Bicycle Classic Halloween Playing Cards

 Halloween themed decks of playing cards used to feel like a novelty but now they seem to be putting out more every year. I guess they know there's suckers like me out there that have to have them!

 

 One of this year's new offerings is the Classic Halloween deck from Bicycle. These are standard poker size cards but as you can see, what's not standard is the inclusion of a third Joker! It's and added bonus for me as a Headless Horseman collector that he makes an appearance. The card back is simple black and white and nicely incorporates ghosts, pumpkins, and spiders in their webs.

 

 The numerical cards are fairly standard but the court cards have fun split designs. Jacks are animals (familiars?), Queens an assortment of women, and Kings various monsters. I really like the cartoon artwork in this deck because it reminds me of Disney's Skeleton Dance.

 

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Halloween Hot Wheels 2026 - Alpha Pursuit

Would a Halloween themed police car have ghostly wails in place of a siren?

 

 Alpha Pursuit has been around since 2020 but this is only its eighth incarnation. Not surprisingly, it's often been included in Rescue/First Response 5-packs.

 

 It's got a futuristic design to it which I think comes through a lot better with some of the other paint jobs it's had over the years. The Boneyard Patrol logo makes me wonder what the car does. Does it just drive around cemeteries? Does the name come from skeletal drivers?

 

 Whatever it's role, it's got some glow in the dark features to help light up the night!

 

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Skelton's Keys to the Classics - Vasilisa the Beautiful

Back in January 2025, I did a post about the amazing Skelton's Keys to the Classics that Mrs Dex got me for Christmas. She recently gifted me another to add to my collection from the Russian fairy tale Vasilisa the Beautiful. You may not think that sounds Halloween adjacent, but we'll get there.

 

 The keys come in boxes that resemble books from the outside.

 

 

But when you open them, there's a keyhole window showing off a metal key inspired by the story. Vasilisa's tale just happens to feature the infamous witch Baba Yaga as the villain!

 

 Baba Yaga has definitely entered the pop culture zeitgeist in recent years thanks to John Wick. She's even appeared in a couple Scooby-Doo episodes! But I remember first learning about her back in my early Dungeons & Dragons days in the 80s. I didn't know much at the time other than she was a witch that lived in a hut that walked around on giant chicken legs. Not an image you forget! 

 

The key is solid black except for yellow highlights in the hut's windows and the skull's eyes and nose. There's some really great line detail put into it, especially in the upper leg area. Even if I had the key to Baba Yaga's Hut, I don't think i"d be using it anytime soon!

 

 Baba Yaga and Vasilisa now join my other Keys to the Classics, filling out this collection box. 

 

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