The Belville theme which was introduced in 1994 and later discontinued in 2009 was created to appeal primarily to girls. While the sets revolved around the concept of the LEGO system it featured doll-like figures known as Belville Figures instead of regular LEGO minifigures. The Belville Figures featured multiple joints to make play more like normal doll play and were larger than minifigures. The Belville theme was the predecessor to LEGO Friends.
2000 LEGO Sets
The turn of the millennium was an important year for LEGO. Not only did LEGO produce some investible sets for 2000, we saw some transition in the company. First, set designer and the inventor of the minifigure, Jens Nygaard Knudsen, retired from The LEGO Group. Second, The British Association of Toy Retailers name the LEGO brick "Toy of the Century". With 2000 LEGO released just a couple of new themes including TECHNIC Roboriders and Race. The Rock Raiders, Nijna and the Slizer/Throwbots themes were discontinued.