When In England, Buy Milk Chocolate

I feel a little sorry for candy makers in the UK, unless you make a milk chocolate treat. My problem is that every time I visit the UK, I tend to gravitate towards any of their treats that contain milk chocolate. The reason is simple, some of (if not the) best mass produced milk chocolate comes from the UK. On just about every visit to the UK I tend to load up on milk chocolate treats, and that means that I might miss or pass up something that doesn't have any milk chocolate in it. If you know a great non-milk chocolate treat that I should try, let me know, I'll add it to my list and really try hard to get it.

Check out my latest UK, milk chocolate treat review.

You're Not Fat Enough Yet

 According to this candy advertisement from South Africa, you have to be heavy in order to eat a giant chocolate bar.

Attempting To Solve A Popcorn Problem

 The popcorn problem is a mathematical problem that takes place mostly at theatres, but can also happen at just about any place that entertains you and offers popcorn. I've never bought popcorn at a concert or professional sporting event, but I have seen it for sale at those events and can imagine that the problem happens there as well. For the sake of explaining this problem, I'll use the theatre as my example. The problem is that all too often you run out of popcorn before the entertainment has even begun. On some occasions you might manage to limit you popcorn intake during the time you're waiting for the event or movie to start, and maybe you'll have popcorn available during the first 15 minutes of so. 

This is a strange situation because I always associate popcorn with watching movies, but maybe I'm actually associating popcorn with waiting for movies to start. Maybe once the movie starts I might actually have no interest in popcorn at all. I wouldn't really know because I've always finished my popcorn before the movie has started.

Popcorn is an odd snack. You might be thinking to yourself, "those buckets of popcorn at theatres are huge, that's more than enough". The fact that they call the container for popcorn a bucket supports that theory. The thing is, most popcorn buckets don't actually contain much solid food mass. I don't think I've ever heard anyone complain about having to carry a bucket of popcorn before because it's too heavy. It's a bit of an illusion, as most of what you're buying is actually air, and these air filled popped kernels have lots of air between them as they don't really nestle together very well.

I should also point out that I tend to order the medium, or maybe large if I'm sharing popcorn when I go to the movies. I pretty much just go along with whatever "combo" or deal the theatre is trying to sell that seems appropriate for my party size (a single if I'm alone and a two person combo if I'm with Allison). I am aware that many theatres also offer insanely large buckets of popcorn as well. I'd just always assumed that these buckets were meant for families and since I don't have kids, I've never bought one... That is until now.

On a recent trip to see the movie Inside Out 2, Allison and I jokingly suggested that we pick up the largest bucket of popcorn available at this theatre. As you might be able to see from the picture, it's about 10 inches tall with a diameter of about 12 inches. I feel like this sudden urge to get a giant bucket of popcorn came about because of our last theatre going experience where we bought the "large" box of popcorn at another theatre and it contained maybe 50 kernels of popcorn, and that's it. Maybe we were over compensating, but the price wasn't too bad and we figured it might be an interesting experiment.

We got this behemoth and couldn't stop laughing the whole time. We were actually watching this movie in Thailand, and I couldn't help but imagine how the locals would see the "westerners" with their giant bucket of popcorn since there's a generalization that westerners eat large portions (spoilers, we do). We waited for the theatre to be cleaned out, and once it was, we wandered inside to our seats. In this theatre they offer special seating for couples that consist of two large, comfy chairs squished together like a couch. We generally opt for this and it worked out well as our popcorn needed a large place to sit and between us on this couch worked perfectly.

We also decided that we would eat the popcorn as usual. So no holding back and waiting for the movie to start. We sat down and watched a good 20 to 30 minutes of trailers happily munching away on our popcorn. I would occasionally feel around the bucket to see how far we'd gotten. By the time the movie started it felt like we'd eaten about 1 and a half inches into the bucket. After about the first 45 minutes of the movie I assumed that we must have been near the end, but we weren't even halfway through.

By about the 1 hour mark I started to not want to eat popcorn anymore, and only continued to eat out of habit or some drive to finish this bucket. About 20 minutes after that I was pretty much tapped out. I nibbled here and there, but I just couldn't eat any more popcorn. I felt like Allison was in the same boat as me.

The photo above is how far we managed to get into the bucket. By this point I could touch the bottom with my finger, but just barely. I would say we had a good 2 or 3 inches left. I took away a few lessons from doing this. First and foremost, as much as you think you'd like to eat popcorn throughout an entire movie (or concert or sporting event), I don't think that's true. Secondly, if you get a giant bucket of popcorn, make sure to get the giant drink to go with it. I noticed my consumption went way down once my drink was done.

We tried to eat more popcorn when we got back to our hotel, but frankly the idea made us a little sick. There's a great expression is show business "leave them wanting more". The expression suggests that it's better for your audience to not get enough entertainment rather than over doing it. I feel like this works with popcorn too. It's better to not get enough popcorn than have too much. When I don't have enough popcorn I just look forward to the next time I'm planning to go to a movie. If I get too much I just leave with a tummy ache and sore, dry lips.

There's Something Wrong With These M&M's

Keep in mind that I'm not a legal expert, but I feel like a line or two might have been crossed.

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Learn about Beasts and the Treats They Love

 If you haven't already picked up my awesome alphabet book called Treats and Beasts, then you're missing out on a fun day of learning all about beasts and the treats they love.

Pick up your very own copy of this book (and even some merch) at bewarethecheese.com/treatsnbeasts/ or on Amazon.

A Review Every Day

 

If you haven't noticed yet, this month (September 2024) I've decided to post a new candy review every single day of the week. I'd planned to do this several months ago, assuming that I wouldn't be traveling or anything this month, and would be able to update the site every morning. So far it's worked, and I'll be honest, it hasn't been that hard on me either. Not that I should ever complain about having to eat candy. The thought has gone through my head about the idea of keeping this up for a whole year, but I feel like that might be too much on me both mentally and physically (you can have too much of a good thing). The good news is that I don't plan on stopping the review-a-thon this month, and I'll have plenty new reviews after.

Check out on of the latest entries in this review-a-thon, a bar from Iceland.

Simpson's Candy Facts?

 I just learned that this Butterfinger commercial is actually the first appearance of Milhouse. Apparently he was created for this commercial specifically.

Deep Fried Snacks Rule On Street Food

 Watching these expert street food artist make a crunchy deep fried peanut treat at a street market in Bangkok, Thailand is what makes me happy all the time.

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Do You Know Snack Facts?

You can learn some really fun facts about the snacks you love in a really fun way, and all you have to do is pick up my comic Snack Facts.

Check out Snack Facts right now at candycritic.org/snackfacts/buy.htm or on Amazon.

A Little Offensive But...

 I get the feeling that this commercial isn't trying to be offensive, but there are a lot of elements that probably wouldn't sit well with today's audience.

McDonalds Anime Update

 Ronald McDonald is probable one of the most famous food mascots ever created. I say this because I’ve seen depictions of Ronald all over the world, and I’m pretty sure that kids and adults all over the place associate this brightly coloured clown with burgers, nuggets and fun fast food. Thailand even has some very unique Ronald statues to greet people outside of every single restaurant.

The thing is, Ronald seems to be disappearing a bit. While there are still hints of him everywhere, he’s not commonly found at every restaurant anymore. I’ve seen many documentaries about the rise and fall of Ronald and the entire McDonald Land cast, and there are many theories about why these characters seem to be falling out of favour at the restaurants. Oddly however I am finding that these characters are starting to become more popular outside the restaurants, being used in clothes, shoes, and even some fine art and collectible toys.

It seems like the licensing of Ronald and the McDonald’s Land characters is going strong, but for marketing in restaurants they seem to be completely disappearing. Again I’m not sure why this is happening for sure, but I am noticing in Asia that these classic characters are starting to be replaced by new Anime style characters.

While there are some food related characters in the mix, the main theme seems to be characters based on the people working at McDonald’s. Maybe this is not only a way to sell food, but also a way to try and get people to apply for jobs.

What I wonder is how deep this goes. While I’ve seen a few posters, cut outs and window decorations of these characters, I haven’t seen any of the obvious marketing pieces that would make sense for Anime style characters, like comics and animation. I think it might be fun to see the adventures of some characters that work at a McDonald’s that’s regular attacked by various fast food related robots and monsters.

Longest Lasting Gum

 A quick list of the longest lasting gums that I've ever reviewed on candycritic.org. If you want to check out all the gum I've reviewed check out candycritic.org/reviewgum.htm.

That Blue Orchid is Awesome!

If you haven't yet picked up issue 1 of Blue Orchid, make sure you get it soon, because issue 2 is almost done.

Check out all things Blue Orchid at www.bewarethecheese.com/blueorchid/ and pick up issue 1 on Amazon .

It's A Review-a-Thon Marathon

Starting this week, and going until the end of the month, I'm going to post a new snack/candy review every single day. Normally I post one or two reviews a week, with the occasional small one week review-a-thons, but lately I've had a huge backlog of reviews that I need to post. I've decided to thin out this backlog a bit and post like crazy. My goal is to have them all posted overnight with a notice on my social media every morning, but please be kind if I'm running a little late.

Check out the first entry in my mega review-a-thon and don't forget to complain about the fact that it's not really a candy.

A Little Strange I Guess

 Even if you look beyond the general strangness of this commercial, I find it really odd at how happy the kids are that the M&Ms don't melt in their hands.

Is Red Licorice, Licorice?

 Today I debate the age old question, is red licorice actually licorice?

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Beast Up Those Treats

If you haven't picked up my fun alphabet book all about beasts and the treats they love, then you're really missing out.

Pick up your very own copy right now on Amazon or at bewarethecheese.com/treatsnbeasts/

Marshmallow Redemption?

While writing this new candy review I got to thinking. I was wondering if I could acquire a taste for mass produced marshmallows the same way I (sort of) acquired a taste for black licorice. The way I attempted to acquire a taste for black licorice was to buy a big bag of the stuff (the extreme black licorice from Holland) and eat a piece every single day. I'm not sure that this will work for mass produced marshmallows as the thing I dislike most about them is the lack of flavour and the texture. Black licorice was a flavour issue, where is this is a texture issue. Maybe I'll give it a try in the future, but for now I'm happy to remain very picky about the marshmallows that I eat.

Check out my latest marshmallow review right now.

Almond Joy and Almond Cluster

 I have two questions about this commercia. First of all, what happened to the Almond Cluster, and why can't I get one now. Secondly, why is the theme song sung with a French accent?

Googly Revolution

There’s a saying, or at the very least an idea that many people believe to be true, and that’s chocolate will improve any food. I will agree that chocolate can make many desserts, nuts and even some savoury foods pretty good, but I’m pretty sure it can’t improve everything. I’ve pointed out in the past that onions and chocolate seems to be a stumbling block that I’ve seen a few people attempt but never succeed. I’d also argue that there a few desserts that would not be better with chocolate, like strawberry shortcake, carrot cake and trifle. So that made me think, is there anything you can do to a dessert, snack or candy that will always improve it?

My next line of thinking was fruit or a fruit compote. Fruit is a great garnish on so many desserts so it seemed like it should work. I was mostly thinking of a berry coulis, maybe strawberry or raspberry. The problem with coolis is I’m not convinced it would improve any candies, and pretty sure it would wreck some savoury treats, I’m looking at you pretzels.

This basically lead me right back to the beginning, and had me once again sure that there was no unifying single thing one could add to snacks, desserts and candy that would always improve them. That was until I took a trip to my local bulk food store and came across some candy googly eyes.

You could easily argue that these candy googly eyes add nothing when it comes to taste and texture. I would argue back that they do add a little bit of crunch, but would kind of agree that flavour wise they’re just adding some sweet and nothing more. The thing they do add is endless entertainment, and maybe that’s just what desserts, snacks and candies could use. Even if your dessert is fancy or your candy is fun, these googly eyes just seem to add even more fun to them.

My plan is simple, I bought a handful of these googly eyes, and I’ve decided that over the next few weeks/months I’m going to take every opportunity to add them to many of my desserts, snacks and candies that I’m eating to see if it actually makes them better. I’m convinced that there will not be one failure for this experiment, and I challenge any treat to try and be less fun without some slightly wonky eyes attached to them.

A Look Back at a Dark Chocolate From Japan

 Today I tasted a dark chocolate that came from a place that didn't used to have a lot of dark chocolate. Now it's got much more dark chocolate, and this doesn't really cut it anymore.

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Facting on The Snacking

If you've wanted to learn all there is to know about the snacks you love, make sure to pick up Snack Facts, my fun comic featuring fun facts and history treats, candy and munchies.

Pick up your copy right now at candycritic.org/snackfacts/ or on Amazon.

For The Love of Cinnamon

I'm not sure if my tastes have changed, or if I'm just finally brave enough in my older age to admit this, but I really like cinnamon. I might even go so far as to say that there are times where I crave cinnamon over chocolate. This is particularly true when someone's talking about baked treats. Don't get me wrong, there has to be some sugar mixed with that cinnamon, and it shouldn't be very spicy either. I've never really understood the full appeal of spicy cinnamon treats to be honest.

Check out my latest cinnamon filled review.

Old PopRocks Slogan

 I feel like PopRocks could bring back their old slogan "the cracklin's what's happenin'" and people would love it.

A New Street Food 10 Second Kitchen

Watching them make fun and unique street foods at the night markets in Bangkok is always fun, particularly when you know that you're going to eat it a few minutes later.

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That Blue Orchid Is Pretty Amazing

You should stop what you're doing right now and check out my comic all about a girl who fights all kinds of monsters. 

Pick up Blue Orchid right now at www.bewarethecheese.com/blueorchid/ or on Amazon.

My Monthly Review-A-Thon

 

You may or may not have noticed but each month, during the second week of each month to be precise, I post a review-a-thon. What that means is that rather than posting two new candy reviews a week, I post a new review each day that week (from Monday to Friday). I started doing this when my backlog of reviews started to grow a little out of control, with the goal of thinning this backlog out a bit. It appears to not be doing a good enough job, as my backlog is once again way too big. So while this month is going to be the same as usual, next month I've decided to do a super review-a-thon and I'm going to post a new review every single day for the entire month of September.

Check out the first entry in week's review-a-thon, and stay tuned to our social media for a fairly hectic September.

Early TV

 One thing about older candy commercials is there was a time when you didn't really have to impress, you just had to be on television.

Kaya Revelation

 There are a few snacking trends that make their way from Asia to the west. Odd flavoured Kit Kat bars, Pocky, seaweed crackers just to name a few. There are however some Asian trends that never make their way to the west, and I can’t figure out why. Salted Egg, both on fish skins and as a flavour is a great example. It’s a flavour trend that’s just about everywhere in Asia, from Krispy Kreme donuts to every kind of salty snack and cookie you could imagine, yet most people in the west have no idea what it is. I can never really figure out why one particular snacking trend makes its way around the world while others don’t.

Kaya is the latest thing I’ve discovered that seems to fall into the category of treat that just about everyone should love, but for some reason it seems to stick to certain parts of Asia. I discovered it on a trip to Malaysia where I met a person who was so surprised that I had never tried it before. This isn’t that uncommon, for someone to introduce me to a treat that I’ve never tried before. After all there are hundreds of regional treats and snacks all over the world that are only available in very specific places. At first I assumed that this was just a Malaysian thing and while happy to try it, I didn’t think much of it.

Then, after my trip to Malaysia, we ventured to Singapore. I decided to poke around Singapore and see if they had any Kaya available as well. I was blown away by how much Kaya I found. There were snack shops and restaurants dedicated to the stuff. Dunkin’ had a doughnut flavoured with Kaya too. I also checked the grocery stores and there were shelves full of different varieties and different qualities of Kaya. After having one person in Malaysia point it out to me, I suddenly discovered that it’s actually all over the place. I’ve since travel ed to a few other Asian countries, and each and every one of them also offers Kaya.

For those of you that don’t know, Kaya is a coconut based spread. It often has pandam in it as well as various other ingredients like sugar and sometimes egg. There are apparently different versions of it too, depending on where you get it, but most are sweet, slightly gritty spreads. There is certainly a coconut flavour, but it’s not too overpowering. The traditional way to eat it is on toast with butter, but as I said before filling donuts or dipping things in it is also acceptable.

It’s a sweet spread that has some truly fun (and fairly familiar) Asian flavours, so why is no one in North America or Europe eating this stuff? I don’t really have an answer, but I can say that it’s not because it’s brand new. The people I’ve talked to about it have been eating it for years. According to some research I’ve done online, there are Kaya recipes that have been around since the early nineteen hundreds.

I’m not sure how long Dunkin’ has offered a Kaya donut, and I’m not sure how long Kaya toast shops have been open. Maybe Kaya is just hitting the mainstream in Asia. Maybe it’s been on the shelves for a while, but now it’s finally getting a bit more of the snacking spotlight. I can’t really say for sure because it just wasn’t on my radar until recently.

What I’m hoping is that this awesome spread picks up momentum, and we start to see more and more treats flavoured with it. A Kaya Kit Kat sounds good to me, maybe even some more Kaya cookies. I would also love to taste a Kaya ice cream, if Baskin Robbins is feeling adventurous.

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The Best Milk Chocolate Bars

 This is a list of the best milk chocolate bars I've ever reviewed on candycritic.org, so this doesn't include fine milk chocolates or milk chocolate that might be in other forms. It also only includes bars that have nothing but milk chocolate.

Those Beasts Love Treats

If you want to better your alphabet skills while still showing your love of snacks and treats, be sure to pick up my book called Treats and Beasts.

You can get your very own copy at bewarethecheese.com/treatsnbeasts/ or on Amazon.

Being Objective Is Hard

Probably the hardest part of doing a site dedicated to reviewing candy is staying objective. After all I have likes and dislikes, licorice and spicy foods is a prime dislike that I run across regularly. I also have childhood memories of eating certain candies. This is a hard one to put aside since it's not uncommon for me to taste these treats and instantly be flooded with great childhood memories. This week's featured review is just such a treat. It's been years since I've eaten a Zingy Zap, but the minute I bit into one I instantly had fond memories of being a kid and visiting my local corner store with my friends.

Check out my attempt at objectively reviewing this classic treat.

Retro Rolo

 To say they don't make commercials like they used to is an understatement in this case.

A New Episode of Junk Fud on the Road all about Singapore and Malaysia!

 In this episode Allison and Chris talk about their recent trip to Singapore and Malaysia. Make sure to listen and learn all about their latest discovery, Kaya.

Time To Bone Up On Your Snack Facts

If you've ever wanted to know a little more about the treats you love to snack on, make sure to pick up the complete Snack Facts right now.

You can pick up every issue (or the complete large sized edition) right now at candycritic.org/snackfacts/ or on Amazon .

What Are The Most Common Ice Cream Toppings

I think the debate about what ice cream toppings are the best would run forever, with no winner ever announced. This is mostly because the best ice cream toppings are very subjective. The real question is what are the most common ice cream toppings, particularly when we're talking about store bought ice cream treats. While I haven't done any real research on this subject, my guess is chocolate and peanuts. Peanuts might be losing favour these days with so many people having allergies, but I still think chocolate and peanut with a vanilla ice cream is probably still very popular. The next question is why are these ingredients so popular. Is it because people really love them, or is it because it's simple and less expensive?

Check out my latest ice cream review featuring peanuts, chocolate and vanilla ice cream.

Selling Candy With Sexy Bunnies?

 

Do you really need a sexy bunny to sell candy?

Is Sweet Potato Butter Spread Better Than Nutella?

 When I first started this series of blogs comparing Nutella to other spreads, my main focus was on chocolate hazelnut spreads, then it expanded to any kind of chocolate spread, now I think it’s gone off the rails a little. Comparing sweet potato spread to Nutella probably isn’t very fair, as they’re completely different things. The problem is since I’m now searching the grocery store isles for spreads, I sometimes come across odd things to put on toast, and sometimes I can’t pass one up. My brain also has a hard time trying to come up with another way to write about this odd spread, so I just lump it in a category that it probably doesn’t belong.

As for the spread itself, the first thing some people might have to get over the fact that it’s made with a sweet potato. For some reason some people have a hard time readjusting themselves to believing that sweet potato works as a sweet ingredient. It’s odd because just about every sweet potato dish has a sweet aspect, and the word “sweet” is even in the name. 

The only problem I had with this spread is that I’m convinced that there’s more than just sweet potato in this spread. I feel like there’s some additional sugar and possibly some spices (I couldn’t read the ingredients as they’re not in English). This makes me feel a little ripped off, like when you eat something that’s pumpkin flavoured, but it’s actually flavoured with pumpkin as well as the spices that are associated with pumpkin pie. I’m not saying that there’s no sweet potato in this, I’m just wondering how much help the sweet potato has had to make it a little more flavourful.

As far as comparing it to Nutella, I think Nutella is a bit better. However, this does have a uniqueness to it that Nutella does not, and so I would say if you have the chance to try it you should. If you have the choice of either this or Nutella then I’d lean towards Nutella assuming you’re basing your choice on flavour and texture. If you’re basing your choice on adventure and uniqueness than I would probably suggest you try the sweet potato spread instead.

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Time To Get Some Blue Orchid

Check out my most recent project, a fun comic called Blue Orchid. There's new stories coming out all the time as well as some cool merch!

Check out all things Blue Orchid at bewarethecheese.com/blueorchid/ or pick up Chapter 1 on Amazon .

The Only Candy With A Hole In The Middle

There was a time when Life Savers claimed to be "the only one candy with a hole in the middle". I wonder if Life Savers were the first candy to put a hole in the middle. I know that there must have been some cereals around with holes, but I'm not sure if I can name an older candy than Life Savers with a hole in the middle. The more I think about it though, I still don't really know why you'd want a candy with a hole in the middle, since it would mean less candy. Now that I'm thinking about this so much, I'm starting to question the design of donuts too.

Holey Cow! Check out my latest hole filled review.

Simple Or Wrong?

 "Get happy, suck a Spangle." It's both innocent and not at the same time.

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A Tale of a Fishy Cracker

 One part of this snack really stands out, and it's kind of surprising, yet also disappointing.

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It's A Good Thing Beasts Love Treats

If you love fun books featuring fun beasts and the treats they love to eat, make sure to pick up my alphabet book called Treats and Beasts.

Available at bewarethecheese.com/treatsnbeasts or on Amazon .

Should I Even Buy Spicy Snacks?

Probably one of my biggest weaknesses of being a snack/candy critic is the fact that I don't really like spicy foods. I've passed by a few treats in my day just because I thought they'd be too spicy. Honestly, the only reason I ever get spicy treats to review are if they're a gift, if I misread the label, or it has to be so interesting that I'm willing to take the chance. Maybe it's not fair to those candy makers making spicy snacks out there, but I just find it hard to build up the courage to eat spicy treats very often.

Check out my latest spicy review, and remember that I went through a bit of pain to write it.

Always A Riesen

 All this commercial tells me is that you should never talk to strangers, but it's okay to take their candy.

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A New Popcorn Name Might Pop Up

 When it comes to names of popcorn brands, I love a good pun. Not every brand manages to come up with a great pun, I’m looking at your Orville Redenbacher, but there are so many great names for popcorn brands that I figured it was well worth sharing my favourites. A good name can easily influence me to buy a particular popcorn, although my go to is Orville Redenbacher (it’s a bit of a contradiction I know). However, if a really clever name comes up I’ll at the very least give it a try.

Probably the most popular brand of popcorn with a fairly clever name is Pop Secret. The brand is so popular that I feel like the pun in the name is lost on most people. It’s even possible that you didn’t even think about it until reading this very article, but Pop Secret is a really clever name. I wonder if the early marketing for Pop Secret involved some kind of secret butter recipe, or maybe a top secret type of corn was being used. Either way it’s a solid pun for a popcorn brand.

I came across this Pop Star brand of popcorn, and I must say it’s also a pretty solid pun. It’s a little off track because I feel like pop stars are more about music, and people don’t really associate music and popcorn consumption. Maybe that the angle the Pop Star popcorn people thought they could exploit. Maybe people are eating popcorn at concerts, and I’m just not aware of it.

Mr Popgun is a slightly clever name for popcorn, but I’ll be honest, I think the package might be considered a little politically incorrect. I will also be honest and say that I did buy some of this popcorn because I found the package to be so politically incorrect, and the popcorn was really good. I assume the “popgun” is in reference to the toy guns that often shoot a small cork attached to a string out the muzzle. 

This Mr Bop popcorn is a bit of a conundrum. I feel like they’re trying to make some kind of pun, but I don’t really know what that pun is supposed to be. Maybe in some parts of the world the onomatopoeia for the sound popcorn makes is “bop” and not “pop”. Although that would mean you’re eating bopcorn and not popcorn. The marketing behind this brand is a little confusing, but I feel like there’s at least an attempt to make it fun.

While writing this article I was trying to come up with some good pun names that have not been used yet for popcorn. I decided to ask Allison and she instantly came up with one that was so good that I just gave up trying to come up with my own. She suggested that you use a military theme and just call it Colonel Kernel. I have to be honest, that might be better than Pop Secret, and it’s much better than all of the rest. So if any popcorn brand wants to use Colonel Kernel as a popcorn brand name, be my guest, I just ask that you send me some, I like the extra butter variety.

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Some More Facts About Snacks

 Learn all about marshmallows, ice cream, gummy bears and a whole bunch of other awesome snacks by checking out my comic called Snack Facts.

You can pick up your very own collection at candycritic.org/snackfacts/ or on Amazon .

Are All Classic Candy Objectively Great?

I always have a hard time writing reviews for treats that I would call classic. I know that not everyone has the same classic treats as everyone else, but for me SweetTarts were a treat that's been part of my life for as long as I can remember. The problem is that I have a bit of nostalgia for this classic (North American?) treat. So when I want to write a review, no matter how good or bad this treat might actually be, I have a certain amount of nostalgia for it. I want it to be great, but I'm not entirely sure that's actually the case. Worse yet, what if I manage to convince myself it's not that great, that might ruin my entire childhood.

Read my full review of this classic treat, and let me know if you think nostalgia got in the way.

Not Sure About This Gum Commercial

 I'm pretty sure this gum commercial wouldn't fly today, but you can decide for yourself.

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Quick List For Adults

Here's a quick list of the best adult candies I've ever reviewed on candycritic.org. What makes a candy adult could probably be subject of a future podcast.

Read Some Blue Orchid

If you love a good comic filled with action and drama, as well as some fun monsters, be sure to check out Blue Orchid.

You can pick up all things Blue Orchid and see what's new at bewarethecheese.com/blueorchid/ or on Amazon.

Healthy Candy?

 

The fact that the candy industry is constantly trying to prove itself "healthy" is problematic for me sometimes. You'd think that I would back this concept as it shines a positive light on candy, but honestly it just frustrates me. I believe that candy should be a small indulgence that you give yourself every now and then, not a part of your healthy diet. I also find that at times, like today, I find myself having a hard time deciding if some candy is in fact candy, or some kind of odd health supplement. I don't like candy pretending to be something it's not, I don't think it's healthy and it often makes candy makers dilute their amazing bites into something that is no longer as enjoyable and not really that healthy.

Check out my latest review and let me know if it's more candy or health food attempt.