Boy, are we living during a great era to be a nostalgia geek. With the power of the internet, passionate fans have been able to resurrect TV shows, bring back popular snacks and cereals, and revive long cancelled sodas and juices. I honestly never thought I would taste a Surge again in my life, and now i can walk down the street to 7-11 and pick up a can! After Surge, my go-to beverage as a kid was definitely Ecto Cooler. While Surge may have been popular in my early to late teenage years, Ecto Cooler was around for pretty much my entire childhood - ironically being cancelled in 2001, the year I graduated from high school.
A brief history of the stuff: Hi-C originally made a deal with the Real Ghostbusters TV show back in 1987 as a product tie-in. What most people probably don't know is that it was just a re-branding of an already existing flavor, Citrus Cooler. While only meant to last for a year, the flavor proved to be so popular that it long outlasted the cartoon it was based on. Ghostbuster mascot, Slimer, would stay on as the "face" of Ecto Cooler well into the 90s. As a kid, my favorite version of Ecto Cooler came in these giant metal cans that my parents had to use a can opener to open up. It was a big hit at any birthday party and regardless of your opinion on the Ghostbusters cartoon or movies, everyone loved the it. When it was cancelled in 2001, I don't remember if I was really aware of it or not. By then I was 18 and didn't spend too much time with Hi-C, Capri Sun, or any of those types of juices anymore. It was only in the last few years as my love of 90s nostalgia grew that I remembered my fondness for that green liquid gold. I read articles on how people had made their own formula, made Ecto Cooler candles, and petitioned a great deal to get it back in stores to no avail. Then as news of a new Ghostbusters movie starting floating around on the internet, it was announced that for a limited time in 2016, Ecto Cooler would be back!
Which brings us to today when my package finally came in the mail. Now, "limited time" is a VERY accurate statement. It's been almost impossible to get, major retailers are not carrying it, and it doesn't seem that Hi-C plans to make it a major release any time soon. Unlike Surge, this is a very rare item going for upwards of $100 for a case on eBay. Although I really wanted the 12 oz cans, I was lucky to find anything on Amazon and found a fairly decent deal on a ten pack of juice boxes. I will never tell my mother how much I paid for juice boxes because she'd probably disown me, but I just had to have it, dammit!!
The packaging has the "Ghostbusters Only in Theaters" everywhere, and surprisingly no Slimer. It's just a green case with some oranges and tangerines on it with some green slime oozing down. Nice and simple. I've also forgotten how small a juice box is; I'm pretty sure I could kill this thing in two gulps. Certainly not a health drink - 21 grams of sugar and 7% of your daily carbs in this little 6oz can. Alright, I've talked enough - I can wait no longer! Straw inserted. It's been at least 15 years since I've tasted an Ecto Cooler. Here...we...go...
Oh man! It's exactly as I remember. From the taste to the sound the straw makes, I am 10 years old again! This is awesome. I have to hide these from myself so I can ration them off otherwise I will drink them all right now. This is every fat 90s kid's dream come true. I'm going to go watch the old X-Men cartoon, get out my slap bracelet and drink another box. Surge - check. Ecto Cooler - check. Now if Pepsi would just bring Josta back, my 90s trilogy would be complete! A boy can dream...
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