For those unaware, the Kool-Aid man, who was retired as live action character in the 90s, has finally returned in all of his non-computer generated glory.

Actually, not quite all of his glory. For the updated version of the classic pitchman has something he never had before: Pants! In the latest commercials, Kool-Aid man is wearing fat guy cargo pants. Looking like Bobby Hill was never part of Kool-Aid man's M.O. before, and suddenly he's wearing short pants while he runs on the beach? Huh?

When did this happen?

See a shameful video and hear our theories after the jump.


The Kool-Aid Man, who was originally called the Pitcher Man, has been making children want to drink sugar water with ascorbic acid and red dye number 5 thrown in since 1954. But it wasn't until 1975, when he was given arms and legs and started appearing in TV ads, that he became an icon of vandalism and poor volume control. He would burst through any wall and scream "Oh yeah!" for no reason whatsoever. And, generally speaking, he was loved for it.

He was a shining example of how you could become a success in the cruel and often fickle world of Hollywood, despite having a glaring obesity issue. But now he's a shell of his former self.

While we're forced to conclude that Kool-Aid man's long absence had something to do with indecency laws, (parents and teachers banded together to protect their children from this), we're glad you're back, Kool-Aid man. It's just a shame it had to be under the ugly hand of censorship.