Happy Halloween, loyal SCN readers. As you get ready for trick-or-treating tonight, we decided this year we had to know: What is the best Halloween candy of all time. Who better to make this all-important decision than the SCN faithful, so we put it to a vote in an epic, four-round showdown.
We set two sides of our hypothetical bracket: Eight teams of chocolate goodness and eight teams of candy crushing favorites. Each day from October 9 to yesterday's final matchup, you had the chance to vote in our newsletter.
The final matchup was not even close. Snickers was the candy of the day, officially crowned an all-time classic. Here's how the bracket broke down.
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Round 1
CHOCOLATE TOWN
There were some pretty intense matchups on the chocolate side. Twix and Three Musketeers had the dubious honor of playing in the first-ever matchup, and it became an instant classic, right down to the wire as Twix earned 57% of the vote to move on. "It doesn't matter which side you're on," Twix told SCN after the matchup. "We bring deliciousness on both the left and the right side."
Snickers and the Hershey Bar were up next, and this one was relatively close as well. Hershey gave it everything they had, but in the end, Snickers won the day, earning 58% of the vote. "We're not going anywhere for a while," Snickers said at the post matchup presser.
Next up was the world of Reese's, whether you loved their pieces or buttercups, you voted they were the best, blowing Kit Kat out of the tournament in a 65-35% victory. "Give us a break," a dejected Kit Kat said after the victory, "we'll be back next year." M&Ms were up next, and like Reese's had little trouble moving on, winning 68% of the votes.
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CANDY CRUSH
The candy side of the bracket saw some blowouts. Starburst had little trouble disposing of Airheads, earning the highest percentage of votes yet with 85%. "Unexplainably juicy?" Starburst commented. "More like utterly dominant sweetness, amirite?"
In what may have been the largest upset of the first round, Twizzlers defeated the higher-seeded Skittles in a tight 52-48% victory. "We'll take our rainbow elsewhere," Skittles said, rejecting the opportunity for a postgame press conference.
In the other matchups, gummies—which could have been any form of bears, worms, sours, etc.—had the largest victory securing 89% of the vote over Laffy Taffy. In the final matchup of the first round. Pop Rocks pulled an upset over Nerds. "More like Pop Jocks over the nerds," an elated Pop Rocks said.
Round 2
Snickers told no lies, and the legendary candy bar isn't going anywhere for a while. They dominated Twix to a 68-32% victory, moving on to the semifinals. They would face the winner of a candy classic showdown. M&Ms had the lead early, but Reese's ran away with it, winning 60-40% over the candy-colored-shell favorites.
On the candy side, the Twizzlers upset train came to a halt as they ran into a strong Starburst squad. This one was over before it started, finishing with a 71-29% vote. Who would Starburst face next? It would be gummies, who is clearly the team to beat. They took down Pop Rocks in another very lopsided victory, 83-17%. "We're bouncing here, there, everywhere, and right into the semifinals," an excited Gummy Bear said. "Bring on Starburst."
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The Candy Final Four
Snickers and Reese's. Two candies that are beloved on Halloween and beyond and have some of the more iconic TV commercials went head to head for a spot in the finals. This one went right down to the wire, but Snickers disposed of E.T.'s favorite goodies, winning 54-46% to claim the first spot in the finals. "Creamy nougat, peanuts, caramel—hats off to Reese's, but we knew going in what this team was made of."
In a surprising semifinals upset, in yet another landslide of fruit flavor, Starburst toppled the gummy world 67-33%. Having not won a game by fewer than 30% thus far, the 'Burst had to be feeling confident heading into the huge October 30 showdown with Snickers. "Multiple colors and flavors for everyone... a burst of juicy goodness in every bite... hey Snickers, we are the ones not going anywhere."
The Finals
Snickers. Starburst. One is the heavyweight choco-champion of the world, a candy bar full of, well, stuff that has brought love to many sweet tooth enthusiasts for decades. The other crushed all the candy to get here, taking down yummies, gummies, and chewies with little residence.
But it was all for naught... or should we say all for nougat. It wasn't close from the start, and it got worse at the finish. Snickers ran away in absolute blowout, taking down Starburst 89-11%. "We thank Starburst for showing up today. However, what we knew from the beginning holds true today. Welcome to Chocolate Nation!"
Will Snickers be able to repeat in 2025? We'll see you next October to find out.
