E*TRADE – Enzo
The E*TRADE talking baby ads ran out of steam a while ago, particularly once they switched to using a new baby. It was a jarring transition; we were all very attached to the other CGI talking baby. But this year the online transaction company managed to bring some cleverness back to its promo spots, by bringing in Enzo, the baby's fashion consultant. Their relationship is creepy enough to be unsettling… but also pretty damn hilarious.
Homeaway.com – Test Baby
Want more unsettling babies? Look no further than Homeaway.com's Test Baby ad, featuring some wonky British bureaucrat looking to help people enjoy their vacations. How is he so good at it? Well, he has a testing site complete with a special test family, including a test baby, which happens to find itself smashed against a window by the end of the ad. But just to be clear, Homeaway.com does not advocating throwing children against plate glass – only test babies.
Doritos – Pug
Doritos has gone with do-it-yourself commercials made by loyal Doritos customers for a couple years now, and it has resulted in commercials that have been cute, quirky and just plain insane (remember the Doritos ninja?). This year's leaned more toward the cute and quirky, particularly the best of their lot, which starred a Dorito-loving pug (easily one of the more adorable breeds of dogs) with a surprising amount of strength.
House, M.D. – Mean Joe Green parody
Dr. Gregory House has a lot in common with Mean Joe Green. They're both mean. And actually, the similarities kinda end there. But that was enough for Fox to craft a promo spot spoofing the famous Mean Joe Green Coca-Cola ad, with House sitting in for Mean Joe Green. And instead of a kid offering him a Coke, the kid from ""Dexter"" offers House a churro, and in exchange House offers sardonic wit and his cane, which hits the kid in the face. It really reminds you of why you love ""House,"" but it also makes you want a churro.
Budweiser – Tiny Dancer
Let's forget for a second that Budweiser sucks. What we can all agree on is the awesomeness of Swedish actor Peter Stormare, best known for his role as the quiet creepy guy in ""Fargo"" and the nihilist in ""The Big Lebowski."" He's a freak, and a terrifying one at that (plus you know something is wrong the second he walks into a saloon and demands a Budweiser, as if it's something that actually tastes good). But then the Budweiser delivery cart comes and everybody breaks into a rendition of Elton John's ""Tiny Dancer,"" and everything is OK. Confusing, but OK.
Teleflora – Help Me Faith
This ad doubles both as humor AND Valentine's Day advice. Has anybody ever told you to just be yourself, to just say what is in your heart? Well, that's bullshit, as Faith Hill learns when she tries to give a sound mixer some advice. Apparently, all that was in his heart was an affection for his girlfriend's sizable chest area – which probably isn't a terribly uncommon feeling, so girlfriends of the world, don't be like Faith Hill.
*Honorable mention to the Volkswagen ad with the Darth Vader kid. I know everybody loved it, and it was cute. But not cute enough.
Special Achievement in Awfulness: Groupon – Tibet
Last week, fashion designer Kenneth Cole caused an uproar when he posted a Tweet promoting his new spring collection by tying it in with the revolution in Egypt. Groupon just did pretty much the same thing, only instead of a Tweet they made a $2 million Super Bowl ad and instead of Egypt they used Tibet. Groupon trotted out Oscar-winner Timothy Hutton to make the ad seem like a public service announcement for the ""Free Tibet"" campaign – then transitioned it into a cheap gag about great deals on curry. It was tasteless, insensitive and, at its most basic level, not funny. Advertisers of the world, let's be clear on one thing: areas of international strife are not fair game for pitching a product – it's just lame.
