I'm pretty classically-minded. So whenever Halloween rolls around my fascination with the Universal Monster movies kicks into high gear. It wasn't long ago that I learned the beautiful Julia Adams had passed away back in February. The Creature From the Black Lagoon is easily my favorite monster movie and she was perfect in the role of Kay Lawrence. But this got me thinking about all the "damsels" of the Universal Monsters library, and then I had the realization that I already owned a bunch of them in Mini-mate form. Back in 2010 and 2011, Diamond Select Toys released a fantastic collection of Mini-mates based on these classic films, and in the process they included the oft-forgotten (at least in the merchandising department) ladies of Universal Monsters. All of these movies fail the Bechdel test miserably (a lot has changed in the past 60 years luckily), but these characters are still memorable in their own way and make really fascinating little collectibles. Let's check them out below!
Universal Monsters Mini-Mates Box Set
Frankenstein (1931)
ELIZABETH LAVENZA
Played by Mae Clarke
Art Asylum / DST 2011
Universal Monsters Mini-Mates Box Set
Dracula (1931)
MINA HARKER
Played by Helen Chandler
Art Asylum / Diamond Select Toys 2011
Universal Monsters Mini-Mates Box Set
The Wolfman (1941)
GWEN CONLIFFE
Played by Evelyn Ankers
Art Asylum / Diamond Select Toys 2010
Universal Monsters Mini-Mates Box Set
Creature from the Black Lagoon (1954)
KAY LAWRENCE
Played by Julia/Julie Adams
Art Asylum / Diamond Select Toys 2010
Here are a ladies missing from this review....
Universal Monsters Mini-Mates Box Set
The Hunchback of Notre Dame 1939
ESMERELDA
Played by Maureen O'Hara
Art Asylum / Diamond Select Toys 2012
Universal Monsters Mini-Mates Box Set
The Mummy (1932)
PRINCESS ANCK-ES-EN-AMON
Played by Zita Johann
HELEN GROSVENOR
Played by Zita Johann
Art Asylum / Diamond Select Toys 2012
Unfortunately this set was cancelled and never saw release. The figures were all released in Toys-R-Us 2-Packs with the exception of Helen Grosvenor (she was the exclusive figure of the box set). I actually own the Princess Anck-Es-En-Amon figure but I couldn't find her anywhere.
Universal Monsters Mini-Mates Box Set
Frankenstein (1931)
BRIDE OF FRANKENSTEIN
Played by Elsa Lanchester
Art Asylum / Diamond Select Toys 2011
Despite this figure being includes in the Dracula (1931) boxset, the characters wasn't introduced until The Bride of Frankenstein (1935). I actually reviewed this figure a couple years ago.
Time for a Group Pic!
From Left to Right: Gwen conliffe (Wolfman), Mina Harker (Dracula), Kay Lawrence (Creature), and Elizabeth Lavenza (Frankenstein).
Cheers!
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