the.com/dud
the firework that promised a bang and delivered a shrug.
means something that fails to work or deliver, especially after building up expectation.
from from middle english dudde meaning ragged clothing, worn-out and worthless; by ww1 soldiers borrowed it for shells that didn't explode, and the meaning stuck to anything that fizzles instead of fires.
wwi originunexploded shells were literally called duds
still lethalunexploded ordnance can detonate decades later
box office termhollywood uses it for films that flop hard
for instance
new coke — coca-cola's 1985 reformulation, pulled within 79 days
the edsel — ford's 1958 car line, lost over 350 million dollars
windows vista — microsoft's 2007 os, widely panned and quickly replaced
quibi — streaming app that shut down 6 months after launch, 2020