Old Candy Critic Articles - Halloween Package Fun

I've decided to take down several old articles from the candycritic.org and re-post them here on the Candy Critic blog.  This week I'm posting an article about some of the strange things we find on Halloween candy packages.

There are two things that people love about Halloween, candy and costumes. Many assume that you outgrow the candy things, and in some cases that's true. I on the other hand don't really dig the whole costume thing. I'd rather just wait till the Halloween candy goes on sale and stock up. Having said that, there is a certain amount of pleasure I get from checking out all the Halloween-related stuff. The lawn accoutrements are entertaining, as are the funny packages on the Halloween candy. Seeing as this is a candy site, I'll focus on the candy packages.

This is the greatest pun in history. My personal opinion of puns is that they're never that great, so being the greatest pun in history isn't really that important.

Funny enough, the pun is not why I like, or at least decided to profile, this package. I thought I'd point it out because of the inaccuracy of the character. Obviously, by the bolt in the neck, the green skin and the stitches, this is supposed to be Frankenstein. But as some of you may know, Frankenstein was the name of the doctor and not the monster. It would appear someone figured this out during the design of the package and decided to make the monster a doctor as well.

It looks like they're just giving away mad science doctorates to anyone.

I'm not sure why I picked this particular picture. I think it could be the fact that this ghost has decided to taunt the corpse rising from the grave in a malicious way with his party blower. This is truly cruel; the un-dead have feelings too, you know.

It's a little strange seeing a ghost party, but it could happen. The thing that makes me stop and think is that the "R.I.P." on the gravestone is backwards. The rest of the package is fine - just this one part is a little strange.

Maybe it means something. Maybe it's a message from the un-dead trying to free their souls from the horrors of the after life. Maybe by figuring this out I'm doomed to suffer by walking through the afterlife reading things backwards.

That, or maybe a package designer forgot to switch it around.

All I can say is this witch looks slightly uncomfortable yet kind of happy about it.

This particular image is really strange. It combines two holidays in a way that makes me feel very uncomfortable. I mean, who knew that the Easter Bunny celebrated Halloween? I guess he gets some off time, and why not enjoy another holiday? His costume choice is clever, considering he has buck teeth.

Wait a minute, he's not just enjoying this holiday; he's using it to distribute eggs again! Now I feel a sense of hatred towards the Easter Bunny. Why can't he just do his own thing?

This has got to be one of the best examples of a new trend in miniature treats. When I was a kid, if I wanted candy to bring to school for lunch I had to save some of my Halloween fare because that's the only time of year I'd be getting small bite sized treats. Today, they pretty much sell "bite sized" treats all the time, so every kid's lunch will be filled with chocolate goodness.

Rather than having to make new bag designs for the Halloween season, these clever folks put a little picture on the back to show you all the ways you could make someone's day with this treat. The problem is that it shows what has to be the lamest Halloween costume in history. I don't want to ever condone the idea of beating someone up for their candy or refusing to give candy to someone because their costume wasn't up to par, but this kid deserves both.

CC