Which ads were your favorite? Which were your least favorite? What'd you think of Reeve's commercial? Were you surprised the Budweiser Swamp ads were absent? Did you miss them?

(And by the way, wasn't that a great game? It was a nail-biter. I loved it, even though my team lost. Thrilling end to a wacky season.)

-- Anonymous, January 31, 2000

Answers

Not to nitpick, but there was a swamp ad during the pre-game show. The lizards find incriminating sex photos of the ferret. Pretty funny..

The Christopher Reeve commercial totally creeped me out. If it had been anybody else and if he hadn't already come out and said he plans to walk by then, it would have just been tacky, tacky, tacky. As it it, I'm not sure it wasn't.

The cat wrangling commercial was very, very funny, as was the commercial for Nutty Professor 2. And that Titan AE ad looked pretty freakin' awesome...

Did I just say "pretty freakin' awesome?"

o.

-- Anonymous, January 31, 2000

i was a big fan of the mountain dew ads. especially the bohemian rhapsody one. also the one with the infants tossing the pink caps and then the little i am woman hear me roar fist in the air.. we stood up and clapped at my party!

-- Anonymous, January 31, 2000

Definitely the ad with the cat-herders. It was so funny seeing that cat on the saddle with a cowboy. The Christopher Reeve ad struck me as inappropriate as well. Weird.

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

I liked the cat-herding one, too. I also liked the Budweiser one where the baby Clydesdale is born and wobbles to its feet, then the vet goes outside to see papa Clydesdale and says, "Congratulations." I actually got misty-eyed. Ok, I'm a sap.

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

Ok, the hands down winner at our party was....drum roll....the Bud ad with the actor-dog..."Think of your saddest moment; that's your motivation" and you see the dog in a yard chasing the Bud truck and he leaps a hedge and WHAM! splats into the side of a laundry truck..cut back to acting scene, dog wailing.... HA! And our crowd went wild.

Worst ad? By far... Nuveen. As one of our friends summarized: 'Nuveen. We make cripples walk!' Double HA! Tasteless ad.

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

DAMN. DAMN. DAMN.

O. I was waiting for the incriminating ferret pictures. My stupid brother-in-law kept flipping over to some golf tournament in Arizona. I am so mad I missed it!

I loved the E-trade monkey with the inbreds in the garage. My other favorite was the continuation (is this a word?) of the "wazzup" bud guys.

Yes it was a great game. I imagine it was a heartbreaker for a titan fan, Jas.

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

I've got to say the E*Trade commercial with the monkey and the bit about wasting 2 million was so damn funny! I was disapointed with Monster.com the ad last year was so good. I was surprised that I didn't see ads for Nike, Coke or Pepsi. Oh and the FedEx comercial was kind of lame too..

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

Agreed on the E*Trade -- the guy sitting on the right was fantastic. (as was the monkey, of course).

Am I the only person that didn't get the Muhammad Ali ad? I mean, I guess I got it, but ... why?

I just found this on eds.com: they have a playable game of Cat Herder that's pretty funny.

O.

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

Adored the "We just wasted 2 million..." one. Hands down the best. Cat herding was a close second.

And while the Clydesdale one was incredibly sappy, I loved it. So sweet. Aww. Babies.

And honestly, while the Reeve one was kind of creepy, it was also kind of inspiring. I mean, it was kind of showing that someday, all those people will be able to walk.

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

O - No, you're not the only person who didn't get the Ali ad. It gave me the creeps.

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

The Reeves ad was tacky, tacky, tacky and creepy, creepy, creepy.

I liked the anti-advertising ad for lifestages.com or whatever .com it was that sends you personalized e-mails tailored to your interests. But maybe I just get a kick out of that because I'm in the industry, and would much rather see that than a uber-million dollar recreation of Reeves walking around like a post-modern Icabod Crane. Or something.

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

Cowboys with lint rollers. It just killed me! That ad could not have been funnier or better thought out.

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

In case anyone missed any of these ads (like I did), Yahoo! has them all at http://promotions.yahoo.com/promotions/superspots/

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

What about the car commerical that mocked the Gap? I live with 2 Gap sales associates (mom and sister...ugh...) and when it first came on, I swear to God I thought it was a real one. It had the song, the clothes, the camera techniques. We all started yelling for my sister and mom to get in the living room when all of a sudden I realized the people were bad singers...usally they can sing okay...then the car came out of nowhere. That was hysterical:)

I liked the Reeve one. I almost started crying...of course, I was also PMSing...

What was the Ali ad?

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

I have to admit I didn't watch the Superbowl. <<>> I did see a couple of the spots on the news the next day (since when are commercials NEWS?!). The one with the cheetah was pretty bizarre. I hated that Christopher Reeve one -- I won't beat around the bush about it! I'm with Omar & Mornglory -- creepy/tacky. I also didn't get the Ali one, I don't think. I was drawn to the Fedex one with the Wizard of Oz stuff, because that IS my favorite movie of all time, after all, so I had to watch...but it sucked too. Wish I'd seen the catherder one! Sounds like my kind of ad. That anti-Gap ad was pretty hilarious -- too bad they didn't make me remember what car it was for.

As for going to check out the commercials on-line, I have a real problem with that! It just somehow seems WRONG. Are we as a society so hard-up for entertainment that we feel if we missed a "good" commercial, we have to see it somehow? No offense, but geez! They should PAY me to go look at their ads! (Or wear their logo t-shirts or gimme caps, for that matter, but don't even get me started on that!)

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

Man, i was so disappointed by the commercials this year. I think the dot coms really had no idea what a super bowl commercial is like. some were just so bland.

anyway. my favorite was, of course, the cat wranglers. i think it was the only super bowl calibre commercial. meanwhile, almost all the bud ones sucked. we've come to rely on Bud for the best superbowl commercials around, and they give us a dog food spoof.

and the christopher reeves thing was definitely creepy.

but man, that cat wranglers commercial just made it all better. oh gosh. the funny thing is, i can't even remember what company the commercial was advertising. a dot com, i think. something technology related.

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

(Guess I screwed up some HTML thingy -- it was supposed to say "gasp" in the midst of those brackets after I said I didn't watch the Superbowl.)

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

OK, to answer my own question:

The Cat Wranglers was definitely one of the best. Perhaps the very best. The lint roller! The wranglers comparing scars! The wranglers trying to get the cats out of the tree! Oh my!

Am I the only one who liked the FedEx commercial?

I was definitely uncomfortable with the Reeves commercial.... Reeves seems like the anti-Ichabod, actually--he looks like he has no neck now. To me he seemed to float surreally across the screen like a Macy's Thanksgiving Day Balloon. Or the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man.

I didn't see the pre-game commercials, but didn't they have the Ferret Photos on last week during the playoffs? So it wasn't even a new commercial?

I loved the Gap satire. It's funny that they even went so far as to put in a typical Gap eye-popping special effect--when they were all suddenly wearing white. I disagree with Allyson that "usually they can sing okay". Their Zombie singing is what I hate most about those Gap ads.

The Monster.com poetry recital seemed very pretentious. And creepy. The way those people kept walking by that lady and talking to her, I was reminded too much of that demon possession movie "Fallen" with Denzel Washington!

Finally, I'm surprised no one has mentioned the Pets.com commercial, especially since those sock puppet commercials seemed to be popular in the other Squishy forums discussing ads. Usually that sock irks me, but when it suddenly popped out behind that corner in that spotlight and started singing "Don't Go", me and everyone around me cracked up. And that crying turtle! Awwww!

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

Um...

They're *commercials.* I can't believe this conversation is happening.

*so says the Adbusters supporter*

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

Help an Aussie out here - are these ads *for* the Superbowl? or shown *during* the superbowl? And does Budweiser swamp? And oh ... it's baseball, right?

-- Anonymous, February 01, 2000

Anna, the ads are shown during the game. Advertisors typically go out of their way for Superbowl ads (lots of funny ones).

Some of the ads are viewable online at http://promot ions.yahoo.com/promotions/superspots

-- Anonymous, February 02, 2000

E*Trade was the best. By far. Hands down. The monkey dancing and the two redneck, slackjawed yokels...cracked me up. Monkeys are funny! That's rule #1 of comedy. As far as Christopher Reeve goes, tacky? creepy? Try inspiring. I feel like it gives hope. The fact is, we're not that far off from healing spinal cord injuries. Maybe I'm just an eternal optimist in this category since one of my heroes, Derrick Thomas, is now in a similar situation, but I thought the ad was impressive.

OK, I've put in more than 2 cents. Time to go.

-- Anonymous, February 02, 2000

You know, I would have loved the sock puppet a lot more if I hadn't already seen so much of it (done better, by the way) on Talk Soup and on Conan O' Brian. I mean, sock puppet commercials are great and all, but that dog is no "Triumph the Insult Dog."

As for the Christopher Reeves thing, I still think it was a little.. I dunno, strange. Like it's a public contest now: "I will walk by 2004, dammit. Just see if I don't." The reality is that it could take a lot, LOT longer. Just because a celebrity gets behind a cause doesn't necessarily mean they're going to come up with a breakthrough cure. Just like the commercial flippantly states, "Yeah, now that we've cured AIDS and cancer, it was only a matter of time before we cure spinal injuries -- 2004, to be exact." Cure cancer, my ass. That's going to take a lot more research, money and time and no Super Bowl commercial is going to make it happen any faster.

But who cares, right? It's all in the name of a big IPO backed by a celebrity endorsement.

-- Anonymous, February 02, 2000

Re: the Christopher Reeve commercial. Had it been for a paralysis research institute, or some sort of medical fund, it would have been an inspiring, wonderful commercial. But it wasn't. It was for an investment firm, with no particular connection to the matter. Utterly, utterly tacky and tasteless.

Personally, I thought the Budweiser commercials ruled, especially the one with what turns out to be the dog's voiceover.

The cat-herders... I'll admit I laughed out loud, but too much of me was protesting "come on... cats could never be herded like that." And the connection to the product was tenuous, at best.

Overall assessment: Too many dot-coms trying (and failing) to make their mark; not a great year for Super Bowl commercials.

-- Anonymous, February 02, 2000

The forgotten e-Trade ad: star basketball player gets courted for pro ball, but tells his dad the sport means nothing to him and he just wants to dance. Then he goes off on this song about how dancing makes him feel. It's realy, really funny -- the dad just sits there with a dumbfounded expression while the son dances around him. Loved that one. Tagline: "Need a backup plan?" Ha ha.

-- Anonymous, February 02, 2000

I forgot that commercial, Heather (just like you said). That was indeed a good one!

Shmuel says, "come on... cats could never be herded like that." Um, isn't that the point? But I agree with you, Shmuel, about the Reeves commercial and the SuperBowl half-time show. Sure, the half-time show was better than usual, but that's because they moved it to DisneyWorld! That's cheating! I wonder what the fans in Atlanta had to watch.

-- Anonymous, February 02, 2000

Heather rocks. I had forgotten about that one, too. That was pretty funny.

This was on The Onion today -- too good not to share:

Top Inspirational, Computer-Generated Super Bowl Ads

Nuveen -- Christopher Reeve walks
FedEx -- Muhammad Ali wins at Jenga
HotJobs.com -- Ronald Reagan wipes self
Doritos -- Stephen Hawking pulls bus with teeth
Monster.com -- Bob Hope entertains troops
Coca-Cola -- Barbra Streisand moves heterosexual

-- Anonymous, February 02, 2000

Jason, I'll grant that cats' unherdability was the point of the commercial. I just felt that it went a bit too far for me to be able to suspend my disbelief. Comedy involves dissonance, yes, but the trick is to go right up to the line without going over... and I wasn't sure this one didn't go too far. For me, anyway. Obviously, I'm in the minority here. :-)

-- Anonymous, February 02, 2000

THANK YOU, Corey!

I've never posted here, and only occasionally read the board, but I am shocked at the response the majority of the posters have had regarding the Christopher Reeve ad. I only hoped that I wouldn't be the first to see the "real" side to this ad.

First, I wasn't a Reeve fan before his accident, nor an overwhelming supporter of his personal appearances since the accident. I can't read into his mind exactly why he has taken such a public persona during such a difficult time in his life, but if it is something that he truely feels he needs to do (interviews, having his rehabilitation filmed, personal appearances), more power to him. I wouldn't have the guts to be as public with my disability as he has been, so he has my respect for his ability to do so. I am sure many have been motivated by his efforts.

But he has been very public. And what could be more inspiring than to give hope by example -- an example of what is in the minds of the researchers that are currently working for an answer to spinal cord injuries. I had chills for a number of minutes after the commercial, because of what could be, not because of closed mindedness.

So, it was an investment company that ran the ad, not a research or medical organization. Where does a large portion of private funding for research come from? People and corporations with the big bucks -- the ones that sink millions of dollars into investments each year. I am sure that a few of those entities have sliced off a half mill or so in the last couple of days and fired it off to places such as the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, where Derrick Thomas is now.

And it wasn't as if "he" hopped and skipped across the stage in the commercial. The slow, steady, measured steps, I thought, were reasonable to me for "someone" who would have had a year or two of work after the "cure" was found. I don't come to this idea half- cocked, but from personal observation.

Some of you may recall the name of Dennis Byrd. He played football with the NY Jets and about 10 years ago, he broke his neck on a play during a game. It was thought, long after the injury, that he would never walk again. But through treatment and rehabilitation, he is not only walking on his own. He has been an assistant coach for a high school team locally. It is an incredibly moving experience, after watching the team and coaches run out onto the field before a game, to watch Dennis (a little slow, a slight shuffle, a slight lean in his gait) walk the entire width of the field to his spot on the sideline.

I guess I should have known that a few people would feel "creepy" or "uncomfortable" with the commercial when, Monday morning, Diane Sawyer (snore) introduced her interview with Reeve with four or five adjectives similar to the above, and not one of those adjectives was "inspired". I thought she just missed the point.

One more thing. The commercial did not promise that there would be a cure for AIDS in 2004. It did not promise a cure for cancer a few years after that (just mentioned major advancements on a cure). And it did not promise a solution to spinal cord injuries by those dates either. But it gives hope for all those things. What is wrong with that?

I'm glad Corey (and I think someone else mentioned Derrick Thomas) got the point. It was only a commercial. But what a commercial.

-- Anonymous, February 02, 2000

Oh come on! That's like saying that just because a company donates money to charity that they are in no way motivated by greed.

This is an INVESTMENT COMPANY. Not a research company. And yes, some money that goes into research comes from investors, but a lot of it comes from the government in funding and from part of university funding. Yet, somehow, I'm still not convinced that I should view the federal government as an inspiring, do-gooder organization.

But the argument that a company should get our applause and admiration just because money for research comes from investments is ludicrous. If these companies are so noble and civic minded, why the hell does my Claritin cost $55 for a tiny bottle of pills before my insurance company (which charges me about that much a month) kicks in? Ever ask an AIDS victim how much their meds cost when they don't have health insurance?

I have no doubt that there are great strides being made in research into spinal injuries and that Christopher Reeve's high-profile campaigning is helping raise funds. But a company does not run a $2 million ad during the Super Bowl because they're a couple of swell buds who wanna help spinal injury victims. This is a company that nobody knew about, and now they're famous. And, despite Reeve's involvement, they are still achieving that notoriety on the possibly unfulfillable promise that they are in some way helping to find a way to make these victims walk again. That, in a word, is bullshit. But guess what? Even if it doesn't happen, this company will still have raked in millions of dollars from that notoriety. Not a bad investment, actually.

And whatever their intent or Reeve's intent, it gave a lot of people the creeps. I don't think that's because we're all just stupid and can't see the "real" side of this ad. Obviously, the message wasn't delivered correctly, or we would have all been right there with you, wiping tears from the corner of our eyes, saying "he the MAN!"

It got a lot of people talking, and that's good, but ultimately I don't think they said whatever the hell they were trying to say effectively. There's shock value and then there's conveying a message. If they'd done their job on the message side, we wouldn't be having this debate.< p> Whether the ad promised anything isn't the point -- it implied and strongly suggested in the most attention-getting of all visuals that this is something that WILL happen. So, you tell the little girl in the wheelchair who saw that commercial that this might not be.

O.

-- Anonymous, February 03, 2000

Since his accident, Chris Reeve has been quite vocal about the power of hope and positivity. I think this was a powerfully visual testament to that philosophy. I think he would probably want "the little girl in the wheelchair" to think that recovering from a spinal cord injury can, should and will happen.

-- Anonymous, February 04, 2000