Whether you like football (we’re talking about the American kind here, sorry Patrick Stewart) or not, the Super Bowl happened. And even though the game was a near shutout for the Broncos, it’s still fun to watch the expensive ads that came out of it. Here are all the new commercials that we think were worth seeing this year, whether it be for their wit, style, humor, or sheer awesomeness.
Updated on 2-03-2014 by Josh: We just added in a bunch of new ads that aired during the game.
Bud Light Platinum, Schwarzenegger, and Reggie Watts in a Hummo
Bud Light ran bits of an 3 minute extended ad during The Big Game that claimed what would happen when you offer a random guy a Bud Light and a chance to do “whatever happens next” if he accepts the drink. It claims he’s not an actor, but either way they take him on a night-long excursion in a Hummer Limo with Reggie Watts as a personal DJ. Other highlights include a Llama and a sudden death table tennis match with Arnold Schwarzenegger in a wig.
RadioShack makes fun of itself
Remember the 1980s? RadioShack does, and probably wishes it were the ’80s again. Still, the company knows people think of it as out of time and out of touch. Its latest ad features two clerks being told that “The 80’s called, and they want their stuff back,” followed by an army consisting of Jason, California Raisins, Alf, and Hulk Hogan tearing the store apart. RadioShack made the ad to highlight how much it’s changed, but we’ll leave that part up to you.
The Mob wants a bite of Peanut M&Ms
Featuring a menacing drive up a mountain slope in the night, Requiem for a Dream-esque music, and some gritty looking mobsters, M&M’s ad seems like the introduction for a cops & robbers movie than for the candy with a coated shell. A gritty mobster threatens the Yellow M&M to do some terrible things to him, but he just doesn’t understand him and is willing to go along.
Esurance giving away $1.5 million
Esurance bought the first ad that comes up after The Super Bowl ends, and the best way it thought to spend the savings was to give it away to one lucky Twitter user. People who tweet #esurancesave30 before 1 a.m. PDT Tuesday have a chance to win the money they’re giving away. It’s a crazy way to spend the same amount of money as a regular Super Bowl ad, but as a result Esurance has been trending on Twitter all night.
Morpheus sings for Kia
Kia is not the most known name among the suite of luxury vehicles on the market, but the company wants to change that and is using Laurence Fishburne’s character Morpheus from The Matrix to do it. They have him offer an iconic “red or blue” option to an unsuspecting couple who want their car, only to lead Morpheus into a short operatic moment. Agent Smith was also recently in a slew of GE commercials, so it’s unsurprising to now see Morpheus doing the same. Some fans will think it’s disloyal to the franchise, but after Matrix Revolutions does it really matter?
Microsoft promotes the heartwarming good effects of technology
Microsoft decided to take an entirely different angle with this year’s Super Bowl ad and showed all the ways technology is helping, changing, and empowering people. Whether it be to help look over a patient’s records, give someone the ability to speak, or help make technology more accessible, Microsoft is all for it and flaunts its various Windows and Kinect products as the way to do it.
The Muppets get friendly with Terry Crews and Toyota
It looks like the Muppets, Terry Crews, and Toyota are in cahoots now. You’d never expect former NFL player Terry Crews to wear business attire unless he was about to explode in a flurry of Old Spice products, but this ad instead has him hitchhike the Muppets’ official band, Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem, in his new Toyota Highlander. It feels a little rushed, but channels the good old fun of The Muppets with Terry Crews going from a pencil pusher into a crazy groupie.
Newcastle Brown Ale goes meta with “Super B****” ad
Let’s face it, Newcastle Brown Ale just knows how to make funny ads. The latest one from the British brown beer maker makes fun of the whole Superbowl antics and won’t air at the Super Bowl. As a result they cannot use words associated with the event like “The Big Game,” or of course “Super Bowl.” This ad, featuring Anna Kendrick, makes fun of the whole fact they can’t say the word. It’s great.
Tim Tebow is pumped he doesn’t have a contract
T-Mobile seems to do no wrong lately. Tim Tebow is a free agent since leaving the New York Jets, and the magenta-colored carrier decided to grab him to be its Super Bowl frontman. The ad shows Tebow enjoying his time as a free agent, picking up a bunch of new hobbies. It’s funny seeing Tebow as an actor, not to mention with T-Mobile selling its Uncarrier status on the fact that Tebow is out of a job right now.
Volkswagen’s ad shows off a fact about the company
Most of the time Super Bowl ads try to focus on the football hype or their own crazy antics, and as a result they often talk very little about the company or the product they’re promoting. Volkswagen did make an ad with engineers sprouting wings and emitting rainbows, but it also comments on the durability of its cars, and how they have the most cars with more than 100,000 miles on the road. The ad is a little quirky, but also cute and makes an interesting point.
Squarespace shows us the horrors of the Web
Let’s face it, the Web is a scary place. Between our distant relative’s baby photos and the annoying ads to lose weight, change insurance, or lower our mortgages, it can get pretty crazy. And that’s before you factor in the memes. Squarespace, which lets you custom design websites, gets this and has put out an ad that shows what the Web would look like if it was crossed with a twisted, carnival-infused apocalypse.
The three dads from ‘Full House’ in a yogurt commercial
You may remember seeing Full House actor John Stamos in a number of commercials for Dannon’s Oikos brand of Greek yogurt. This time around though they’ve found a way to wrangle in Dave Coulier and Bob Saget, too. They jump in on Stamos as he’s enjoying a sentimental moment with, of course, a young lady and some Oikos. We’re not sure why this comes at the same time as a “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” skit also featuring the Full House trio, but it’s still fun.
That’s it for now. If we missed any great ones let us know in the comments below.
Article first published on 2-02-2014.