I suppose you can’t write a blog post on Super Bowl Sunday and not somehow mention something about the game…or the commercials. While I do like football (when I can sit comfortably inside and be warm!), I’m not the type who has favorite teams. Truth be known, we don’t even have TV (ie any cable service), so we never watch any games throughout the season. All that aside, the game was a pretty good one – it’s always nice to actually see a competitive game.
But, like many others, the commercials were honestly my main interest. And, reading tweets on Twitter actually made watching the commercials even more interesting – it was fun to watch real-time, instantaneous feedback from around the nation on each commercial. So as I know most office talk tomorrow will be about the commercials, I thought I’d weigh in on my favorite and least favorite commercials from the night:
First to those commercials which earned to biggest jeers:
- Skechers and GoDaddy.com – the “soft porn” style of these ads made my kids and I quite uncomfortable and just weren’t appropriate “family viewing” material.
- Groupon.com – the commercial playing off the Tibetan culture and food was done in extremely poor taste and will surely make me think twice about using this company in the future.
And now to those earning the biggest cheers – there were quite a few good commercials, although none that really blew me away. But here are the favorites:
- Coca-Cola – (re)drawing the line and border in the sand – this was a great commercial that brought a smile to my face, and was particularly poignant since it followed the one about Tibet that was done in such poor taste.
- VW Darth Vader – of course the 60-second version of this commercial debuted on YouTube last week and was enjoyed by many even prior to the Super Bowl, but the shortened version tonight was also cute.
- Imported from Detroit – The down-and-dirty, nitty-gritty feel of Detroit, American values and the city’s comeback was really classy.
- Doritos Resurrection – This one brought a pretty good chuckle although my kids didn’t “get it”.
- NFL – I guess you could call the NFL sitcom-montage a commercial – it was fun to recognize all the old-time shows but especially Happy Days with the Fonz, Seinfeld, the Golden Girls and the Partridge Family!
Did you notice how many of the commercials had a feeling of nostalgia? It could just be coincidence, but it seems there is a longing in many of us to return to the “good ol’ days”. What was it about those good ol’ days that we long for? Simplicity? Family? Faith?
What if we were to ask that question of everyone who brings up one of those nostalgia-containing commercials. What is about the good ol’ days that we’re longing for? What’s missing today with all our new-fangled technology, high-speed-everything, and ultra-modern conveniences? Could it be that those olden days somehow seemed more purposeful or meaningful? That people were living for more than the latest- newest- greatest- fastest-thing? I’m not sure, but I think there might be something to that thought. What if we saw the Super Bowl commercial conversations as a great way to pose those questions and start that dialogue?
Maybe, just maybe, it’s the ancient truths of a loving God that so many are straining after. And maybe, just maybe, the nonstop nostalgia in tonight’s commercials gave America a peak into that desire. And maybe, just maybe, a few of those forthcoming conversations around the water cooler might develop into opportunities to share about the meaning and purpose that one finds in the unconditional love of a Savior.
It could happen.
What was your favorite commercial? And why?
