Hardee's Gives Us Ghostbusters 2 Stuff!

Last year, I discussed my love of Hardee's Halloween Hideaways, which was a fun part of their kids meal promotion for the 1989 Halloween season. But what about the adults? Sure, us kids were covered, but the rest of the family needs to have some fun too! In this instance, there's only one team they could call...

Credit: Ghostbusters Wiki

Even as a kid Ghostbusters 2 was my favorite of the two movies. No seriously, it is. I think it's a fun scifi movie, while the first one is more comedy than anything. Plus, it had a better song.

Before you tell me I'm wrong, keep in mind the Bobby Brown song was actually his own and not lifted from Huey Lewis.

So, being a huge fan of Hardees and Ghostbusters 2, I knew I had to at least own SOMETHING from their offerings. My father and I would go often enough that I could still get a kids meal and my father would be able to get me something Ghostbusters related. A perfect crime. I won either way.

Before I start rambling some more, check out the commercial to get the see the grand offerings:

That commercial just reminds me of everything from my childhood I loved. In fact, pardon me, I have to watch it again.

Fun Offerings!

Noise makers, a lunchbox, Jello Molds and a cool collectors cup! It's a pretty solid spread of Ecto-ladened goodness. I'm pretty sure I had the lunchbox, don't think I had the noise maker, but I certainly remember the Jello Mold. Why? Well, shortly after I brough it home, my mom attempted to use it at my request. So she filled it with Jello for me. Whiled my mom is normally a champion of instant jello, for some reason it tasted very, very un-jello like. I can still recall the bitter taste and how some of it stuck to the plastic molding and never came off. It tasted like stale raspberries, tears and failure. Maybe there was just a mix up, maybe my mom sabotaged it on purpose, maybe these molds were just not to be used, maybe Vigo interfered somehow. The mystery may never be solved. But while it sucked that it failed, it was pretty cool to have a partially jello-ed out Slimer on my plate.

I also had the cup which was pretty basic. Just a giant Ghostbusters 2 symbol on one side and a "Official Ghostbusters Headquarters" on the other. I've actually read that these are a favorite amongst Ghostbusters collectors and fans and it's easy to see why. Hardee's must've loved doing cups, because I tend to remember having a LOT of plastic drink cups from Hardees, including Marvel Comics, Days of Thunder and cups featuring a Moose drinking a cup of CocaCola. Yes, I'm serious, take a look...

Credit: Ebay

I'm only including that because I have virtually no interest in doing an entry on these Hardees cups. You'll thank me.

Credit: GBFans Pintrest

The only other thing I'm leaving out, is Hardee's offered a "Slimer Sundae" of which I have no recollection, but the Ghostbusters Wiki says it was bubblegum flavored. I'm kinda sad I don't recall this. A green, bubblegum flavored "slime" all over the ice cream? My gosh, I'm wanting that right now!

I really have fond memories of going to Hardee's in general, but add the Ghostbusters, and it's even better.

Also, a very Happy Halloween to all of you! Whatever you may be doing tonight, I hope you all are being safe out there and very happy. Bring me back some Reese's!


-Chad


PS-here's a photo of the late, great Yvonne Craig celebrating Halloween as Batgirl. Why? Because it's Halloween. I also never need a reason to post photos of Yvonne.

Ranking The Original 5 Horde Toys

I love the whole Masters of the Universe mythology. The action, scifi, horror, all rolled into one awesome cartoon and toy series.  If you were a young boy in the 80s, there was no bigger hero than He-Man.

That said, for every awesome hero, you need a lot of cool villains and Eternia was filled with them. Skeletor was cool and all, but his cartoon persona was just so weak and made him came off like a sissy. But come 1985, Hordak and his troop of The Evil Horde stormed the scene and gave us someone even cooler. Hordak ruled with an iron fist and a gaggle of monster sidekicks trampled over the previous bar set by Skeletor and his henchmen, even if he was relegated to being the villain in the She-Ra cartoon (not a bad thing, mind you!). That's how I like my villains. Unapologetic, raw, and downright evil. Hordak embodied all those things and more. So today, I'm paying tribute and ranking the Horde toy roster.

"Wanna buy some popcorn tins?"

NOTES: 

• I'm very aware that the new MOTUC line has ShadowWeaver and Scorpia but they weren't included in the original line, which is what I'm focusing on today. Besides,  ShadowWeaver was just MummRa with boobs. Tell me I'm wrong.

• Not including Catra and Mantisuar was also a decision I made based on the fact that Mantisaur wasn't really a figure and Catra wasn't apart of the original 5 Horde characters from 1985. That said, if she hadn't been placed in the She-Ra line, I would've included her.

• Mosquitor and Horde Trooper probably should've been included based off their allegiance but, again, not part of the original 5. I would've had to include Catra too for that reason. All great figures in their own right, but my focus is solely on the original wave.

Trust me, though, if it were up to me, I would've traded Mosquitor for Leech in an instant.

5.) LEECH

While Leech was marginally better in the original Filmation cartoon, using his power to drain people's energy with his hands and mouth, but his figure was kinda lame. Leech was known for his suction cup hands and mouth which made for a cool car window decoration but as a figure, kinda fell flat. But don't worry, it'll get better very soon.



4.) Grizzlor:

I always liked Grizzlor a lot more than I liked Beastman (blasphemy, I'm sure) and had Beastman looked like this instead of the orange creamsicle goofball we got, maybe I would've liked him more. Grizzlor had bonus points because he was a giant furry mess. It was kinda like having a rabbit as a MOTU figure. He was just so soft! Sadly, he's in 4th place, only because if you got his fur dirty, or threw him in the Slime Pit, which was VERY easy to do, it was a pain to clean. So plenty of Grizzlors were thrown out or shaved. Which is weird looking. See?

Found on Google. Scary, no?

Haunting isn't it?

3.) MANTENNA: 

Ahhhh, Mantenna. How I loved him. A weird spider/bat amalgam which giant bulging eyes. He was used as the evil spy for the Horde who could spot their enemies many miles away. My only issue was that his eyes periscoped maybe half an inch or so. While that bothers me more than Grizzlor's fur problems, Mantenna's design was just too great. Plus, look at him and tell me you don't want him on your desk at work.


2.) HORDAK:

I said my peace on Hordak early on in this article. But, honestly, check him out. He has a pet bat, a skull bow and arrow and a cape! A CAPE! As a kid, I found it very tasteful for this maniacal overlord to have a cape. Not only was he a trendsetter by replacing skulls with bats, but he also started influenced his star pupil to wear capes. After this figure hit, Skeletor had a cape in the movie and The New Adventures of He-Man. Who's the real boss now?

1.) MODULOK

YES YES YES YES YES YES! Modulok!!!! One of my favorite figures in the entire MOTU lore. Modulok was a weird two headed demon/fire ant/devil character that had four legs, four arms and a lot of creativity. Why? Well, look below:

Yup. Modulok came with a boatload of body parts so you could create your own wacky creation. Kids love being able to come up with their own figures and characters and this way, they could achieve toy greatness. Remember taking body parts from several GI Joe figures and swapping them out to make your own soldier? This. Was. EVERYTHING. 

Modulok was definitely a memorable figure and became pretty popular. So popular, Mattel tried to replicate it with MultiBot a year later. While Modulok was awesome, MultiBot...wasn't. But Modulok stands head and shoulders above the rest of the Horde and probably a lot of the other figures in the original MOTU line too.

So there you have it. My favorite subset of the MOTU line. The Evil Horde definitely didn't fool around and made their presence known almost immediately and, in my opinion, gave us toys that were even better than the original villains. 

BONUS: Playsets!

Not only did Hordak have good taste in George Romero-esque monster henchmen, he also had great taste in headquarters. Behold the Slime Pit:

And the Fright Zone:

Again, while I love Snake Mountain a LOT, these were two of the coolest playsets ever. In fact, I'd argue that they were the most horror-influenced toys of the 80s. 

Thoughts? Wanna tell me I'm wrong? Wanna tell me that Mantisaur deserved to be on here? Sound off in the comments.

Toy photos credit: He-Man.org

Shaved Grizzlor photo: ToyArk Forums

Fright Zone Art:HeMan Wiki

Horde group Art: HeMan Wiki

-Chad

Day 15 of the Holidaze Halloween Challenge: Favorite 2000's Movie: SAW SERIES

Play Me...

"Hello...I wanna play a game...

The name of this game is to marvel at the legacy of the Saw series in which John Kramer forced people to make choice: value their lives or die. The sins these scourges of the earth committed against others in society were all but washed away once they came face to face with the one known as Jigsaw as their blood was spilled via various traps. Throughout 7 movies, we gasped at the gore and began to ponder the simple lesson Jigsaw taught us: Cherish Your Life. What will you do with your freedom to live? Did you truly learn anything? Make your choice. The clock is ticking..."

-Jigsaw

The Halloween Cookie Challenge!

Well, allright! Finally! I've been waiting a good year or so to do this. See, last year I had a lot of medical issues including back surgery so most if not all blog projects I had planned had to be halted. One of those projects I really wanted to do was what I'm presenting today. So, I hope you enjoy!

Presenting...The Halloween Cookie Challenge! 3 combatants of chocolate cookie and orange colored cream goodness! Three different companies with three different tastes and looks. Your challengers are:

1. Halloween Oreo
2. Halloween JoeJoe's from Trader Joes
3. Halloween O's from Wegmans

All pretty tasty but have their own attributes that could earn them the crown of King of Cookies. I'll be judging them in several different categories:

• Best Cookie Design
• Best Cream
• Best Package
• Best Dunking
• Best Double Stuffed Cookie

So with those categories, it's going to get real ugly. Only the most loyal and unbiased cookie fanatic is suited to make these unenviable decisions. So, let's begin...

BEST COOKIE DESIGN:

Trader Joe's JoeJoes:

OREO:

WEGMAN'S O'S

Well, there they are. Three champions in their own right. But only one can take the first victory. Now, considering Oreo's the veteran in this arena, you'd expect them to walk away with the medal. But no. Despite having 5 unique designs they kinda failed to reach the finish line first. While all five designs were fun to see and different from their designs in the past. Still good though and definitely a close contender

Also left in the dust was Wegmans cookie, only because there was nothing new about them. The design is the same as the cookies they offer every year, so for that reason, they come in last. It's like they put no effort out on this one.

So why is Trader Joe's crowned the winner? I mean, it's obvious you can't have three designs beat the five of the Oreos. Mainly because the design is super simple and very reminscent of those old Giggles Cookies that I use to eat in kindergarten. Remember them? If not, here's a reminder:

So, while Oreo puts up a great fight, making me think of Giggles was what sent JoeJoes over the top.

JoeJoes: 1
Oreos: 0
Wegmans O's: 0


BEST CREAM: 

Once again, you'd expect the Big O to win this one, but sadly it winds up second place again, this time to Wegman's O's . JoeJoes had to sit out this round. The cream, while tasty and probably much healthier, just fell flat, taste wise.

Wegman's O's provides a little bit creamier and smoother. Oreo didn't really change it's recipe, and the cream just slides off the cookie if you pick at it. Not Wegman's O's! The consistency is more of actual cream. I'd believe it to be the real deal.


JoeJoes: 1
Oreos: 0
Wegmans O's: 1


BEST PACKAGING:

If there was ever a time for Oreo to bounce back, this would be it. But, once again, it doesn't finish.  Let's take a closer look at the three packages:

JoeJoe's:

Wegman's O's:

Oreo's:

As you've guessed, I put them in order of the winners. Trader Joe's always goes above and beyond with their packaging and putting them in a box itself instead of a resealable bag gave them a rather smart advantage(and maybe a little unfair). Not only is the front adorned with trick or treating cookies, but so is the back. I'd say that alone brings JoeJoes back to first place.

Wegmans, has a very colorful design as well. The purple and orange just jump right out and demand your attention. If this was just Wegmans vs Oreo, the big W would've taken this one. 

Oreo, while very festive and cheery, lost. But not in vain. The happy skeleton and bats and orange brick road made it hard for me to put it in third place. But, that's the price for being unbiased.

JoeJoe's: 2

Oreo: 0

Wegmans O's: 1

BEST DUNKING:

Yup. As you can see, Ax and Smash are ready for the challenge. And if there's any category that Demolition is most well versed in, it's dunking cookies. Let's put it out there: who's going to know more about scary looking cookies than a bunch of 40 year old men in face paint and assless chaps?

So by now, Oreo has been lagging and I feel a little sad for it. But I still have to remain biased. Remember when I said Wegmans had the best cream? Well,t hey apparently also had the best cookie for dunking as well. I'm sure that's a huge blow in the face of America's favorite cookie. Dejected, but not out, Oreo would wait.

JoeJoe's weren't that terrible, but the problem with dunking them was that the cookie itself gets very crumbly and seperates very easily. Much like myself, Demolition was NOT impressed or pleased with this behavior on the part of Joe. The fact that a cookie fell into the milk itself upon initial dunking gave JoeJoe's a giant red X.

Hold on, I can do better than that.

The fact that a cookie fell into the milk itself upon initial dunking, gave JoeJoe's a giant red 

X

Well, that wasn't as tacky as I thought it would be. Not nearly as large either. Oh well.

JoeJoe's: 2

Oreo: 0

Wegmans: 2

Best Double Stuffed Cookie:

Man, Oreo is really suffering here. But good news for them, this is their category to win. They practically invented the double stuff! They have everything to gain and nothing to lose, right?

You'd be right.

The fact that Oreo's cream is kinda fat helps it big time. It towers over the others and stacks perfectly. Whereas Wegmans O's and Trader Joes just kinda slouch and become uneven. So, in this battle, congrats Oreo, you win.

JoeJoe's: 2

Oreo: 1

Wegmans O's: 2

Overall Winner:

DING DING DING. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. YOUR WINNER AND....NEW HALLOWEEN COOKIE CHAMPION...HALLOWEEEEEEEEEEEN OOOOOOOO'S!

It was a very hard fought battle, but while Trader Joe's and Wegman's were tied in points, Wegman's O's took the victory in overall taste. A stunning upset. I was really expecting, much like you, for Oreo to take the golden crown. But who knows, maybe their Christmas cookie offerings will put them back in the running. 

That's the way the cookie crumbles.

Sorry. That's the only time that it's appropriate to use.

Now, obviously this is all just my opinion. I get the sense you'll have a difference in opinion. Please share with me your thoughts. And if you don't have a Wegmans or Trader Joes near you, maybe suggest a new cookie that you feel will be a better King of Halloween Cookie!

-Chad

Day 14 of The Holidaze Halloween Challenge: Favorite 90s Movie

A movie about a bunch of hot girls portraying witches and messing with their classmates who wrong them? Come on. How can I not love the Craft?

The 1990s kinda sucked for horror, maybe that's just my opinion, but I think we were all worn out from the slasher overkill of the 80s and creativity kinda ran out of gas. So, while horror was still profitable, ideas were usually left to slasher sequels, maybe an occasional Universal Monsters remake or rehashing, or a very, very, very generic slasher reserved for a straight to vhs release. This was different though. This was the opposite of Clueless. This wasn't bright and dopey dripping with sarcasm and cynicism. No. This was four girls who weren't afraid of you and ready to beat you down.

Each girl had their own personality which was awesome. It wouldn't have worked if 4 valley girls just gushed about guys and stuff. The relationship between Fairuza Balk and Robin Tunney's characters are my personal highlight, especially the ending of the movie that results in an awesome fight between the two.


Seeing this when it first came out in 1996 definitely provided a new favorite upon first viewing. Since then, I've viewed it well over 20 times. I just don't get tired of watching it. This is one movie I never thought got it's due. It's definitely a movie that should be viewed and added to every horror fans movie collection. It's entertaining, satiates your thirst for horror, and most of all, very bewitching.

Yeah, I went there...

-Chad

Day 13 of The Holidaze Halloween Challenge: Favorite 80s Movie

I've written about plenty of times that Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night 2 is one of my all time favorite movies of the 80s. And it is. So writing it again would just be rehashing and that's not what I wish to do. So, I thought of another movie from the 80s that I enjoy so much, I'd gladly put it in my top 10 of the 80s! 976-Evil.

To date, this is the only movie directed by Robert Englund, known more for playing Freddy Krueger. It tells the very bizarre story of a young man Spike who discovers a magical hotline that makes nasty things happen. His cousin Hoax discovers the number as well and turns from good natured, bright eyed kid, to evil demon bent on making all those made his life miserable downright hell.
Ok. I know. You've seen this movie. It's boring. I get it. But what exactly did you expect when a witchcraft powered phone was the main plot device? It's going to be silly and hokey. It's a fun movie. But, that's just me. I like gimmicky, silly movies. It also doesn't hurt that this is very clearly a product of it's time. Neon lights, gnarly makeup, the lead bully has a a skunk stripe in his hair, Robert Picardo, stuff like that. I really enjoy it and have since I discovered it sitting lonely on the shelf at a video store one day after school. Much like Tales From the Crypt 1972, it was love at first sight.


Sadly, no bluray exists, but the dvd that we received years ago is still a great release. If you happen to see it while you're scrounging for movies at the local FYE and you see this, pick it up! It's highly suggested!

Day 12 of the Holidaze Halloween Challenge: Favorite 1970S Horror

This is no question for me, whatsoever. Hands down, my favorite movie to come from the 1970s is Tales From the Crypt.

I first discovered this around Halloween 2000. SciFi had begun reairing Tales From the Crypt and through the power of loitering in a video store, I happened upon this tape one Friday night. Now, as much as I loved the TV series, I never knew about the Amicus anthology film. But after one viewing that fateful night, I was hooked. This was an instant favorite and one I had to own. Problem was at that time, the only way to get it would be Sam Goody or copy it. And uh...well, sorry to say, I didn't make the trip to Sam Goody...



It took years upon years for this movie to be released on DVD and when it did, all we got was a cheap double feature that included the sequel, Vault of Horror(edited for that matter), which is good, but it's no Tales. I was happy to see it and own it on dvd after all those years. Thankfully in 2014, we got an upgrade in the form of a Scream Factory double feature release. No features, but still looks great.

Sir Ralph Richardson played a no nonsense Crypt Keeper to a T!

The acting and cast of great names including Joan Collins, horror icon Peter Cushing, and the late great Sir Ralph Richardson playing a great and ominous Crypt Keeper kept the casual horror fan and mainstream viewer interested. The story telling in this 5 story anthology truly make it a bonafide classic. And most segments, if not all, went on to be remade for the 1989 tv show as well with their own spin put on. My favorite segment of this movie? It;s a tough one, but I gotta say the final segment "Blind Alleys" in which a stingy general takes control of a home for the blind. I won't spoil it, but I will say it's definitely a classic EC Comics ending in which the villain gets what's coming to him...

Years ago, I actually wrote to HorrorHound magazine after they published a story on PG horror. I was rather vocal about them not including Tales From the Crypt, which would surprise people as to being PG. Not a lot of blood or cursing, the horror is just so refined they didn't need any of that!


In my mind, there's very few perfect movies, and even fewer perfect horror movies. But this would be at the top of my list if I was to list them. If you've never seen it, I urge you to go out and buy it. It'll be a perfect addition to your collection.

-Chad

Catching Up With The Holidaze Halloween Challenge!

Hey guys, thanks for staying with me as I attempt to tackle The Holidaze 31 Days of Halloween Challenge! I had a VERY busy weekend this past weekend as I'm in the process of moving so there may be a day or two(or int his case, 3) where I miss.

So by my count, I've got three categories to catch up on, not including today's entry which would be the 12th day. So, I hope you guys don't mind if I quickly skim through the entries I've missed.

DAY 9: Favorite Universal Monster: FRANKENSTEIN'S MONSTER.

I'm 6'6 and rather clumsy at times. So it goes without saying that I can relate to him.

Bonus point: His wife is hot.

DAY 10: Favorite Horror Art.

Ok, it's hard for to pick one piece of art, so instead, I picked some of my friends who are artists and display their art instead.

Artist: Chris G. of Quiltface Studios

Artist: Chris Ott of London 1888.

Artist: Daniella of Little Punk People

Artist: Jeff Zornow

Artist: Charles Moran of Zomic

Artist: Jes Karakashian

Artist: MagnusApollo

Day 11: Favorite Halloween Decoration: ANYTHING PEANUTS!

I guess that goes without saying. Keep in mind this is only THREE of the items I own!


So that kinda catches me up, I'll be revisiting this later today in an entry where I discuss my favorite horror movie from the 1970s!

-Chad

Day 8 of The Holidaze Halloween Challenge: Favorite Halloween Song

This was kind of a hard one. There's a lot of "Halloween" songs to pick from! The Ghostbusters theme(which was played by my music teacher every Halloween in elementary school), Monster Mash, "The Halloween Song"("H! A! Double L O!". You know that one. Don't tell me you don't!), ANY Alice Cooper song, even the theme to Halloween! I honestly had to dig deep and think about my fondest memories and pick that one song that represented Halloween to me more than any other...

Pet Semetary by the Ramones, from the...well...Pet Semetary soundtrack! I've been a huge fan of the Ramones since middle school and I have no issue saying this is not just my favorite Halloween song, but my favorite Ramones song ever. It may not sound like your normal Ramones song. In fact it's their most poppy song, and that's what I like about it. Sure, I love Rockaway Beach as much as the next guy, but it's a nice change of pace. Plus it's a fun video. The Ramones never took themselves too seriously and this was a great example.

For years, my buddy Ryan and I would go out to a video store in Frederick MD on Halloween night and this would always be on our playlist. So in between searching for old vhs, having some Roy Rogers fried chicken and heading back to his place and watching terrible movies, this would be blasting throughout the night! Also, it would be on my playlist driving to many horror conventions through the years and the famous Robert Englund book signing/Halloween party in New Jersey. So, while hearing a lot of great Halloween tunes as a kid holds a special place in my heart, this song kinda overtakes them.

Sometimes deader is better...

-Chad

Day 7 of the Holidaze Halloween Challenge: Favorite Halloween Candy

There's a lot of great Halloween candy that I could pick from. I mean, M&M's were always a favorite, nobody DARED to touch my Butterfingers and have mercy on your soul if you even considered reaching for my fun sized Skittles. All good and great choices that are welcome in any trick or treat bag. But for some reason there's only one candy that sums up Halloween to me...

REESE'S PEANUT BUTTER CUPS.


Come on, like this wasn't one of the first things you ate after coming home. It's peanut butter and chocolate! How could you not love it?

As great as the normal peanut butter cups are, nothing beats the Reese's Pumpkins. Something about the peanut butter being creamier and the chocolate meltier makes the holiday variants that much better.  Usually the first Halloween related candy I go for when I head into a store now and even then, I usually buy a bag of these to throw in the freezer.They just taste so good. And they're a perfect lazy day snack too!

-Chad

Day 6 of the Holidaze Halloween Challenge: Fave Horror Character

Favorite horror character? C'mon...this is easy...


I've written about Freddy Krueger more times than I can count. In fact, come to think about it, I've probably written about him more than any other subject. To me, no bigger film icon exists. That includes James Bond, Darth Vader, Don Vito Corleone, ANYONE. Plain and simple. Freddy is KING. There is no greater villain and no greater horror icon than Freddy.

The Nightmare on Elm Street movies represent when horror was entertaining and didn't take itself so seriously. Freddy went from scary burnt faced mofo to maniacal merchandising maniac pretty quick. And that was pretty cool. Sure, his origins were deep rooted in being a killer but it's when he made the leap from dark and dry to wild and goofy that he hit his stride. I mean, lunchboxes, pajamas, action figures, comics, everything you can think of! I love super dark Freddy, don't get me wrong, but Freddy cracking a joke while forcefeeding the intestines of his victim to themselves? Even better.

I've even been able to meet Robert Englund twice! He couldn't have been nicer! Here's the first photo we took, from the 2009 Monster Mania Halloween Party/Book Signing. More on that in a future entry...

-Chad