Why A KFC Toy Is Going Viral In China

Some people are ambivalent about KFC, but that's not how China feels about the fried chicken giant. KFC holds the honor of being the first American fast-food chain to open in the country. And today, it's the brightest jewel in Yum China's crown, with more than 8,400 restaurants in more than 1,700 cities. 

In fact, KFC is so iconic that Yum China was named as a sponsor for the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing, per Reuters. It even became one of the few places athletes could go for a Valentine's Day treat, per Eurosport (well, that or Yum China's other offer: pizza from Pizza Hut).

This year, KFC China decided to mark Children's Day, which takes place on June 1, with a special Pokémon promotion, where children's meals come with a Pikachu or Psyduck toy, per Nintendo Life. But even KFC couldn't anticipate just how popular the promotion would be — even though we're still days away from the actual event, and one of the toys is already taking the internet by storm.

Psyduck is making waves for his moves

It might be obvious to think that children would go after Pikachu, as he's arguably the best-known Pokémon from the original franchise. But instead of gravitating towards Pikachu, which comes either as a cup or as a decorative music box, children (of all ages) have been opting to pick up the equally adorable Psyduck, which comes with music and dances to it, too, per SuperPixel. (The outlet considers the plastic toy to be a good pandemic quarantine companion.)

Dancing Psyduck has taken local social media platform Weibo by storm. "KFC China is running its Pokémon toy promotion for Children's Day (June 1) where a kids meal comes with a Pikachu or Psyduck toy. The Psyduck toy has gone viral on social media given its dancing capabilities and is selling out quickly. Listings online are priced up to $200 atm," one user tweeted, along with a clip of Psyduck doing his thing. 

The toy has become so popular that it's already disappeared from KFC, only to reappear on China's resale platforms, such as Taobao, per Twitter. As one social media user points out, "The ducks disappeared from the restaurants in 15 minutes. Yesterday I tried like 10 KFCs, and failed miserably."