Once considered for a position among the Disney Princesses, execs decided that Tinker Bell didn’t fit “the Princess mythology“
and instead created a Disney Consumer Products franchise just for our pretty pixie – the Disney Fairies.
Like the Princesses, the Fairies have lots of merchandise. And since the only Fairy you are likely to know is Tink, many of the products introduce you to the other fairies. There are picture books, chapter books, magazines, comics, dolls, story cards, activity DVDs, and an upcoming feature film starring Brittany Murphy as the voice of Tinker Bell.
The Fairies are aimed to catch young girls just as they outgrow the Princess phase. Orenstein writes in “What’s Wrong with Cinderella?” “Aimed at 6- to 9-year-old girls, the line will catch them just as they outgrow Princess. Their colors will be lavender, green, turquoise — anything but the Princess’s soon-to-be-babyish pink.” Orenstein describes the Fairy line in terms of Tink’s revenge narrative: “Tinker Bell, whose image racks up an annual $400 million in retail sales with no particular effort on Disney’s part, is poised to wreak vengeance on the Princess line that once expelled her.”
Disney wants the Fairies to appeal to a slightly older child, so “the Fairies will have more “attitude” and “sass” than the Princesses.” (Orenstein). For insight into what this might mean, check out the clothing: “T-shirts reading, “Spoiled to Perfection,” “Mood Subject to Change Without Notice” and “Tinker Bell: Prettier Than a Princess.” At Hot Topic, that edge was even sharper: magnets, clocks, light-switch plates and panties featured “Dark Tink,” described as “the bad girl side of Miss Bell that Walt never saw.”” (Orenstein). I think it’s safe to say that this side of the Fairies line is targeted at an age-group slightly older than the 6-9 
year-olds. But not much older… I’m guessing 10-14 year-olds: the “tween” market.
In Peter Pan, Tink is known for her jealousy, conceit, and rage. (These aspects of her character are not present in the J.M. Barrie original, nor are they crucial to the plot, which may say something about Walt Disney’s perception of women.) I am curious about whether the new Fairy franchise will portray Tink in a more favorable light, making her a better role model for girls. (I think I’ll wait for the movie instead of picking up those chapter books… ) However, it seems like Tink’s “attitude” is crucial to her identity based on the pre-existing shirts and sayings. It seems like Disney is trying to follow their young customers at 
every stage of their development from birth to puberty with the Princesses and Fairies. However, it has yet to be determined whether Disney’s view of a girl’s natural progression is accurate. Nevertheless, they have been quite successful with their franchises.
OMG – take a look at this:
Tink is actually very jealous and full of rage in the books! Barrie says specifically that she is not a bad fairy, but she only has room for one emotion at a time – and at times, those emotions are jealousy and rage. After all, she tries to have Wendy killed!
This blog was posted in 2007, but the Tinkerbell movie was released in 2008 and she was voiced by Mae Whitman ( Ann on “Arrested Development”; Katara from “Avatar: The last Airbender” among other things). She has a much younger voice than Brittany Murphy & while I have yet to see it, she’s depicted as a much kinder fairy. So, your assumption that they are changing her into a good role model might in fact be correct. I never cared for her because of her bad temper. Maybe I should give her a second chance =)