at least and you can give your own parts their own 'customer support' if it breaks/damaged cause Danny sure as hell won't despite you also dropping a hefty chunk of money for his dolls. 

Either way, this whole thing sucks.

yup, the "support" team.   thier and all most reasons given, are why I am afraid to use my so called "smd" warrrente to replace my milk boy's leg.  :( 

On 3/11/2025 at 10:03 AM, seth said:

Honestly the comment that made me feel the most insulted was “well most people only see the boys as accessories to their girls anyway” as somebody who only really collects boys ☹️ 

Most doll makers at least as far as vinyl and fashion dolls are concerned, do have a tendency to see it that way! T_T When you look at BJD fans, who have way more options for male bodies, well, it's pretty obvious how many male doll collectors don't have the "boys are accessories to their girls" mentality with dolls! I've always seen that mentality as bad faith for a reason!

Heck, even with DD fans this is untrue! Probably because you have to be devoted to a male doll to get one tbh. I follow a lot of DD fans on Insta! Many of whom have male DDs, though most of the DD accounts are primarily MDD focused! The jist of it is, many of them mave male MDDs or just DDs regardless of size! And out of all of those male DD owners, Isamimir was the only one who really treated her male MDD as an accessory to her girls, and she's an anomaly when you look at other male MDD owners! I mentioned Figufoto earlier and her favorite DD is a MDD boy (and she has a lot of boys I might add), but Noxxbunny and SFSakana also have male MDDs (and general DDs) and they don't treat them as accessories to their girls at all!

Edited March 19 by RozenGermain

28 minutes ago, RozenGermain said:

how many male doll collectors don't have the "boys are accessories to their girls" mentality with dolls!

Just look at the large dolls thread on DoA, and it's really clear there are a lot of exclusively male doll collectors who obsess over their boys. 

On 3/19/2025 at 10:53 AM, BeyondTime said:

Just look at the large dolls thread on DoA, and it's really clear there are a lot of exclusively male doll collectors who obsess over their boys. 

That's what I was saying! XD Most of the people who collect male dolls dote on and/or obsess over those boys, regardless of the boy to girl doll ratio (my crew in both resin and vinyl is all dudes so far lol)! Even with DD fans the ones that treat their boy dolls as accessories to their girls are outliers! The only real folks who see male DDs as accessories to the girls is Volks themselves!

Edited March 21 by RozenGermain

Wow I haven't been here for a long time. I stopped following DC a loooong time ago for a lot of reasons I don't need to go into here. To put it *very* lightly I'm not a fan of him, have no respect for his fanbase and if I had to read one more paragraph of him talking to himself or see one more "; -)" or read one more nonsensical overdramatic, half sentence naming convention I was going to SNAP. But I saw the boy drama and was like wow he is not only still at it making up these fake aggressors he "deals" with, but he's worse than ever. HOW does he still have a business? He talks like he wants to go under so badly with wanting "less" sales or whateverthefthatmeans, so why not just shut it all down then? Oh, because it's all fake and he just wants to make it all up so he can charge people for literal garbage over priced "chaos" releases to create his own demand. Even though it's all so painfully fake, he knows his rabid fans clamor for crumbs. 

Sorry if I'm about to come off aggressive here, but I'm saying my piece and leaving. But, the point... I just wanted to chime in and say - I'm one of those people on DOA who has pretty much exclusively boys. I have over 100 dolls, mostly resin, and less than 10% of them are girls. Girls are accessories to my boys or outliers, not the other way around. I just can't connect with girls, but my boys mean more to me than anything and I love them more than DC will ever love anything (including himself, I know what I said lol). Like, I can't even begin to explain how juvenile and insulting that take is. Just because HE can't connect doesn't mean others lack the ability. I prefer boys and I will never collect girls. I've been in the hobby for almost 12 years now and that fact has never changed. Even on the DD side people don't treat their boys like outliers. Where did that mentality even come from in him? It's either he thinks this way (which is nuts) or he's doing it on purpose because he knows boys will actually sell, but he wants the chaos money (which is slimy). Who knows. IDC. I'm angry I'm even wasting the brain space on this dude yet again.

Stop supporting him. There's so, so many dolls out there that are better than SMD. It's not just DD vs SMD or us vs them like he wants people to think. He loves isolating his fanbase and telling them every other company out there are just bad bad scammers. It's so disgustingly cult-like and I know this has been said before. But wow, when is enough, enough? Isolated fanbase or not I will NEVER understand why people can't see him for who he is. A tantrum throwing manchild who honestly needs to see a professional. A slimy businessman.

Anyway, if anyone's done with his garbage and wants to join the resin side with our PLENTIFUL beautiful boys, come on over! And now I'm signing out for another who knows how long.

And Danny, since I know you're looking at this, I sincerely hope you go under. Please go talk to someone. I know you can't take criticism and resort to calling everyone a "hater" like a 10 year old, but this is all on you, dude. 

Also, to add, I'm actually a little disappointed no one tried to legally pursue the whole "banned" thing with Fabric and Friends. Danny was clearly sharing information that shouldn't have been shared/violating privacy laws and Iris participated in it (and in turn lost all of my business, even though I had been a regular with her for many years). I know it's more complicated (and expensive) than that. I'm just shocked no one went further with it.

My context, Iris told me I was banned when I tried to start a layaway for a grey girl, even though I had never bought ANY SDM items through her before, and my last purchase from DC was mannnnny years ago. How did he get my info? How did he know it was me? I had new emails, new addresses, new IP, a different name on the account even etc. I only ever bought Azone and some Luts stuff from Iris. I bought from Danny way back just fine, yet somehow all these changes happened, I was critical vocally about him, and then magically he not only found my new info but he also shared it with Iris. Or the other way around! SOMEONE was sharing information back and forth (and Iris had to have given it to him and he had to have asked???????)... and that's very illegal. There's other weirder details I'm forgetting, but yeah. F him (and shame on Iris for participating in this craziness).

Edited March 24 by littlebirdzoom

1 hour ago, littlebirdzoom said:

Anyway, if anyone's done with his garbage and wants to join the resin side with our PLENTIFUL beautiful boys, come on over! And now I'm signing out for another who knows how long.

Started with resins. They're too heavy, often too realistic (this is changing lately to have more 'anime' styled dolls yay!) and harder to pose. It's a shame, but there's a very big rift in the amount of 1/3 boys available in vinyl.

7 minutes ago, Yuan said:

Started with resins. They're too heavy, often too realistic (this is changing lately to have more 'anime' styled dolls yay!) and harder to pose. It's a shame, but there's a very big rift in the amount of 1/3 boys available in vinyl.

Yeah, the realism is the point since they're traditionally technically "art" pieces (speaking outside of Volks). There's more anime style heads popping up, but still not the norm and more of a passing trend since it's not really what resin people are going for (obv there's overlap and lots of people love both including me, but overall it's far off from the anime community). Definitely a big rift for vinyl boys. But it's happening! On the vinyl side, slowly, it's happening. And maybe this DC drama will start a ripple effect and make people realize we want them BADLY. I really wish Volks DD boys weren't so funky. The middle torso piece gap is downright insulting lol and they're hard to fit and scrawny. Granado has made some beefy vinyl, iomdoll I think has/had boys, a few others. Hopefully someday someone will get the hint Q_Q

Edited March 24 by littlebirdzoom

Yeah the DD boys are a little slimmer than I'd like for some of my characters. They work very well for others. Imomodoll has that MASSIVE boy, i'm hoping their normal 1/3 will look as good.

I had a couple of SOOM monthly limiteds (Euclase and Sphaler) but they were so unwieldy I eventually sold them. I also grew to prefer a more anime style over realistic. Resin BJDs are gorgeous and I still have my first one, but man... more 1/3 vinyl boys would be great. We have some decent 1/4 options now at least!

Edited March 25 by Yuan

I've been out of the loop for a few years (I'm starting to get back into the doll community again) I was looking through the site and I'm just curious what's the context behind the "boycott smart doll" thing? I'm only going to assume it's related to drama

9 hours ago, Rella said:

I've been out of the loop for a few years (I'm starting to get back into the doll community again) I was looking through the site and I'm just curious what's the context behind the "boycott smart doll" thing? I'm only going to assume it's related to drama

Pretty sure he's just 'being quirky' again. I think he's trying to mimic the Cancel South Park thing HBO did for a little bit? But it's definitely also in line with his, "I'm just a Lil Guy, all the Haters are So Right about my dolls, ain't I a stinker? You should stop buying SmartDoll because people hate them!" mentality.

2 hours ago, cinnabunroll said:

Pretty sure he's just 'being quirky' again. I think he's trying to mimic the Cancel South Park thing HBO did for a little bit? But it's definitely also in line with his, "I'm just a Lil Guy, all the Haters are So Right about my dolls, ain't I a stinker? You should stop buying SmartDoll because people hate them!" mentality.

Ohh ok. Thank you!