Where were the bowls? And why were they so super?

Random thoughts on Super Bowl XL, also known as the day I bought a glue gun and finished my uber-cute bag (yes, I now know none of you stole my yarn needle, STFU already!!):

o The Seattle Seahawks came out to Bittersweet Symphony. That makes them my new/first favorite football team.

o What was up with the freaky Dr. Seuss reading to open the game??? Did the big bad football players need an ego boost? Has anyone studied the effect of the this? Maybe Dr. Seuss could really affect the outcomes of major games. But I’m not sure we should use the Power of Seuss for such tawdry ends . . .

o Does anyone who actually wants to see football enjoy this? There’s almost no football at all. There’s lots of talking, lots of commercials, but it’s like Diet Football.

o Pizza Hut: The Pizza Hut commercial with a play on Jessica Simpson’s terrible version of “These Boots are Made for Walking” sucked. I’m not soon going to forgive her for that one.

o Disney World: I did adore the Disney World commercial with all the football players practicing how they were gonna say “I’m going to Disney World.” Is that because of my age. I was pretty young when that was a big deal. Any other Eighties’ Babies out there think it was really funny? How ‘bout everybody else?

o Budweiser Office Commercial: Not all that funny. Who decided that was Super Bowl material? I guess corporate humor is really hot now. Le sigh.

o Whopperettes: I wasn’t feeling it until they sang about “the freaky King” and did the dog-pile on the bun girl thing.

o Bud Light Magic Fridge/Secret Revolving Wall: Possibly one of my favorite commercials of all time. It’s funny and highlights an actual benefit of the product, ie it tastes good enough to hide and good enough to worship if it spins into your living room.

o Camry Hybrid: Bizarro. Who are these two people with their accents? Why are we watching them?

o FedEx Cavemen: He kicked a tiny dinosaur. And the fact that that’s all I can think probably says something. Whether about me or the effectiveness of the ad, I couldn’t say.

o Diet Pepsi/P. Diddy: No, Jay Mahr, no. Why? Not funny, doesn’t highlight a benefit. Lame.

o Spock for Aleve: Nice “hero” spot. Made me giggle.

o Rooftop Bud Light: It was funnier before the guy fell through the roof. It was enough to have everyone in the neighborhood “fixing” stuff on the roof to go up and drink.

o Diet Pepsi/Jackie Chan: Okay, that was funny. Especially when they used Diet Coke for a stunt double.

o Mustang: Really generic. But at least it wasn’t Celine Dion.

o Clydesdale Football, Streaker: Not all that funny. But I don’t think I’m in the target demographic.

o CareerBuilder Monkeys: I’m never going to tire of the monkeys in the office. And now there’re jack-asses, too.

o Cadillac Escalade: A car is not a dress. It’s not a fashion. Not even to people who have a lot of money. They’re still more concerned about the fact that their car works and is safe. Right?

o Dove Self-Esteem: I love it. I love that there’s a commercial for women on the Super Bowl. I love that they didn’t let the stupid people who criticized their real beauty campaign convince them to do something different. One of the campaigns that I think can make a difference in people’s lives while still being successful as ads, ie they sell stuff. This is what a corporation can do, but usually doesn’t.

o Ford Escape Hybrid: I like Kermit. I like Hybrids. So two-thumbs up.

o Michelob Ultra Amber: That girl kicked that guy’s ass. Go girls.

o GoDaddy.com: Dumb. That’s all they deserve from me.

o Gillette Fusion: Five blades? Five? When will it end???

o Overstock.com: Do they seriously still think that they’re boringly salacious “O” ads are interesting?

o United Airlines: I liked the cartoon look of this commercial. Also, the kind of sentimental feel. I think it’s odd, but cool, that they thought it would be a good Super Bowl commercial.

o Sharpie Retractable: Who doesn’t like pirates?

o Ameriquest: Don’t judge too quickly. I love these ads.

o Nationwide Insurance: I hate Fabio.

o Hummer (aka the only Hummer you’ll ever get): God, I hate to say anything positive
about Hummer, but I like the monster commercial. Funny, a cute story line, and it actually does highlight the benefit of ruggedness. Now if we could just get Hummer owners to take their Hummers off-road with all that ruggedness, say the Marianas Trench . . .

o Toyota Tacoma: I’m tired of the invincible commercials. Mainly because I want to know, are these for real? Because I feel like they’re trying to give you that idea, but I don’t think they are for real. I don’t like to wonder this much about commercials.

o Jack in the Box: I love the quirkiness of these ads. They just crack me up, and manage to get all the info and the big message that they want in because their concept is in style not substance. They can do whatever they want with the format.

o Fidelity Investments: I like Paul McCartney. I liked, “This is Paul. He’s been a . . . . The key is never stop doing what you love.” It just seems to really tap into the feeling of trying to achieve your goals in life. Good job, Fidelity. And, I don’t know if you noticed, but there were no old people holding hands on a beach in front of a lighthouse. This maybe a first for a financial company.

o Budweiser Wave: Very cute. Almost nostalgic.

o Pirates of the Caribbean 2: (high pitched scream) I’m so freaking excited.

o MasterCard MacGyver: Not a bad ad, but damn I’m tired of the Priceless ads. Please, no more.