Japanese Halloween Candy

For this month's Box of Schlock, I didn't want to just throw in candy that any asshole can get from a Walmart or Dollar Tree.  Nope, I wanted to do something way different.

As some of you may or may not know, I love Japanese candy, or what is better known as dagashi, which comparable to penny candy found in the states.  Each piece of dagashi is a wonderful display of graphic design weirdness and eating one is akin to playing Bean Boozled; you never know what the hell it's going to be.  Sure, I could use the Google Translate App, but I like to live my life dangerously with a dash of mystery on the side.

Now, I may have ordered way too much Halloween Japanese dagashi, but I think it was worth it just for the photos alone and sweet Instagram hearts.

Enjoy!

I am not sure if it's something to get around customs, but each box that was delivered was listed as either as a gift or present.  It was even wrapped like some sort of birthday present, albeit, one that got kicked around a bit.  But, hey, I got this cool Snoopy stamp.

This was on package number three.  So awesome.

This is pure happiness to me.

Seriously, pure happiness.

I'm sorry to anyone who ordered a box.  But just had to eat these.  They were AMAZING!

I have no clue as to what this might be, yet I love the packaging.

Um, I really hope that's a squid on the top right corner.  But hey, there's a whale wearing a wizard's hat!

Okay, after attempting to eat several of these and subsequently spitting them out, I had to rely on Google and Wikipedia to tell me what the hell these things are.

Wikipedia:

Umaibō (うまい棒) or "delicious stick" is a small, puffed, cylindrical corn snack from Japan. It is produced by Riska and sold by Yaokin.[citation needed] It has a suggested retail price of 10 yen, but because profit margin is so slim, its price can change without notice.[citation needed]Its consistency is similar to Cheetos.[original research?] The mascot is a cat, Umaemon, whose name is a pun on that of a popular animated character, Doraemon.[citation needed]

There are many flavors of Umaibō available, including savory flavors, such as salad, mentaiko, takoyaki and cheese; and sweet flavors, such as cocoa, caramel, and chocolate. Some flavors were discontinued after a brief period, while others became a staple. Some flavors are only sold in specific locations, such as tourist spots.[citation needed]

But, hey, I do love the packaging, especially the Halloween versions.  The taste, not so much.

Since there are a ton of pics of my dagashi haul, I am going to split this article in several parts.  So, expect part 2 very soon.