McFarlane's Monsters - Elizabeth Bathory

[Feigenbaum]

Hello! I don't collect McFarlane toys but I happened by the yard sale of a guy who did and found this gorgeous figure of Elizabeth Bathory which I had to have and thusly snagged, loose and heinously cheap. She looks just like the picture! Well, except for two things. She has her blade but she's missing the candle holder (adorned with severed heads) and goblet of blood, pictured below.

Does anyone know where I might be able to find these two accessories, and the Monsters Series 3 Accessory Pack? I haven't need of another figure but I'm not certain if anyone sells them loose, but I thought it couldn't hurt to ask!

Do you own any McFarlane's Monsters of any series? I think the designs are fascinating.

[Artistix]

Ah, Elizabeth Bathory...one of history's most horrifying serial killers. It's so nice she got a figurine! ;D ;D

She is the only figure from the '6 Faces of Madness' line that I actually bought. She hangs with my other McFarlane figures:



I was also planning to buy Rasputin, but didn't get around to it.

I'm not sure how you would go about finding the accessories. You may need to look for a second cheap loose version of her on eBay.

[Feigenbaum]

The guy actually sold me to her as "Bloody Mary" which made googling her next to impossible when I was trying to find out what series she was from and what company made her. As someone who has always had a niche interest in Elizabeth Bathory and historical serial killers I was overjoyed when I looked up Elizabeth Bathory on a whim and found out that yes, someone really did make a figure of her! I was so excited I even told my mother, who had somehow never heard of her - even having a close pureblooded Hungarian friend. And now she can no longer look at the figure due to her weak constitution.

Gretel of the Monsters 4 series is probably my next favourite female design, if it's not betraying my gender to say I also find the Twisted Christmas Mrs. Claus quite pretty.

[dru666]

I can't believe that figure was being sold at a yard sale. You're so lucky! You might be able to find loose accessory pieces on eBay or from a member over on the spawn.com McFarlane Toys community forum. I've seen the Monsters accessory pack for sale on eBay and at collectible stores. There's also a model set of her for sale on eBay. Have you seen the more recent films about her? My mother wouldn't be able to look at the figure either. I like the other female McFarlane figures as well and the Clive Barker female figures. The sculpting on them is very well done. I'm working on a couple of Bathory custom figures at the moment and it's nice to meet another Bathory and historical serial killer fan. Good luck finding the accessories

[Feigenbaum]

She was in a big box full of other McFarlane toys, from a bunch of different series! He also had a huge Aliens (or Aliens: Resurrection) statue, with a chestburster and alien, which was very cool but a little too violent for me to want to buy and display publicly. Also expensive but yeah my community has a massive yard sale each year, people come from all around for it. There's usually some really good finds!

I hope you post these customs! I'd LOVE to see them! Since coming across this board I've been so incredibly curious as to what a gifted customiser could do with the Bathory figure. Maybe Cordy and phantom Dennis scrubbing her back. In a surprisingly ornate bathtub, but still.

I haven't, actually! Except for that Stay Alive which was so laughably historically inaccurate that I don't think it counts. Please recommend me some! And I will check out those forums for sure, thank you! It's very nice to meet you too!

[dru666]

Sorry for the late reply - I've moved and my computer has crashed multiple times since my last post. I still can't believe that guy was selling all of those neat McFarlane toys at the yard sale. That alien queen set is getting harder to find. It's nice that your community has such a large and unique yard sale.

Thank you, I will. That's a cute idea, I'll have to add them in

I saw "Stay Alive" too and it was pretty dismal. There's "Bathory" from 2008, starring Anna Friel. It's a foreign film and hasn't been released in the U.S., but you can try to find it online. I've seen it on youtube under "Condessa de Sangue." The costumes are amazing, but the film is inaccurate and tries to make it seem like she was framed and should be seen as a positive feminist role model. There's also "The Countess" from 2009, starring Julie Delphy. It's available on youtube and unfortunately, it's also inaccurate, but it has a good cast and it's still interesting to see a film about Bathory.

Thank you! Looking forward to more of your posts.

[Feigenbaum]

Not a problem! Glad to see it's back up and running. Few things frustrated me more than a crashing computer. (Seriously. I smashed my old one with a hammer and also threw it across the room a couple times. I don't have anger issues unless Windows 98 is involved.)

Okay, Elizabeth Bathory plus Anna Friel equals my perfect film. Hopefully I can find that and watch it today! Sad that it's inaccurate in such a way. Bathory's fascination comes from the fact that she was unapologetically gruesome. It's weird to say but I already find her kind of a feminist role model. Not that I want to be an insane serial killer, or that I would ever want anyone else to be or deliberately tell someone "hey, you should look up to her." But with most famous murderers being male, well. It's nice to have representation in the annals of history. Sweeney Todd has nothing on the Countess of Blood, is all I'm saying.

[dru666]

Thank you. I can completely understand having anger issues when it comes to computers. I'm surprised I haven't attacked this one yet.

I agree, it sounds like the perfect combination to me too and I wanted to see that film for the longest time. I hope whatever copy you find is understandable language-wise (or at least has subtitles). I've seen the English and non-English versions on the internet, but you can still figure out what's happening on the most part. Yes, I agree with you on Elizabeth Bathory being unapologetically gruesome and being a strong and fierce representation of a historical female serial killer among men. You're quite right I meant that the film tries to make her look strong, but innocent of intentionally killing anyone. It claims she bathed in red-colored herbal baths (not blood) and had mercy on her servant girls (even helping them with self-defense). It was the "vile and murderous" men who framed her. The other Julie Delphy film just takes a weird skewed detour into her love-life, but it does include some accurate information. It seemed tame for a film about Bathory though, I wanted them to include a lot more of her gruesomeness. I'll let you judge them for yourself though and I hope you enjoy them!

[Feigenbaum]

Watched it last night! The English version. It was an interesting interpretation but I'm not gonna reserve judgment here, a terrible, terrible film. I still watched all of its painful longness but I was definitely doing other stuff at the time and only paid my full attention to it for about a quarter. Most of the actors seemed like they were just getting through their lines, which is a shame. The costumes and sets were absolutely gorgeous though! But too many pointless scenes.

It did scratch my bad movie itch though. I don't think I'll have to rewatch Batman & Robin for a while now.

[dru666]

I'm glad you were able to find it, but I'm sorry to hear that you were also disappointed by it. Even though it's a bad film, with an interest in Bathory, it's hard to pass up (at least for a few minutes) when so few films about her are made, so I had to mention it. I watched it in the background too and I agree with you on all counts. The costumes, sets, and Anna Friel were the only redeeming factors. I wouldn't recommend The Countess then, unless you really want a double bad movie dose! The acting in that one is very wooden. I almost forgot - thankfully, there's another modern film about her that's being made (starring Tilda Swinton) and hopefully that will be a better film. I think she'll make an excellent Erzsebeth Bathory. I also forgot to mention the classic 70s Hammer film Countess Dracula, starring Ingrid Pitt as Bathory. I haven't seen it - it was unavailable for a long time and now it's available on DVD. From what I know, that should be a much better film (in terms of horror at least) if you'd like to watch it. Hope you had a good weekend!