HP – 2007 – Orange County Choppers

So someone thought it would be a brilliant idea to let the guys from Orange County Choppers explain what they use their HP computers for. We’re sure that there are some people out there that find this information useful, we just don’t know who that would be.

For a Super Bowl commercial and the millions they paid for the thirty-second slot, HP should have done better.

Bud Light – 2007 – Slap

This commercial is awe-inspiring in its pure unadulterated awesomeness. Nothing fancy, no frills, not even the charade of a tenuous connection to the product being advertised. Just thirty seconds of slapping.

 

Emerald Nuts – 2007 – Boogeyman

Emerald Nuts struck that magical balance between Robert Goulet messing with your stuff and Robert Goulet not messing with your stuff.

They probably tried a little too hard though: Emerald Nuts is one of those products where you can show the can for 30 seconds and people will run out and buy some. In fact…

SuperAd – 2008 – Mr. Oboe

Chester Pitts proves that you should never make fun of an oboe player. In fact, there should be a movie about an entire marching band made up of football players that turns the tables on school bullies.

Our favorite line from this great story is “He didn’t even have the dream until I told him to dream it.”

Fedex – 2008 – Carrier Pigeons

 

Fedex consistently makes a great showing during the Super Bowl, and this spot continues the tradition.

Behind the scenes trivia: those aren’t really giant pigeons. They just hired tiny people.

Jack In The Box – 2009 – Hang In There Jack

For some bizarre reason they blew up Jack back in 1980, only to bring him back better and funnier than ever before. Okay, maybe that was a good enugh reason to blow him up. But then he goes and gets hit by a bus? Maybe he can take on an office building full of terrorists, too.

Sprint – 2006 – Crime Deterrent

Try pulling a stunt like this with today’s crop of smartphones and you’re more likely to break your phone than your friend’s nose. Also, live TV on your phone? What exactly do you have against your phone’s battery, or your eyesight for that matter?

Chevrolet – 2007 – Ain’t We Got Love

Mary J. Blige and a cavalcade of people who can’t sing extol the virtues of the Chevrolet.

We’re not sure what the point was having Mary J. Blige sell herself out to Chevy, then following up with a bunch of mostly “ordinary people”. Seems like it would have made more sense as a 100% “average American” commercial.

Hey Mary, by US a Chevrolet.

CBS – 2010 – The Late Show

Hey, remember when Jay Leno quit The Tonight Show and turned it over to Conan O’Brien? Then he started building personal brand integrity and appeared in this Super Bowl ad for his old competitor? Remember that?

Whatever happened to that guy?

 

CareerBuilder – 2006 – Party

If there’s one thing we love it’s monkeys, you just can’t have too many monkeys. Luckily CareerBuilder.com feels the same way.

We’re not quite sure of the message here, though. Are we supposed to believe that this guy doesn’t want to work for a company that willfully disregards their own profitability and lights cigars with money? At least these monkeys aren’t flinging poo.

Bud Light – 2008 – Will Ferrell

If there’s one thing that Will Ferrell does well it’s that off-the-cuff, slightly unnerving, and totally inappropriate guy who was a childhood friend of your uncle’s.

He’s unfortunately also not afraid of a nice pair of dove shorts, so I guess that’s another thing he does well. Thank God dove shorts never made a comeback.

E*Trade – 2008 – Baby Trader

At first glance these “talking baby” spots seem creepy and… then a little creepier. But take a closer look and you’ll notice the level of technical sophistication required to achieve the seamless talking effect, and then laugh out loud when the fancy-boy spits up on himself. Priceless.