Is it extreme capitalism — or is just an April Fools’ Day joke?
Brands are having a field day putting out product promos which are almost believable — until potential consumers remember the date. Here’s a one-shop-stop rundown of 2019’s most ingenious (or just annoying, depending on your tolerance for trickery) pranks and hoaxes.
Meal-kit delivery service HelloFresh launched a Unicorn Box of rainbow foods, while McDonald’s now offers “Milkshake Sauce Pots” for fry-dipping — and a McPickle Burger that customers apparently wish was real. Not to be outdone, Burger King tricked customers into eating an “Impossible” Whopper, and Amazon is promoting audiobooks for fish this April 1. Oh, and there’s now a drone “dog walker.”
There are some April Fools app updates as well, including an iPhone-parodying “find my brick” Lego locator, a new height verification feature for Tinder, and the classic arcade game Snake is now playable on Google Maps (that last one is real, if rolled out only for the day). You can also get food delivered by plane and attend WestJet’s inflight music “Flyre Festival.”
Oh, and uptight BBC viewers can now “Skip the Sex” via a new DVR button.
Also across the pond, Britain’s having a laugh riffing on their impending political situation, with plenty of Brexit-themed pokes, including a “Brexit from the Eurovision” song contest. In the world of architecture, a giant, unicorn horn-shaped co-working and living space is soon to be suspended above London’s Bloomberg HQ.
Meanwhile, in space takes, there’s now an otherworldly skin care option in the form of Singaporean facial spa Caring Skin’s new Astronaut Facial, which takes customers to Mars to treat acne. BMW is harvesting intergalactic powers on earth with its new Lunar Paint option, which passively recharges car battery in the night.
And SodaStream even recruited a real-life astronaut Scott Kelly for its viral clip about “revolutionary” technology that turns burps into sparkling water.
Who even needs to leave earth, though, when we now have fish skin and mala hot pot-flavored condoms thanks to Durex and Honda has come out with a polite car horns. Jameson has innovated Anti-Theft Glittershot Technology to protect its whiskey, traveling just got more affordable with Travelodge’s new bedshare service and crust is now being banned.
Men with small penises now have special undies made just for them, Petco is marrying pets in Furever Weddings, DJ Khaled is now TikTok’s CMO, the Jagerbong is here, Megabus has a vegan vehicle, Red Lobster is innovating the licorice straw and Roosevelt Island is getting a millennial pink makeover, courtesy of Three Olives Rosé Vodka.
Celebrity cameos: Lin Manuel Miranda’s father is breaking into modeling and Tesla’s Elon Musk released a rap single titled “RIP Harambe.”
Happy April Fools’s Day everyone — except for Microsoft employees, that is.