A Good Clean Feeling

Oh no. The wife's caught him with the secretary, and she can't swear.... because her mouth is so clean from chewing Orbit gum.


Product: Orbit Raspberry Mint Gum
Length: 30 seconds
Underlying Message: Orbit Raspberry Mint gum cleans up a "dirty" mouth
Why it Works: Humor strikes again. It's memorable for its parody on the popular affair between a boss and his secretary, and the angry wife finding out. We see this in many movies and TV shows. But what makes this funny is the unique replacements for obscenities.

Commentary: This particular commercial I like for the carefully placed object flying across the screen right at the beginning that introduces us to the situation at hand. Also the box which supposedly contains the remains of the cheating husband's convertible is a bit laughable... a car, even chopped up, would not fit into that box. But the point is made. Also the idea of cleanliness is restated with the layout of the office. It is bright, spacious, neat, and clean, and echoes of 1960's decor. A kind of "Pleasantville" idea of innocence... a time where curses were something not uttered in public.

I give this advertisement a 4 out of 5 rating.

The Snickers "Movie"

Since I am a fan of the Snickers strange characters ensemble, as mentioned in my last post, I decided to make my first critique on one of the Snickers Feast "episodes". This one is one of my favorites.

Product: Snickers Bar
Length: 32 seconds
Underlying Message: Snickers bars are a feast.
Why it works: Snickers went to the extent to create recognizable characters to represent their product. Not only are they fun and quirky, but they have struggles and conflicts. It's something that stays with you, seeing a Viking throwing a trash can at a gas station because the store was out of his particular candy bar.
Commentary: I find the design of this advertising campaign particularly intriguing. The Snickers company has essentially created a series of mini productions, all only about 30 seconds long. It becomes a mini TV show inside your TV shows. Also, I happen to like weird quirky characters and absolute ridiculousness. It's why at 21 I'm still a fan of the Muppets. These advertisements are reminiscent of that Muppet-like humor; ridiculous characters, crazy situations and ironic outcomes.

I give this advertisement a 5 out of 5 rating.

If you would like, you can view the advertising series in it's entirety HERE.

Some Semblance of an Introduction

I've always been fascinated by advertising. I was never the type to be bothered by my favorite shows being interrupted by a stream of little short productions. I've always been intrigued. The challenge of putting everything you need to say into a short 30-second to 1-minute video clip, and make it interesting enough for people to pay attention is nothing short of awe-inspiring. I find that some advertisements are better than others, as some movies are better than others. You could say I'm kind of rare in my field of advertising expertise.

You will all recognize the art, too. That is, if you watch TV enough to know advertising, and I'm assuming that if you're reading this blog, you must watch TV. There are characters you've come to know and love, or hate. You just don't realize it. If I showed you the familiar face of the Snickers Viking you'd recall an image of him hurtling a garbage can into a Cadillac over the prospect of not getting his Snickers bar. Or the really annoying clerk at the "Progressive.com" store. Surely you would recognize the Verizon guy with the big horn-rimmed glasses, walking around on his cell phone, asking the ever-predictable question "Can you hear me now?"

Advertising is such a huge part of culture. I feel the art of advertising is overlooked in terms of its impact and prominence in not only American culture, but universal culture. I find it odd that nobody feels like emblazoning every advertisement they make with their name declaring "This is mine! I made this!" The symbols they create are so universally recognized as the Snuggle teddy bear (I used to have one when I was little), and nobody knows their names.

This isn't a blog trying to get advertising creators recognized. I feel that's up to them. It's simply a critique on the design of advertisement. What works. What is recognized. What is entertaining. What is annoying. What is just downright lame.

I am and advertising critic.