Pokémon

Pokémon is a popular media franchise owned and originated by Japanese video game company, Nintendo. Following its first video game release, Pokémon soon became a hit and was soon featured in more games, anime, trading cards, toys, books, and other media.

Pokémon revolves around a fictional world filled with trainable creatures with various powers you can contain in a spherical tool, a PokéBall. One particularly creative aspect of the series is its generations, its division of the games that assists in showing the chronological timeline of the series. One generation, called Pokémon: Black and White (Generation V), was promoted at McDonald's in both 2011 and 2012 with Happy Meal Toys based on the Pokémon featured in the games.

The 2011 line of the Pokémon toys included, Pikachu, Reshiram, Zekrom, Snivy, Tepig, Oshawott, Zorua, and Zoroark. Additionally, random cards for the Pokémon card game are included in the line.

For the 2012 line, Black and White toys returned again with evolved forms of the starters, Dewott, Servine, and Pignite. This set also features Pikachu, Woobat, and Axew. Also, like last year, Pokémon card game cards are included with purchase of the toys. The toys in this line were sold alongside Zoobles! toys for girls.

The commercials promoting the 2012 line showed the characters from the Funky Farm era alongside Pikachu. When Pokemon X and Y released worldwide in 2013, a McDonalds set based on the games released in 2014 featuring a new battle system akin to rock paper scissors. The type trio would be switched on the toy and the Pokemon inside it's Pokeball can be launched into battle! The types and their advantages go: X defeats Square, Square Defeats Circle, and Circle Defeats X. The same battle system was reused with the 2019 Pokemon set. The Pokemon included in the set were Pikachu, Chespin, Froakie, Fennekin, Xerneas, Yevetal, Charizard, Blastoise, Venusaur, Pancham, Mewtwo, and Helioptile. Different randomly distributed Pokemon cards were included with the toy. The toys in this line were sold alongside American Girl Isabelle toys for girls. In 2014, the remakes of Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire, Pokemon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, had a Happy Meal set released in 2015. This set was to not only tie in to the games, but to the Hoopa and the Clash of Ages movie released in the same year. What made this set unique, was the Hoopa that was distributed at McDonald's locations. The Pokemon available in the set were Primal Groudon, Primal Kyogre, Rayquaza, Lugia, Pikachu, Mega Latios, Hoopa, and Wobbuffet. Each Pokemon came with a randomly distributed card. The toys in this line were sold alongside Build-a-Bear plushies for girls. Pokemon Sun and Moon released worldwide in 2016. McDonald's distributed a set in 2017 based on the game. This set features Pikachu, Rowlet, Litten, Popplio, Solgaleo, Lunala, Grubbin, and Yungoos. Just like any Pokemon set in McDonald's, a different Pokemon card was randomly distributed with the toy. The toys in this line were sold alongside Hello Kitty toys for girls. In 2018, Pokemon was celebrating 2018, the year of Legendary Pokemon! To promote the event, McDonald's Distributed toys based on some of the Legendary Pokemon in the event. The Pokemon in the set were Latias, Latios, Tornadus, Thundurus, Dialga, Palkia, and returning from the Pokemon Black and White 2011 set, Reshiram, and Zekrom. A Pokemon randomly distributed Pokemon card was included with the toy. The toys in this line were sold alongside Hello Kitty toys for girls. In 2019, McDonald's released a Pokemon set featuring the same battle system from the 2013 X and Y set. But the way you launch the toy was completely different. The Pokemon included were Pikachu, Eevee, Onix, Lapras, Caterpie, Alolan Exeggutor, Alolan Sandshrew, and Magmar. Each toy included a randomly distributed Pokemon card. This set was sold alongside Hello Kitty toys for girls.

In 1999, Burger King had 52 toys for Pokémon: The First Movie. On December 11, 1999, a 13-month-old girl in Sonora, California suffocated on the container, and was found deceased in her playpen with half of the ball covering her nose and mouth. Following her death, the Tuolumne County Sheriff's Department issued a warning about the containers. This was the first time a Burger King toy was blamed for a death. Two days later, the Consumer Product Safety Commission asked Burger King to recall the containers, which Burger King refused to do. They stated they were afraid to create anxiety for parents, as it was too soon to confirm whether the ball was responsible for the child's death, wanting to wait for an independent confirmation of the cause of death. The autopsy results had not been completed and released. Burger King spokesperson Kim Miller stated if it turned out the container was a choking hazard, they would pull them out. However, they did not want to end a promotion if there was no issue with it. The toys found in the containers were not a part of the proposed recall.

According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the design and size of the container made it easier for people to suffocate than with a plastic egg or a cup. It is just the right size to cover the nose and the mouth, and owing to the plastic's pliability, a child may suck the air out, creating a vacuum effect and causing the ball to become stuck to the face. Russ Rader, spokesperson for the commission, stated the more the child breathes, the tighter the ball is held in place. He claimed it is a hidden danger and is something parents could not anticipate.

On December 23, an 18-month-old Kansas girl reportedly got half of the ball stuck on her nose and mouth, but her father managed to remove it before she was injured. This resulted in Burger King agreeing to a recall after no resolution had been passed between them and the Consumer Product Safety Commission. However, the CPSC told them to wait five days—December 29—to announce the recall to allow for them to get its nationwide strategy in place. Burger King agreed, but told their stores to cease distribution of the containers.

However, when word began to leak out to the press, they released an early press release on December 27 announcing the recall, to the protest of government officials. These officials argued they needed time to distribute recall posters to more than 8,000 restaurants, a video news release, and an appearance on a national news show for CPSC chairperson Ann Brown. In addition, time was needed to avoid the period after the Christmas holiday when traveling families would be unable to watch a national newscast or pay attention to radio news broadcasts.

Brown proceeded to do the segment as planned on NBC News's Today, though changed the focus of the segment to criticize the chain for announcing the recall too soon and taking their time in determining if a recall was needed. Brown stated she was still upset by their actions a week after the incident, adding that most companies are more cooperative than this. She compared it to an incident that happened around the same time, where a Nordstrom department store's sweater's zipper was detached and became a choking hazard. The sweaters were immediately recalled.

Burger King issued a statement to parents that they should take the containers away from children ages three and younger, and should be thrown away or returned to Burger King, where they could be redeemed for a free small order of French fries. Children could keep the toy that came with the ball. According to Burger King spokesperson Charles Nicolas, more than 25 million containers were included in the recall. The container did not display any warning of a choking hazard, stating it passed all choking tests and was appropriate for all ages. Burger King stated it passed all U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission requirements and all international safety standards.

In a Knight Ridder Washington Bureau article criticizing the recall process used by companies, which does not require companies to recall their products nor does it require they offer incentive to return recalled products, editor Ben Finley makes reference to this recall. Because the item was of negligible cost to purchasers of the kids' meals, many parents did not return the containers to Burger King. A $1 million recall campaign was initiated by Burger King, which included television advertisements  and warnings on take-out bags and tray liners from their restaurants. More than 100,000 notices and fliers were sent to health-care providers and sites frequented by Pokémon fans. Despite this, a 4-month-old boy in Indianapolis, Indiana died of suffocation on January 25, 2000 in his crib.

Marlene Gordon, senior attorney for Burger King, stated their recall efforts were as strong or stronger for their marketing campaign. Despite the campaign, less than half of the 25 million containers were returned. According to a Burger King spokesperson, Burger King had destroyed more than 22.5 million undistributed containers and more than 500,000 returned containers by December 2000. Nancy A. Nord, acting chairperson of the commission, stated while a few came back, they assumed most people threw them away. Research was done on the recall, which showed that among customers who did not respond to a recall, 60% had thrown the containers away, which is considered an effective recall.

Burger King has stated its toy safety problems have not been fixed, as in a two-year period, they have recalled three toys intended for toddlers; however, they showed the distinction between this recall and the Pokémon recall, stating there were no injuries in these recalls.