rp Reacts: Big Game Ads

Some folks tuned in to see the Chiefs vs. the 49ers, some to catch a glimpse of Taylor Swift, and others for the Usher nostalgia. Our cup of tea? The ad breaks in between, of course. 

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Our team huddled up and discussed our favorite advertising moments from last night’s game—take a scroll to see our thoughts. 

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Brands Scoring Major Points

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CeraVe was spot on and a great example that something as simple as a product sounding like something else can lead to fun and memorable work.

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Pluto’s couch potato spot was wonderfully hilarious and reminiscent of Tubi’s rabbit hole spot from last year. Best one in my book.

- Drew Beamer, Creative Director

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Doordash was actually funny and interesting with the super long promo code that you had to type in exactly right, and the fact that they are giving away one of everything from the other ads was unique to me! 

- Abigail Timms, Graphic Designer

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It was so quick I had to rewatch, to be sure—but a tardigrade made it to the Superbowl in the Pfizer ad! A personal high for me.

- Karla Jackson, Marketing Practice Creative Director

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The NFL Sunday Ticket “Migration” spot depicting all of the avian NFL teams as actual birds was delightful. I want more nonsense ads like that.

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Michael CeraVe was the better of the two meta “corporate team reviews the ad in the ad” spots.

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Pluto TV’s couch potato farm was probably my fave overall. It captured the growing sentiment around subscription TV getting too pricey with plenty of charm. However, I worry about their tagline, “Stream now. Pay Never.” will age like milk. No streamer has ever kept their promises.

- Spencer Watson, Senior Graphic Designer

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Less Celebs FTW

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My darkhorse pick is Reese’s. Why?

• No celebrities, indicating a smaller budget. I gravitate towards the underdogs.
• Straightforward, charming and humorous
• Clear message / takeaway: Reese’s has a new product, not getting rid of the original
• Dramatized consumer reactions, leveraging emotional mirroring (similar to sitcom laugh tracks)

- Ryan Dunlap, Creative Operations Creative Director

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I appreciate less unnecessary use of celebrities this year—and when they were used, it was mostly well placed I thought. After rewatching a few ads, I think the Bet MGM ad with Tom Brady was my personal favorite for use of a celeb. 

- Caroline Meyer, Account Director

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Pluto TV was one of the first ones to have something to say instead of paying celebrities a lot to say it. 

- Karla Jackson, Marketing Practice Creative Director

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A Few Fumbles

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Temu made it clear that they don’t care about messaging deeper than “buy our stuff”.

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Dunkin was funny-ish, but rather painful to watch. Tom Brady’s back must be sore because he carried that whole spot.

- Drew Beamer, Creative Director

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Temu's "Shop like a billionaire" tagline felt very out of touch. Firstly, billionaires are not spending $0.99 on products from such a sketchy company. Secondly and more importantly, with the financial state that a lot of people are in, asking them to shop like they have more money than they do feels wrong and insensitive.

- Abigail Timms, Graphic Designer

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