This article was co-written by reporters Evan Clausen and Wyatt Dodd 3/6/
Oftentimes
a mascot can make or break a product.
Icons like Mr. Clean and Flo from
Progressive have become synonymous with the success of their products. However,
there are two sides to every coin, and while some brands hit it out of the
park, others seem to miss the mark.
Here at SLOHS, there are many
mascots that students don’t fancy.
One
of the most widely hated mascots right now is the Planter’s Peanuts current
abomination, ‘Baby Nut.’ An infant-sized reanimation of the recently deceased
Mr. Peanut, Baby Nut represents a failed attempt at joining a trend that has
already run its course.
“Baby
Nut is the worst mascot, by far,” said senior Jahan Ramezani.
Baby
Nut comes in the wake of the much more successful “Baby Yoda”, an infantile
version of the beloved Star Wars character that appeared in the recent
television show “The Mandolorian”. While
Baby Yoda was a cute and fresh spin on an older character, Baby Nut feels
played out and slightly creepy. Mr. Peanut just doesn’t have the same appeal
that Yoda does, and Baby Nut suffers as a result.
Another
unfortunate mascot comes from the cold medication company Mucinex. The mucinex
man is an unpleasant specimen, a small green glob of mucus-based voice acting
that is grating on the ears. While he may fit the product he is designed to
sell, his presence isn’t exactly the type that inspires a person to go out and
shop for his product.
“He
kind of terrified me as a child, I thought him and all his mucus friends were
really gross,” said junior Kaylie Hall.
Finally,
McDonald’s icon Ronald McDonald is worth mentioning. Clowns are notoriously
freaky, and picking one as a mascot seems like a risky move, especially for a
company geared so heavily towards children. Ronald has served as a McDonald’s
mascot, parading around on the side of happy meals or sitting as a creepy
plastic statue on a bench outside of restaurants.
“I
think Ronald is the scariest mascot. That guy makes me feel super weird.” said
freshman Lindsay Smith.
Baby
Nut, Mr. Mucus, and Ronald McDonald all seem like unfortunate attempts at going
with an unusual mascot to ‘mix things up’, but none really seem great for the
job they’re designed to do. Sometimes a brand can miss the mark when designing
a mascot, and it’s always entertaining to see when those brands miss the mark
as hard as these ones do.