I have to be honest, despite all the Halloween madness of the previous month, my mind was already drifting towards Christmas in October. Since November 1st, my brain has gone into overdrive thinking about Christmas. Just this week alone I went to see Trans-Siberian Orchestra perform and then I bought their latest album Night Castle plus I picked up Rob Halford’s holiday offering Halford III – Winter Songs (yes, even the Metal God has a soft spot for Christmas).
Also, last month I picked up this:
Frosty the Snowman Cocoa & Mug Set!
Yes, it is amazing to look at and yes, it is available for the 2009 holiday season at the low, low price of $7.99. I was tempted to open this bad boy up last month and discuss it, but I didn’t want to ruin the Halloween groove. You have no idea how hard it was to resist, but November 1st starts the Christmas season as far as I’m concerned so now is as good as time as ever!
Obviously, the mug itself is the centerpiece of this cocoa set (and what a fine mug it is) but the true highpoint for me is the adorable spoon:
HAPPY BIRTHDAY !!!
Truer words have never been spoken, Frosty.
As for the cocoa itself, it’s actually really good. Some novelty cocoas are either too sweet or taste like all you did was heat up some water but this Frosty cocoa has a great dark chocolate taste with just a perfect hint of sweetness. It’s like drinking from a fondue pot of Hershey’s dark chocolate!
At $8, this is definitely worth picking up for fans of the old Frosty special and Rankin/Bass fans in general. It’s a great way to kick of the Christmas season and it’s my first cup of cocoa of the season as well!
For every Monopoly, there’s a Shark Attack — a board game that is just too goofy, childish and ultimately pointless to last more than a few years. The commercial is from 1991 and it is the only Shark Attack commercial I remember but after doing a bit a research, I found out the game was released in 1988.
Don’t get me wrong, this commercial made the game look GREAT. So great that I actually had this down on a list of what I wanted for my birthday/Christmas. A giant motorized shark? Count me in! I remember getting this game as a gift from my parents, I believe it was for a birthday, so the commercial is a more exciting representation of the concept than the game itself is. So kudos to the marketing department on that one. You deceived a child, congratulations.
After quickly realizing the game was a total waste of time, I made better use of the motorized shark against my G.I. Joes and X-Men.
So I finally get to write this. Believe it or not, what became The History of the Universal Monsters was originally meant to be just a list of my favorite Universal Monster movies. Notice I said Universal Monster and not Universal Horror. Though I’ve liked the Lugosi/Karloff pairings I’ve seen in the past month and especially enjoyed The Raven, it is the monsters that keep me coming back for more.
Maybe by this time next year I’ll be knowledgeable enough to have a list of favorite Universal Horror films, but this is the year of the monsters. You’ll notice a lack of The Mummy/Invisible Man/Creature from the Black Lagoon movies. Well, that’s because I’m not all too familiar with those films and many of them I’ve never seen. Hey, I can always update this list next year too, right?
The Wolf Man also does not make my list. While I like the character, the movie doesn’t impress me when compared to Dracula and Frankenstein films. I like the Wolf Man in the monster mash ups, but I don’t think he carries a film well on his own.
It is obvious that the Frankenstein franchise was treated with the most care by Universal (again, the studio showing preference to KARLOFF) and the first two films from that line are two of the most respected movies in horror history. The only Frankenstein movie that does not make my list is 1942’s The Ghost of Frankenstein.
And what a beautiful Halloween day it is here in Lansing, Michigan — mid-40s, windy as heck and rainy! Actually, the rain has backed off, but it’s still pretty dreary outside, should be good weather for trick-or-treating tonight.
My plans are a bit different than what I initially imagined for the day, but so far I’ve watched My Bloody Valentine 3D (my thoughts coming on this later today, I hope), then it’s over to Connie’s parents’ house for trick-or-treating, then it’s back home to watch horror movies and eat candy. I bought the 3D edition of Friday the 13th Part 3 when I bought My Bloody Valentine 3D, so I plan on watching that today as well.
I plan on having one more post today. So check back later this evening after you’ve already had your fill of candy. I didn’t get to touch on everything I wanted to this year for Halloween Scream, but there’s always next year, right?
The original Castlevania was one of my first games for the system, so I was into it for that reason alone, but it was always a hard game for me and I never got very far in it. All told, I’m not really a fan of the game or the series. I get frustrated easily with games and the Castlevania series is too maddeningly difficult for some with a short-fuse like me.
Frankenstein: The Monster Returns (1991)
A Frankenstein Nintendo game? Hey, cool! Oh wait, no it’s not. I played this one a couple of years ago and it’s pretty bad.
Chiller (1990)
An unlicensed Nintendo game, but if this game doesn’t deserve mention, I don’t know what does. If you’ve never played this game, you owe it to yourself to download find a copy. Easily the sickest NES game ever, but it’s fun in a “I feel dirty for doing this” way.
If you have anything retroriffic you'd like to send me, feel free to email me at metalmisfit @ comcast.net. We can also just shoot the breeze, if you like.
Posted by Metal Misfit 
Posted by Metal Misfit 
Posted by Metal Misfit 
