Pokéfever

Pikachu

First Star Wars, then Harry Potter, also Ninjago and Phineas and Ferb.  

Now the kids are enthralled by Pokémon (similar to the others in being a merchandising powerhouse!).  They come by it honestly enough--Goo was obsessed as a kiddo when I first met him 18 years ago, playing the card game especially (we even took him to GenCon in Milwaukee one year where he placed second in a tournament) and Mama shared him in his interest, preferring the tv show to the card game.  

Ok, if you are new to  Pokémon , they are "pocket monsters" who populate a fictional world where young  Pokémon  trainers catch (in red and white Poké balls), train, and then battle (but not to the death) in order to gain badges and rank.  The  Pokémon  evolve, gaining in strength, powers, and often size.  They are often plays on real animals, plants, or minerals, with quirky names--Snorlax is a lazy, sleeping cat and Oddish is a weird-looking radish--and they can only "talk" using variations on their own names (so Pikachu can say "pi," "pika," "chu," "pika-pi," and sometimes "cha.").  There are collectible cards with various  Pokémon  on them and a complex card game based on building a deck and battling.  There is also a tv show that follows Pokemon trainer Ash, his main  Pokémon  Pikachu ("pika" is a kind of mouse and this one is electrical!), and his friends, plus their nemesis, Team Rocket.  The whole thing comes from Japan, where it remains extremely popular; I think its popularity has waned here somewhat.  

And now Goo and Mama are passing their interest along to the kids with the show, cards, and toys.  And the kids love it!  They sing the songs, collect the cards, watch the show, play the DS game, and are really enjoying drawing the different Pokémon.  They've both made books of their favorites, complete with references to the evolved forms.  Of course, there are now hundreds more than when Mama and Goo were interested (I was always amused but not as enthusiastic), so we're all learning.  It's been a great distraction, especially since Mama introduced them to it when she got back from surgery and then the kids' became more involved (and distracted) when she was back in the hospital.