Man I mean seriously. This had the potential to be really funny.

The problem is that the gag didn’t switch up at the last minute. That’s a great technique for making something funny: The Bait & Switch. Charlie Chaplin’s definition of the best gag is:

Banana skin on pavement
Man walking towards banana skin
Man about to step on banana skin
Man sees banana skin at last moment
Man steps around the banana skin with a self-satisfied smile
And falls down manhole.

This is classic, and while I certainly appreciate the avant garde & those willing to push the envelope, sometimes that’s not what’s called for in a good ad. Absurdism is risky. But the thing here is that the ad already had enough of the absurd element to it, what with the cat & then the appearance of the guy in the cat suit?

What would’ve been funnier would’ve been if the cat had gone ballistic at the end & attacked the guy or something. Then it could’ve said “Lick the Rainbow (But Beware Kitteh)”. Idk. Something. But not this weirdness.

I was a big fan of State Farm’s new series of commercials featuring the “Magic Jingle”. That was until recently. 

I just didn’t like the one with LeBron. Nothing against him personally, or even professionally, I just thought he was oddly cast in that. Felt stilted, cold. But then I saw the really awesome one with the black couple who go all “with a new boyfriend”/”with a new girlfriend” to much hilarity.

However, this one really got me:

I don’t know what it is about it that I love so much. And really if you think about it, this has all kinds of weird elements. I mean first of all, these kids look like some kind of underground rap duo. I think they’re signed to Rhymesayers, aren’t they? And what the hell are they doing eating their burgers amidst a herd of bison? Who does that, and from what West BFE town is this would-be-rap-phenomenon from? But I think it’s funny & has a zang of adventure to it, & just an overall good feel when they are rescued in the end. Res ipsa loquitur.

This ad is completely awesome. Brilliantly choreographed, wonderfully scored, & perfectly executed. I think my favorite part is when he fake “shoots” the Mexican fat cat. What’s yours?

Last night on Twitter, a friend & fellow Bacon lover (the lovely, @AmyVernon) put me on to a really cool ad—the new Wendy’s Baconator commercial. It’s a wonderfully put together piece that features the Baconcentric food item in an office setting. It’s funny, clever, and has an older woman brutally smashing her coworkers. The whole thing is set to a piano-styled love song that serves as a counterpoint to the interoffice violence, adding to the absurdity. The final touch is the slow motion scramble toward the abandoned burger. Good ideas all, and a great execution.

So in honor of this, I decided I would put together my five favorite office commercials. Note: this is just me being fickle. I could change my mind at any time. If anyone has any suggestions, anything to add, please let me know. I’m open to suggestions and new material. So, what do you have for me?

#5.) I had to start out with this commercial.

#4.) I love this commercial. It’s so funny and so true. Plus I love the way that she appears to be a lot more conservative than what we actually find out from the ad.

#3.) This is really clever, and I think the music really sets it off.

#2.) This gets points with me for being so shocking and viral-like. It’s not so much funny as it is sort of jaw dropping. And it makes you question whether it was staged or not… You have to admit: the fight looks fairly real.

#1.) This one had me rolling. I think it speaks for itself, though it is a tad long.

Btw, Amy has a cool blog of her own here: AmyVernon.net. Check it out.

I really like this new Vonage commercial. They’ve always had good advertising in my opinion; I was a fan of their “People Do Stupid Things” campaign they had some years back. Very clever & entertaining, & that little jingle that went along with it was contagious. So it’s not really a surprise to see another clever Vonage ad on TV again. There are three things that strike me about this ad: the set, the setting, and the delivery of the dialogue.

The set is really well thought out. The idea of having two living rooms in the same room, one inverted, is nifty—though I admit not necessarily novel. All the same, it’s striking to see something that appears to defy gravity, just for the pure surrealism of it.

What I call “the setting” is a little bit different here than perhaps what some people would prescribe to that term. To me, it’s interesting because the two guys put their heads right next together as if each were doubling as a telephone. It’s a little bizarre, because if a person were literally “in the room” with you, it’s quite doubtful this would be either of your preferred way of talking. It does get the telephone point across, however, and is certainly necessary for the execution of the ad’s concept. But what’s interesting to me is that they strategically added a woman to the scene to at least give the viewer the option to believe it is the significant other of the man who appears on screen upside down. In other words, for the sake of any potential Vonage customer who might also be a homophobe, this helps to assuage their fear. I don’t want to get into politics or life-style judgments here whatsoever. Point is: I understand their logic from a statistics standpoint.

But my favorite part of the commercial, the part that always pulls me right into watching it again every time I see it on TV, is the way Bill says, “Hey, Karen.” Just from the mixture of insouciance with a slightly flirty overtone, so much is conveyed, and yet, so much is still a mystery. My mind wanders with the possibilities. How do these two know each other? Let’s assume Karen is dating the other guy. We’ll allow that they live together, especially since she’s doing laundry. Now, wherever they live is obviously in a different time zone, because one window shows daylight outside, while the other, night. But what’s with the way he says that?

Do they have a thing for each other? Why does she make it a point to let him hear her voice? She could just as easily say, “Oh tell him I said hello.” But she doesn’t. Which makes you wonder. And Bill directly shouts back to her. Will they ever hook up in the future? Will she have an affair with Bill? Or is it all just innocent or what? Of course we’ll never know, but that’s part of the appeal of the whole ad. What’s your take on it?

So, I found this interesting. Bing has started a cash back program that they’re plugging on TV. Microsoft is basically bribing people to use its search service. If you buy certain items through Bing, it gives you a bit of money back.

Problem is: I’m just not crazy about the ad. It isn’t terrible, but it isn’t great either. Nice try, but for something like this, I think it should have been a bit more daring, not so mundane & cookie-cutter.

What do you think?

I love these. I think this is brilliant, and I’d love to tackle a project like this one day. First is the actual product and the second vid is the making of.

And then I ran across this. The first video is a new ad campaign for Target’s Target Colour 2009 campaign by a company in Melbourne.

Well but so here’s obviously the source material for this. Do you call it a rip-off or an inspiration? But like Picasso said, “Good artists borrow. Great artists steal.”

This was a great idea. Very cool concept in a very cool location. I hate to say it, but I kind of want a Smart Car, mostly just as a novelty. Bet they’re fun to drive!

This is awesome. Great advertising, great concept, perfect execution.

I love the battle over advertising that is occurring right now between Verizon Wireless and AT&T. AT&T accused Verizon Wireless of making false advertising claims by calling themselves “America’s Most Reliable 3G Network”, because it is not the fastest network. Verizon, in turn, sued AT&T (Verizon Wireless v. AT&T Mobility LLC filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, case number 2009-6656). Awesome.

What’s funny is that it’s all just tactical and rather pointless… well mostly. For starters, network reliability is a completely subjective matter. Not only is service different for different carriers in different locations at different times, but it’s also difficult to quantify reliability. It’s more of a subjective matter. Is your vehicle reliable? Sure, it starts everytime and runs smoothly, etc. Is your vehicle reliable if you’re towing a boat behind it? Maybe not, depending on what you drive.

Further, AT&T’s claim about network speed is irrelevant. AT&T spokesman, Mark Siegel, said, “Data network speed is an essential factor to consumers when it comes to data transmission on their wireless devices.” True. But I wouldn’t equate speed with reliability, which is the whole crux of Verizon’s advertising campaign—the can-you-hear-me-now guy, and the creepy situation where you turn around and a vast legion of Verizon zombies are behind you, moaning and dragging bloody appendages toward you so that they can eat your brains. You know, that whole deal?

But back to the car analogy for a sec. My car is reliable, dependable, but certainly not the fastest vehicle on the road. See my point? But never mind that… what’s really interesting is that if Verizon wins the court case, they’ll have court-backed proof that they are indeed “America’s Most Reliable 3G Network”. For whatever that’s worth.

What do you think?