Super Bowl Commercials

Ken — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 22:44:35 +0000

I went back and re-watched all the Super Bowl commercials. I think this year's crop was unspectacular, overall. I don't think the problem is that our standards are too high: I think the problem is that ad-writers have latched onto tired cliché formulas instead of making anything truly edgy and funny. There were some things that were funny, and some that were clever, but none that had the "wow" factor of, say, Apple's 1984 commercial.

Best Ad: Talking Stain from Proctor & Gamble, for Tide to Go. Funny, interesting, different.

Honorable Mentions: Pigeons from Fedex; Stone Circle from Cars.com; Mouse Trap from Frito-Lay (Doritos); It's Mine from Coca Cola.

Peculiar but Interesting: Follow Your Heart from Careerbuilder.com; Talking Baby from eTrade.com.

Pointless and Dull: What Is Love by Pepsi; Fiesta Platter by Taco Bell.

Offensive or Disturbing: Language of Love from Bud Light, for offensive racial stereotyping; Thrillicious from Sobe Vitamin Water, for creepy lizards doing a Michael Jackson dance.

Other ads ranged from decent to forgettable; I liked the Bridgestone ads and the Careerbuilder.com ads, but I was "meh" on a lot of the others.