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there are no shortage of stupid or offensive commercials out there, but here are three I think fall in the categories of inexplicable, incomprehensible or inexcusable
I have just seen a new commercial for Herbal Essences shampoo that features a girl riding a camel through the desert (the camel is wearing sneakers for some reason), and she comes across an oasis, where a man riding a giant seahorse pops up and hands her a bottle of shampoo. Seriously bizarre - can you picture the pitch meeting for this? Oh, it's going to be in the desert with a camel and a seahorse? Fabulous! Nothing sells more shampoo than camels and seahorses!
Secondly, what is with the Levi’s commercial (view here) where the guy pulls up his pants and the phone booth comes shooting up through the floor? I can’t even think of what they could possibly be trying to say with that – put your pants on and find yourself out on the street? Not a selling point in my opinion. What if you don’t have your wallet? Or your keys? Basically just a stupid commercial that has nothing to do with selling pants. The effects are neat, but if you want to sell jeans you need shots of attractive people with cute butts, not special effects. (There have been many blogs about this commercial both pro and con, but most seem to be discussing the fact that there are straight and gay versions of the ad. Whoopdeedo, it's still stupid either way.)
My current least favorite commercial uses the popular medium of television to spread the word on the dangers of meningococcal meningitis. According to the commercial our teenagers are drastically at risk for catching this disease from kissing, sharing sodas and even being in close contact. Now, this is a serious disease and I don't have a problem with giving it some attention. My problem comes from the tone the commerical takes, which is that the disease is lurking around every corner and you should be constantly vigilant against infection. Maybe we should all stay locked in our homes so we don't ever catch anything from anyone. I mean, maybe I should consider homeschooling my children when they are the right age so they don't associate with all of these teenagers running around infected with meningitis. By the way, the small type in the commercial says that only 21 in 100,000 adolescents actually contract meningitis each year.
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4 comments:
What is your favorite current commercial and why? Favorite(s) of all time?
that will bear some thinking about
One current commerccial drives me nuts. I think it is for Walmart, but I'm not sure. A woman is seeking Christmas decorations, but she can't remember what they are called. So, she and the salesperson essentially play charades until the sales person figures out what the woman want. I dont' know if this is supposed to be funny, but it makes me uncomfortable. Being middle-aged and post-menopausal, I have memory issues which are quite frustrating and not one bit funny. And the woman's inability to articulate her needs appears painfully akin to certain symptoms of dementia, particularly Alzheimers. I realize that since I have a parent with Alzheimers, I am overreacting to this but it still bugs me.
I believe it is for Lowes and I hate it too. I had actually planned to mention it in my blog at some point - it is from last year and I am disappointed they are running it again. I don't get any hints of alzheimers or dementis - I just can't stand that the woman is so stupid. Go home and come back with a list lady!
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