Halloween Happy Turn (Product Information)

All images were captured from Kameda Seika's Happy Turn web site.

Halloween candy started showing up in shops here shortly before Labor Day. I'm not sure what the official cut-off point is for starting sales of candy that ostensibly is to be distributed at the end of October, but it does seem that any time near start of September is deemed appropriate. Of course, most candy purchased so early sits around and tempts the purchaser and finds its way into happy bellies rather than into Halloween bags and lanterns. And, no, that is not to say that I have succumbed. While I view the enormous bags of tiny candies with curiosity in terms of cost, design, and content, I haven't been compelled to buy any. No, no. I will wait until the holiday is over and they sell them at a reduced price. I haven't been out of mainstream America long enough to forget that!

When I was in Japan, I noticed that the same holiday creep occurred there as does here. Halloween, despite not really being a Japanese holiday, is no exception as evidenced by the options for snacks. Of course, no one is going to be dropping packets of sembei (rice crackers) into the plastic pumpkins of Japanese children since they do not yet trick-or-treat, but packages with a Halloween motif are out there. 

For those who don't remember my review of Happy Turn rice crackers, they are a very popular brand of vinegar, salt, and slightly sweet sembei. I had them quite a few times while in Japan, both in the 200% version that I reviewed and the regular version. In the U.S., I can buy them at the Daiso Japan or Nijiya supermarkets or take your chances on eBay.

The Halloween version of Happy Turn is essentially the same as the regular version. It simply comes in some pretty adorable packaging with a unique Japanese style. Fortunately, you can get your cute mascot on without buying the rice crackers if you are so inclined. You can download two wallpapers in each of two sizes and even some "letter sets" (stationary) templates. The latter is an indication of the fact that Japan is still a culture which embraces a good hand-written letter. You can download them at the following links: orange letter and envelope, purple letter and envelope, orange wallpaper 1024 x 768, orange wallpaper 1280 x 1024, purple wallpaper 1024 x 768, purple wallpaper 1280 x 1024. You can also access them directly through the Happy Turn site, but you'd have to be able to follow the links in Japanese. I'm offering them here for those who can't read it. I don't believe these links will work forever though, so if you want them, I'd suggest downloading them now. I wouldn't be surprised if Kameda Seika removed them after Halloween.

Even if you can't get your hands on the adorable Japanese packaging version, I would recommend sampling Happy Turn if you have a chance (and if you like vinegar flavor). I wouldn't, however, recommend giving it out to trick or treaters. I'm pretty sure they'd egg your house into oblivion.

Happy Turn 200% Happy Powder Sembei

If you could buy a product which says it now contains 200% more "happy powder", you'd buy it, wouldn't you? Of course, my idea of what might constitute "happy powder" and what Kameida Seika believes it is are almost certainly different. In fact, I'm guessing talk of "happy powder" in the U.S. might end up getting you arrested by the undercover vice detectives.

The brand for this, Happy Turn, comes with another crudely-drawn, simple mascot. It's one of the few food items that Kameida Seika releases that has a character attached to it. If you look at the large number of their products that I have reviewed, you'll see that the rest of them are pretty sedate in their packaging. The design is hard to understand at first, but Happy Turn's head is actually one of the rice crackers wrapped in plastic (like a hard candy with the edges crimped off on either side).


While there are several package styles and presentations for these listed on the web site for the product, this 200% happy powder version isn't listed so I can't know for certain if it is appreciably different aside from having more powder. I found this at Seiyu supermarket for about 100 yen (about a dollar). The bag weighs 50 grams and has 253 calories worth of crackers. One of the advertised attributes of these crackers is the fact that they have little crags and crannies in them to hold on to more spice.

When you open the bag, you smell a strong, distinctive smell which is common with sembei in Japan. It's a mixture of that baked rice cracker scent and whatever spices are commonly used. I thought these may actually be fishy crackers, but they are not. Their ingredients list is pretty vague, but my tongue detects a lot of seasoned vinegar flavor as well as a touch of sweetness. This makes them immensely savory and compels one to just pucker up a bit from the sourness. The crackers themselves are fresh, extra crispy and really quite perfect for a puffy ("soft") style sembei.

I really enjoyed these. I liked the strong vinegary flavor and love the texture and crunch of the crackers. I ate half the bag in one sitting and had to resist the urge to eat even more. The flavor may be a bit intense for some people, but it was to my tastes. If you're not a fan of really strong flavors, you might want to forgo the 200% happy powder and go for the regular version of this sembei. I do recommend that you give it a try in one variation or the other.

Note that there was a desktop pattern for this product, but I couldn't get the link to work from my Mac. I'm not sure if the site is set up incorrectly or if it uses code that my Mac doesn't recognize. Either way, I'm afraid those who want a sembei-headed mascot wallpaper are going to be left high and dry.