Fads That Fizzled Out - Remember These??
One day a brand launches a flashy ad campaign, a food craze is filling Instagram feeds, or a TikTok challenge has everyone joining in, and the next, it’s all but forgotten.
From Crystal Pepsi and JNCO jeans to the Harlem Shake, cultural moments that once dominated headlines often fade into cautionary tales (or punchlines).
Let's dive into some of the most popular ads, fads, and viral sensations that flared up, fizzled out, and left us wondering: what were we thinking?
----- Food & Drink Fads -----
Crystal Pepsi (1990s & 2010s relaunch) – hyped as the future of soda, but people didn’t like the taste, so it disappeared.
McDonald’s Arch Deluxe (1996) – marketed as a “grown-up burger” with a massive ad budget, but flopped because customers weren’t interested.
“New Coke” (1985) – Coca-Cola’s reformulation that sparked outrage and was quickly pulled.
Four Loko (late 2000s) – notorious caffeinated alcohol drink that went viral but got banned/reformulated.
Pumpkin Spice Everything (mid-2010s peak) – Starbucks PSL still exists, but pumpkin spice–flavored chips, Spam, and beer have mostly faded.
Rainbow Bagels / Unicorn Frappuccinos (2016–2017) – Instagram sensations that were all about aesthetics, not taste, and vanished quickly.
----- Clothing & Style Fads -----
JNCO Jeans (1990s–early 2000s) – baggy jeans became iconic, then meme-ish, then vanished.
Von Dutch Trucker Hats (early 2000s) – massive celebrity push, then mocked into obscurity.
Skechers Shape-Ups (2010s) – marketed as toning shoes with big ads, but lawsuits over false claims killed them.
“Live Strong” Yellow Bracelets (mid-2000s) – once the accessory, faded after Lance Armstrong’s doping scandal.
Shutter Shades (Kanye West era, 2007) – instantly recognizable, instantly impractical.
----- TikTok / Internet Challenges & Memes -----
Tide Pod Challenge (2018) – controversial, infamous, and thankfully short-lived.
Harlem Shake (2013) – viral video format that was everywhere, then disappeared in weeks.
Mannequin Challenge (2016) – people froze in place for videos, even Beyoncé joined in… then it stopped suddenly.
Ice Bucket Challenge (2014) – actually raised a ton of money for ALS, but still fizzled after a few months.
Cinnamon Challenge (2012) – eat a spoonful of cinnamon (dangerous, short-lived).
“In My Feelings” / Kiki Challenge (2018) – people dancing next to moving cars to Drake’s song, quickly banned for safety reasons.
Dalmatian filter & “Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical” (2020 pandemic era) – blew up, then faded fast.
----- Ad Campaigns That Flopped -----
Pepsi “Live for Now” (Kendall Jenner, 2017) – heavily criticized for trivializing protests, pulled almost immediately.
IHOb (2018) – IHOP tried rebranding as “International House of Burgers” with huge buzz, but it was basically a stunt.
Sony PSP Graffiti Ads (2005) – fake “street art” campaign that backfired.
Bud Light “Up for Whatever” (2015) – dropped after criticism for implying unsafe party behavior.