Ninja stars, ’90s hats & orange cereal: A roundhouse kick of nostalgia

Anyone else go through a ninja phase as kid? A time when the mysterious ways of these Japanese warriors captured your imagination of stealth, comfy clothing and not-safe-for-kids weaponry. (A 2004 episode of “South Park” titled “Good Times with Weapons” perfectly shows the youthful exuberance around the ways of the ninja.)

Any ’80s/’90s kid caught up in this craze also likely encountered the books of Ashida Kim with intriguing titles such as “Ninja Mind Control” and “Forbidden Fighting Techniques of the Ninja.” (Now, that’s some SEO!) AWMA, the Philly-based supplier of martial arts, recognizes the nostalgia for ninjas along with their swords, throwing stars and nunchucks.

The @awmasince1972 Instagram regularly features decades-old catalog pages and ads from Black Belt and Inside Kung Fu, supermarket rack favorites that kept plenty of kids busy while their moms shopped for groceries. You wouldn’t believe how many throwing stars $10 bucks would buy you in 1984!

Nostalgia clips

👊 Speaking of martial arts, “Karate Kid: Legends,” starring Ralph Macchio and Jackie Chan is now in theaters, a continuation of a franchise that began in 1984. A review from Variety calls it “likable retro corn.” 

⚾️New Era, MLB’s hat supplier since 1993, is selling its Retro Classic line exclusively at Lids stores. The hats feature retro stylings, including old logos, gray coloring under the bill and the absence of the New Era logo on the side. The Kid Mero-hosted announcement video gives off some serious Rodney Dangerfield/Jazzy Jeff Starter ad vibes.

🍊Quaker resurrected Cap’n Crunch's Orange Creampop Crunch, a decade after the cereal last graced store shelves. It’s available at Walmart, Target and Kroeger, according to AllRecipes. 

✨Disney is celebrating the 70th anniversary of Disneyland with the Vault Collection, a lineup of nostalgic merchandise. Throughout its 70th celebration, running into summer 2026, Disney will drop new merch in “chapters.”

🦶Nike paid homage to the 1997 N64 classic “GoldenEye 007 with the Air Max 1 Low Poly Big Head Mode. The name references a lighter version of the James Bond first-person shooter that could only be enabled with a secret code. Now is a good time to ask, “Why did the ‘GoldenEye’ pause music go so hard?”

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U.K. photographer Ryan O’Donoghue is giving beloved action figures their close-ups at @plastic_head_official on Instagram.

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