I didn’t have Monster High dolls as a kid despite the fact I was very into dolls, so I managed to miss out on Generation 1 completely. Monster High wasn’t even on my radar until after I had grown out of the playing with dolls stage, but my first Monster High doll still managed to come before I started collecting.
Around 2018 I went to Dollar General with my mom and I got bored and wandered off, and wound up in the toy section. Lo and behold- a Monster High doll! For like $3! I was shocked since by then I knew of Monster High in a vague since and I knew 1: people like them and 2: they’re supposed to be really cool. I wanted to see what the hype was about, so I left that Dollar General with my very first Monster High doll.
I then proceeded to find out what Generation 2 was, and that the doll I picked up was Ari Huntington rather than the Spectra I thought she was. Oh well! She’s still my first Monster High doll, a fact I’ve been using to horrify any friends I meet as a Generation 3 collector. I still love her, especially for being my introduction to a line I later dedicated a lot of my time (and space) to collecting.