Representational Cereal

[urbpan]

I'm eating Boo Berry cereal, and it occurs to me that there are marshmallow bits in the shape of something, and I never thought to check what they are. This is my last bowl of it, and I don't think I'm going to buy another box, as I bought it basically on a whim. How can eat something and not know what it represents?! (this is probably not a problem for most people, but it really bothers me)

After a moment of staring into my bowl I realize that the marshmallow bits represent the three main Monster Cereals: bluish blobs for Boo Berry, Pink lobed heads for Frankenberry, and purple bats for Count Chocula. (The actual cereal itself is shaped like Pac Man ghosts.) I then think about these characters. Boo Berry is a ghost--cuddly with stoned eyes, wearing a hat and bowtie, and flavored like blueberry--but a ghost nonetheless, the spirit one who has departed the earthly coil. Frankenberry, we must assume, is a strawberry flavored monster made of reanimated corpses. And of course Count Chocula (famous for being the cereal most resembling Mr. Burns) is a cocoa flavored vampire, cursed to a living death as a nocturnal blood sucker who turns milk chocolatey.

(note to my brother and others: Shut up about the werewolf. 1. I've never seen the cereal, 2. It doesn't fit in with my point) ((the mummy probably does fit in, but I haven't seen that one either))

Are these the only group of cereals with mascots that are the living dead of one form or another? (If Mr. T dies, will Mr. T cereal count? and will the value of the boxes skyrocket?)

The infantilization of halloween icons has meant for some fascinating characters. The Count, from Sesame Street comes to mind--does he feed on the blood of monsters that have been lured to the castle and hypnotized by his obsessive counting? (For a very nice cross between the Munsters/Addams Family and Peanuts, see Steven Weissman's "Yikes," and other comics.)

My fascination has some distance to it, because even though I like horror movies, I don't much care for ghost and vampire horror. I prefer mutant and monster animals and robots. Zombies are pretty good, because they are kind of mutant/monster animal/robots.

Are there any zombie cereals (besides Frankenberry)? Robot cereals? Mutant animal cereals? Does Tony the Tiger count? Should I go back to writing about Urban Nature (don't worry, there are only four more months of winter, then I'll be out there taking pictures of bugs and weeds again!)

Comments

[urbpan.livejournal.com]

No, we don't have the Honey Monster in the U.S.; not in my market, anyway.

Our honey flavored cereals have a bee (logical), a bear (even better), a frog (say what?), and Andre the Giant, as mascots/endorsers.

[kryptyd.livejournal.com]

Wow, Andre the Giant recommending cereal from beyond the grave! Spooooky!

This is probably the best online conversation I ever had.