Suddenly, Jamie Sommers

Perhaps the new version of The Bionic Woman would have fared better with some good old-fashioned merchandise, like this original Jamie Sommers doll.

Not only did her head click when you turned it (in a low tech attempt to represent her bionic ear), but she also had some pretty stylin' accessories, including a handy "Bionic Mission Purse", a "Bionic Sports Car" (better get those breaks fixed, Jamie), an inflatable "Bionic Dome House", her own line of "Bionic Designer Fashions" (including "Country Comfort", "Lilac Butterfly" and "Fiesta!") and even a "Bionic Beauty Salon" (huh?).

What is most interesting about these retro commercials is how girly they were, downplaying the science fiction aspect of the actual series in place of, well, dolling her up for the next time hunky astronaut Steve Austin decides to drop by. At least Kenner gave us a Fembot for Jamie to spar with ("“Now I have to disguise myself as a mystery lady and no one will recognize me, not even Jamie … HA-HA!”). Of course, these dolls were made for girls ... and yes, I so had one.

Original link spotted on Kindertrauma.com.