I think toe fungus is a pretty good metaphor for this year's crop of Super Bowl ads. Some random thoughts:
Snickers: Took a tired old idea, added new celebrities, and came up with a tired old idea.
Jeep: A pitch video? In the Super Bowl?
Budweiser: Puppy dog saved by the Clydesdales? Give me a fucking break. Where's GoDaddy when we need them?
Dodge: Won't move any metal, but loved the old folks. Prediction: next year, old people will be the new puppy dogs.
Mexican Avocados: A nice idea from out of nowhere. Silly, memorable, and relevant, which is what a SB spot should be.
McDonald's: Best spot I've seen from them in a long time. Last week I was very critical of McDonald's. This proves once again, the best strategy is good creative. Excellent real-people footage and kudos to the editor.
T-Mobile: I want to have Sarah Silverman's baby, but if one person in ten understood the point of that spot -- that you can use WiFi for calls -- I'll be amazed.
Toyota: Dad-pandering and artificial-limb-porn. Toyotas keep selling like crazy despite pointless advertising. Just shows that engineers are more important than brand managers. Camry? Bold?
Fiat: Viagra idea kinda funny. But most of all, they continue to cleverly use Italian imagery to sell a car made in Poland.
Nationwide: They may be responsible for history's longest continuous stretch of terrible Super Bowl advertising. This year they outdid themselves with the dead kid. Oh, I see, they just wanted to "start a conversation." Gag me.
Bud Light: The characterization of millennials as imbeciles continues. The beer/soft drink/fast food axis of evil has created an ongoing image of them as moronic twits. This Pac-Man thing was beyond inane. Millennials, fight back! Or take a selfie or something.
The Internet: Took some hits. First there were the anti-negativity messages from two of the world's largest brands (Coke and McD's.) Then there was the return of 1999-style "dotcom" advertising for Squarespace (I don't know...The Dude and W+K...big talent there...was it supposed to be ironic??) Finally, there was the most frequently overheard comment where I was: "Oh, I've seen that one already." Translation: The internet is ruining everything.
Michaels and Collinsworth are good.
Half-Time Show: The essence of subtlety and nuance.
Idina Menzel: Here's a message from my last book. Just change 40,000 to 110,000,000...
Surely they should have run the ball? Worst call of the decade.
ReplyDeleteA disappointing crop, to be sure. You didn't even lampoon Mercedes for their dressed up obviousness.
ReplyDeleteNo points for the car ad that gave us a father missing his son's childhood while the wife watches anxiously on TV for the chance to see him die in a horrible racing wreck, set to a song about father/son dysfunction, but in the end it's all OK because the father picks the son up in his boring sedan?
ReplyDeleteBONUS: somebody tried to tell me that this ad "worked" because we're talking about it, aren't we? Yeah, but we're not talking about the product or the brand, just the ad...