The commercials. Let’s face it, besides the halftime show and the actual game itself, the Super Bowl commercials are the most interesting topic of post-game conversations. And let’s be real, Madonna’s overblown Trojan entrance, star-studded numbers with genre-conflicting hip hop artists like M.I.A. (who felt the need to blatantly express herself with expletives on live television), Cee Lo Green and Nicki Minaj, and shameless shuffling with LMFAO were more likely to inspire couch potatoes to go back for a second round of hot wings than to induce stimulating conversation. And while Mario Manningham’s miraculous over- the-shoulder grab in the fourth quarter was quite the display of athleticism and talent, it didn’t evoke the entertaining discussions that some of the best (and worst) commercials of Super Bowl XLVI did.
Let’s start with some of the best. Arguably one of the most entertaining was Honda’s commercial for their CR-V titled “Matthew’s Day Off.” A homage to the 80s classic, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” the commercial featured Matthew Broderick skipping out on a day of work because “life moves pretty fast, and if you don’t stop and look around once in awhile, you could miss it.” The ad featured reinventions of classic scenes from the movie, such as Broderick facing off with art in the Natural History Museum, crashing a Chinese Heritage parade and his valet attendant taking his CR-V for a spontaneous spin. Possibly the best detail of the commercial was the Yello song, “Oh Yeah,” complimenting the tribute, although unfortunately reminding viewers that the ad was only for a Honda, not a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT California.
Another memorable car commercial was Volkswagen’s “The Dog Strikes Back,” featuring an adorable St. Bernard/Australian Shepherd mix, desperate to get back into shape to chase the brand new VW Beetle. The ad’s message of “back and better than ever” is genius and effectively communicated. A clever albeit unnecessary touch at the end is a Star Wars scene serving as a flashback to Volkswagen’s extremely successful campaign from last year featuring a boy imitating Darth Vader. This scene is extraneous and admittedly confusing, however, for those who either didn’t see or don’t remember the Darth Vader commercial from last year’s Super Bowl.
Detouring from car commercials, Dannon Oikos’s Greek Yogurt ad titled “The Tease,” features John Stamos getting in between a woman and her Oikos yogurt (“possibly the best yogurt in the world”). The commercial is completely void of dialogue between the two, so the hilarity is in their physical interactions and the element of surprise. John Stamos, who is conveniently Greek, has been a rep for Oikos Yogurt since last year, but somehow when the ad involves him getting head-butted, it’s suddenly just so much more captivating.
The minute long promo for NBC’s “The Voice” wouldn’t have made this list if not for an appearance by Betty White clinching it at the end. Granted, watching Cee Lo karate chop Adam Levine is pretty entertaining, but Betty White’s cameo is really what makes this commercial golden.
Acura’s ad for their new NSX titled “Transactions,” featuring Jerry Seinfeld is only included on this list for its extended version. The version aired during the Super Bowl was half the length of the full version and cut some of the more choice segments of the commercial, such as Seinfeld’s awkward small talk with the omelette chef and a TV show recap using sock puppets. Jay Leno also seems a poor choice of cameo for the ending, why not someone Seinfeld-related, Newman perhaps?
Although not laugh-out-loud funny like some of the others, the most inspirational and poignant commercial of the afternoon was Chrysler’s “It’s Halftime in America,” throatily narrated by Clint Eastwood. Purposefully placed just before the second half, Chrysler used Detroit’s economic collapse and ultimate revival as a microcosm to represent the financial difficulties currently facing America. Beautifully and passionately told, it shamelessly tugs on America’s heartstrings — the message communicated is powerful nonetheless.
With every high though, there must be a low. Thankfully however, the list of some of the worst commercials of the Super Bowl is much shorter. First up, H&M’s plug for their new Bodywear collection from David Beckham. The commercial shows off a whole lot more of Beckham’s tattooed biceps than the new line, and it’s unfathomable why H&M thought that a half-naked man would be the most effective marketing tool for the primary demographic that watches the Super Bowl.
GoDaddy goes for the complete opposite effect. In their commercial, “Body Paint,” Danica Patrick and Jillian Michaels are in the process of painting an advertisement onto what is a presumably naked female model. Patrick and Michaels’ dialogue is entirely artificial marketing speak, and we’re not really sure how any of it relates to what GoDaddy is trying to sell. Soft-core advertising porn perhaps? Not to mention GoDaddy even had a second offense in their second commercial, “The Cloud.” That spot’s so bad it’s not even worth any more discussion than that.
Considering Super Bowl commercials cost approximately $3.5 million for one thirty-second spot, you’d think the quality of advertisements would be severely increased. Specifically, how on earth did GoDaddy manage not one, but two offensive commercials?
Despite even some of the most well-made commercials, the next day, and in some cases even immediately after watching it, people don’t remember what a commercial was for. If you’re lucky, someone will remember that it was about a car, but the brand of car? That’s long escaped the capacities of memory.
The same goes generally for the game itself. Most people will remember the remarkable 38-yard pass and catch that set up the entertaining sit-down touchdown, but how many will remember the athletes that actually made those accomplishments? Long story short, let’s all agree to be more informed post-game conversationalists. At the very least, you’ll be able to impress your friends with your breadth of highly sophisticated knowledge.
