[Flashback] Jolly Rancher

Notice: Flashback reviews have been written from memory, without having the cereal in front of me. I started taking pictures of notable cereal varieties several years before I decided to start a blog reviewing them. As such, details beyond whether I simply liked the cereal or not may be hazy, especially regarding the quality of the leftover milk. Whenever possible, I have made an effort to procure another box of the cereal for a proper review (even the ones I didn't like), but due to the ephemeral nature of many of these novelty cereals, this is not always possible.

Name: Jolly Rancher
Variation: n/a
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: I don't know if it was because ensuing events would take such prominence in my mind, but this was one of several novelty cereals I picked up in the early months of 2020, just before the COVID lockdowns hit, that I have but very little memory of trying. I like Jolly Rancher candies - they have a good, fruity flavor (their jelly beans are my favorite to pick up around Easter, too). But, like Sour Patch Kids (another candy I like), I don't recall this cereal being especially good.

Rating: 🥣

Reese's Puffs

I was excited to see Goku appear on boxes of Reese's Puffs recently (is anime mainstream now or what?); it's a perfect union of color schemes (and on the subject of popular anime characters who wear orange, I would not be opposed to seeing Naruto on boxes in the future, either). It's not truly a novelty cereal, just a new box design - and of many I've seen from the brand, the first one I actually like. So I thought it would be a good opportunity to review OG Reese's Puffs.

Name: Reese's Puffs
Variation: n/a
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: If pressed, I would say that my favorite candy (and my favorite thing to eat on both Halloween and Easter) is Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, so it's no surprise that I love Reese's Puffs cereal. Chocolate and peanut butter is probably my favorite combination in the world (either that or jalapeño and cheddar). And this is one of those cereals that I tend to shovel into my mouth, and can never get enough of. My only real complaint is that the milk is too plain. Upon further consideration, I think the milk is actually a little bit peanut butter-y, which is kind of novel - I guess I'm just expecting a level of chocolatiness to rival the likes of Cocoa Puffs, Cocoa Pebbles, Chocolate Frosted Flakes, or even Chocolate Cheerios. But even in spite of that, this is one of my all-time favorite cereals to eat.

Rating: 🥣🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: A little bit peanut butter-y, after all.

Pick your fighter!

Update: As of mid-March, I've seen the DBZ designs available in Family Size boxes, and the side panel reveals all 7 fighters you can collect!

[Flashback] Twinkies

Notice: Flashback reviews have been written from memory, without having the cereal in front of me. I started taking pictures of notable cereal varieties several years before I decided to start a blog reviewing them. As such, details beyond whether I simply liked the cereal or not may be hazy, especially regarding the quality of the leftover milk. Whenever possible, I have made an effort to procure another box of the cereal for a proper review (even the ones I didn't like), but due to the ephemeral nature of many of these novelty cereals, this is not always possible.

Name: Hostess Twinkies
Variation: n/a
Manufacturer: Post

Review: Before Little Debbie entered the cereal market, there was a time when Hostess was trying out cereal versions of some of their products. I had this cereal about a year after I tried Hostess' Donettes cereal, in the early months of 2020. It was part of my last big novelty cereal haul before the COVID lockdowns hit. The fact that I don't remember much about this cereal says a lot. I like Twinkies, but I don't love them. I go for candy bars over snack cakes anyway.

Rating: 🥣

Frosted Mini Wheats Strawberry

Name: Frosted Mini Wheats Strawberry
Variation: Frosted Mini Wheats
Manufacturer: Kellogg's

Review: I'll tell you straight out, I don't have much to say about this cereal. As has been set by precedent, this is another example of Frosted Mini Wheats having a good added flavor, but me not being able to get past the shredded wheat. In this case, the flavor is strawberry (although the box says "juicy", I think it's more creamy). There are no surprises here - you know what you're getting, and you probably have a good idea whether you'll like it or not. As for me, I'll pass.

Rating: 🥣
Leftover Milk: Slightly strawberry, mostly wheaty.

[Flashback] Reese's Puffs Hearts

Notice: Flashback reviews have been written from memory, without having the cereal in front of me. I started taking pictures of notable cereal varieties several years before I decided to start a blog reviewing them. As such, details beyond whether I simply liked the cereal or not may be hazy, especially regarding the quality of the leftover milk. Whenever possible, I have made an effort to procure another box of the cereal for a proper review (even the ones I didn't like), but due to the ephemeral nature of many of these novelty cereals, this is not always possible.

Name: Reese's Puffs Hearts
Variation: Reese's Puffs
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: When I started this blog almost two and a half years ago, there were three seasonal varieties of Reese's Puffs I'd had previously, that I was hoping to find again. Thankfully, Bunnies and Bats have proven to be somewhat resilient. But this is the third year in a row that I've looked high and low for the Valentine's Day version of Reese's Puffs (last spotted in early 2019), in vain. Which is why I'm finally resorting to writing a flashback review. It's not a difficult task, however - just a disappointing one. Like the other holiday specials, this is just Reese's Puffs with a slightly different shape. And like every purely cosmetic variation of Reese's Puffs I've had so far, I love it! Could there be a more perfect pair than chocolate and peanut butter?

Rating: 🥣🥣🥣

[Experiment] Strawberry Cocoa Pebbles

Description: New, and in time for Valentine's Day - it's... Strawberry Cocoa Pebbles! Except, not really. But I'm surprised I haven't seen this yet. Mixing Fruity Pebbles and Cocoa Pebbles is such a simple idea. And I had the perfect opportunity to try it with this winter's WinterFest Fruity Pebbles; I separated out the red pebbles, and added them to a bowl of Cocoa Pebbles. It's not bad. And it looks great. I think it could maybe have a little more strawberry flavor (I've actually never thought about what flavor Fruity Pebbles are, or if the different colors are even the same flavor), but I'm sure that's something Post could tweak if they ever tried making this. I would buy it and try it if they did!

Rating: 🥣🥣

[Flashback] Hershey's Kisses

Notice: Flashback reviews have been written from memory, without having the cereal in front of me. I started taking pictures of notable cereal varieties several years before I decided to start a blog reviewing them. As such, details beyond whether I simply liked the cereal or not may be hazy, especially regarding the quality of the leftover milk. Whenever possible, I have made an effort to procure another box of the cereal for a proper review (even the ones I didn't like), but due to the ephemeral nature of many of these novelty cereals, this is not always possible.

Name: Hershey's Kisses
Variation: n/a
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: Remember when General Mills released a cereal based on Hershey's Kisses? Surprisingly, I barely remember it myself. This was one of several novelty cereals I picked up in the early months of 2020, just before the COVID lockdowns hit. And I can't even tell you if I liked it or not. I think I may have been disappointed because I was expecting it to be better than it turned out to be. But I could be misremembering. I'd give it another try if I saw it again, but the fact that I've had this cereal and barely remember it does not bode well.

Rating: (withheld)

Honey Nut Cheerios

Name: Honey Nut Cheerios
Variation: Cheerios
Manufacturer: General Mills

Review: This is a cereal I haven't had in a very long time, despite it being one of my regular staples. It's just that Honey Nut Cheerios Medley Crunch came out, which is basically this cereal but even better. So much so, that I consider it a real contender for "greatest of all time", despite not featuring chocolate or marshmallows. Which is why I'm concerned that I'm not seeing it on shelves anymore. Please don't discontinue Medley Crunch, General Mills! Especially not in favor of the far inferior Oat Crunch lineup...

Anyway, back to the oft-imitated but never rivaled original Honey Nut Cheerios. If you ask me, the sweet and tasty "honey nut" flavor is the only thing that makes boring, bland Cheerios a palatable cereal. And it's pretty good on its own, if relatively plain. But where this cereal really shines is how well it acts as a base for fresh fruit add-ins. Bananas are my favorite, but strawberries are also good, and I've more recently discovered the joy of putting fresh blueberries in my cereal. Honey Nut Cheerios is a classic, and has long been one of my favorites.

Rating: 🥣🥣🥣
Leftover Milk: Sweet and nutty.