Open Happiness? – 2010 Superbowl Commercials

After watching all the Superbowl commercials this morning I have some summary and somewhat random thoughts.

• The best rated commercial was the Betty White/Abe Vigoda Snickers commercial. I thought it was funny. However, advertisers are big these days on attaching their products to stories that really don't go with the product.  Snickers bars as an athletic performance enhancer? Maybe that's what Barry Bonds was ingesting. Another example was Lance Armstrong working out and riding his bike in a beer commercial. Really?  Scrap the cottage cheese and skim milk. Treat the team to candy bars and beer. While you're at it give them some cotton candy and cigarettes.
• The funniest commercials year in and year out are often beer commercials. The Bud Light stranded commercial, where survivors shun a lady who finds a radio to aid their rescue for the guy who finds the beverage cart stocked with Bud Light, made me laugh at first. However, it makes me wonder why beer companies often sell their products with humorous ads that depict people as beings without virtue. Beer is often shown as more valued than humans. Girlfriends and wives take backseat to men's love for beer.  Life is an extended party. I laugh unless I think about them. I think the main storyline for funny beer commercials is the lure of irresponsibility. In many ways, especially for the younger crowd ,the lure of alcohol is irresponsibility. We want to be someone different than the person we are sober. Humorous ads draw us into that lie. We can always blame the beer for our behavior.
• Dumbest ad award - Emerald Nuts and Pop Secret - so off-beat and weird that it makes me want to seek out their competitor's products. Next time spend your $2.5 million on a blimp or something.
• Award for the ad that was too scary to be funny - Audi TDI Green Police. Meant to be funny but how far away from reality are they?
• I was disappointed in the Tebow ad. If I didn't know what it was for before hand I would not know what it was for.
• Charles Barkley - did you need the money that bad?
• Chicago Bears - same question I asked Charles.
• Homeaway.com ad with Chevy Chase was better than all the movies he made combined.
• Dove wants to rescue me from emasculation with skin care products? Are you serious?
• Flo TV wants to rescue me from emasculation with little tv sets? Sorry, Bestbuy all ready told me I need a big one.
• Dockers wants to rescue me from emasculation by selling me pants that will allow me to "wear the pants" in my life. To do this they show me disturbing visions of men in underwear. Who thinks these things up?
• Dodge wants to rescue me from emasculation with a fast car. How original.
• Careerbuilder - more underwear. Who made the shift from erotic underwear ads to grotesque underwear ads? Lose them both.
• Best line from all the commercials - etrade baby girl accusing boy of not calling last night because of another girl -  "and that milk-a-holic Lindsey wasn't over?" Milk-a-holic. Pretty funny....not sure what it has to do with investing but I'm in.

Coca Cola cuts to the chase as to what modern advertising is mostly about.  Coke promises that when you open their soda you open happiness. Unfortunately, shortly after, you burp and life is the same. See through broken stories. Live the true story. The one that's not for sale.