Fans all around the world are eagerly waiting for the announcement of a release date for the sequel to the most-watched film on Netflix last year, KPop Demon Hunters. To help ease the pain of waiting, a new KPop Demon Hunters cartoon has hit the internet. The downside? It’s just a commercial for the new collaboration with fast-food chain McDonald’s, set to debut nationwide in the U.S. on Mar. 31.
Titled “Battle For The Fans,” the commercial released by McDonald’s yesterday pits Huntr/x, the demon-slaying trio of Rumi, Zoey, and Mira, against their number one rivals, the demonic Saja Boys. The commercial shows the two bands sitting together for group signings, but instead of autographs, they’re prompting KPop Demon Hunters enthusiasts to show their love for them in far tastier ways — namely, by purchasing one of the two all-new meals that represent their favorite band.
Fan wars aren’t a new phenomenon, nor are franchises using them to stir up people into a frenzy to purchase items to show off their fan pride. McDonald’s is doing just that with the fictional bands from KPop Demon Hunters, which works well, given that the plot of the animated film from Sony Animation and Netflix centers on Huntr/x using their fans’ love to heal the world. Unfortunately, Huntr/x’s goals are thrown into disarray at the arrival of the Saja Boys, a demonic boy band that craves the souls of humanity.
The Saja Boys meal is for breakfast only, offering foodies a Spicy Saja McMuffin (a sausage McMuffin with egg, topped with a spicy sauce), hash browns, and a small soft drink.
On the other hand, the Huntr/x meal is your typical McDonald’s Happy Meal fare, which includes 10-piece Chicken McNuggets and a medium soft drink. It also comes with three limited-time menu items: Ramyeon McShaker fries, which feature soy, garlic, sesame, and spice seasoning; a sweet-chili Hunter Sauce; and a tangy purple mustard Demon Sauce.
What’s exciting is that it does look as though there will be a payoff for fans who take part in this fast-food battle. Each meal, whether you pick Huntr/x or Saja Boys, comes with exclusive photocards and a Derpy card that grants first access to content for a limited time. What that content is has yet to be specified, but fans will need to enter the unique code from the Derpy card into the McDonald’s app by April 26 to unlock the special reveal of the group that wins the collaboration event.
The two meals differ significantly in terms of their items and accessibility. McDonald’s breakfast menu typically lasts only a short time, making the Saja Boys’ meal much harder to access compared to Huntr/x. If fans of the demonic bad boys want to show their pride, they’ll have to pull out all the stops to catch up to the much more accessible Huntr/x meal.
For fans eager for more animated goodness following Huntr/x and the Saja Boys, a McDonald’s commercial might not be enough. Still, a little under a year after the film’s release, the love for KPop Demon Hunters doesn’t seem likely to stop anytime soon, with plenty to tide fans over until they get that all-important confirmation of the KPop Demon Hunters 2 release date.
