For some reason, I have a huge affection for the Anna Valerious character from Van Helsing, possibly because 1) I like Kate Beckinsale, 2) I have fond memories of Van Helsing in Fifteen Minutes, and/or 3) the character herself, muddy accent and lametastic death notwithstanding, was kind of awesome. Also, I have a huge thing for dolls in general, so when Sideshow put out a 12" figure, I had to have it.
Anna Dollerious currently occupies a place of honor on The Shelf; she also has one of the most accurate, detailed movie-replica costumes I've ever seen on a doll. And I haven't even told you about her sword, dagger and pistol yet.
Vital stats
- Original character: Anna Valerious from Van Helsing
- Actor likeness: Kate Beckinsale
- Manufacturer: Sideshow Toy
- Height: 12"
- Accessories: Sword, dagger, pistol, bitch boots
- Abilities: Kicking ass
- Hobbies: Killing things
- Family: Deceased (father killed by vampire, brother werewolfed)
- Significant other: Elizabeth Swann
- Nemesis: The Littlest Edward
Appears in
The real reason I cracked, though, is that the Sideshow Anna Dollerious is, quite simply, the most awesome movie replica doll I have ever seen. It's got buckles, it's got corsets, it's got corset-lacings, it's got tiny peasant-blouse embroidery. The hair is a bit out of control--a bit more Anna Valerifro than I wanted, and not the awesome long curls in the prototype picture--but other than that? Gold, all the way.
- The Secret Life of Dolls (entry)
- More from the Secret Life of Dolls
- Guys and Dolls
- The Prototype
- Night Terrors
- The Rival
- The Interview
- Anticipation
- The Newcomer
- Well, A Few Creatures Were Stirring
- Good Things, Small Packages
- Double Trouble
- A Momentous Occasion
- Scenes from a Shelf / Dollspam 3
- An Unexpected Development
- Zombie Sold Separately
- The Continuing Saga
- The Day Has Come
- He Who Fights Monsters
- The Last Straw
- Matinee Idols
- A Shelf Divided
- The Scene of the Crime
- The Sparkle Protection Program
- Mea Culpa
Icons
Notes
- Much to my horror, a Sideshow Anna Valerious doll, presumably mint in box, appears very clearly in The 40 Year Old Virgin. (Well, "clearly" if you own one, and you see the movie on a 40-foot screen.) Look for the scene in the latter half of the movie where Steve Carell and Catherine Keener are fighting on his bed and a number of boxes are either knocked over or swept aside, I forget which.
See also