The End of an Era

All good things must come to an end, that’s what we thought with the disappearance of “Fido Dido” a few years back, but lo and behold, he has risen from the dead and comes back to us now: with nothing new… He’s still black and white, mute, and flat. We all remember him as the ad for 7up, the cool dude with baggy clothes and a funky haircut; he was the epitome of cool.

During the first era (that is when Fido first arrived into the world of soda pop) the general public was blown over; there was Fido Dido paraphernalia all over the world: Fido Dido cologne, Fido Dido attire, Fido Dido stickers and bumper stickers. He was on school lunchboxes, T-shirts, posters, literally everywhere. The general youth was wearing his clothes and also took to getting the same haircut. This silent cartoon created a certain cultural revolution. People referred to Fido in many aspects of their lives and made him into this icon; there came Fido Dido jokes, Fido Dido look-alikes, Fido Dido cologne, did I mention that before… now he is back with not so much of a difference, he hasn’t aged, hasn’t changed his wardrobe, and hasn’t even learned to speak…

Why, one might ask, the sudden reappearance? This question could lead to many ideological assumptions, thus the Fido Dido comeback phenomenon hints not just to the superficial aspect of this reality; the return of “Fido Dido”, but also to quite a few different contexts such as the recurrence of themes in media and the mind-numbing, brainwashing effects of it, which in turn reflects recurrences in history, and the mass impact these things have upon the general public.

Repetition has always been the perfect way of carving something into someone’s brain and making sure it stays there. It does not necessarily have to be understood (we never really thought who why where and when in regard to Fido), nor does it have to make sense (now that he’s back, no one wonders) and that in itself is exactly the point.

But do we really know where he came from? In the course of my research, I found that Fido Dido, in his pre-7up life, was actually an independent cartoon character created by the American Joanna Ferrone. Fido’s mottos existed then also, varying from “Fido is the past. Fido is the future”, to “Fido is Innocent” and “Fido is powerful”. That was his life, he was influential in the cartoon world, as many cartoonists and designers were inspired by his simplicity, and then one day the people from 7up discovered him and decided to make him their mascot. 7up, being all about freshness and all that, thought Fido, with his transparency and lightness, is the perfect representation of a light, refreshing soda drink.

I found it hard to find any further details as to whether Fido Dido was a TV series, or a comic strip, but nonetheless, he was not just a 7up commercial, and I guess that might give you, the average reader, a little more interest in Fido Dido. Knowing that he was not just a commercial might lead you to think that he is back for a new revolution, different than the one he created before. This may be true, for I have also found that Fido will be coming to TV screens soon with his friends…

Whatever that means. It is not even clear as to whether it is 7up initiated or not. Now the reason why Fido Dido is back at this time might be that 7up wants to stay real and original by bringing back what made it super cool back in the 90’s, it seems very logical and maybe getting a new character will show weakness and lack of appreciation for Fido… by assuring the public that Fido still is alive and well, the same effects of the first Era will prevail yet again in this new millennium. Bringing back an old etching in the minds of the public gives the advantage of not starting from scratch all over again, but continuing from where it has been left off… or just staying there, same thing, but the effects surely are massive. The following are a few of the answer locals gave me after being asked if they knew Fido Dido:

Guy on the sidewalk: “Yeah I know Fido Dido, isn’t he the guy from 7up??”

Cashier at the supermarket: “What’s that? Aaah, Fido Dido, oh isn’t this the 7up commercial?”

Anti soda girl: “ Oh yeah he’s back, isn’t that weird!! Why is he back again…”

Visitor from the US: “We don’t have Fido Dido in the States, it’s Spot, he’s the little red dot on the can…”

Girl in front seat: “ He drew himself and escaped the paper! HAHAHA!!”

Guy driving Car: “ Haha yeah its funny… hey! They should make a character for Merinda called Fino Nino, and Fido and Nino get married… hahahaha”

Girl in front seat: “HAHAHAHAA”

When told that he was a cartoon character originally and then became a commercial:

Guy on the sidewalk: “ No way, he became a cartoon after!”

Cashier at the supermarket: “Ah, really! Cartoon!”

Anti soda girl: “ Are you serious? Oh my god…”

Visitor from the US: “ Oh he was, we have Spot in the States..”

Girl in front seat: “Whatever who cares…”

Guy driving Car: “and then they make the commercials together and they get married!! HAHA, then they get a kid and call him Fijo Jijo, hahaha, for PEPSI!! HAHAHA”

The ultimate question is, will Fido Dido this time be the first in the world of advertising mascots, or will he fail and fall off that billboard back into nothingness? The answers now lie solely within you, the general public, to determine the fate of Fido Dido and to decide how worthy he is of this
resurrection.