Ads during Super Bowl LII touched "gently on political issues and went for heartstrings and easy laughs," according to Stephen Battaglio of the L.A. TIMES. The mostly uplifting tone of the spots is a "sign advertisers believed that viewers of TV's most-watched event of the year needed a break from the partisan rancor in public discourse during the first year of the Trump presidency." The humor in the ads "avoided the edginess seen in previous years, trying hard to entertain while not offending anyone" (L.A. TIMES, 2/5). In Detroit, Jennifer Chambers notes corporate responsibility was a "huge theme" of several spots (DETROIT NEWS, 2/5). In Philadelphia, Ellen Gray writes under the header, "Super Bowl Commercials Play It (Mostly) Safe" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 2/5). In N.Y., Sapna Maheshwari writes the ads "continued to fluctuate between funny and somber." Goodby Silverstein & Partners Chief Creative Officer Margaret Johnson said, “There’s definitely a humanitarian theme that is running through the spots." Maheshwari notes while there were "no commercials connected to the #MeToo movement, some still saw progress when it came to the role of gender in Super Bowl ads." But some wished that "there was more humor." Austin-based agency GSD&M President Marianne Malina said, “It’s really a pretty lame year. When the TV promos for the Olympics and ‘The Voice’ and the NFL and Justin Timberlake overshadow a lot, that says everything” (NYTIMES.com, 2/5).
GOOD STUFF: SPORTSNET.ca's Donnovan Bennett wrote the ads "had a distinctively positive vibe as the ads that got the most Twitter engagement and reaction were commenting on diversity and equality." The cross-section of commercials were a "commentary on our current culture" (SPORTSNET.ca, 2/4). The AP's Mae Anderson writes this year’s Super Bowl advertisers were "minding their manners." They were "trying hard to steer clear of everything from politics to the #MeToo movement with lightly humorous ads that don’t offend" (AP, 2/5). Adweek Editorial Dir James Cooper said of the ads, "It was a solid year, but not really an epic year for creativity" ("Today," NBC, 2/5).
BOX OFFICE: VARIETY's Brian Steinberg wrote this year’s pivot "wasn’t all about politics." The ad roster was "jam-packed with offerings from not only movie studios -- always a strong category -- but other sorts of entertainment purveyors with emerging power." In addition to the preview for “Solo: A Star Wars Story,” viewers "saw a take on Paramount’s latest 'Mission: Impossible' film; a look at a new 'Jack Ryan' series from Amazon; a snippet of a new original series, 'Castle Rock,' from Hulu; and a peek at the new 'Avengers' movie from Disney’s Marvel." Even Time Warner’s HBO, which has "historically had issues snaring ad placement on TV, got in on the act, with a trailer for the second season of its series, 'Westworld.'" Meanwhile, Netflix made a new “Cloverfield” movie from J.J. Abrams available on its subscription service immediately after the game. Butler, Shine, Stern & Partners Chief Strategy Officer Ed Cotton said there is "so much entertainment being promoted that it’s kind of thrown down a challenge to the ad industry” to be as fun and interesting to watch (VARIETY.com, 2/4).
NOBODY PUTS BECKHAM IN THE CORNER: NEWSDAY noted the Giants "weren’t playing in Super Bowl LII, but two of their star players managed to steal the show anyway." QB Eli Manning and WR Odell Beckham Jr. "starred in a hilarious minute-long commercial" for the NFL that "paid tribute to the various touchdown celebrations across the league this season" (NEWSDAY, 2/4). In N.Y., Nicholas Parco notes the pair "channeled their inner 'Dirty Dancing' and reenacted its most famous scene." Of course, the ad "ends with Manning lifting up Beckham and the star wideout spreading his arms" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 2/5). Also in N.Y., Max Jaeger writes it was the "highlight as advertisers sidelined politics and stuck to the more mainstream playbook of comedy and familiar faces" (N.Y. POST, 2/5). USA TODAY's Erik Brady writes Manning and Beckham "nearly stole the Super Bowl." The ad's choreography is by Broadway’s Stephanie Klemons and the setting is the Giants' practice facility (USA TODAY, 2/5). VARIETY's Kirsten Chuba wrote the spot "quickly became one of the fan favorite" online (VARIETY.com, 2/4). AD AGE's Brian Braiker wrote, "Not since the Super Bowl shuffle have we so enjoyed seeing these big lugs boogie" (ADAGE.com, 2/4). In San Diego, Kirk Kenney writes the “Dirty Dancing” parody was "clever, especially when Eli lifted Baby, er, Odell Beckham Jr., over his head at the end" (SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE, 2/5). In Cleveland, Marc Bona writes the spot "hit the laugh-meter a bit." Bona: "Bonus point for the accurate choreography" (Cleveland PLAIN DEALER, 2/5).
GOOD ON YA, MATE: The TIMES' Maheshwari noted Tourism Australia "decided last April that it would buy a Super Bowl spot as part of a broader campaign geared toward drawing more visitors from North America." The form the spot took was a "big movie campaign for 'Dundee.'" But the catch is "'Dundee' isn’t actually being made." Tourism Australia Managing Dir John O’Sullivan said, “We did a scan around things like the Grammys and the Academy Awards and other sporting events like the NBA Finals and the World Series, but the event that really stops this country is the Super Bowl." The concept for the campaign was created by Droga5, N.Y., whose founder, David Droga, is Australian. Droga said that the content tied to the pretend movie will "morph after the Super Bowl ad and will continue to use Danny McBride and Chris Hemsworth" (NYTIMES.com, 2/5). VARIETY's Chuba wrote the commercial was so popular that it "launched a petition online for a real film to be made on the ad's premise" (VARIETY.com, 2/4). In DC, Maura Judkis writes, "We’re almost upset this isn’t a real movie" (WASHINGTON POST, 2/5). In Chicago, Kurt Wagner writes of all the commercials touting upcoming films, the "best was not for a real film" (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 2/5). CNN.com's Brian Lowry writes Tourism Australia "cleverly cut through the clutter" (CNN.com, 2/5). FAST COMPANY's Jeff Beer wrote under the header, "Why Australia Faked A 'Crocodile Dundee' Reboot For The Super Bowl" (FASTCOMPANY.com, 2/4).
NOTES: In Detroit, Eric Lawrence notes Fiat Chrysler "continued its tradition of memorable commercials during this year's Super Bowl, with five spots." Fiat Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne "used the commercials to reference the company's production changes in recent years that, among other things, saw the end of production of small cars like the Dodge Dart and Chrysler 200 in favor or more SUVs and trucks." This year, rivals Ford and GM "opted out of corporate-level Super Bowl game-time advertising" (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 2/5). Also in Detroit, Nora Naughton notes it is "not clear exactly how much the five-ad package during advertising’s biggest night set back the automaker" (DETROIT NEWS, 2/5). The WALL STREET JOURNAL's Suzanne Vranica noted T-Mobile, in a "break from the fierce wireless advertising wars," aired an ad "promoting racial and gender equality." The softer-themed ad is a "big departure from the company’s typical marketing, which has long involved aggressively going after its competitor" (WSJ.com, 2/4). In DC, Caitlin Dewey writes Budweiser "pulled out all the stops" in its spot, pitching the beer with a "tear-jerker of a spot on the company’s disaster-relief work for last year’s hurricanes." But neither Budweiser’s "good deeds, nor its slick marketing, can camouflage what’s happened to the once-ubiquitous brand: Budweiser is in the midst of a long, steady decline, the victim of drinkers’ shifting preferences" (WASHINGTON POST, 2/5).
