Good morning Candy Crushers! After a short hiatus to head to the dentist, our panel of judges was ready to tackle the Elite 8 and determine who our Regional winners would be.
With a trip to the Final Four on the line, action got underway in the vaunted Chocolate West Region. Rocking the gold and red were the towering twins of Twix who some say have had the hardest road to the Elite 8. Taking out Almond Joy, M&Ms and Milky Way to get here, Twix has been tested and challenged all along the way. Tonight would be no different as they faced the movie favorite peanut-buttery smoothness of the Reese’s Pieces. Gaining its popularity with the extra terrestrial classic, E.T. in 1982, Reese’s Pieces took advantage of a product placement offered first to the Mars Conference M&Ms. A failure that would follow them for 30+ years until they made the mistake of trying pumpkin spice on the general public. You leave pumpkin spice to the coffee masters M&Ms. Stay in your lane. But we’re not here to talk delicious coffee, we’re here to determine who would come out of the Chocolate West. Up early, the autumn colored Reese’s Pieces squad looked for a monumental upset. But just as we had witnessed in earlier rounds, the tried and tested Twix twins were steadfast in their cookie crunch defense. With minutes remaining, Reese’s would need some of that Spielberg magic to keep their hopes alive. Closing to within 2, the dynamic duo of Left & Right Twix put down the uprising and sent Reese’s Pieces packing with a 9-6 victory. Reese’s Pieces Go Home…
Eager to find out who they would play in the next round, Twix quickly tuned into the Non-Chocolate Regional Final which saw fan favorite Gummy Bears from Haribo County take on a Skittles team that cruised into the Elite 8. The Haribo faithful came in droves to prove that not only were they the first to put forth such a delicious gummy treat, but the best as well. Originating in 1920 in Germany, the sweet little squishy confection originally called themselves, Gummibär and dominated the Europe Mainland Conference for decades. To pay homage to their humble roots, Gummy Bears rolled out the original starting 5, Raspberry Red, Strawberry Green, Lemon Yellow, Orange Orange and Clear Pineapple to face the Taste of the Rainbow. Unlike the previous match, Skittles seemed untested in their road to the Elite 8; knocking off Jolly Ranchers, Twizzlers and Laffy Taffy to get to the regional final…and it showed. Putting the ball back in the hands of Conference MVP Red, the Haribo Heroes were all over the Rainbows who just never had a chance in this one. The Haribo Gummibärs demolish Skittles in a 10-5 rout and punch their ticket to the Final Four.
Across the brackets, action got underway in the Seasonal Region with Easter Favorites Cadbury v. Jelly Beans. Once again in attendance, Commissioner E. Bunny looked on proudly to determine which of his conference favorites would move onto the Final Four. One of the oldest confectionaries in our Candy Madness bracket, the Jelly Beans were around in the days of the peach basket and enjoyed by millions throughout the entirety of the 20th century. Given the resurgence by Jelly Belly of this delicious treat, it’s no wonder why Jelly Belly has become such a staple in the tournament. But they would have sticky hands full with top-seeded Cadbury who brings a strong variety of chocolates to the court. Early and often, Jelly Beans confused Cadbury with its less well known flavors such as pomegranate, chili mango and Mai Thai. In the end, it was old stand-by orange, cherry, lemon and lime that would finish off Cadbury. Another #1 bites the powdered sugar dust as Jelly Beans wins the Seasonal Region with a 10-5 victory.
In our final match of the evening, the under-seeded Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup stepped up to the challenge thrown down by the smooth chocolatey goodness of Dove. A formidable opponent for Reese’s, Dove came from humble beginnings when Greek-American entrepreneur Leo Stefanos introduced Chicago to the Dove Ice Cream Bar. It was an immediate success and began international acclaim in the mid-50s. By 1986, Dove moved to the power conference of Mars who used its almost endless success of chocolate distribution to proliferate the sugary treat into every grocery store in the country. But we’re talking about the Reese’s Cup here. No stranger to world-wide acclaim, Reese’s came to the match guns blazing. They rolled out Big Cup, Miniatures and even Crunchy Cup to go with the traditional peanut butter treat. In the end, Dove and all it’s varieties were no match for Reese’s PB Cup who put down the smooth chocolate with a 9-6 win to wrap up the Final Four.
The Final Four is now set.
Twix vs. Haribo Gummy Bears
Jelly Beans vs. Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup
There can be only one!
~ The Commish