Even those who don’t care for football look forward to the Super Bowl each year because of the entertaining commercials that air during the breaks. Companies shell out millions of dollars to have their ads air during the Super Bowl, and each year the ads seem to get more and more interesting to watch. Though minute-long commercials are not eligible for prestigious awards like Oscars and Emmys, we feel that these ads deserve some formal recognition.
Commercial with the most beef (literally and figuratively): Wendy’s
Wendy’s has campaigned about its fresh, never frozen beef, and the company took it to another level during the Super Bowl. The commercial took shots at its competitor McDonald’s, telling consumers to “skip the hamburgers at the frozen arches.” However, the official Wendy’s Twitter account couldn’t wait for the Super Bowl to get in on the fun. On February 2, Wendy’s commented on a McDonald’s post asking, “y’all freeze that live feed?” Wendy’s roast lit up the Twitter world, earning 22,000 likes and 5,000 retweets. Seeing big corporations throw shade at each other made for an even better Super Bowl experience.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsqXfA9Coxg
Funniest Commercials: Amazon, Rocket Mortgage
Alexa, Amazon’s home assistant, losing her voice makes for comedy gold. The commercial features appearances from chef Gordon Ramsay, rapper Cardi B, comedian and actress Rebel Wilson and actor Anthony Hopkins, who all take turns fillings in for Alexa. Amazon should hope that Alexa gets her voice back soon because the fill-ins did a sub-par job.
In many commercials, items and food are described using lavish terms, leaving consumers scratching their head at what the product actually is. Rocket Mortgage embraced this concept in a commercial that featured comedian Keegan-Michael Key. Retailers, songs and even dating apps that use confusing antics to get buyers to spend their money are all cleared up by Key, who acts as a translator for information. The commercial’s humor accurately portrays sellers in the real world.
Most Inspiring: Toyota
Toyota’s spine-chilling account of eight-time paralympic gold medalist Lauren Woolstencroft’s journey to being a professional athlete earns the award for most inspiring commercial. As the audience follows her as a young child, the odds of her being a gold medalist increases on the bottom of the screen as the video continues, creating an incredible effect on viewers. The commercial recollects the obstacles Woolstencroft had to overcome to be a champion.
Most Clever: Ram Trucks
The Ram commercial followed a group of vikings making their way across the sea and a highway on a trek to Minneapolis, undoubtedly to see their beloved Minnesota Vikings play in the Super Bowl. But there’s only one problem: the vikings (in the commercial) didn’t seem to get the memo that their squad had been knocked out by the Eagles. When the unit gets word of the news, the crew puts on the brakes and head back across the sea. Ram’s cleverness produced one of the best commercials of the year.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqg5oc20nxk
Best Reenactment: NFL
New York Giant teammates Odell Beckham Jr. and Eli Manning deliver a perfect reenactment of the classic final dance scene in the movie Dirty Dancing. The duo’s choreography is spot on as they combine for a hilarious recreation. Beckham showcases his lightning quickness when he accelerates into Eli Manning’s awaiting arms. If I’ve ever seen a campaign to be on Dancing With The Stars, this is it. And Beckham’s hair is arguably better than Jennifer Grey’s.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdDOj0MMFOM