He omitted the ad for boner pills featuring four aging men (in order) carrying a big long surfboard, adjusting a big long mast on his boat, jogging past some big long thick trees, and leaning back in the driver's seat so that the front chassis of his car extends outwards from his crotch. I wonder what it all means.

But the biggest problem I have with the ad is the little girl. The music drops a bit for her car-seat solo, and she nails it as much as a three-year-old can nail it, which is to say, it's delightfully perfect in its imperfections.

Yes, yes, yes. I feel vindicated that this was the main talking point of this item. I hate a lot of the commercials we're subjected to, if for no other reason than the repetition, but this one, this one I cannot physically stand to keep the sound on during specifically because of this little girl. Every time I hear it, I picture her parents probably thinking she's the most talented kid to appear in a commercial since Mikey.

He omitted the ad for boner pills featuring four aging men (in order) carrying a big long surfboard, adjusting a big long mast on his boat, jogging past some big long thick trees, and leaning back in the driver's seat so that the front chassis of his car extends outwards from his crotch. I wonder what it all means.

I watched a game last week with my mom, who isn't much of a fan, but will occasionally watch a game. It's not until you're watching a game with your mom that you realize how many times they air these Viagra commercials during one game.

Is Springsteen singing "The Traaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinnnnnnnnn" in those ads? I thought it was "strain." Admittedly, I am really bad at determining song lyrics.

I hate the T-Mobile 1-2 Kalamazoo ad, too.

"This train"

although "the strain" would work well for enhancement as well as bowel movement products.

I know someone who had the ideal TV ad off "Land of Hope and Dreams" lyrics, with qucik-panning of different spots for each:

Well, this train carries saints (Jeter) and sinners (Rose)
This train carries losers (A-Rod, Rose) and winners (Jeter, Rose)
This train carries whores (Jeter, A-Rod, Rose) and gamblers (Rose)
This train carries lost souls (A-Rod, Rose)

they each get multiple appearances

but please post your own cast for these...

It's not the train. It's this train. I can see how you'd shift the s to the second word.

Oops. Howie beat me to it.

I love post #5.

As for "This Train," the problem is (besides being massively overplayed) Bruce's recent studio cut of "Land of Hope and Dreams" is polished to within an inch of its life, it lacks soul. The original, live version from Live in New York City is pretty great, one of my favorite latter-day Bruce tracks. The instrumentation and backup chorus in the live version is rawer and Bruce's vocals in the live version have a rough desperation that is completely missing in the studio version. The studio version is just a bland vaguely inspirational tune, like an upgraded Fray or Train song. The studio version is sung by a hopeful man, the live version is sung by a hopeless man.
[/end Bruce nerd crap]

I hate the T-Mobile 1-2 Kalamazoo ad, too.

I would love to work in the creative side of advertising for, like, a week to see how ads like this are actually conceived.
"Ok, so we have nationwide 3G. Why don't we show this off by having a real life version of the Esurance girl drive around on a space motorcycle while mentioning different cities? That'll be effective!"

I'm sorta being serious here, if any Primates have ad experience I'd love to know how odd, pointless ads like this come to be.

Cougar Town is actually a pretty good show. I was as surprised as you are.

I watched a game last week with my mom, who isn't much of a fan, but will occasionally watch a game. It's not until you're watching a game with your mom that you realize how many times they air these Viagra commercials during one game.

It's not until you watch playoff games with your 7-year-old son that you realize how little you feel like explaining what "illness" the Viagra is "treating." TE, Jr. basically knows that Viagra is for older men who are "sick" and that the medicine has lots of side effects...

Don't forget the ####### avocados. Apparently you can't watch a baseball game without a jumbo-size cooler full of avocados.

At least someone gets to.

there are absolutely tons of ads for boner pills - including the stuff that smiling bob peddles

i wonder how many men actually HAVE problems or just think they should have their 16 year old youknowwhat back even though they are 45 - which looks like about how old the guys in the ad are

Concept: Taco Bell is going to give you gourmet diarrhea now, which is like regular diarrhea, but with crème fraîche drizzled on top in a haphazardly elegant pattern

I may never eat Mexican food again.

As for "This Train," the problem is (besides being massively overplayed) Bruce's recent studio cut of "Land of Hope and Dreams" is polished to within an inch of its life, it lacks soul. The original, live version from Live in New York City is pretty great, one of my favorite latter-day Bruce tracks. The instrumentation and backup chorus in the live version is rawer and Bruce's vocals in the live version have a rough desperation that is completely missing in the studio version. The studio version is just a bland vaguely inspirational tune, like an upgraded Fray or Train song. The studio version is sung by a hopeful man, the live version is sung by a hopeless man.

I agree with your assessment of the difference; I just disagree that it reflects so badly on the new version. They're very different songs and I'm sometimes in the mood for the old one. But the Wrecking Ball version has really grown on me. Just like the title song (which initially felt like a pale imitation of its live performances) feels more and more right each time I hear it. They're still not 'polished,' but I like to hear some hopefulness in Bruce.

The Wrecking Ball version of "American Land," however, is a travesty compared to the version from Dublin a few years back. He sounds drunk (and not in a good way) on this one.

I'm sorta being serious here, if any Primates have ad experience I'd love to know how odd, pointless ads like this come to be.

I'm equally as curious about how the decision was made that "BJ Upton diving back into first base against the Twins" was the most appropriate picture to use at the top of the article.

I'm sorta being serious here, if any Primates have ad experience I'd love to know how odd, pointless ads like this come to be.

Basically there's somebody at T-Mobile in a position of power who is a total idiot. Possibly an egomaniac as well, since many times with a bad campaign it's an agency trying to delve inside the head of the idiot who commissioned it yet shoots down a load of better ideas.

Frank TV.
That is all.

DEJA DEJA DEJA DEJA DEJA DEJA VU

there are absolutely tons of ads for boner pills - including the stuff that smiling bob peddles

During the last NCAA tournament, I tracked and classified every TV ad that I saw for the whole month. I thought for sure that trucks or beer would be #1, but the runaway winner with something like 25% of ads were for car insurance.

I may never eat Mexican food again.

That's your problem, Taco Bell is not Mexican food, I'm not sure that it is food of any variety.

This may have been mentioned before but if I never have to see another promo for "Cougar Town" or Conan O'Brien, it will be fine with me.

He omitted the ad for boner pills featuring four aging men (in order) carrying a big long surfboard, adjusting a big long mast on his boat, jogging past some big long thick trees, and leaning back in the driver's seat so that the front chassis of his car extends outwards from his crotch. I wonder what it all means.

Common daily tasks involving travel are much easier when you can deploy your massive, chemically-engorged penis as a supplementary limb.

Even running, which seems counterintuitive.

Basically there's somebody at T-Mobile in a position of power who is a total idiot. Possibly an egomaniac as well, since many times with a bad campaign it's an agency trying to delve inside the head of the idiot who commissioned it yet shoots down a load of better ideas.

Yeah, pretty much.

including the stuff that smiling bob peddles

I thought they had to take those off the market because they provided no demonstrable benefit. You're still seeing ads for them?

Cougarton is a surprisingly good show - the lowest stakes comedy you can write, but charming and fun and silly. Recommended if you want to watch something funny and fluffy and not feel stupider afterward.

I'm glad to see the horrid DirectTV ad at #1. It's like the Neil LaBute version of a couples-squabbling ad, but without the strand of hope that the director means for you to hate his characters. It's incredible the way a 30-second spot can manage to convey the years of emotional abuse the poor woman has suffered. Every time he looks at the camera and brushes his teeth, I feel like I need to take a shower.

They're totally wrong about "This Train" though. I still enjoy that song, even after the hundredth clip of the chorus. I have proposed, and continue to propose, that MLB just makes "Land of Hope and Dreams" their official playoff music.

DEJA DEJA DEJA DEJA DEJA DEJA VU

This. First ad I thought of when I saw the headline. The rest of the ad isn't that bad but that line's worse than nails on a chalkboard.

They're totally wrong about "This Train" though. I still enjoy that song, even after the hundredth clip of the chorus.

The problem is that for those of us who aren't already familiar with the song, it manifests as a few seconds of indecipherable sound behind other stuff, ending with "thiiiiiiiis train". It doesn't seem like a song at all. Just two words that MLB got Bruce Springsteen to sing for some reason. Why not get him to sing "baaaaaaaase ball" instead?

I'm glad to see the horrid DirectTV ad at #1. It's like the Neil LaBute version of a couples-squabbling ad, but without the strand of hope that the director means for you to hate his characters. It's incredible the way a 30-second spot can manage to convey the years of emotional abuse the poor woman has suffered. Every time he looks at the camera and brushes his teeth, I feel like I need to take a shower.

This ad is men's revenge for last year's AT+T greenhouse commercial.

including the stuff that smiling bob peddles


I thought they had to take those off the market because they provided no demonstrable benefit. You're still seeing ads for them?

I haven't seen Smiling' Bob in an awfully long time. It's too bad, I loved that guy, his boundless optimism was inspiring.

I'm glad to see the horrid DirectTV ad at #1. It's like the Neil LaBute version of a couples-squabbling ad, but without the strand of hope that the director means for you to hate his characters. It's incredible the way a 30-second spot can manage to convey the years of emotional abuse the poor woman has suffered. Every time he looks at the camera and brushes his teeth, I feel like I need to take a shower.

I don't understand what that ad is even trying to convey. If your TV notifies you that it's unable to record two shows at once, that's like having a huge screen in your bathroom that broadcasts your nudity to the world? It doesn't even make sense.

I have to say, though, it's not quite as gross as the cell-phone ad where a dad compares his amount of body hair to that of his two teenage children.

This. First ad I thought of when I saw the headline. The rest of the ad isn't that bad but that line's worse than nails on a chalkboard.

Yeah, the rest of the ad is pretty good, especially the guy getting his mind blown by the headphone jack being on the bottom.

I don't understand what that ad is even trying to convey.

My guess is that the point is that being unable to record more than two shows at once is such a horrible inconvenience that it affects all aspects of your life.

I liked the earlier versions of the T-Mobile commercial. Now the lips of the woman, may not be the voice of the woman and there may not even be a woman riding the motorcycle. Then in another version, the model is walking in slow-motion to the right of the camera and she looks very anorexic and I stopped liking the commercial.

With respect to live and studio versions of "Land of Hope and Dreams," I've seen local bands do their songs with a lot of energy live. But they get in the studio and all the life gets sucked of the performance when I hear the CD or MP3. I don't know if it's all the gadgetry that they feel they have to use or studio professionals who want a very technically clean product.

My favorite strategy for dealing with postseason commercials is to pop in a DVD and set a timer for 2 minutes and about 35 or 40 seconds. With at least 17 innings breaks and the usual number of pitching changes and arguments about disputed calls, I can just about watch an entire pre-code classic film and not be bothered by any of that shit that they're trying to peddle. It does wonders for one's long term sanity.

Cougarton is a surprisingly good show - the lowest stakes comedy you can write, but charming and fun and silly. Recommended if you want to watch something funny and fluffy and not feel stupider afterward.

I've never seen the actual show so I can't comment on that. My point was that the promos that TBS has been showing multiple times per game do not make me want to tune in.

My point was that the promos that TBS has been showing multiple times per game do not make me want to tune in.

Yes. I mean, why slag the title? I don't think it's the best title in the world, but it's hardly the worst. It makes me think less of TBS that they transparently slag something someone else developed.

Also, the main premise of the commercials is that Courtney Cox likes to drink wine.

I'm glad to see the horrid DirectTV ad at #1. It's like the Neil LaBute version of a couples-squabbling ad, but without the strand of hope that the director means for you to hate his characters. It's incredible the way a 30-second spot can manage to convey the years of emotional abuse the poor woman has suffered. Every time he looks at the camera and brushes his teeth, I feel like I need to take a shower.

Yeah, this ad actually makes me uncomfortable. Plus, the hostility comes out of nowhere. He's not dismissive or rude before, it's just out of the blue.

That's your problem, Taco Bell is not Mexican food, I'm not sure that it is food of any variety.

Yep. How can otherwise intelligent people not figure out that a 3 pound "steak" burrito selling for $.69 (or whatever) is pretty much by definition not filled with anything sane people consider "food"?

I've seen 10 episodes of Cougar Town and while the supporting cast is good, almost every episode had Courtney Cox freaking out about and overreacting to some tiny relationship problem.

My TV broke down a couple of months ago, and I haven't gotten around to getting a new one. I've mostly been listening to the games on XM. This thread makes me think that, by not seeing the commercials, I'm missing out on a lot of pop culture that will come back to haunt me.

Has it really been a decade since her father was the district attorney?

i find that geico does a good job of keeping it fresh. they keep recycling their old memes in different ways, which keeps people interested, and then they do new angles. the new thing that i like that they are doing is those two guys picking and grinning about how people like geico. the two guys themselves aren't that interesting, but the one with the witch in the broom factory is hilarious. the look she has when she lands and gestures for the factory guy to give her a new broom is priceless.

all that said, i still have no desire to buy geico insurance. i really wonder about the overall effectiveness of the hip, smart campaigns.

Remember in the early 90's all the advertising for collect call numbers? Whoever spent all that money on those ads might as well have just dumped the cash into a landfill.

i also like the one with the guy made out of money. its funny in a silly kind of way.

I hate those Samsung ads, especially the one with the kid saving a spot in line for his parents.

Also, mocking many of the people you're hoping to buy your product seems like a really bad idea.

Yes. I mean, why slag the title? I don't think it's the best title in the world, but it's hardly the worst. It makes me think less of TBS that they transparently slag something someone else developed.

I doubt the name-slagging comes from TBS. Bill Lawrence, the show-runner, has been very clear that he hates the name and wants it changed. The stuff about how bad the name is probably comes from the show's writers and producers, not from TBS.

I heard Lawrence tell the story of the genesis of the show on WTF. He was wasting time in the writers room on Scrubs talking about possible next shows, and he made a joke that if he told ABC that he had a show called "Cougar Town" with Courtney Cox starring as a newly-single middle-aged woman, they would pick it up off that one-sentence pitch. The writers loved it, starting ####### around creating a joke show, until Lawrence thought that there was actually something there. He pitched it to Cox, she was in, then he pitched it to ABC, and he had a show.

The problem was, it was still a really stupid premise for a show. The "cougar" thing was first, stupid, and second, terrible for a comedy because it required major guest stars every week as her conquests. So there was no time to actually build an ensemble and the chemistry a comedy needs. So they ditched the "cougar" aspect of the show after two months and turned the show into a low-key ensemble sitcom about the small problems of early-middle-aged folks in a Florida suburb. The name "Cougar Town" continued to promise dumb, sexy antics, the show itself wasn't dumb, only occasionally attained to sexy, and contained basically no antics. Lawrence thinks the name really hurt the show, but who knows for sure. I think creating a dumb show in the first place was more likely the problem. It's pretty good now.

by not seeing the commercials, I'm missing out on a lot of pop culture that will come back to haunt me.

dude, you're not missing anything. i mean, just read my last two posts ...

Also, mocking many of the people you're hoping to buy your product seems like a really bad idea.

Samsung and Apple are not exactly on the best of terms right now.

I too find those commercials annoying, but I don't think they're necessarily a bad idea. They're like political attack ads. The people they will offend weren't going to buy what you were selling anyways. They're mobilizing the base and hoping to pick off some undecideds.

Taco Bell is not Mexican food, I'm not sure that it is food of any variety.

Totally agree, but I figured my one-liner sounded better with a broader scope.

The ad agencies should collect feedback on these ads mid-playoffs. They might decide to deep-six some of them before they totally destroy their product. But maybe it hits home with some segment of the population, like Nigerian email scams - it doesn't matter how much you annoy non-customers, as long as you land some new ones. EDIT: like ASmitty said in #46.

When the NLCS was in rain delay, Fox got some first-time viewers for shows like "How I Met Your Mother" that they ran. I was one, or at least I half-watched it, waiting for updates on the game restart. The network probably garnered a few new viewers for future episodes this way.

Fox got some first-time viewers for shows like "How I Met Your Mother" that they ran. I was one, or at least I half-watched it, waiting for updates on the game restart. The network probably garnered a few new viewers for future episodes this way.

Unfortunately for Fox, those new viewers will watch the show on CBS.

The best part of the boner pills commercials are the listing of the side effects. I can't believe that some of the choices are you will get a boner but there is the possibility of "shortness of breath" "heart attack" "Explosive diarrhea" . I think I would take the choice of being able to breathe over getting a boner.

Samsung and Apple are not exactly on the best of terms right now.

True, but why go after Apple customers? Maybe I'm old fashioned, but a straightforward ad that said "our product is better than Apple's for reasons x, y, and z" might be more effective.