Okay, I should say that I “get” the Super Bowl commercials in that I understand why they are supposed to be funny. The problem is – they just aren’t. Or, at least as my Facebook status update stated just after the Super Bowl this year, I must not be the target audience of Budweiser or of Doritos. The Bud Light commercials were predictable and passe – sorry, but if I were stranded on a deserted island, and had the choice between radioing for help or running for Bud Light, I think I would choose the first option.
While Budweiser’s ads lacked charisma, I found some of the Doritos ads just downright offensive. One Doritos ad featured a man coming to take a woman on a date, and the woman’s young son observes this man eyeing her. When the woman leaves to finish getting ready, and the man reaches for a chip in a bowl, the boy slaps him across the face, telling him to keep his hands off of his Doritos AND off of his mother.
I spoke with many other parents after this, and we all agreed – if our children slapped an adult in this way, they would be in so much trouble. I know Gabriel would be in a timeout, would have toys taken away, and would have to apologize to his target, at the very least.
There were a few good ads, though. I LOVED, LOVED, LOVED the Google ad featuring the French love story. It was clever – no spoken words, it requires the viewer to read in order to follow along, and it brings one in to the story. It was not predictable – the final line has you thinking that the person is searching for “how to assemble a wedding invitation,” but instead he writes “how to assemble a crib.” Evan and I both let out an “Awwwwwww.” Very sweet! Of course, this ad was only voted the ninth best of the game. C’est la vie.