Stranger Things 4: The Food!

I have been a fan of Stranger Things since it debuted on Netflix in 2016, so the 3 year wait for season 4 was killing me! I loved season 3, but it left me wanting more. Luckily for us fans part 1 of season 4 dropped last week and I really enjoyed watching it with my wife and daughter. I got both of them hooked on the show and have even sucked them in to all the tie ins that have come along with the success of Stranger Things. Nothing can top the Baskin Robbins marketing from 2019 when they transformed their stores into Scoops Ahoy Ice Cream parlors, but I was excited to see this cryptic web page pop up for Domino's a few weeks ago.

I was hoping we would get a fantastic 80's themed, interactive version of Domino's pizza stores, but that was not to be. We got a fairly lame "Mind Ordering" app that doesn't even work on my phone for some compatibility reason! In my opinion the app was a bust, but at least we got...

these SWEET retro 80's Domino's Pizza boxes. The boxes hide all sorts of little Stranger Things Easter eggs. If you get one, I suggest you check every nook & cranny for some Hawkins inspired fun! The other cool thing about this promotion was the ad promoting the campaign. It features Dustin & Lucas going to their local Domino's, when all of a sudden strange things start to happen!

The app may have been a miss for me, but this promotional campaign was a sure fire home run! The next cool food tie-in for Stranger Things season 4 came to us courtesy of Doritos!

Each bag of Doritos is adorned with the creepy image of a Demogorgon getting ready to strike. I love the design of this villain. It is one of the coolest monster creations that I have seen in a long time, but just as the evil of the Upside Down has spread all over Hawkins...

the Stranger Things branding made it's way over to the Doritos 3Ds bags! I have never tried this "Spicy Ranch" flavor before, but it is fantastic! Myself and my daughter snacked on these while we watched the first few episodes of season 4 and we were not disappointed in the flavor or the excitement of the new season! You may have noticed the "FREE TICKET" graphics on each of these bags and that's the really cool thing about this crossover. On June 23rd there will be a concert "Live From The Upside Down" featuring Corey Heart, Soft Cell, The Go-Go's and for some unknown reason Charlie XCX. You get to view this streaming concert for free after you scan your bag of Doritos. You better believe I already scanned and have my passes ready for the show! Check out the add below for more deets on this concert event!

Another oddity from the rush of Stranger Things foods are these Skinny Butcher "Crazy Crispy Chick'N Nuggets". 

From what I've seen so far, there is no tie to the show. Nobody eats these nuggets, the Skinny Butcher is not a brand from the show and were "Plant Based" meat items even a thing in the 80's? Anyway, I was suckered in based on the Stranger Things logo on the box and honestly, these weren't that bad. My wife threw them in the air fryer and my kids even enjoyed them. Still scratching my head on the connection to Stranger Things though? Do they raise plant based chickens in the Upside Down?

By far, my favorite Stranger Things Season 4 food has to be these Surfer Boy frozen pizzas from Walmart. Surfer Boy Pizza is a fictional California based pizza place created specifically for the show. Jonathan's friend Argyle works at the shop and acts as the comedic relief during the gang's trip across America to find Eleven. I like his character. He has some flaws, but hey, we all do! Anyway, back to the pizza, Surfer Boy Pizza comes in 4 flavors: Pineapple Jalapeno, Pepperoni, Supreme and Multi-Meat. So far we have tried the Pineapple Jalapeno & Multi-Meat. They are not bad! If you feel like calling Surfer Boy Pizza in an attempt to order your own za, you can actually call Argyle at 805-45-PIZZA and don't forget to try before you deny!

That's it for now. I can't wait for Part 2 of Season 4 to drop on July 1st! It's gonna be AMAZING!!! Is anyone else hungry now?

Redeeming Pizza Points One Last Time

A few months ago I received an e-mail from Playmates toys letting me know that they were discontinuing their Pizza Points reward program that was a promotional tie-in for the new Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles toys. If you are not aware of the Pizza Points program, it goes a little something like this: You buy a Rise of the TMNT toy, inside is a slip of paper with a unique Pizza Points code, you go to the Playmates Toys website to enter the code and use the points from said code to redeem for premium products.

My kids and I had amassed quite a few points and I didn't want the opportunity to disappear, so I went to the web, entered our final codes and we had enough to redeem for their Rewards Pack #1. This only cost us 50 Pizza Points plus $8 shipping. We waited and in 4 to 6 weeks our box finally arrived in the mail!

The neon green box was unmistakable. This was going to be AWESOME! What was in the box you ask? Well, keep reading as we open this baby up and see what was received fresh from the sewers!

There were 2 sheets of these Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles stickers...

a cool cloth Leonardo ninja mask...

this pretty big Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles poster...

and finally this incredible Muckman action figure!!! I remember collectors going crazy for this figure when it was first released in 2017. At that time it was pretty hard to find and people were paying top dollar for it on auction sites like ebay. Even now, I can't find one online for less than $16. I know that's not a crazy amount of money, but it just makes me appreciate the value we got in this $8 box of green machine goodness.

This message was printed on the inside cover of the box and it makes me sad. This was a fun TMNT promotion and as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. I just wish this lasted just a little bit longer. I was hoping to save enough points to get their Rewards Package #3 that consisted of a set of 4 classic 1992 "Secret of the Ooze" movie action figures featuring authentic accessories and personalized sewer lid name base plates. Maybe the next reboot of Turtles will resurrect this once great program. Thank you Playmates!

To see what was in the last TMNT Sewer Squad box my family received from Playmates Toys, click HERE!

Birthday Recap 2019!

My family did an amazing job again this year taking care of me on my birthday! First off when I got home from work that evening, sitting on the kitchen counter was this amazing Ice Cream Kitty cake my wife made for me! She made the iconic TMNT character out of homemade Rice Crispy treats and fondant and placed her on top of a Dairy Queen Ice Cream Cake!

As soon as I stepped in the door, my kids were begging me to open my gifts. After thanking my wife for the cake I started ripping some packages open. I finally have a copy of the Batman Vs. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated movie! I have still not yet seen this flick, but that will change soon. I've heard good things and can't wait to see it for myself. My kids got me a Donatello mini Ty stuffed animal to go along with the Leo I bought at a yard sale this past summer. He now lives on my Turtles shelf in the basement.

My son thought I needed this Spongebob slime figure since it has always been a dream of mine to get slimed at Nickelodeon studios. It is actually a pretty fun toy. You put the slime inside Spongebob and push his head down to make the goo come out of his pores! I also gotta say that the slime that came with this toy is some of the best I have ever played with. Got this box of 1980's favorite candies which includes things like Bubble Tape, Runts, Laffy Taffy and Ring Pops.

I will admit that the box of TMNT 2 cards was a gift to myself, but I have good intentions of using this as a family activity. Me and the kids have had a lot of fun opening old boxes of trading cards to try and build sets. We've done it with Super Mario Bros. movie cards and Star Wars cards already and I can't wait to tear into these wax packs with my children. The wife picked up these Adidas kicks for me since my latest pair of Nikes are wearing down.

One of the coolest things I received for my birthday was this Leonardo that my youngest daughter made for me out of Perler Beads! I love that she took the time to make this for me and I also love that she used the pattern from the recently released Pixel Pals. My son made me a Master Sword from the Legend of Zelda out of these beads also, but they have not yet been melted together. Can't wait for that project to be finished!

After presents it was time to eat! Just like we do almost every year, we went to my favorite local pizza place and enjoyed some great pizza and played some video games! It was another great birthday and I am thankful for having a family that takes the time to celebrate and have fun with me all the time! Can't wait to see what happens next year!

Throwback Jam of the Week: 8/26/19

Throw on your orange bandana and grab your nunchucks as we take you back! Without further ado, here is the 20 Years Before 2000 THROWBACK JAM OF THE WEEK...

Artist: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Song: Pizza Power
Album: Coming Out Of Their Shells (1990)

Peak Billboard Hot 100 Position: N/A
Bonus Fun Fact: The TMNT Coming Out Of Their Shells Tour began at Radio City Music Hall on August 17th, 1990. This tour was sponsored by Pizza Hut where you could buy your own copy of the soundtrack. This song was used by Konami for the intro music to their arcade game Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles In Time! You can view the video below.

Birthday Recap 2017!

My family really did an amazing job this year taking care of me on my birthday! First off when I woke up that morning sitting on the kitchen counter was this amazing Mr. Men cake my wife baked for me! It was butter/pecan flavor and she made the caramel frosting and Mr. Bump, Mr. Tickle and Mr. Happy were created with colored chocolates!

When I got home from work, my kids couldn't wait for me to open my gifts. The first one I opened was this mini Centipede arcade cabinet! I set the high score of the day at just over 35,000 points. I felt pretty accomplished until my wife told me the world record was over 16 million points!

Next I opened a gift from my son, these Masters of the Universe Megaconstrux mini-figs! I love these guys! They are like having mini versions of the original action figures! It was a bonus when we figured out you can remove their heads. We put Skeletor's staff skull on his head and it looks AWESOME!

Bill & Ted's Excellent Double Feature! I have owned a copy of Bogus Journey for a long time now. I got it from Pizza Hut when they did a "Dinner & a movie" promotion back in the day, but for some reason I never owned Excellent Adventure...until now! EXCELLENT!!! Also, the family stepped up my t-shirt game with this Space Jam shirt. I immediately took off my plain white tee and put this baby on!

My oldest daughter got me some of my favorite candy and a new Wii Nunchuck controller. She picked this out so we could all play games together. We already have 2, but now 3 players can take part in the Superhero Squad battles on the WiiU! What a thoughtful gift!

My youngest daughter picked out this Yeti in My Spaghetti game! If you don't know what this game is, it's kind of a mash-up between pick up sticks and Don't Break The Ice. You set up a bed of spaghetti over a bowl and place the adorable little Yeti in the middle. Each player takes a turn removing a piece of spaghetti. The one that drops him in ends the game. We had so much fun with this one. If you have kids between the ages of 5 & 8 like I do, I highly recommend it!

Opening all those gifts gave us an appetite! So we went to the best pizza parlor in town, Village Inn Pizza! This place has such an 80s retro feel to it. 

They have stained glass windows, dark lighting, classic salad bar and VIDEO GAMES!!!!

We were able to play the table top Ms. Pac-Man game (I set the high score!), Feeding Frenzy a crane game and Fast and the Furious. Then our pizza came!

We got a Pepperoni for the kids and the Village Inn special for me and my wife. This pizza was topped with Pepperoni, Salami, Sausage, Green Pepper, Onion, Black Olive And Mushroom and it was delicious! After dinner we went home, played some games and had some cake. It was a great day and I am so appreciative of all the thought that my family put into it. I am a lucky guy!