# Edible - Commercial Characters **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 18, 2010, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398 "2010-01-18T05:18:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/1 "2010-01-18T05:18:16Z")
There’s something a little twisted in commercials that feature edible characters. Frosted Mini Wheats are a good example. The current one features them swimming in hot milk from the microwave. They’re happily talking with the kid that’s going to spoon them up, chew’em and swallow (off camera). Another classic one is the M&M characters. Remember the one with the M&M desperately running on a conveyor belt? He doesn’t want to go over the checkout scanner. 😃 Only moments away from being eaten. He finally assumes as much dignity as possible, and scans himself. 🙂 Are there any other edible characters that you recall? ---
**Author:** ![nikonikosuru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5f8ce5/32.png) [@nikonikosuru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nikonikosuru)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 5:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/2 "2010-01-18T05:25:43Z")
Goldfish crackers and Chips Ahoy! cookies have become anthropomorphic recently. Commercials with the talking main product always disturb me. I just want to eat you, I don’t want to get to know you. I guess it’s cool that the mini-wheats are telling me what a great day I’ll have after eating him, but it would still creep me out. ---
**Author:** ![TWDuke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e495f1/32.png) [@TWDuke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TWDuke)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/3 "2010-01-18T05:31:04Z")
Since I never really thought of cereal or candy as being alive, these never really freaked me out. The ones that I found disturbing as a child and still somewhat creepy as an adult are the ones in which talking animals are desperately hoping to be slaughtered and packaged for consumption. Charlie the Tuna of old and the not-Foster Farms chickens of today come to mind, but I’m pretty sure there have been others. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/4 "2010-01-18T05:36:26Z")
Of course, Chick-Fil-A gets it right. It doesn’t make any sense for a chicken to want people to eat chicken, but it makes plenty of sense for a cow to want that. ---
**Author:** ![nikonikosuru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/5f8ce5/32.png) [@nikonikosuru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nikonikosuru)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 5:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/5 "2010-01-18T05:41:22Z")
Oh! And the Planter’s Peanuts guy, the peanut with the top hat and monocle. He’s a little weird too, like selling your family members to be eaten. ---
**Author:** ![AboutAsWeirdAsYouCanGet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/22d042/32.png) [@AboutAsWeirdAsYouCanGet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AboutAsWeirdAsYouCanGet)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/6 "2010-01-18T05:44:11Z")
Ben and Jerry, when found in Jeffery Dahmer’s freezer. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 7:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/7 "2010-01-18T07:16:06Z")
Found an old Chiquita Banana commercial from the 1940’s that featured a sexy female singing banana. So, they’ve been doing this since the beginning. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/RFDOI24RRAE/hqdefault.jpg "Chiquita Banana The Original Commercial") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RFDOI24RRAE) I prefer non-edible characters. Snap, Crackle, Pop, The Keebler elves, and Capt Crunch are iconic cartoon spokesman that aren’t in the same food group they’re advertising. ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/8 "2010-01-18T07:33:51Z")
TV Tropes got you covered: [Let’s Meet the Meat](http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Ptitlesacn2d4m3iyd?from=Main.LetsMeetTheMeat). One notable example there: > [@](#): > > An 1899 print ad (yes, this is Older Than Radio) shows pigs, lambs, a cow, fish, chickens, and even onions and cabbages eagerly dashing forward (the vegetables on little root-legs) to be engulfed in the metal maw of the Universal Food Chopper. ---
**Author:** ![Taomist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/53a042/32.png) [@Taomist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taomist)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 7:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/9 "2010-01-18T07:41:26Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > I prefer non-edible characters. Snap, Crackle, Pop, The Keebler elves, and Capt Crunch are iconic cartoon spokesman that aren’t in the same food group they’re advertising. What…you mean Keebler crackers and cookies AREN’T made out of elves?! I am EXTREMELY disappointed. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 7:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/10 "2010-01-18T07:54:47Z")
Wasn’t there a commercial for one of the fast food joints (Burger King, maybe) a few years ago with an anthropomorphized potato extolling the virtues of their french fries, and then eating some? I mean, that’s cannibalism, isn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/11 "2010-01-18T14:30:32Z")
Thet were running this cookie commercial regularly a few months ago. It is funny in a messed up sort of way. > [@](#): > > Another Chips Ahoy commercial features four anthropomorphic cookies joyriding in a car and singing along to Human League’s “Don’t You Want Me” as a giant hand reaches in and grabs them one by one. The last finally realizes the others are no longer singing, and falters as he looks behind him, just before being grabbed himself. I’m glad to see some else put a lot of thought into this. Thanks for the err sausage link. 😉 > [@](#): > > TV Tropes got you covered: Let’s Meet the [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Ptitlesacn2d4m3iyd?from=Main.LetsMeetTheMeat](http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/Ptitlesacn2d4m3iyd?from=Main.LetsMeetTheMeat). ---
**Author:** ![Jormungandr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@Jormungandr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jormungandr)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/12 "2010-01-18T14:52:11Z")
Coca-Cola’s Ice Cubes commercial, the equivalent of people being happy they’re being killed by battery acid. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/c4OUuSkAjwA/hqdefault.jpg "Coca Cola Ice Cubes") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4OUuSkAjwA) ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/13 "2010-01-18T14:55:55Z")
Only a South African will understand why “I wanna be a Simba Chippie!” was disturbing…the animated spuds, I see them still in my dreams. Them and the McCains frozen peas. Then there was [this disturbing Cadbury’s ad](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xo2wRvJ04ss), on par with the grinning Axe Chocolate guy for disturbing. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/14 "2010-01-18T15:07:14Z")
Reminds me of the Restaurant at the End of the Universe. Also, Pugsly as the turkey in Addams Family Values…“EAT ME!” ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/15 "2010-01-18T15:11:47Z")
I always thought that wanting to be an Oscar Meyer weiner was a bit twisted, too. ---
**Author:** ![Jormungandr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@Jormungandr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jormungandr)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/16 "2010-01-18T15:16:38Z")
Well, he would have been a character: [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGObGID6Cr4) ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/17 "2010-01-18T15:56:28Z")
Poppin’ Fresh is so old he must be sourdough by now. I liked the Family Guy episode where Lois rolls him out and cooks him. ---
**Author:** ![Booker57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Booker57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Booker57)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/18 "2010-01-18T16:01:37Z")
I saw the thread title and thought of Erin from esurince. Hope there is room in the handbasket. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/19 "2010-01-18T17:51:56Z")
[Charlie the Tuna](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlie_the_Tuna) was especially interesting because he actively _tried_ to be eaten and was disappointed when he was rejected. Real death wish there. The California Raisins were another; they were perhaps the creepiest corporate mascots ever. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2010, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398/20 "2010-01-18T18:13:22Z")
I think you could make a case for there being two different situations here: 1. An animal, alive and sentient, that \*wants \*to be butchered and eaten makes no sense. 2. But a prepared item of food (a chocolate chip cookie or M&M, for instance) was created for the express \*purpose \*of being eaten. He might see it as fulfilling his destiny. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/edible-commercial-characters/525398.md?page=2)