Before I get to today’s delicious news, I’m happy to announce that Dino Drac’s Halloween Funpacks have finally been unveiled! October’s Funpack has a whole lotta Freddy Krueger, a new Ugly Mini Poster, a new specimen, an adorable Mordle, and more! Thanks to all subscribers, new and old! (Remaining quantities are limited! If you were considering subscribing, now is the time!)

Oh, sweet God in heaven or however it’s phrased, YES! They’re back! Hostess Halloween snack cakes! Shout this from rooftops!

When Hostess returned from the grave, I didn’t have high hopes for the seasonal stuff. I figured that they’d stick with the basics and avoid anything resembling a risk. Actually, Hostess has done just the opposite, releasing more “limited edition” snacks than ever before! (Hell, they even resurrected Chocodiles!)

So while it’s no huge surprise that they’d throw their name back into the Halloween hat, I’m still incredibly happy that they did. Hostess’s spooky treats have quietly been part of the Halloween Countdown’s lifeblood. In fact, they were one of the subjects of the very first Halloween Countdown, back in 2003!

I have mad respect for any Halloween food with that kind of tenure. I remember running around for Countdown materials back in 2003, and while there was plenty, there wasn’t nearly as much as there is in 2014. In a sense, Hostess’s treats are the ghoulish grandfathers of everything we see today. Read More…

New from Charms, get a load of these Candy Corn Blow Pops!

Please don’t continue reading until you’ve gotten a sufficient load of these Candy Corn Blow Pops.

I’m no big fan of candy corn, but time has dulled burning hatred into a more casual apathy. “Oh, it’s candy corn. Not gonna eat it, but it looks pretty enough in a bowl.” The timing is fortuitous, because just a few years ago, the mere mention of candy corn lollipops would’ve made me take my demon form, which very closely resembles Transmetal 2 Megatron.

Actually, all told, I think these are great. It’s always a treat when an ancient big brand puts on a costume, and getting candy corn Blow Pops means so much more than just getting candy corn lollipops. Ya dig? You do if you’re Tom Witzky.

The wrappers are impressive, but not like, regular impressive. I mean “impressive” like the Mortal Kombat guy says it. Drawn out, and with an admitting awe. I don’t know how Charms captured the very essence of Halloween in three inches of cheap cellophane so well, but kudos to them. It sounds hard to do. Read More…

You should steal that image and put it on a t-shirt. Then, when you’re out in public, pretend that walking really hurts.

Ladies and gentlemen, it’s time for us to talk about MONSTER BALLS. I’d wanted to write about these for over ten years, but the eBay prices were always too dissuasive. A few months ago, I finally found one that I could afford.

I finally got a MONSTER BALL.

The package doesn’t list a year, but it’s safe to assume that they’re from the late ‘80s. MONSTER BALLS were pretty obviously meant to steal some glow from AmToy’s Madballs.

It takes a certain familiarity with goofy ‘80s toys to understand why MONSTER BALLS are incredible, so for those without that certain familiarity, I’ll do my best to explain.

Madballs, those lovably gross rubber monster balls, took certain demographics by storm when they debuted in 1987. Almost immediately, other toy companies stole the concept, whether to make straight-up bootlegs, or — as was the case with MONSTER BALLS — new creations were still direct pitches to existing Madballs fans.

So what appears to just be some obscure rubber Dracula head is actually a whole lot more. My MONSTER BALL is a relic from one of the weirdest and most wonderful fads of the ‘80s!

There were four different MONSTER BALLS available. Each came in the same package — the one with the helpful suggestions on what a person could do with their MONSTER BALL. (“Throw,” “catch,” “bounce” and “hit.” I’d add “squeeze,” and maybe “tuck under your shirt to give the illusion of a misplaced breast.”) Read More…