Princess Stories: Do girls (and boys) need new tales?

Today Globe and Mail ran a story on Disney's princess franchise, which I was interviewed for. It brought up an interesting dilemma that Disney is facing: how do they continue to exploit the princess myth which my daughter and millions of girls around the world absolutely relish, while keeping up with the changing ethos of girls and women and challenging the criticism that neo-femininists lobe on whether these models should be marketed at all! Having both a son and a daughter I not only question the values promoted in princess stories but also the ones permeating boy coming of age stories too! Is it time for a completely new set of myths and archetypes for new generations of children who need better tools to help them survive in the future. Instead of "the knight in shining armor will save you from evil" how about "self-control over the impulses that can drive bad choices is the key to triumph." Instead of "kill or be killed" how about "avoid being one of the crowd; find what makes you special in what makes you so different and you will go beyond the crowd." The Grimm fairytales were written over 100 years ago...time for new tales to be written?