As a little girl growing up in the 70s, Tinkerbell seemed a heroine of another time altogether: the original story of Peter Pan was written at the turn of the 20th century (and did you know that the first version of Peter Pan lived in Kensington Gardens?). Tinkerbell, as Disney conceived her, was too precious; her true heritage was rather dusty. J.M. Barrie described her as a fairy who mended pots and kettles (i.e., a tinker).

Is it appropriate or terrible that The Walt Disney Corporation's (NYSE: DIS) fortunes should be placed on the shoulders of a tiny, too-precious fairy who fixes pots? Disney has iconized Tinkerbell for decades and three years ago founded a new "franchise" of characters by providing Tinkerbell a "back story" and rolling out fairy friends for her. Management says the sales for fairy merchandise, aimed at four-to-eight-year-olds, is selling three times High School Musical 3 tie-ins; vast praise to be sure.

But analysts aren't hopeful; Merrill Lynch's Jessica Reif Cohen downgraded Disney earlier this month, worrying about the economic woes affecting the little winged ladies along with the rest of Disney's magical creatures (and under this umbrella I most definitely include Hannah Montana and her "teenaged" friends in the High School Musical franchise). Disney CEO Robert A. Iger says that "fairies are forever" and maybe he's right; but I have reservations like Cohen.