Good news: there's been reports of Toys R Us coming back in time for the holidays.

Bad news: even if it does come back, you shouldn't expect any American Girl dolls.

Why, you may ask? Good question.

As some of you may know, Katy Dickson, the previous CEO of American Girl, became that in spring 2016. Her tenure was characterized by expanded distribution for American Girl, which included Kohl's and yes, Toys R Us.

But this didn't work. In fact, it ended up cheapening the dolls and losing their status as a high-quality, premium brand. And it was made even worse by the closure of Toys R Us last year.

Unless you've been living under a rock for the past few months, you should know that Katy left American Girl at the end of 2018 and her replacement, Jamie Cygielman, came in May. According to Mattel's investor reports (which yes, I read because I'm a nerd), they're looking to regain quality and their heirloom status: and Toys R Us would not be a good fit for that kind of thinking.

To quote Pleasant Rowland, "It was clear to me that American Girl was a thinking girl's product line, one that wouldn't sell at Toys R Us. It wasn't meant to blare from the shelves on its packaging or visual appeal alone. It had a more important message -- one that had to be delivered in a softer voice." If American Girl wants to come back to it's former glory, it would have to listen to it's founder... so sorry kids, AG won't be coming back to Toys R Us.