Some toys you can predict. A new LEGO set, a plush version of whatever cartoon character my granddaughter Jess is currently obsessed with, sure. And then there's the Minion Fart Blaster, which according to MSN's report sold out over and over again, and has now returned in a new version. The people have spoken, and what the people want is flatulence-based toys.

The concept, if you've been blissfully unaware, is exactly what the name promises. It's a Minion, one of those little yellow helpers from the Despicable Me movies, holding a device that produces fart sounds. That's it. That's the whole toy. And kids lose their minds for it, which, if you've ever spent five minutes with a seven-year-old, tracks perfectly.

I've lived through a lot of toy crazes in my time, and every generation seems to get one that nobody saw coming. I won't pretend to give you a verified history lesson here, but anyone who's watched a must-have toy evaporate from store shelves knows the pattern: panic buying, resale markups, and a whole lot of sad kids in December. A toy that sold out multiple times has earned its spot in that tradition, as far as I'm concerned.

Since the original kept vanishing from stock, I'd expect the new version to move fast too, especially with holiday shopping creeping up on us the way it does. If this is on a kid's list in your family, take my advice from years of watching these things play out: don't wait until December. The sold-out-toy panic is real and it is not fun.

Is it sophisticated? No. Is it educational? Also no. But not every toy has to be a STEM kit, and honestly, a toy whose entire job is to make a kid laugh so hard they fall off the couch is doing exactly what toys are supposed to do. The technology doesn't have to be complicated to work for you... sometimes it just has to make a rude noise at the right moment.

I've already warned my family that if the little ones ask for one, Grandma is not fighting a retail crowd in December. I'm buying early, and you probably should too.