General Mills Monster Cereal

It's hard to believe that I've gone 33 years in life and I've never had the Monster Cereal before. You know what I'm talking about: Count Chocula or Franken Berry cereal. This wasn't due to any sort of parental interference or objection to sugary breakfasts. I practically grew up on Lucky Charms and Honey Smacks. No, my lack of monster foods was due to a disinterest in the product.

But that was then. Now, the Count and company are only available for a couple months of the year. This scarcity has piqued my interest and pushed me to trying the entire line.

Frute Brute
I won't lie; I hate the name of this cereal. I mean, I see what they're trying to do, with the clever rhyming scheme and all, but the gross misspelling of the common word "fruit" is just irritating. It's clearly just a take on the popular Kellogg's cereal "Froot Loops". And yes, I hate that spelling too.

Anyway, when I learned that Frute Brute was a cherry-flavored cereal, I wasn't sure what to think. I was never a fan of fruit-flavored cereals before but I decided to go ahead and try this. I'm glad I did too because I really liked it. Maybe it's because Frute Brute, like the other Monster Cereals, are just a single flavor. Froot Loops, Fruity Pebbles and the others are all a mixture of different fruit flavors that just didn't jibe with my 8-year-old sensibilities. But the single flavoring offering prevents the clashing of flavors and enhances the enjoyment. And I love the addition of the marshmallows. It gives the cereal so much more nuance than the standard fare.


Yummy Mummy
Again, with the fruit cereal. Normally, I would never have tried this but after the luck I had with Frute Brute, it was worth a shot. For the most part, it's just an orange version of Frute Brute, with marshmallows and all. The orange flavor is a good choice. When paired with milk, Yummy Mummy becomes a giant bowl of orange creamsicle. The fruity goodness mingles with the creamy dairy flavor and makes the whole thing pop. It's a unique breakfast experience that, to my knowledge, hasn't been done before. Which makes me wonder why. With cereals on the market like Reese's Puffs, Cinnabon, and Smorz, it's almost as if every taste under the sun was made into cereal form. So a lack of "Orange Creamsicle" cereal really seems like a missed opportunity.


Count Chocula
Before I started this, I figured this would be the one I liked the most. After all, how can you go wrong with chocolate. Though I did like Count Chocula, I have to say I didn't like this as much as I expected to. It has a very subtle chocolate flavor, which is what I liked best about it. It doesn't have the same burst of chocolate taste like Cocoa Puffs does. It's more along the lines of Cocoa Krispies, with an understated chocolate flavor that lingers for a little bit. What really makes it is the marshmallows. The little pockets of sugar really add to the chocolate and enhancing its sweetness. Though this wasn't my favorite out of the bunch, it ranks high on the list.


Boo Berry
Not really feeling this one. While I won't describe it as being "bad", I will say that it's not the most appealing breakfast cereal of the bunch. Blueberry is kind of an odd choice for morning flavor and I couldn't really get over that. Despite that, though, it's the most visually appealing one so far. It was mostly a bowl of dark, crunchy bits with a few bright, colorful marshmallows mixed in. The contrast in colors really helped to make the marshmallows stand out, as opposed to the other cereals where they just kind of blended in with the rest of it. Out of all of them, Boo Berry ranks at the bottom of the list.



Franken Berry
Out of all of the of the fruity cereals here, this is the one that I assumed I would like the most, just because I love strawberry flavor. The truth is, it becomes wholly forgettable. The first couple of spoonsfuls are great, with the sweet flavor smacking you right in the face. But after that, it basically loses all of its glamour and becomes another cereal. I think it just may have to do with how powerful the flavor is and that it overloads your tastebuds. I mean, it's not bad. It just doesn't stay enjoyable through the entire bowl.

However, just like the Boo Berry, Franken Berry also has a nice color scheme. The pink crunchy bits pair nicely with the white and dark red and blue marshmallows. So this one is both pretty and tasty.

At this point, I'm happy that I underwent this little experiment. I got the chance to branch out and try a whole bunch of different cereals I'd never had before. But I don't think I'd want to do this again. I'm glad I know which cereals I like and will be happy to buy them again in the future. However, the two under performers, Boo Berry and Franken Berry, can stay where they are. Give me Count Choula and Frute Brute any day of the week.