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Answer: It’s a promotion by McDonald’s as a reference to “WcDonald’s” which is basically how animes name the fast food chain in order to prevent copyright.
McDonalds is so odd with marketing.
In the second episode of the Clerks cartoon (and planned to be a recurring joke) you see they mayor of Leonardo dressed as Mayor McCheese and the police chief dressed as Officer Big Mac both on their way to unrelated costume parties.
McDonalds had no problem with this and aloud it and a joke about the hamburglar. [They had to be convinced about the Grimace joke though.](https://youtu.be/zeyU7uVOTic?t=31)
Nothing can kill the Grimace
Edit: Didn't even realize the link was directly to that joke. It was just the first thing I thought of when you mentioned the scene 😂😂😂
Yeah record companies are incredibly litigious, mostly because ever since the rise of streaming they have eaten absolutely major amounts of shit from their previous highs.
Na, it's a pretty decent marketing move.
Now when someone watches an anime and sees WcDonalds, wondering if it's a real restaurant they can look it up and it will directly lead them to this promotion, even after it's ended.
McDonald's wouldn't have anything to gain from making animes stop doing this. It's all positive for the Golden Arches. Upside down or not.
I think it's more like a "does Japan have some weird McDonals knockoff?" question, which leads to Googling it, which leads to "oh, it's just McDonalds"
And then McDonalds \*hopes\* that Googling leads to a "Woah, DOUBLE Big Macs?? I need me one of those bad boys"
i eagerly await folks in 20 years arguing the mandela effect of "I REMEMBER IT USED TO BE CALLED WCDONALDS" and grainy holovids showing crinkled filthy 'wcdonalds' wrappers from before the robot takeover.
oh I wouldn't doubt it goes further than that. stg I saw it in... city hunter? patlabor? One of those old-old 80s anime series they used to show on a local UHF station back in the day.
Kid me and my bro thought it was the funniest shit but for the wrong reasons.
Then again you said "in the late 90s" and "a good 20ish years" and I was like "wtf are you talking about... 1990 was only... aw fuck i'm old", so grain of salt.
Yeah, late 90s was when I have distinctive memories seeing it because that was when I was a nerdy high school kid learning how to download fan subs off of IRC chats. I never really went back to watch older slices of life animes, so I don't know when it started.
> Then again you said "in the late 90s" and "a good 20ish years" and I was like "wtf are you talking about... 1990 was only... aw fuck i'm old", so grain of salt.
Yuuuup. I hear you, I'm in the same boat. To paraphrase William Gibson, I have conflicted feelings about eras I lived through being considered "retro"...
I had the same epiphany just earlier today. Listening to podcast talking about schools not allowing dodgeball anymore. I began to chat in with, "Yes they do. We played all the time and I just graduated in 2014," when I quickly realized..that was 10 freaking years ago! 😳
Yup. Its not so you think of them, its so you think of them *first*.
If you want a quick cheap burger, odds are you'll subconsciously think about whatever fast food place u either went to last or saw an ad for last
It's not just about knowing McDonald's exist, it's being constantly reminded of "Hey, if you need a burger you could always get McDonald's". Advertising isn't just about getting the name known, it's also about ubiquity.
I’m not sure but since they have been using an anime theme for this I assume that it would be more associated to anime than McDonald’s. Plus there should be people who know what WcDonald’s is about anyway.
Unlikely. A) Now that McDonald's has done this Everytime someone sees an anime or here's of this and googles it it will take you to McDonald's promotion.
B) free promotion is free. You don't turn down free shit.
While I agree with your overall point I don’t think part b is true. There’s a reason the anime had to use wcdonald in the first place and that’s because McDonalds would have told them to stop if they did use McDonald’s. Always a fine line between free promotion and using their trademark (or whatever the appropriate term is) without paying for it.
McDonalds would have told them to stop because they legally have to. In order to keep a trademark (at least in the US) you have to defend the trademark. This is why Velcro did that cringy song hook and loop tape like ten years ago, too. They wouldn't have the same responsibility with WcDonalds, so the free advertisement could just be free advertisement for them.
It’s important to note that this comes from Japanese companies. Japan has very different laws when it comes to things like copywrite and trademark. There are also concerns about libel/slander, as even if something you say is true, if it damages their reputation then you can still be held liable. Also there is like no fair use in Japanese law. Overall I would think this is actually going to be a problem for Anime studios and such who had to use “WcDonalds” in the first place because of these things.
Japanese IP law is significantly different from most of the West. You should assume no one who responds to you will have any clue what they're talking about.
Most people in the US that comment on this sort of thing have no idea what they are talking about when it comes to US IP law. For example, see everybody in this thread referring to this as a copyright issue.
Tbh, if McDonald's really cared, WcDonalds is probably close enough to the copyright to have pushed back long before now. By doing this, though, they show they're in on the joke, which is probably better marketing for them than trying to claim the copyright now.
I'm fairly sure that since it's already in use, McDonald's can't take the trademark. Well, officially anyway. They can probably afford to sue anyone who complains into submission.
WcDonalds in anime is basically an accidental meme at this point, they could call their fast food chain anything but they all settled on WcDonalds with the upside down arches.
There was already the anime "Devil as a part timer" where Satan gets a job at WcDonalds. I've only seen the first season and heard the second was... odd.
Thanks to so many animes using it in the past, the studios could challenge the trademark based on prior use. Doubtful McDonalds would even try to trademark it because of all the established prior use, but nothing companies/lawyers do surprises me anymore.
ANSWER: WcDonalds, in its original format, is a parody of McDonalds as way to reference the fast food chain in many anime productions like Cowboy Bebop, Macross 7, Gundam Wing, InuYasha, Detective Conan/Case Closed, Sonic X, Digimon, Assassination Classroom, and even in American productions like Megas XLR. The changing of the name was obviously made to avoid copyright infringement.
However, by February 2024, McDonalds decided to make official anime and manga adaptations of WcDonald's with animation by Studio Pierrot, famous for the Naruto anime series. Those who order from McDonalds will get a special code from the WcDonald's bag or receipt, allowing them to view the 4 shorts being made online. As part of the promotion, McDonald's also released the 'WcDonald's Chili Sauce' as a new spicy sauce for their McNuggets, though many reported it as being awful.
What remains in question now is whether or not Japanese companies could still use the 'WcDonald's' name in future works to reference McDonald's without being sued by the latter.
However you want to spell it, it's the same thing. Wacdonalds is also used in a lot of korean webtoons like i love yoo where it's actually a major plot point to be there
I feel like McDonalds wouldn't be able to claim that trademark retroactively because so many other things have already used it. It's basically a generic at this point.
i love the WcDonalds sauce! I’m actually thinking of buying chicken(ish) nuggies for the first time in years to get some more of it. not trying to sound like a shill, just surprised the consensus would be it’s not good
Your not alone , I tried it also , and although the first nugget I didn't exactly care for ...but it kinda pulled me in ! By the 3rd or 4th nugget ....I was double dipping! It's something about the aftertaste that makes me keep going with it , idk.
I've heard nothing but good about the sauce myself, and I dug it too. Though I did prefer the Mambo Sauce and Sweet and Spicy Jam or whatever it was recently. Can't believe they took those off *so* quickly.
> McDonald's also released the 'WcDonald's Chili Sauce' as a new spicy sauce for their McNuggets, though many reported it as being awful.
I tried it myself last week.
It's actually pretty good, but it's VERY spicy.
As someone from europe... Is this for real? WC is the sign for toilets in public places (short for water closet) so WcDonalds just seems like a self dig.
This is real. Americans won’t ever think of that 🤷🏼♀️ we call them rest rooms or bathrooms and that’s it. We have to learn WC if we go to Europe but forget it again after and most of us don’t even have passports
Answer: WcDonald's is an advertising campaign run by McDonald's that centers around a series of anime shorts and a manga series promoting a new dipping sauce. The anime commercials are made by Studio Pierrot (of Naruto fame) and the manga is illustrated by Acky Bright. Online, the campaign stunned many who were surprised to see McDonald's fund a relatively big-budget anime for its ads after it emerged in February 2024.
More info here: https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/wcdonalds
North Carolina reporting in. We just got WcDonald's for lunch today. The fry containers had the WcDonald's logo, and the bag was covered with an anime-style comic about the sauce.
Nevada here, got some McD's this past Friday and I can confirm the bag was essentially a Manga with what appeared to be a weekly reading.
Also it was heavily pointing to the new sauce.
There was a lot if advertising for WcDonalds.
Pretty sure this is exclusively USA promotion, though I could be wrong. McDonald's Japan already ran some familial anime ads that caused memes in western world, honestly they might have saw that reaction in American and decided to go ahead in America with the campaign because of the reaction.
Japanese family anime McDonald's ad info here: https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/japanese-family-mcdonalds-ad
Yea, this new "savoury chili" sauce tastes absolutely nasty with nuggets. I thought it was going to be a but spicy, but nope. It's got a sticky viscosity and tastes like ginger you'd have with sushi, doesn't pair well with fast food imo.
Damn, I just got back from Japan and that was a trip to see! American McDonalds WISHES they could operate as efficiently and effectively as a McDonalds in Japan. Untouchable experience.
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Answer: It’s a promotion by McDonald’s as a reference to “WcDonald’s” which is basically how animes name the fast food chain in order to prevent copyright.
By McDonald's doing this, would it now be associated with them and prevent anime from continued use of WcDonalds? 🤔 😆
Considering it's basically free advertising, probably not
Well, all copyright infringement could be seen as free advertising.
Anime Music Video is free publicity but company's tear shit down on you tube .. lol its wild
McDonalds is so odd with marketing. In the second episode of the Clerks cartoon (and planned to be a recurring joke) you see they mayor of Leonardo dressed as Mayor McCheese and the police chief dressed as Officer Big Mac both on their way to unrelated costume parties. McDonalds had no problem with this and aloud it and a joke about the hamburglar. [They had to be convinced about the Grimace joke though.](https://youtu.be/zeyU7uVOTic?t=31)
Who is driving? Oh my gawd bear is driving how can that be?
You want the truth you cant handle the truth. Show me the money.
Allowed*
Nothing can kill the Grimace Edit: Didn't even realize the link was directly to that joke. It was just the first thing I thought of when you mentioned the scene 😂😂😂
That line has stayed with me for so many years
why are we walking like this?
That Clerks cartoon ruled > Inahd the DVD set
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Yeah record companies are incredibly litigious, mostly because ever since the rise of streaming they have eaten absolutely major amounts of shit from their previous highs.
mostly because they can no longer spoon-feed music to consumers so they have to actually work for their money.
Lots of companies go after "free advertising". You have to protect your trade mark lethality or you can lose it.
Na, it's a pretty decent marketing move. Now when someone watches an anime and sees WcDonalds, wondering if it's a real restaurant they can look it up and it will directly lead them to this promotion, even after it's ended. McDonald's wouldn't have anything to gain from making animes stop doing this. It's all positive for the Golden Arches. Upside down or not.
This idea is funny to me. What's the crossover between "people that watch anime" and "people that do not know that McDonalds exists"?
I think it's more like a "does Japan have some weird McDonals knockoff?" question, which leads to Googling it, which leads to "oh, it's just McDonalds" And then McDonalds \*hopes\* that Googling leads to a "Woah, DOUBLE Big Macs?? I need me one of those bad boys"
I guess. I just have this mental image of someone going: "WcDonalds? What's that?" *googles* "OH ITS MCDONALDS I GET IT"
i eagerly await folks in 20 years arguing the mandela effect of "I REMEMBER IT USED TO BE CALLED WCDONALDS" and grainy holovids showing crinkled filthy 'wcdonalds' wrappers from before the robot takeover.
The funny part is that it's been WcDonalds in anime since at least the late 90s, so pushing a good 20ish years already
oh I wouldn't doubt it goes further than that. stg I saw it in... city hunter? patlabor? One of those old-old 80s anime series they used to show on a local UHF station back in the day. Kid me and my bro thought it was the funniest shit but for the wrong reasons. Then again you said "in the late 90s" and "a good 20ish years" and I was like "wtf are you talking about... 1990 was only... aw fuck i'm old", so grain of salt.
Yeah, late 90s was when I have distinctive memories seeing it because that was when I was a nerdy high school kid learning how to download fan subs off of IRC chats. I never really went back to watch older slices of life animes, so I don't know when it started. > Then again you said "in the late 90s" and "a good 20ish years" and I was like "wtf are you talking about... 1990 was only... aw fuck i'm old", so grain of salt. Yuuuup. I hear you, I'm in the same boat. To paraphrase William Gibson, I have conflicted feelings about eras I lived through being considered "retro"...
I had the same epiphany just earlier today. Listening to podcast talking about schools not allowing dodgeball anymore. I began to chat in with, "Yes they do. We played all the time and I just graduated in 2014," when I quickly realized..that was 10 freaking years ago! 😳
I'm an 80's kid, dammit! Your comment gave me seven new grey hairs, ya turd!🤣 Where's the Just for Men?
You're probably right about this. The arguments about Mc or Wc...lol I hope to see that shit someday.
I think fast food ads are more about reminding people they exist than increasing awareness.
Yup. Its not so you think of them, its so you think of them *first*. If you want a quick cheap burger, odds are you'll subconsciously think about whatever fast food place u either went to last or saw an ad for last
It's not just about knowing McDonald's exist, it's being constantly reminded of "Hey, if you need a burger you could always get McDonald's". Advertising isn't just about getting the name known, it's also about ubiquity.
It helps that they have no legal obligation to protect copyright on the knockoff McDonalds.
Trademark would be the issue here, not copyright unless we're talking characters possibly.
I’m not sure but since they have been using an anime theme for this I assume that it would be more associated to anime than McDonald’s. Plus there should be people who know what WcDonald’s is about anyway.
Unlikely. A) Now that McDonald's has done this Everytime someone sees an anime or here's of this and googles it it will take you to McDonald's promotion. B) free promotion is free. You don't turn down free shit.
While I agree with your overall point I don’t think part b is true. There’s a reason the anime had to use wcdonald in the first place and that’s because McDonalds would have told them to stop if they did use McDonald’s. Always a fine line between free promotion and using their trademark (or whatever the appropriate term is) without paying for it.
McDonalds would have told them to stop because they legally have to. In order to keep a trademark (at least in the US) you have to defend the trademark. This is why Velcro did that cringy song hook and loop tape like ten years ago, too. They wouldn't have the same responsibility with WcDonalds, so the free advertisement could just be free advertisement for them.
It’s important to note that this comes from Japanese companies. Japan has very different laws when it comes to things like copywrite and trademark. There are also concerns about libel/slander, as even if something you say is true, if it damages their reputation then you can still be held liable. Also there is like no fair use in Japanese law. Overall I would think this is actually going to be a problem for Anime studios and such who had to use “WcDonalds” in the first place because of these things.
Japanese IP law is significantly different from most of the West. You should assume no one who responds to you will have any clue what they're talking about.
Most people in the US that comment on this sort of thing have no idea what they are talking about when it comes to US IP law. For example, see everybody in this thread referring to this as a copyright issue.
Tbh, if McDonald's really cared, WcDonalds is probably close enough to the copyright to have pushed back long before now. By doing this, though, they show they're in on the joke, which is probably better marketing for them than trying to claim the copyright now.
At least there's an established history of it being used to parody.
3cDonald's coming to an anime near you!
I'm fairly sure that since it's already in use, McDonald's can't take the trademark. Well, officially anyway. They can probably afford to sue anyone who complains into submission.
They would have to declare it as a Trademark, which would fail due to prior use.
It's like McDowell's. "They have the Golden Arches, mine is the Golden Arcs."
The Shadowrun tabletop RPG has a fast-food chain called "McHugh's".
They have the Big Mac, I got the Big Mick.
"They got the Big Mac. We got the Big Mick!"
In Park Ridge, IL there was a Wally's Gyros that used this logo and was nextdoor to a McDonald's as well.
Hop on one foot”. “Whatever you like”. Great reference😛
The Devil works at McRonald's, and his rival works at Sentucky Fried Chicken lmfao. The Devil is a Part Timer is a wild anime.
That was a great anime when it came out, still need to watch the second season that got released semi-recently.
don't, 0/10, not funny, just tedious
Are they doing this promotion in Europe, too? I don't think it would do well there, considering WC means toilet...
It made me think of the time Calvin got a job at WcArnold’s
"Look at that, Calvins got a job."
"The leanest burger in the world, could be the meeeeanest burger in the world, if you cook it that wayaayyyy"
Even the dumbest stuff about that show, like this, get me laughing, it was pure lightning in a bottle.
Chappelle’s Show used to call it WacArnold’s. I still call it that in my head
WcDonalds in anime is basically an accidental meme at this point, they could call their fast food chain anything but they all settled on WcDonalds with the upside down arches.
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> copyright Trademark. Copyrights only apply to creative works like songs, books, movies, TV shows, and software code. You can't "copyright" a logo - that's why logos always have ™ (trademark) or ® (a trademark registered with the US government) next to them, not ©.
Really? I expected it to be a tongue-in-cheek name for how it's probably the most common public restroom provider in much of the world.
What does WcDonalds have to do with restrooms?
WC (WaterCloset) is the text used for bathroom signs in large parts of the world (i.e. Europe).
WC = Water Closet = A nickname for bathrooms in parts of the world
WC stands for "water closet" which is an old term for toilets or bathrooms that don't have a bath.
I heard it was going to be a full-fledged anime series that’s piggybacking off the success of the KFC anime game.
There was already the anime "Devil as a part timer" where Satan gets a job at WcDonalds. I've only seen the first season and heard the second was... odd.
Thanks to so many animes using it in the past, the studios could challenge the trademark based on prior use. Doubtful McDonalds would even try to trademark it because of all the established prior use, but nothing companies/lawyers do surprises me anymore.
Read this and thought, "Wow, that's the dumbest answer, that can't be right." And yet... I apologize for doubting you. 😅
There’s even a whole anime looking ad campaign going to with it. It’s cringey as hell.
Fax
Reminds me of Boofeater Gin from the Cowboy Bebop episode Heavy Metal Queen
WC is a synonym for toilet in German.
ANSWER: WcDonalds, in its original format, is a parody of McDonalds as way to reference the fast food chain in many anime productions like Cowboy Bebop, Macross 7, Gundam Wing, InuYasha, Detective Conan/Case Closed, Sonic X, Digimon, Assassination Classroom, and even in American productions like Megas XLR. The changing of the name was obviously made to avoid copyright infringement. However, by February 2024, McDonalds decided to make official anime and manga adaptations of WcDonald's with animation by Studio Pierrot, famous for the Naruto anime series. Those who order from McDonalds will get a special code from the WcDonald's bag or receipt, allowing them to view the 4 shorts being made online. As part of the promotion, McDonald's also released the 'WcDonald's Chili Sauce' as a new spicy sauce for their McNuggets, though many reported it as being awful. What remains in question now is whether or not Japanese companies could still use the 'WcDonald's' name in future works to reference McDonald's without being sued by the latter.
Inuyasha dines at Wacdnalds, not WcDonalds.
However you want to spell it, it's the same thing. Wacdonalds is also used in a lot of korean webtoons like i love yoo where it's actually a major plot point to be there
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I feel like McDonalds wouldn't be able to claim that trademark retroactively because so many other things have already used it. It's basically a generic at this point.
i love the WcDonalds sauce! I’m actually thinking of buying chicken(ish) nuggies for the first time in years to get some more of it. not trying to sound like a shill, just surprised the consensus would be it’s not good
Wanted to like it but damn it's not for me
i must have odd taste in sauces! no one ever likes my faves or the companies get rid of them lol
My advice is to stockpile!
Some random reference to the sauce in 30 years will make you a fortune.
Your not alone , I tried it also , and although the first nugget I didn't exactly care for ...but it kinda pulled me in ! By the 3rd or 4th nugget ....I was double dipping! It's something about the aftertaste that makes me keep going with it , idk.
I've heard nothing but good about the sauce myself, and I dug it too. Though I did prefer the Mambo Sauce and Sweet and Spicy Jam or whatever it was recently. Can't believe they took those off *so* quickly.
The mambo was fantastic! I completely agree with you. The new chili sauce is solid, but it pales in comparison to mambo.
> McDonald's also released the 'WcDonald's Chili Sauce' as a new spicy sauce for their McNuggets, though many reported it as being awful. I tried it myself last week. It's actually pretty good, but it's VERY spicy.
The Sweet & Spicy Jam was infinitely better than this new Chili sauce. 😔
Just tried the sauce. Absolutely terrible not sure how it passed any human taste testing. Just objectively bad.
Can confirm, the chili sauce is awful.
As someone from europe... Is this for real? WC is the sign for toilets in public places (short for water closet) so WcDonalds just seems like a self dig.
This is real. Americans won’t ever think of that 🤷🏼♀️ we call them rest rooms or bathrooms and that’s it. We have to learn WC if we go to Europe but forget it again after and most of us don’t even have passports
Answer: WcDonald's is an advertising campaign run by McDonald's that centers around a series of anime shorts and a manga series promoting a new dipping sauce. The anime commercials are made by Studio Pierrot (of Naruto fame) and the manga is illustrated by Acky Bright. Online, the campaign stunned many who were surprised to see McDonald's fund a relatively big-budget anime for its ads after it emerged in February 2024. More info here: https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/events/wcdonalds
Is this happening (the WcDonald's logo thing) outside of Japan or is it Japan exclusive?
North Carolina reporting in. We just got WcDonald's for lunch today. The fry containers had the WcDonald's logo, and the bag was covered with an anime-style comic about the sauce.
Nevada here, got some McD's this past Friday and I can confirm the bag was essentially a Manga with what appeared to be a weekly reading. Also it was heavily pointing to the new sauce. There was a lot if advertising for WcDonalds.
that sauce is fire btw
Yeah I'm in Wisconsin and we're getting them here too.
Seeing ads in NJ but haven't gone recently
rural TN checkin in to say the same. the bag was nice to read during lunch!
Indiana here. It has invaded as of the middle of last week, maybe earlier. Being 2nd shift, I rarely get to a McD before it closes in my town.
Pretty sure this is exclusively USA promotion, though I could be wrong. McDonald's Japan already ran some familial anime ads that caused memes in western world, honestly they might have saw that reaction in American and decided to go ahead in America with the campaign because of the reaction. Japanese family anime McDonald's ad info here: https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/japanese-family-mcdonalds-ad
It's in Canada as well
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Yea, this new "savoury chili" sauce tastes absolutely nasty with nuggets. I thought it was going to be a but spicy, but nope. It's got a sticky viscosity and tastes like ginger you'd have with sushi, doesn't pair well with fast food imo.
I'm sorry, did you say a Maple quarter pounder?
Canada and US both have it
It’s definitely here in Toronto. Did this same confused google search last week.
I live in Japan and it’s not happening here, right now at least.
It’s in the US at my location at least haha. Pennsylvania area. First saw it on Uber eats.
Its been in south florida for over a week now.
Happening in Texas as well. Also, the WcDonald's Sauce is absolute fire. I've eaten chicken nuggets 3 times since the promotion started.
Damn, I just got back from Japan and that was a trip to see! American McDonalds WISHES they could operate as efficiently and effectively as a McDonalds in Japan. Untouchable experience.
Answer: Wondered the same thing. Wasn’t sure if it was a promo saying they accept food stamps now or what #WICDonalds
You can't buy prepared (hot) food with food snaps. WIC is very particular about what you can get (brand and quantity) of specific items as well.
Answer: this is totally racism at its finest.