As like most Americans, I watched the Super Bowl yesterday. Even non-football fans attend parties and casually watch the game. Sure many do not in an almost defiant manner. I understand all perspectives. I like pro football and almost have a feeling that I want boycott the game. But I don’t.
What started out as a championship game between two rival leagues (the established NFL and the up-start AFL), has now taken on a new meaning. It is a cultural event. The ads get as much attention as the game with many people jokingly stating they “watch it for the ads and the football game is just in the way.” But there is a level of truth there. With today’s social media, the discussion of the ads can be done in real time or even before the game.
VW received criticism for their ad having a white guy from Minnesota speak in a Jamaican accent. Some deemed it racist, but many (including the Jamaican Department of Tourism) found it funny. The ad received a ton of publicity and was one of the most talked about ads. I thought it was funny.
Go Daddy always gets into some hot water over their ads. They generally use scantily clad women and Danica Patrick to promote their site. Every year, they get grief for their ads. But it does seem to work for them. This year, they had a super-model french kissing with a nerd. Probably got the most groans and the biggest gross out of all the ads. But again, a lot of attention.
I am not going to run down all the ads, but these two seemed to be the ones that stuck in my mind the most. There were some funny car commercials but I don’t remember which ad went with which car company. I also found the Coke, Pepsi and Budweiser ads forgettable. Except the Bud ad with the clydesdale. Made me cry. It was an excellent commercial. But I won’t drink anymore beer because of it.
The interesting thing is because of Twitter and others, but my preferred choice to follow the game and the ads is Twitter. I could get a completely different perspective of the ads. It is like the entire country is watching something in real time. In this day and age of “watch when you want to,” the Superbowl is one of the few events that everyone watched live. No one tapes it for later. So, that adds a special angle to the game.
Back to the actual game. I enjoyed it. I was rooting for Baltimore although it really didn’t matter to me who won. It was a competitive game with momentum shifts that are generally not so profound in football. The 34-minute blackout (and all the Twitter jokes) made it a game to remember. It also shifted the momentum. Prior to that, the Ravens were cruising 28-6 and it looked like the game was over. But what a difference in the 49ers after the power outage.
Other aspects of the game worth noting is the head coaches are brothers. A very cool side-story. I am glad the older brother John won.
Another season, another Super Bowl. I enjoyed it throughout.
