Every so often a movie tie-in pulls me in as if I was an 8 year old kid. I’m the type of guy who is already enamored with any kind of promotion via junk food. If you’re reading this, there’s like a 90% chance you’re the same way. It doesn’t take much more than a big, epic tentpole movie and a themed bag of chips, a limited flavor neon colored soda, or an ill-conceived snack cake filled with non-standard icing to suck me right in. This leads me to introduce to you, the movie tie-in that I just cannonballed right into.
AQUAMAN ICE CREAM DELICACIES AT COLD STONE M’FN CREAMERY!
Thrust upon us like a tidal wave thanks to the impending release of Aquaman in theaters, I’m convinced that Poseidon has bestowed this upon us as an early Christmas gift. It’s exciting enough to be getting the first ever live action Aquaman movie directed by James Wan, but to get a brilliant tie in like this? I cannot gush enough about how perfect and creative this promotion is. The deliciousness comes in two forms:
AQUAMAN’S BLUE VELVET BROWNIE SUNDAE
(Blue Velvet Cake Ice Cream with Brownie, Chocolate Chips, and Metallic Glitter!)
BLUE ice cream. Yes, I’ve had blue ice cream before. But this is BLUE VELVET CAKE ICE CREAM. Imagine an expansive ocean or body of water being turned into a thick, rich, luscious blue frozen treat. After my first couple of spoonfuls it was obvious this thing was 40 billion calories and a million grams of sugar so I just said F it. The sweetness was strong, but mellowed out a bit once I caught a few giant hunks of chewy chocolate brownie. The metallic glitter added a cool accent of color although it didn’t taste like much. It was as if you were wrapping Christmas gifts and starting cutting the gold ribbon into little microscopic shards and peppering it over your dessert. Or if you were to do the same thing but with the plastic grassy stuff that you fill an easter basket with. I think you catch my drift. Not your traditional garnish, but that’s what elevates it to the next level. Regardless, this one is more for the chocolate lovers out there.
AQUAMAN’S BLUE VELVET SHAKE
(Blue Velvet Cake Ice Cream with Yellow Cake, garnished with Whipped Topping and Metallic Glitter!)
Once the straws were dunked into this divine delicacy, I envisioned myself being shrunk down like The Atom and taking a Goonies-esque slide down through the straw into the gorgeous, sweet creamy sea. Naturally, it wouldn’t be easy to hold my breath under the ice cream, but it was fun to fantasize about it. The shake was delicious and I was definitely digging this one more than the brownie sundae. It gave me a chance to concentrate on how smooth and tasty the ice cream was. I picked up tastes of the yellow cake as well, which I enjoyed. Keep in mind though, I’m not a big chocolate person, so if you are, go for the sundae! Again the metallic glitter is sprinkled on top to add some glitz to the affair. And even though the sprinkles don’t add much in terms of taste, its just fun to imagine that you’re eating bits of rare sunken 14k gold treasure.
There was no way I wasn’t going to be front and center for this promotion like it was my job. As you can see, the fact that I felt so compelled to write an actual blog post about this whole thing should be enough of an indication of how tremendous it is. Would I have enjoyed an Aquaman cereal? I sure as hell would, but maybe when the sequel gets released. The Cold Stone/Aquaman pairing came as a bit of surprise to me since I only realized it existed yesterday and it totally exceeded my expectations. This is the kind of movie tie-in that I adore. It’s all a pleasant surprise and actually tastes awesome and LOOKS cool as hell.
To sum up my little review of this Aquaman Ice Cream tie-in, let me take you back real quick. Growing up a DC kid, it wasn’t like there was a drought of DC food promotions. Some of the memorable ones off the top of my head include Superman and Batman Peanut Butter, Batman Taco Bell cups, McDonalds Batman Forever glasses, and if I wanted to look around my condo, I could list all the rest. Think about it, these are promotions that you literally will never forget. Most of my friends have them eternally etched into their brains. Now we can add Blue Aquaman Ice Cream Sundaes and Shakes to that list. It’s now in the history books for us pop culture nerds!
Pursuit of maintaining childlike wonder requires excitement, even for the simplest things. Submitted for your approval: ICE CREAM.
The newest episode of The Purple Stuff Podcast is a big one. It’s all about some of the most outstanding ice cream and frozen treats. You need not be an expert on every single offering in your grocer’s freezer or every single Good Humor variation displayed on the side of your neighborhood ice cream truck to enjoy this one. Once you start thinking about your favorite frozen treats from throughout your life, the floodgates open. This is what happened to Matt and I in this episode. There were so many great ones that we had to try to squeeze them all in!
There’s a brain freezing treat awaiting everyone who listens to this one. Maybe you dig Italian ices? Maybe you are a soft serve type of person? Or you may be a fan of one of the more obscure ice pops that was only sold in one section of the world in 1991? No matter what, it’s pretty safe to say that everyone has a special spot for some kind of frozen treat so this one celebrates that. Memories of hot summer days chasing down the ice cream truck will rush back into your mind. Remember when you would eat a colored ice cream pop and your mouth, lips, and tongue all turned that color? Fortunate for us, the summer is almost here so we are celebrating that feeling by digging deep into our memories and telling you all about a slew of our ultimate Ice Cream entries.
In this episode we will touch on everything from shark pops to alien cakes to great balls of ice cream. It’s a creamy and delicious audio compendium of our favorite frozen treats. Please subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play Music or Podbean, OR you can check it out at the link above!
For a guy who rarely likes to leave his condo I’ve sure been getting out a lot lately. I had a cool weekend and I’m here to tell you about it. Now’s a good time for a bathroom break because there won’t be another one until the end of the post!
JC Oddities Market, Cathedral Hall, Jersey City
Saturday marked the return of the JC Oddities Market at Cathedral Hall in Jersey City. I missed the last Oddities Market, so I made it a point to get there for this one. Plus, I needed to to fill my lifetime quota of attending an oddity flea market in an old church. Not only did I need to fill that very specific void, but with a long family history in Jersey City, I always look for any reason to venture there. Adding to that, my friend Bob Burke (the Glow Art champion of the world!) mentioned to me that he’d have a table there again. And to further reinforce my trip, the church is getting demolished at some point in the near future, so I’m glad I decided to go.
Bob “Glowmania” Burke had a special surprise gift for me, and I’ll be unveiling that very soon in an upcoming video!
This macabre market was unlike anything I’d ever been to before. The old church (Saint Bridget’s) was adorned with string lights and a random, oversized Delia Deetz-style snake sculpture in the middle of the floor up near the altar. I felt like I was on the set of a late ‘90s low budget horror sequel. (Definitely a part 4 or later.) The middle of the church floor was lined with vendor tables and artists selling everything from records and artwork to taxidermy and homemade jewelry. If only OMC sang a song called “How Bazaar,” now would be the most appropriate time to have that pop in your head. Even after being to so many cons and flea markets, most of these vendors were brand new to me. The basement featured even more tables, so I surpassed my usual 15 minute zip-through for one of these things.
I also ran into my friend Nicole and her girlfriend. You may recall Nicole, fellow Jerseyan and horror fanatic, who way back in 2014, let me post a piece of her writing here at The Sexy Armpit. It was so great to meet her after being friends with her online for so long. Nicole has since changed her social media handles so you can now follow her at @allthedamnvamps on Twitter and @allthedamnvampires on IG.
I bought a few non-tea gifts and a few things for myself. There’s the Jersey City Batman style t-shirt along with these amazing Jersey City coasters by “Chic Chalet.” Recently, I had The Bangles “Hazy Shade of Winter” single in my hands at a recent record show, but I ran out of cash, so I’m happy I found it here.
Brutaliteas
As for pickups, going into this thing I’d say that tea wouldn’t be a thing that I would come home with…AT ALL. Oddly enough, Brutaliteas was on site and proved me completely wrong. They were giving out samples and making tea cooler than it ever was, one tiny ass sample cup at a time. The creative offerings from Brutalitieas are truly game changing. This Jersey couple crafts their own homemade teas and infuses them with a horror or hard rock twist i.e Back in Blackberry, Apricot for Destruction? C’MON! Those are a must buy merely on the wordplay alone. I tried a sample at their table and it was delicious and the aromas are amazing. I was sold. I bought 3 packs. It was so hard to decide from a slew of amazing themes. I narrowed it down to Screamsicle, The Detoxic Avenger (obviously had to get that one), and A Nightpear on Elm Street. I haven’t brewed them yet, but I will very soon. I’ll likely throw in some ice cubes because I’m an iced tea freak.
The benevolent Brutaliteas donates part of the proceeds from sales of the Detoxic Avenger (Lloyd Kaufman approved) to canine cancer. Courtney and Adam are a seriously wonderful couple and it was great to meet them. You can tell that they love what they’re doing because it shines through in their teas. And those PUNS! You can read about their story at their website.
Spotted Toxie graffiti on the wall in the bathroom of Barcade
Barcade
Barcade is for getting buzzed and playing old video games. That was what I did the previous times I’ve been there. Although, I never thought I’d intentionally waltz into a Barcade for a late lunch without taking in an arcade game, but that’s exactly what happened. This time, I plopped myself down on a stool at the bar and ordered my usual drink and a…wait for it…veggie burger?!?! What?
Possibly a little known secret, Barcade’s veggie burger is badass! Equally as shocking, I’m a bit of a connoisseur of veggie burgers. I order veggie burgers almost anytime I can’t get eggplant parm. Spots like Barcade that make their own patties from original recipes in-house are the best. To order a veggie burger from a place that uses frozen patties is crazy because those could be made at home. If you’re into Veggie Burgers, get one next time you’re at Barcade. YUM! Tell me you don’t start getting hungry after reading the menu entry directly from their website:
Veggie Burger Deluxe
6 oz. fresh patty of beets, brown rice, and black beans topped with cheddar, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles, mayo & spicy ketchup on a bun.
In between all this I literally just wandered around Jersey City basically all day. I kept running into the best eye candy for my Jersey obsession. I snapped some photos for posterity.
8-Bit Mystery Pin, The Monkey’s Paw Store
Saturday was a good mail day thanks to the arrival of the pin pictured above. Scooby Doo meets Jason Voorhees has always been a mash up I’ve desperately wanted to see come to fruition. We’ve come very close a few times going back to an episode of Robot Chicken, and then some artwork from artist Travis Falligant, then there was also the Mystery of Crystal Lake enamel pin by The Monkey’s Paw where Shag and Scoob had a run-in with Jason. I snatched that one up as soon as it was released, but not too long after, they started teasing this 8-bit styled sequel to their original pin. What makes these pins so incredible is that they both had a run of only 50 worldwide. It’s a total collector’s item for a guy like me who loves both Scooby-Doo and Friday the 13th.
iPlay America
On Sunday, we went to iPlay for an event that wound up getting cancelled. We had a couple of consolation drinks then walked through the arcade area where I found this beautiful DC Comics game. All the major characters were featured on the game. I was stoked to see their Bronze age versions represented so I had to share it here. I didn’t actually play the game, just stood there drooling over it and took a thousand photos of every panel as blatantly illustrated in the collage above. Now that I got that out of my system, maybe I’ll actually play it next time.
Camp WWE
With 2 WWE events this weekend, (NXT Takeover and Backlash) I spent a lot of time on the WWE Network. I wound up unexpectedly re-binging CAMP WWE. To call it a binge is a bit of a stretch since the season only lasted 5 episodes. I’m sure watching them all again sounds pretty wild to even the most die-hard WWE fans, since almost everyone I’ve talked to about the show haven’t seemed too excited about it. The first time I watched it was about a day or so after the WWE premiered it on the network and I found it amusing, but wasn’t crazy for it. After a second helping, I’m finding myself loving it.
When you think about it, there hasn’t been a WWE animated show since Hulk Hogan’s Rock ‘n’ Wrestling, which I loved as a kid (around 75 years ago.) Merely for that reason alone, it automatically gains major cool points in my book. Think about it for a second, a modern day WWE animated series is pretty monumental. Wrestling AND cartoons combined? Drink it in maaaan! Let’s not take it for granted.
There’s also the fact that it’s funny thanks to a ton of in-jokes for wrestling fans. It’s written and produced by lifelong wrestling fans and that translates to a show that doesn’t dumb anything down. I found myself having a blast with it way more this time. The summer camp backdrop is like built-in nostalgia and Mr. McMahon hamming it up is incredible. Some of the other highlights of the show feature The Undertaker becoming one with nature, A 7-year old Stone Cold Steve Austin getting tanked on beers at a bar, an amusing appearance by Goldust as Mr. McMahon’s personal assistant, the actual Lex Express bus blowing up, and a truly hysterical take on Bray Wyatt. Check it out if you haven’t yet!
Ice Cream at Jersey Freeze
Before we headed home to catch WWE Backlash, I abruptly screeched the car off Route 33 and into the Jersey Freeze parking lot for some ice cream. The last time I was here was at least 15 years ago, so it was about time to rectify that. I got a cone with peanut butter pie ice cream. It was so delicious. I’ve never had this flavor before so I asked the girl behind the counter what was in it. She had no idea so she asked one of her coworkers. Once she mentioned peanut butter ice cream, bits of pie crust, and peanut butter cups I was putty in her hands. If you’re in the area this summer, make a pit stop there! (or an ARMPIT STOP! <rimshot>)
Thanks for reading about my latest excursion! Hope to see you back here soon!
