Pet Food

 Previously:

Fruit Brutes

 Far From Home Fruit Snacks  - -  Teen Titans Go Fruit Snacks  - -  Justice League Fruit Snacks

DC Superhero Girls Fruit Snacks  - -  Batman v Superman Fruit Snacks

Amazing Spider-Man 2 Fruit Snacks  - -  Iron Man 3 Fruit Snacks

Captain America Fruit Snacks  - -  Superman Fruit Snacks  - -  Super Hero Squad Fruit Snacks

Amazing Spider-Man Fruit Snacks  - - Batman Fruit Snacks  - -  Avengers Fruit Snacks

It's new fruit snack season!  Looks like snack time has gone to the dogs (I'm so funny) with the new DC League of Super-Pets Fruit Snacks.  The movie hasn't been released yet but it's already on my very short list of "Reasons to Leave My House."  Well, the movie and the fruit snacks.  

This one is under the "Funables" brand that seems to be cranking out licensed fruit snacks in their own branded purple boxes.  I don't know where this company came from but they've been on fire the last couple of years with character-based snacks including DC Comics, Nickelodeon and other popular folks.

One of their best features is the collectible cards included on each box.  I'm a sucker for the "cut on the dotted line" prompt...and that's exactly what I did.  And now I'm the proud owner of card 1 of 3.  You could say I've invested in Krypto (see, I told you I was funny).

I guess Ace the Bat-Hound and Wonder Pig (or whatever her name is) are the other two cards.  While I definitely get excited about fruit snacks, I don't think I'm excited enough to buy two more boxes of these things to get the other cards.  But while the excitement lasts, let's take a look inside the box:

Is now is a good time to mention that I'm on TikTok?  Go ahead and give me a follow for all kinds of weird food and whatnot.  

Hershey's Heroes

When it comes to qualifying Super Hero Food, I tend to stick to my arbitrary rules ("Iron Man Cereal" vs. Cap'n Crunch with a picture of Iron Man on the box) but just as often I break my arbitrary rules when something catches my eye.  And the new Hershey's DC Super Hero Bars did just that.

They're being marketing along with the "Back to School" products which you can see by Superman and Wonder Woman chaperoning the school bus.  They're obviously keeping an eye on any potential trouble makers trying to hide out in the back.  As you can probably guess, these a Hershey bars that are branded with DC Comics characters.

They're miniature size and, as such, would fit just fine in a lunch box.  I guess that's why they're in with the "Back to School" themed stuff.  Although I think they would have done just fine if they were released a month later for Halloween.  I know a few little superheroes who would love to get these in their Tricks-Or-Treats plastic pumpkin.  Let's crack open that bag:

No big surprises in the lineup.  We've got Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, the Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman and, once again, Cyborg has kicked Martian Manhunter right out of the picture.  I'm starting to think this replacement Leaguer is gonna stick around.  I hold out hope that maybe it will lead to some Doom Patrol candy or whatnot. 

With the wrapper off, we see the traditional, sectioned-off Hershey's bar with each section containing a character's logo.  But there's more than just the Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Superman and Batman symbols that you see here.  So far, I've only opened a few but I've also seen the Batmobile, a "BAM!" sound effect, and some stars that have a Wonder Woman vibe.

Not sure if these are mostly going to end up in lunchboxes, Halloween bags or just in a lot of folk's quarantine candy pile but it's always good to see the League make a prominant appearance in the grocery aisles.

Crack Team

There are two types of Super Hero Food: one type that ties in with a movie or TV show and another that doesn't.  The first kind is a dime a dozen whereas the second is a little more rare.  This type seems to be an effort to keep the characters in the public eye and, of course, make a little money.

These are always more fun because they just "are."  Justice League Crackers are Justice League Crackers for the sake of being Justice League Crackers.  Which brings us to today's entry: Justice League Crackers!

Nabisco Justice League Mini Cheese Nips are the most recent item to make its way into my shopping cart.  They are your standard cheese cracker but with the theme of never-ending justice.  The usual gang is involved and, wisely, Nabisco decided to go with logos instead of faces.  Let's see how the cracker crumbles:

No Green Lantern and, of course, the ongoing Martian Manhunter snub is still in full effect.  Also, apparently Cyborg has a logo now and it's not bad.  Looks like a "C" with a gear in the middle which is a pretty clean design and translates well into the cracker medium.

The rest of the usual line up get their own crackers, as per their Justice League contracts.  All the logos look pretty good and are easily more recognizable than they tend to be in gummie format which makes me wonder why we don't get more character cracker stuff on a regular basis. 

There's a group shot on the back along with a nice little quiz.  As with most "back of the box" fare, this feels less like homework and more like a little light snack time fun.  You can see that the cracker-less Green Lantern makes an appearance at the back of the group shot and even gets his own trivia question.

The twelve packs of these beauties will fit very nicely in your Justice League lunch box with your Doom Patrol Tuna Salad sandwich.  Enjoy!

Snack Time: Egg Salad

Previously:

ST: Pizza & Punch  - -  ST: Pop, Pop!

ST: Candy Cross-Over  - -  ST: Marvelous Munchies

Sometimes I'll come across some super hero related food that is interesting but not quite interesting enough for its own blog entry. When that happen they get combined into a "Snack Time" entry.

Most of these were spotted at my local "Big Lots!" store.  As I've said before, they stock discontinued or low selling items from the previous year so it tends to be a jackpot for the type of weirdo branded foodstuffs that I'm always on the lookout for. 

Let's start with some seasonal offerings:

First off, are some large (maybe six inches tall or more) Easter Eggs with Spider-Man and Batman.  They've been known to be bros in the past and their team-up continues with offerings of jelly beans and a "figure dispenser." 

Next up are "Viewer Eggs" featuring Spider-Man and the Avengers.  You look through the hole in the egg to see pics of your favorite crime fighters.  Then you crack 'em open and eat the jelly beans inside.  What's not to like?

I had never heard of ROAR beverages before but apparently they have Iron Man (apple) and Spider-Man (fruit punch) drinks.  I later learned they also have a Captain America (grape) drink floating around out there somewhere but I didn't see one on this trip.  A couple of these beauties made it home with me.

And, of course, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention that the Avengers have been popping up on bananas lately.  And, yes, I'm collecting the stickers.  So far I have the Hulk, Black Panther, Iron Man and Cap.  I think all I need is Black Widow and Thor to complete the set but maybe there are others I haven't seen yet.

So that's the latest round of snacks...but it's important to stay vigilant in the grocery aisles.

Fruit Troop

Previously:

DC Superhero Girls Fruit Snacks  - -  Batman v Superman Fruit Snacks

Amazing Spider-Man 2 Fruit Snacks  - -  Iron Man 3 Fruit Snacks

Captain America Fruit Snacks  - -  Superman Fruit Snacks  - -  Super Hero Squad Fruit Snacks

Amazing Spider-Man Fruit Snacks  - - Batman Fruit Snacks  - -  Avengers Fruit Snacks

Remember when summer was when the big super hero movies flooded the cinemas?  I guess that still happens but now the fall is a contender too.  While the Hulk and Thor are bro-ing out in the MCU, the DCEU is still gasping along with their latest "this is a movie" movie: Justice League!

While the reviews aren't great, the film does have one thing that Thor: Ragnarok doesn't have:  Fruit Snacks!

Spoiler Warning: Superman is in the movie...but we all pretty much knew that already so this isn't a case of Kellogg's going "broken arrow" on the candy loving movie audience.  In a way, you have to admire the lack of any effort to conceal the Man of Steel's presence in the the film because even when you crack the box open, guess who's front and center:

I also can't help but notice who's not there.  It looks like Cyborg has taken over for Martian Manhunter in every way since J'onn usually got shafted on these type of endeavors as well.  But at least he gets his own gummy.  Let's see the chewy goodness:

Seven for seven, not bad.  They went the symbol route with everybody which is probably for the best.  I also appreciate that they didn't include a "Batman head" shape along with a "Batman symbol" shape at the expense of another character.  Very balanced...just the way a breakfast should be.

So when things look dark, overly bleak and with excessive amounts of CGI, just remember you can always find sweet relief in the grocery aisles. 

Pasta la Vista

You'll never believe what I saw as I strolled down the Walmart aisles recently.  Well, I guess you don't have to guess since it's the subject of this blog entry.  Now that the dramatic tension is out of the way, here's what I saw:

It feels nice to put aside superhero shaped gummy snacks in favor of a big bowl of superhero shaped pasta in a can!  It's been awhile.  So much so, that I'm worried I might have lost my taste for what used to be a regular lunchtime treat in my younger days.  It doesn't help that these don't have meatballs.  So only one of them made it into my shopping cart and, later, my Super Friends bowl:

The taste was fairly reminiscent of the Spaghetti-O's of my youth and the little logo shapes are much larger than the old school pasta rings I'm used to.  That makes for interesting chewing.  The shapes represent the "Big 3" at DC:

Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman...no surprises here.  Seems like a Green Lantern logo might have been possible in the pasta medium but it looks like it just wasn't meant to be.  Well now isn't the time to get greedy, now is the time to fill up our Super Friends bowls with our Chef Boyardee bounty.

 

Commercial Break: Kraft Macaroni & Cheese DC Superheroes

Previously: X-Men Pasta

Word on the street is that today is National Macaroni Day.  So let's celebrate with this commercial from the 90's featuring Kraft Macaroni & Cheese DC Superheroes Dinner!

Cotton Club

I like to make my rounds to grocery stores, drug stores, dollar stores and the like to keep an eye on what's happening in the Super Hero Food world.  You never know what you'll find and you never know where you'll find it.  To that end, I like to swing by Toys 'R' Us every now and then.  They have a small little candy section that delivers from time to time.  In fact, it's where I found our latest bag of super hero cotton candy:

Among the team's other accomplishments, the Justice League has now successfully broken into the world of spun sugar.  Justice League Cotton Candy is here and we're going to have to get used to it.

It looks like we're also going to have to get used to Martian Manhunter being scrubbed from JL history.  While it was rare for him to show up on various food products from the beginning, it is now a given that Cyborg will be in his place for now and...forever?  At least Aquaman made the cut.

Looks like the flavor breakdown includes pink vanilla and blue raspberry.  While blue raspberries don't occur in nature, they have been a part of kids kids' candy and drinks for many years now.  So there's no surprise there.  Pink Vanilla, though?  That seems to be something that only happens in the Cotton Candy World.  Which is weird because "cotton candy" has been a flavor in and of itself for a good long while.  So it's weird that vanilla got an invitation to this party.

And it looks like this.  It's fairly similar to the Batman Cotton Candy from awhile back.  Two flavors for the price of one!  So if you want to add a little carnival flair to your day-to-day life you need only to head to Toys 'R' Us (while supplies last).

Justice Desserts

I'm pretty sure there is a Cold Stone Creamery near me but I don't think I've ever been to one.  Which is a shame because I totally missed out on the recent Batman v Superman promotion.  Just like similar past promotions from Baskin-Robbins, these guys were way too subtle with their marketing and it was totally off my radar.  That being said, let's take a quick look at the gloomy trinity's sweet treats:

Each one of the big three got their own themed sundae.  I still haven't seen this movie but I can't imagine anyone associated with it would enjoy ice cream.  Even if they had their own sundae designed for them.  It would get in the way of the brooding.  Of course I am more than happy to dive into them.  Let's take a closer look:

Here's the breakdown:

• "Batman's Chocolate Cookie Crusade" - Yeah, Batman always gets chocolate as a flavor.  That's a no-brainer.
• "Superman's Kryptonian Cake Sensation" - A lot of times you get the whole "Green Kryptonite" theme but they went with the yellow, blue and red sprinkles instead.  And cake!
• "Wonder Woman's Strawberry Warrior" - I'll be honest, those look like raspberries to me.  Also, the strawberry option always seem to be the "girly" option and I don't think that's particularly necessary.  I see here as more of a peanut butter cookie flavor, maybe?

Need to feed a group?  Let them eat cake:

They went with the "Superman Punching the Batmobile" theme.  Seems like they could have done a little bit more with this one but we get what we get...with ice cream and with movies.

Pop Stars

Your new breakfast of champions comes in the form of Justice League Pop Tarts.  While there is currently a deluge of Batman v Superman stuff out there right now, these guys are specifically branded as "Justice League."

Sure it has the "Big 3" plastered on the front, who happen to also share screen time in the movie but plenty of their team mates also show up to tell you the good news about this year's most exciting breakfast treat:

        

 And the entire roster shows up on the back of the box doing their patented "Justice League Lineup Pose" including some First Appearance info, and of course secret identity info:

 And everybody gets a short bio underneath the posing.  Except for Cyborg for some reason.  I'm not too inclined to play the race card but this certainly raises few eyebrows (at least two).  While they may be stingy with the bios, they definitely went all out when it comes to the actual food:

 If you want to get technical, then sure, Catwoman was technically a part of the Justice League line up during the Grant Morrison years but I've never bought into the idea of Robin being in the League.  Sure, maybe Batman let him tag along to one or two of the meetings but he never got his membership card.

To put this into a historical perspective (which I know you were begging for), superheroes are no stranger to the toaster pastry genre.  Back in the Spider-Man movie heyday we got two different versions:

100 Percent Cotton

When you think of Batman, things like cotton candy rarely come to mind.  Until now, that is.  Batman Cotton Candy is now officially a thing.  For some reason you can find it in the Easter aisle:

One of the first things I noticed is that it says "25% More Free."  Now, to my understanding, this is a brand new product so it's not like it is "25 % More Than it Used to Be."  Could it possibly be "25% More Than We Originally Intended To Sell"?  Yet another Super Hero Food Mystery.

Once the bag is opened, the Batman theme ends and it's just your standard pink and blue cotton candy:

Not that there's anything wrong with regular cotton candy.  I would imagine that if it were the standard yellow/black Batman colors it would not be particularly appetizing.

And while this may be the first Batman Cotton Candy, it is most certainly not the first Super Hero Themed Cotton Candy.  Check out Hulk & Spidey Cotton Candy from a few years back:

Loafing

There's a definitely a lot going on with this Batman bread bag.  It's got a 1966 date and a clear Adam West series influence.  Sadly the bread itself has gone wherever it is that super hero food goes after it's gone away.  That being said, there's still plenty of kookiness on this vintage bag to dissect.

The franchise has never been shy about being marketable and the bag shows off plenty of recognizable and lesser known Bat-stuff.  First off, the Penguin, Riddler, Batmobile and Batplane:

But some third stringers also get a little spotlight too, which is always nice to see. Somehow Calendarman, Cluemaster and Mr. Zero (who was later renamed Mr. Freeze) made the cut:

A lot of people might not remember the Terrible Trio.  They've shown up in a handful of comics but also made a nice appearance in an episode of Batman: The Animated series:

There's another unusual appearance that I can't quite place.  I'm not terribly familiar with "Caveman" but I wonder if he's not the same character who appeared in an episode of The Brave and the Bold?

Maybe this guy eventually turned into Vandal Savage.  I dunno.  Solving this guy's mystery is only of the many functions this bag is capable of .  For a complete rundown, check out the back:

If I were forced to pick two favorites I would pick "Wet clothing" and "Fresh Fish & Game".  I don't know why more food packaging doesn't have suggestions for additional uses.  Perhaps that's a theme we can bring back.