It's almost October so I decided to go scope out the costumes over at the all-year Halloween shop near Union Square, Halloween Adventure. It's been around for decades (I think since I was in Junior High School) and every time I visit I find something new. It's a great place and I kinda wish I could go there everyday.
Since we're still in the hell-scape of 2020 there weren't a lot of people in the shop. I can understand that. Not everyone has Halloween on their mind right now, and it's still an uncertainty to how that holiday will play out. I'm sure it's going to be a mixed reaction this year, but at the very least I still plan on wearing a costume and maybe visiting a friend. You know, anything. Anything fun during my favorite holiday.
I'm still hunting for the perfect costume, and for any weird snacks I can find. Carvel has this Hocus Pocus shake I need to try. It's to coincide with the 31 Nights of Halloween event on Freeform and I think with the anniversary of the film itself.
Last year Carvel had their Slime Shake, which was my absolute favorite. This seems to be the Shake Shake again but with sprinkles. I'm absolutely down for that. I'll probably end up keeping the cup it comes in.
Me drinking the Carvel Slime Shake (2019)
Hocus Pocus is an interesting cult family film. I put it in the same league as Ernest Scared Stupid and The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Casper too (I guess). I'm not sure how popular it was when it was first released, but my friends and I watched it yearly on endless loop back in the 90's. Everyone is just so wonderful in it. And like the other movies I mentioned, the cult following it has only seems to get stronger every year. There's more merch for it now than there ever was back in the 90's.
Funny thing is I don't even own a television so I won't be able to follow along with this schedule of films, but it is a really fun selection. All the old classics mixed with some newer stuff. Nothing is too obscene or gruesome so the whole family can enjoy it together without worries, but there aren't any duds in the mix at all. My one complaint is that not all of them are exclusively Halloween movies exactly. Monsters Inc. for example does have monsters in it, of course, but I would hardly count it as a Halloween movie. Still, not a bad list.
image via Best Products
What's incredible to me is how the entire Freeform Halloween schedule seems to be built around Hocus Pocus. So much so that Hocus Pocus is being shown 13 times and has it's own separate schedule! You know what? I'm counting this as some sort of Halloween ritual. It must be.
And also... OH SHIT. I got super sidetracked!
Uhhh....., here are the pictures from Halloween Adventure! There's a lot of stuff that I really wanted. Like the Spy Vs Spy costume, I saw a prop Voltron sword, and all kinds of amazing things there. I'm not really into rubber masks, but there were a few that really spoke to me. If I had the space for them I'd pick them up and put them on display, but alas, my underground bunker where I live doesn't have the best conditions for that sort of thing.
(I really wish Blogger had a gallery option, but alas.)
After Halloween Adventure I took a little trip to BookOff in midtown. It used to be entirely books, CD's, and DVD's, but now they have an extensive toy and video game selection. I'm amazed to some of the things I find there sometimes.
Baboo from Power Rangers
A knockoff Transformer named "Roundabout" on Twitter
The Nerd from Robot Chicken (who's name is apparently "Arthur Kensington, Jr.")
A Funko Soda Pop figure of Crusader Rabbit! (I was needlessly excited about this find)
And lastly, another knockoff Transformer I named "Bear Feet" because even after he's done transforming, he's still got two sets of feet.