Business is weird and trends come and go…
And that means we see some strange products from time to time.
I mean, remember Crystal Pepsi?
What’s the weirdest thing that came out in stores that got discontinued?
Here’s what AskReddit users had to say about this.
1. Be very careful…
“Lawn Darts. These were a lot of fun, but were also just a terrible accident waiting to happen. Plastic fins and body with a weighted pointed metal tip.
I can remember older kids whipping them at the school yard fence to see how deep they could go into the 2 x 12 pressure treated fence planks.”
2. Weird.
“When everything was Shrek themed. Maybe I’m remembering it wrong, but back when Shrek 1 & 2 were new they were insanely popular.
Everything was green as a promo. Someone mentioned green ketchup, I remember green Shrek ketchup. I think Shrek waffles. I’m sure there was more promo food dyed green than that.”
3. Smooth!
““Cool Colt”- which was mentholated Colt 45 malt liquor.
It came out for a very short time in the early 90’s. I can imagine the marketing team for this one; “The urban market loves malt liquor, and they love menthol cigarettes, let’s put em together!”
The best part was a radio ad I remember for it, two guys talking about it, one states “ It’s especially good for when you’re smooooothin’ on the ladies!” Tried it once, it did taste like mouthwash-and a**. Not so smoooooth.”
4. Uh oh…
“Olestra, the stuff they put in potato chips that cause anal leakage. And they even had to put a warning on the package about anal leakage.
And I’m sorry I’m saying it so much but you only get so many chances to use the words anal leakage.”
5. Mismarketed.
“Ephedra.
It was an herbal extract used as a weight loss pill that worked by causing your body to turn fat into energy as quickly as possible. Then idiots would sit on their couches, watching TV, while their body was being flooded with energy. The only muscle working was their heart so… yeah. Several people d**d of heart attacks.
I took them when I went snowboarding. You’d be super warm and have endless energy! Going down the hill in 15 degree weather without a jacket, leaving a steam trail behind you… it was great. Gotta drink a LOT of water though.
A totally useful drug that was mis-marketed and misused by misinformed people.”
6. Sounds fun.
“Creepy Crawlers.
You had this plastic-y goo in different colors. Squeeze it into a metal mold and then put it in the cooker. Super hot! Then take the burning metal mold out when the goo has cooked, using metal plier thingies and place in cold water. Bubbles and steam everywhere.
Then you had these rubbery bugs to play with. Burned the holy heck out of our fingers.
Also, they made it in the 90s, and was safer. Ours was from around 1964.”
7. Terrible idea.
“My uncle bought this doggy toilet training kit.
It was supposed to be used for dogs using an actual toilet. It came with a ramp for the toilet and the bowl was covered by a plastic shell. It was the dumbest f**king thing I’d ever seen in my life but he was sold on it.
Until, the plastic shell snapped while my uncles poor pomeranian was doing his business and fell into the toilet and couldn’t get out. Poor thing nearly drowned but my uncle was close by to save him. He complained to the store and they were all pulled immediately.”
8. What happened?
“I wonder why Pepsi Clear didn’t last. It was my fave soda of all time.
I kind of wish I could try a New Coke again and see if it was really as disastrously nasty as ppl sometimes refer to. I remember drinking it several times but of course it’s been too long to remember the exact taste.
I also suspect a lot of that may have been psychological. But I’m not gonna order a decades-old can of New Coke off ebay to find out.”
9. Painful.
“Probably that Sevylor inflatable apparatus that could fly up into the air when you pulled the front of it up while being towed by a boat going at high speed.
The slap it made back down to the water looked like it could handily break your entire spinal column apart.”
10. I want one!
“The evil stick.
“Pretty” magic wand, marketed towards children, but if you peeled off the shiny foil it revealed a picture of a witch cutting themselves and laughed menacingly.”
11. Dangerous.
“I don’t know if they still sell them but they use to sell these pills at the gas station called yellow jackets in the 90s.
I got some and took 2 during a work break. Ended up in the ER that night from throwing up and dehydration. All of my extremities had locked up and I couldn’t move any part of my body. I haven’t taken an energy supplement or drink since.”
12. Very odd…
“I’m very old, but when I was a kid, shoe stores had x-ray machines that took pictures of your feet to see if the shoes were a good fit.
Why I don’t have foot cancer is a real question I have.”
Do you remember any weird products that were discontinued?
If so, tell us about them in the comments.
Thanks in advance!
