Cereal Legends: Part II

By now, we have all established our favorite childhood cereals. In part one, I introduced a few cereal legends, but as you know, there is much more to be covered! So, let's get started...

I can remember when I first discovered Cinnamon Toast Crunch. I was simply amazed at how good the cereal actually was. My sister and I actually agreed on one thing, making this an easy choice for my mom to pick up at the store. Although we learned through commercials that adults should never question a child's cereal choice, a parent might have received "It's the cinnamon sugar swirls in every bite" remark when a kid placed the cereal in the buggy. I am not sure any kid actually ever said that, but it is a good excuse...

"Nobody can say no to Honey Nut Cheerios", go ahead, prove me and General Mills wrong. Although you may consider this to be an old person's cereal, I have recently decided that I actually like them. Now as a kid, I wouldn't have touched them with a ten foot pole, but if one person could have persuaded me to partake in Cheerios, it would have been none other than Mr. Scrooge himself. Although I couldn't find a decent picture of the commercial, I am sure you remember how great it was, and how great it still is. Even if the cereal didn't taste good, the Christmas commercial would make it all worth while.

Poor, poor rabbit, he couldn't even get a spoonful of his own product. Even if he did get even a sample, being called "silly" all of your life has to be demeaning. No matter, Trix was the one cereal my mom shunned me from getting. After all, didn't you know Trix was "pure sugar"? Ok, it really isn't, but that's what my mom always said. From colorful shaped balls, to fruit shapes, back to colorful shaped balls; Trix provided all of the fruity flavored cereal a kid could ask for. I even enjoy a bowl here and there today (just don't tell my mom).

I believe we can all recall the Apple Jacks commercials, where the parents questioned their kids (and friends) about their liking of the cereal, only to receive a snappy short witted reply of "we just do". We just do...honestly, I want to hate the comment, but it works. Apple Jacks weren't the most flavorful cereal around, heck, they didn't even taste like apples; but why do people continue to buy Apple Jacks?? We just do.

Now here is a cereal that was fun to eat and tasted good too! You can't tell me that you didn't act as if you were enjoying a hearty bowl of dog food.


Can you honestly tell a difference? Not that it matters, Cocoa Puffs had a great chocolate taste, and an awesome dog food shape. The only thing that made this cereal even better, was eating it with the special spoons I received as prizes from the box.

Honey Comb is one of the prize cereals that allows kids to talk improperly, yet still get what they want. Although Honey Comb was around a while before the crazy commercials surfaced; I can't shake the memories of that crazy animal thing running around screaming "Me want Honeycomb!". My best experiences with Honey Comb came from visiting my uncle who lived out of state. He always had boxes of Honey Comb for us to eat in the morning. Those were good times.



I know that this will shock you, but I have never tried any of the three 'monster cereals'. I am not sure why I never did, for the boxes were always so fascinating...I just never did. I would like to imagine what they would taste like, because if you are going to have monsters as your box mascot, you better be able to back them up with some killer cereal. Many people have commented on them before, so I am sure they have to be worth the fuss. So, before you get too angry, rest assured, I will try all three...very soon.

Even though I haven't had Cookie Crisp in forever, I always loved the cereal. I think that it has to do with the mentality that I discussed about Lucky Charms. I was eating cookies and milk for breakfast, how great was that? So, to recap, my mom would let me eat cookies and milk for breakfast, but not Trix?...that's life. I don't think I remember the box pictured above; for my boxes always featured the cop and the robber/dog. One thing that always stuck with me, was the promotion Cookie Crisp did with Marvel Comics. In each cereal box, you could collect Marvel trading cards, which prompted me to dig through the cereal as it was being unloaded from the grocery bags. Moral to the story: I like COOOOOOOKIE Crisp!

I need to correct myself from earlier, my sister and I (as kids) agreed on two things. Along with Cinnamon Toast Crunch, we both enjoyed Golden Grahams, which became a before school staple. Golden Grahams always featured such a unique texture, and taste, making this a longtime favorite. As a bonus, after eating all of the cereal in your bowl, you had the privilege of drinking the leftover honey milk. Mmm honey milk, I can still taste it today.

Although I never cared much for Honey Smacks, my dad sure did! I can remember him eating bowls after bowls, while I dug my hands through his box for the featured prize. Even though I didn't like the cereal, I did enjoy Diggum the frog, more over his arch enemy Sugar Bear.

I am not too sure about the difference between the two cereals, if there is any, all I know is that I didn't like either. If you look at the boxes, it would seem as if they were planning some type of honey pot showdown. Or, perhaps they are just flavoring their cereals, either way, may the best man (or in this case, animal) win!

To wrap up the article, I am ending with a classic. No, Rice Krispies didn't have a good chocolate or fruity taste, and you did have to load it down with sugar; but it is a timeless cereal none the less. Snap, Crackle, and Pop have been slaving away for years to provide us with the cereal that created one of the best treats around, that being none other than the Rice Krispy Treat. After years of success, I imagine that the folks at Kellogg's decided to cash in and reap the benefits, by creating Rice Krispy Treats Cereal. Unlike its mother cereal, this cereal was actually quite tasty. So, before you put down the Krispies, remember, they do serve a higher purpose than just a bland old breakfast cereal...

Well, that about does it. I know that I didn't cover every cereal ever created, but I did my best to hit the highlights. Cereal comes in many different varieties, like our childhoods, making them unique and special to us all! Until next time...


Thanks to everyone I borrowed pictures from, you helped make this article possible!