Me, Her, the Boy and a Dog
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Okay, after much deliberation I have chosen my top five Super Bowl ads for 2009, and one honorable mention.
Honorable Mention
Teleflora.com - Talking Flowers
This one was kind of harsh, but very effective! While it doesn’t name ProFlowers.com specifically, it is clearly taking aim at the popular online florist which ships its flowers in boxes via FedEx. I have used ProFlowers and while it is convenient and fast, the box thing always kind of bothered me. This Teleflora commercial certainly got my attention and the next time I send flowers, I might check them out. It got honorable mention because the dork at the end is named Gary - not cool.
5th Place
NFL - Super Ad, Usama Young
This was a heart-warming and amusing story about an NFL player who used to be a snow cone vendor in an NFL stadium before eventually making it to the big time. The reenactments of his youth were very entertaining and his dad really helped sell me on the commercial.
4th Place
Coke Classic - Avatar
It took me a couple of seconds to get this commercial but after watching it again, I saw the humor and social commentary in it. Older folks like my dad probably didn’t get it, but the younger generations (and I’m skirting the outer edge of that generation range) understood that the little characters were avatars, or online/digital representations of ourselves. Personally, I just use my picture instead a character, but they are popular. The commentary, at least from my perspective, was that in this digital age, we are so wrapped up in our technologies that we often forget or neglect to interact with each other on a human level, i.e. the man that doesn’t help the woman struggling to get the stroller up the endless steps. Very creative and relevant. A commercial that both sells a product and promotes old fashioned face-to-face communication.
3rd Place
Coke - Heist
I love this ad purely from a creative and aesthetic perspective. Quite simply it was beautifully animated, colorful and artistic. Something that most ads lack.
2nd Place
Hulu.com - Alec and Huluwood
Wow! How can you not appreciate the honesty and self awareness of this commercial by Hulu? I’ve been a fan of Hulu since they launched their service - I signed up on day one. Alec Baldwin is brilliant and Hulu demonstrates that it not only has a sense of humor, but it is not afraid to poke fun of itself. Baldwin has quietly become one of my favorite comedic actors.
1st Place
E*Trade - Talking Baby
The E*Trade talking baby series continues to make me laugh. I keep thinking they’ll run out of funny ideas, but adding a new baby to the mix was genius. And having him sing “Take These Broken Wings” by Mr. Mister was beyond hilarious. Also, if you haven’t seen the outtakes that did not air on TV, check them out here - I guarantee you will laugh yourself silly!
