When I was young, every time my family and I went to the park, it became a tradition to leave with a small treat. Sometimes we would get something from the vending machine, whether that be chips, candy, or drinks. But there was one treat that became a favorite, which had its own familiar tune: the ice cream truck.
Although I was tired after playing at the park, I somehow mustered the energy to run towards the ice cream truck. Every time. It was worth it to see the bright and colorful menu of sweet treats available. Ice cream bars in a myriad of flavors, from strawberry to chocolate, cotton candy to watermelon, Jolly Rancher shaved ice, ice cream sandwiches — whatever you wanted, they had it.
With so many options to choose from, I always opted for the classic, cartoon-themed popsicles.
As a kid who grew up watching cartoons, it was a wonderful feeling seeing them represented in popsicle form. I could choose from a who’s who roster of cartoon characters. Spider-Man, which was a mix of flavors of strawberry, blue raspberry, and lime.
Cherry-flavored Batman or Raphael from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Sonic the Hedgehog, which was blue raspberry- and cherry-flavored. Strawberry and banana ice-flavored Dora the Explorer. And lastly, the world-renowned favorite, SpongeBob SquarePants, which was fruit punch and cotton candy-flavored.
I waited in glee for the ice cream truck to arrive and in every ice cream shop outing, I couldn’t wait to see what the new popsicle releases were. I was excited to see which new cartoon was represented. Over time, my go-to popsicles became Spider-Man, Batman, TMNT, and SpongeBob. Specifically, the Batman and TMNT popsicles were my favorites. Just ask the ice cream shopper who attended us every month we went.
There was just something fun about seeing the cartoon you saw frequently on TV represented in a popsicle. Now, when you opened them up, it was also fun to see how they turned out. Sometimes it wasn’t a one-to-one depiction, or sometimes it wasn’t a depiction at all. I was happy if they weren’t melted because they looked exactly like the packaging, or sad if they didn’t look like the packaging. At the end of the day, it still tasted the same.
The Popsicle brand was an integral part of my childhood, through their cartoon Popsicles. It made every outing with my family a memorable one. Now in 2026, Popsicle will release two new cartoon characters: Strawberry and cotton candy Hello Kitty, and mixed berry Bluey.
Bluey’s face will be represented in a popsicle form, and Hello Kitty’s face and bow will be in popsicle form as well. They are starting to be rolled out as they have been spotted in Kroger. With releases in Walmart, Kroger, Target, Stop & Shop, and ShopRite expected to follow this January, if it hasn’t arrived already. Eventually, ice cream trucks will also have these in stock.
The new generation will be able to grow up with their favorite cartoons, just like my generation grew up with their popsicles.