Witherly Heights Reviews the Top 10 Superbowl Ads
By: Nitya Sharma and Anya Patri
Despite the lack of fans, action, and volume this Superbowl, it has been agreed that the advertisements were unparalleled. The pandemic took a front seat this year, with many companies choosing to highlight themes of unity, love, and compassion through their advertisements. However, don’t assume the ads were dry- in fact, they were anything but. Perhaps more than any year before, the 2021 Super Bowl ads prioritized humor, giving viewers something to laugh about between tackles and touchdowns.
Michael B. Jordan is the New Alexa
Amazon followed through on their vow to humanize Alexa by giving the voice command robot an actual human form- that form being the body of Michael B. Jordan. However, the efforts to make Alexa more relatable may have gone a bit too far, as viewers watched the main actor slowly drift from her husband and fall more and more in love with the mesmerizing fountain of knowledge that is Michael B. Jordan.
Dr. Squatch Wants Men to Smell…“Titillating”
Sorry ladies, this ad isn’t for you. Dr. Squatch, a company we have all seen advertising their titillating soap across Youtube, earned a coveted spot in this year’s Super Bowl, informing real men of the fecal quality of their current soap. Dr. Squatch informed our manlier counterparts that if you want to open pickle jars and slay dragons, you have to throw away your name brand body washes and go au natural- a sentiment they took a bit too seriously.
Paramount+ Creates the Crossover of the Century
The product of the rebranding of CBS All Access, Paramount Plus announces their March 4 launch with a bang- or rather, a dance party on a mountain. The ad features a crossover of many American favorites, including Dora, Trevor Noah, Stephen Colbert, and Beavis and Butthead. Sir Patrick Stewart gathers beloved characters from Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, CBS, MTV, Paramount Pics, and more (in a show of very un-scrooge-like behavior) onto Paramountain, a metaphor for the fact that each of those characters now have entertainment streaming on Paramount Plus. If that isn’t enough to seal the deal, Spongebob also makes a guest appearance, interrupting the ad with a brief musical performance.
“No Way, Norway!”
Good Ole’ American Patriotism is finally being used for good in this electric vehicle advertisement by General Motors. Will Ferrell, upon hearing the news that Norway is “out ev-ing” us, quickly gathers Kenan Thompson and Akwafina, and boards a boat heading North. Rather than reaching Norway, the trio ends up split between Sweden and Finland- an ode to Americans lack of geography skill perhaps? However, Ferrell doesn’t leave Scandinavia before GM vows to have 30 new electric vehicles by 2025 and leaving one last threat- “We’re Coming.” Norway is shaking in their boots right now.
Fiverr Finds a Fifth Season
Fiverr surprised everyone with what may have been the most loaded advertisement of the entire Super Bowl. Playing off of Donald Trump’s infamous election blunder, in which he scheduled a press conference at Four Seasons Total Landscaping rather than the Four Seasons Hotel, Fiverr’s ad starred the President of Four Seasons, (the landscaping company not the hotel chain) who led viewers on a tour of the facilities, complete with Vivaldi’s “four seasons” playing in the background. Fiverr’s words for the former president? You should have hired your PR expert from us…Perfect.
Reddit’s Five Second Ad
Reddit’s short ad in the superbowl looked almost like a glitch, with only five seconds of screentime, but worked surprisingly well in their favor. It is now the most googled Superbowl ad this year (likely due to the majority of the population’s inability to read three paragraphs in the blink of an eye). Despite the fact that they spent “their entire marketing budget on 5 seconds of airtime,” it definitely paid off.
3D Doritos and #FlatMatthew
For the first time since they got discontinued in the early 2000s, 3D Doritos are back- and what better way to announce their return than a star-studded Superbowl commercial featuring Mindy Kaling, Jimmy Kimmel, and, most horrifying of all, a 2D Matthew McConaughey. The ad follows the adventures of McConaughey as he navigates the difficulties of being flat- until he tries 3D Doritos and the world comes back into the definition for him. This sparked the #FlatMatthew for the 3D Doritos marketing campaign. Moral of the story: I now have a new sleep paralysis demon.
Jeep Gets Surprisingly Political
This ad starts off with a church in Kansas that is allegedly in the middle of the United States and is a safe place for all, where Jeep urges us to meet in the middle, “between red and blue.” I, for one, am not particularly inclined to take political advice from a car ad that includes Bruce Springstein driving to a church in the middle of winter, and much of the internet agrees. As politics has become more and more of a defining characteristic in America today, this ad, while entertaining, has terrible timing. Still, I appreciate the sentiment…kind of.
Pringles is Taking Chaotic Advertising to A New Level
This ad was a rollercoaster from start to finish, and after watching it multiple times, I’m still unsure of what’s going on. It starts out with astronauts stranded in the ocean, their crew having forgotten about them while eating Pringles. And in the next moment, a ship passes by with the sailors, deaf to their cries for help, eating stacks of the Pringles. This ad is interesting, to say the least, and is definitely worth a watch if you want to confuse yourself. All I’ve gotten so far is that Pringles turn people against astronauts.
Squarespace’s Spin On The Typical Workday
With a fun ad featuring a colorful set, a flamboyant musical number, and Dolly Parton singing a variation of her original song, “9-5,” Squarespace went all out for their 5-9 ad on creating websites and following your dreams. This was a great homage to one of America’s most iconic songs, and really, Dolly Parton telling you to “Change your life,” and “do something that gives it meaning” is the kind of encouragement everyone needs.