Dr. Jim's 2026 Super Bowl Ads Review
A little bit o' salt, a little bit o' spice, and a whole lotta suggestions.
For well over a decade now, I’ve written reviews of Super Bowl ads. I watch them through two lenses: marketing professor and creative soul. I know I’m not always the target audience, but I try to understand what each brand is going for with its spot. Sometimes they hit the mark. Most of the time…they don’t.
So, in what has become an annual tradition, here is my 2026 Super Bowl Ads Review. I hope you enjoy it, and I’m looking forward to seeing where we agree - and where we absolutely do not - on this year’s commercials.
Disclaimer: I’ve only reviewed ads released before the game. I actually like to watch the Super Bowl without typing the entire time (a lesson learned the hard way). We can compare notes later on any ads that weren’t pre-released and on whether the teaser spots I mention below lived up to the hype. ;-)
Here we go, from best to worst…
MANSCAPED - “Hair Ballad”
This spot is Hair: The Musical...wait, let me try that again....this spot is a musical about hair. Specifically, we get clumps of hair on the sink, on the floor, on the toilet seat, singing a sad song about how they will miss the part of the body they came from. The best line, “Now that you’ve left us for dead, how can I live without your head, no matter how big or how small, we won’t forget your face, your chest, or even your ba...” which gets cut off as the hair is flushed. We get some text: You won’t miss your hair – but it might miss you.” The closing shot is of the brand’s many products, the brand name (in huge letters), and the tagline, “Manscape your everywhere.”
Grade: A+
Fam, this is Super Bowl ad magic. It’s funny, it’s creative, it’s musical, AND it gets the job done! The entire commercial shows the many products and ways Manscaped can help men remove hair from literally every part of their body. This can be an awkward and even embarrassing or vulnerable topic for some people. So, how do we defuse that bomb? Well, we make it funny and turn a gross pile of hair into cute, anthropomorphic creatures singing about how much they’ll miss being on your body. It’s funny, it’s attention-getting, and it’s super tight story. Great job, Manscaped. No notes!
****
Anthropic - “Keep Thinking”
Anthropic’s Super Bowl ads have two goals: get more people familiar with Claude and take a not-so-subtle shot at its biggest competitor (ChatGPT). We see users asking vulnerable, everyday questions - about relationships, appearance, business ideas - and receiving overly polite, robotic responses that feel very familiar. Suddenly, those helpful answers pivot into aggressive ads for questionable products. The message lands: ads may be coming to AI…just not to Claude.
Grade: A-
This is sharp. Claude never says “ChatGPT,” but it absolutely doesn’t need to. The tone of the responses and the scenarios make the target obvious. It’s a clever way to throw shade while keeping things playful and smart. Structurally, the spots are clean and engaging, using dramatic one-word titles and a quick pivot from helpful AI to nightmare ad machine to make the point. The risk here is that the ad spends more time warning about competitors than showing what Claude actually does better. A clearer call to action or app download push wouldn’t have hurt. I don’t love the, “Keep Thinking,” tagline (that launched in 2025 to position Claude as a “thought partner”). Or, if you’re going to include it, make it relevant to the point you’re making in the spot, “Claude: Ad-free so you can keep thinking” (or something pithier). But that’s me being picky. Still, it’s memorable, timely, and already generating buzz: when your competitor’s CEO is responding publicly, you’ve clearly struck a nerve. One of the stronger ads of the year and a bold way to put Claude on more people’s radar.
****
Budweiser – “American Icons”
This spot opens with a young Clydesdale (it is an AB commercial, after all) on a farm discovering an abandoned bird (that we’ll later learn is an eagle). The eaglet is alone, and the Clydesdale notices the bird but then walks off. The next shot is of the eaglet standing out in the rain, shivering. The Clydesdale sees this and then positions itself to stand over the eaglet to block the rain. We see time pass as the two animals get older, seeing eaglet and horse footprints in the snow. The young eagle is attempting to fly. It cannot, yet, but it hops off the barn onto the back of the horse (and we see a Dalmatian – this matters for the review later). Now it’s spring (thank you water melting off leaves in the sun), and the eagle is riding on the back of the horse, flapping its wings as it does, attempting to take off but landing and rolling in the mud. Two farmers notice. The next shot shows the Clydesdale, now an adult, running – the seasons change – it leaps! As it does, the eagle on its back spreads its wings, and we get a striking image that looks more like Pegasus than anything. The eagle takes off in flight, and we see beer filling a Budweiser glass (points for the explicit brand mention) and the text “Made of America. For 150 Years, This Bud’s For You.” Continuing this year’s theme of commercials not ending at the right time, we see the two farmers (who, by the way, were totally unnecessary to make this spot work) drinking beer on a porch. One asks, “You crying?” and the other responds, “The sun’s in my eyes.” Then we see the eagle flying and the Clydesdale galloping with 150 Budweiser overlaid.
Grade: A-
Well, spangle my stars and gleam my twilights, Anheuser-Busch FINALLY has a decent Super Bowl commercial again. For years, AB/Budweiser was known for having among the best (if not *the* best) Super Bowl commercials. I’d show them in my classes, talk through the design, and point out how they often used tried-and-true techniques to elicit emotions (the Jim Mourey trio of babies, dogs, and cute elderly folks – remember that Dalmatian that appeared briefly?). But then, for a painfully long time, they just blew it with stinker after stinker. Not this year. No, this year celebrates 150 years of Budweiser, and AB chose to lean into “America!” That’s, uh, sort of tricky to do in the current climate, yet this commercial somehow manages to pull it off without much drama. I appreciate the use of “Free Bird” as the music track, but I do wish they had conveyed the “Made of America” more clearly in the spot. Come to find out, one of the actors in the commercial is an actual barley farmer in North Dakota. Add a few :15 spots following this commercial showing the eagle visiting the farmland and breweries across America that produce Budweiser/AB products and tell us about what we’re seeing. It’s nice that Budweiser is Made of America, but let’s see it. Still, I’m relieved that the AB drought may have lifted.
****
Bosch - “Just a Guy”
This spot begins with Guy Fieri looking less like Guy Fieri and more like a normal “guy.” That’s the game here: every time normal-looking guy touches a Bosch power tool or appliance, he transforms into cool (?) Guy Fieri. I guess this depends on your definition of “cool” (but, for the record, Guy does a lot of really incredible philanthropy work, which makes him cool in my book). We see him using a fridge, a saw, cookware, a drill, a nail gun, and a dishwasher (which turns his French bulldog into a cool dog). There’s a joke about the dog speaking more than just French with the tagline “The more you Bosch, the more you feel like a Bosch.” There’s even a sound logo (“Bosch” being sung) and the website.
Grade: B+
Here’s the thing. Guy Fieri is a likeable...guy. Bosch is keeping it pretty simple here: use our products, feel better/cooler about yourself. And, importantly, we see product after product – from refrigerators to power tools to cookware. That’s a clever way to “Multiply Options” (from the Jim Mourey book ‘Fusion’ on integrated marketing campaign goals). There’s humor, a dog (remember my trio of secret weapons), and a clear message. The only (minor) tweak I would make is more logo throughout, particularly in close-up shots of the products. All in all, this is a tight spot for a brand generating broad awareness about its quality and portfolio of products.
****
e.l.f. Cosmetics - “Melisa”
This spot shows Melissa McCarthy driving in a car and being told to get ready for the world’s largest reggaeton show (a subtle nod to Bad Bunny’s halftime performance). “But I don’t speak Spanish?!” she says before having an accident. She awakes in a modern telenovela, dramatized and styled the way you would expect. Her Spanish is terrible, but when she puts on the e.l.f. lip gloss, she eventually trains hard enough to roll her r’s. It’s over-the-top dramatic, which is actually really funny (the laughing woman). Eventually, she’s full-on Latina. It’s so dumb, but also sort of great.
Grade: B+
So, this commercial plays in tricky territory: how do you embrace a well-known cultural trope (the telenovela) in a playful way that is still respectful. I can’t help but think the opening line about the reggaeton show and Melissa saying, “But I don’t speak Spanish?!” was a nice jab at the incredibly racist backlash of Bad Bunny being this year’s Super Bowl performer. I’m a big fan of using humor to stick it to people who deserve it. And then we have “Melisa” attempting to learn Spanish in a way that feels genuine, funny, and not offensive. We’re all in on the joke here, and it never crosses the line into tasteless territory. The only missed opportunity is to really feature the product more. Let’s see this lip oil really rev up people’s Spanish-speaking abilities (and maybe toss in a Bad Bunny or Rosalía for good measure – show us how the product helps them really hit those fast-paced lyrics in some of their songs – that would be fun and more inclusive).
****
Novartis - “Relax Your Tight End”
Here, we see a bunch of football players (tight ends, specifically) relaxing. They’re in a pool, painting, petting a horse. What’s the deal? Well, we learn that it’s a commercial for prostate cancer testing. We learn that 1 in 8 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime. This blood test allows you to check for prostate cancer without a doctor sticking a digit in your butt. Sorry, that’s just what we’re saying here. The spot ends with the message, “Find out if a blood test is right for you at relaxitsabloodtest.com.”
Grade: B
We’ve got humor, we have football players people recognize, and we have enough intrigue of why these people are engaging in the activities they are to pay attention. There’s a fun play on “tight ends” here, and while we could argue that people need to chill out about the ol’ finger test (if that sounds painful, let’s talk about childbirth), there is something nice about sending an important message about prostate health to men during such a big event. Let’s hope this makes at least *some* folks take preventative action, which might even save their life. Great use of humor to get a positive outcome!
****
Fanatics Sportsbook – “Bet on Kendall”
In this spot, Kendall Jenner pokes fun at herself and the “curse” circulating on the internet that her boyfriends all seem to hit rough patches when dating her. She makes a joke that she bets on this certain doom, which is how she’s able to afford her lavish lifestyle. She ties her pool, her classic car, and her private jet to specific boyfriends who have suffered. But today? Today is different. Today she’s going to bet on a football team – either the Patriots or the Seahawks – using Fanatics Sportsbook, one of the (seemingly countless) online betting sites that are now legal. She and the private flight attendant make a joke about getting a football boyfriend before breaking out in maniacal, evil laughter. The narrator says, “Bet on Kendall only on Fanatics Sportsbook,” before, what’s this? Kendall is back. She quips, “The Kardashian Curse. It’s not even my last name.”
Grade: B-
Somewhere, in some other universe, the Kardashians don’t exist. I like to think that universe is happier, kinder, and classier. Sadly, we don’t live in that universe, and we’re still dealing with the Kardashian/Jenner clan all these years later (I blame Ryan Seacrest). In this spot, we have Kendall Jenner attempting to do something that I believe she thinks is “acting,” sort of gloating about her wealth and the misery that befalls the people she dates. That’s the thing about the Kardashians: they’re just like you and me. Beyond Jenner’s emotionless delivery, the spot just feels out of touch, and while she’s likely to capture the attention of middle-aged straight dudes watching football, the marketing message sort of gets lost in her distracting story. Not the worst ad, and the athlete curse is clever, but I think we all could live without any more Kardashians.
****
Michelob Ultra – “The Ultra Instructor”
In a twist on “last one there is a rotten egg,” this spot has some winter sport athletes and a few actors (Lewis Pullman and Kurt Russell) showing what happens when someone is last to ski down the hill. Spoiler: they must buy everyone beers. In this case, it’s poor Greg who just sucks at skiing but, as a result, excels at paying for everyone’s round. Fortunately, a kind stranger (Russell) teaches him how to train and ski while Eye of the Tiger (groan) plays in the background. Before you know it, the group is skiing down the hill again and, you guessed it, Greg comes in first. He doesn’t just ski down the hill, he does tricks, Olympics-style (fitting, as Michelob Ultra is the “official beer sponsor of Team USA”). When one of the other athletes goes to pay, the bartender lets them know the tab has been taken care of and gestures toward where Russell was sitting. Gasp! In his place, there’s just an empty glass and his cowboy hat.
Grade: B-
One time, and this is a true story, I went to Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell’s house. On my way there, I called my mom to let her know where I was going. My mom said, “Oh, tell her I said, ‘Hi,’ and that I loved her on (the TV show) Laugh-In!” I wasn’t going to do that to a celebrity I was meeting for the first time. Fast forward and we’re chatting about some work my company was doing for Goldie’s foundation. She mentioned “Laugh-In” circles, but no one really acknowledged what she was saying or reacted in any way. She mentioned “Laugh-In” circles again and yet, once more, no response from anyone. Trying to be polite and help this poor woman out, I spoke up, “Oh, yeah! Laugh-In circles. My mom loved you on that show.” Apparently pleased someone acknowledged what she was saying, she looked at me and said, “Laugh-In Circles” very loudly, to which I responded, “Yes! Laugh-In, my mom loved you, thought you were great. She said to tell you hi.” She again responded, more clearly, “Laugh-In Circles.” I, again repeated this, louder…turns out, she was saying “Laughing circles” referring to a practice in India where a yogi leads a group in laughing exercises. We had a laugh having survived our very own “Who’s on first” experience, and I will tell you that she is, to this day, one of the kindest human beings I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting. I share this story because, just like this commercial, Kurt Russell was nowhere to be seen, but his presence was felt. As for the commercial itself, it’s fine. It’s trying to do a lot – storyline, beer, Olympics, Hollywood celebs, lesser-known celeb athletes – and while it does show the product, it sort of comes off as a forgettable, generic beer commercial, which is a shame. I’d have leaned into the extreme sport angle harder, playing with the word “Ultra” and repeating it, visually and audibly, as frequently as possible. Combine that with more images of the product/logo (but explicitly Michelob Ultra, not just beer in a glass), and it’s all downhill from there (…in, like, the good skiing way).
****
Grubhub – “The Final Course”
The gist is this: a group of eccentric characters stand around a long dining table in a fancy estate (not surprisingly, this spot was also directed by Lanthimos). The final course is delivered – it’s the fees! Then, the characters look around at each other and ask, “Who will eat the fees?” until we get to George Clooney (?!) who says, “Grubhub will eat the fees.” The characters all repeat this line – Grubhub will eat the fees – and the narrator comes in to explain that there will be “no fees on restaurant orders over $50.” That’s it. That’s the spot.
Grade: B-
Listen, we’ve all had the shared experience of ordering on a food delivery app, getting to the final step, and dropping our jaw in amazement when the price we thought we were going to pay doubles because of a series of “fees.” So, this move by Grubhub is smart (get rid of a bit of that pain of paying), and the repetition of Grubhub throughout was solid (particularly in a space where we swap among Uber Eats, DoorDash, and other apps so easily with little to no loyalty at all whatsoever). I guess what rubbed me the wrong way about this spot was trying to understand the game they’re playing. What do I mean? Remember that Grubhub had to pay $25 million to settle claims of deceiving customers about fees, so this promotion is a convenient way to change the story, particularly if anyone Googles “Grubhub fees” going forward. That should probably increase its grade (as it is a clever solution), but I can’t bring myself to do that ethically, so…no tip.
****
Pringles – “Love at First Bite”
Sabrina Carpenter says she is tired of boys and that she needs a man (insert older mentor character voice: “Girl, you don’t *need* anybody.” She creates a man out of Pringles chips, and we see them doing couple-y things together. Going out to eat (his hand falls off), driving (but the Pringles man is driving and, obviously, hitting items in the street – he has no eyes), tying a balloon to his hand (his torso flies away, canoodling under the covers, kissing on the kiss cam (thankfully avoiding the dated Coldplay reference), even chip man lying on the bed seductively. Pringleleo (the chip man’s name) waits for her after a show, but a group of fans rushes the stage door exit, presumably coming for Sabrina? But, no, they actually want Pringleman...for dinner. She kneels down in sadness, but then also starts eating the Pringles. The tag – Once You Pop, the Pop Don’t Stop – appears and is voiced via the narrator.
Grade: B-
It’s fine. We have a well-known (and well-liked) celebrity in Sabrina Carpenter. Pringles isn’t telling us anything new here, but they are keeping their product top-of-mind and associating it with lighthearted humor. The fact that the product is essentially one of the main characters in the spot is helpful. I guess I just wish there were something more to it. Maybe a call to action to have people make their own Pringles people? Maybe a social media push to encourage people to post their own romantic dates with a Pringles person? If the pop doesn’t really stop, then where does this go next, Pringles?
****
Oikos – “The Big Hill”
This spot begins with Kathryn Hahn (love her) and Derrick Henry sitting in a trolley on a big hill in San Francisco. He’s eating Oikos yogurt from a portable cup, she’s drinking Oikos in smoothie (?) form. The trolley gets stuck. Hahn tells Henry to hold her Oikos as she leaps from the trolley car and pushes it over the hill. There’s a bit of comedy as Henry slides up against an older lady (“Hey there, big fella”), and then Hahn realizes she’s without her Oikos, screams for it, and catches the pass from Henry. The narrator speaks: Oikos is packed with complete protein power to build strong muscles. We see “Protein Packed. Stronger makes everything better” and images of Oikos Pro (20g protein), Oikos Triple Zero (18g protein, 0 added sugar, 0 artificial sweetener, 0 fat), and Oikos Protein Shake (30g protein – we have our answer as to what Hahn was drinking).
Grade: B-
This was fine. You have likeable celebrities, a rather straightforward message, and a bit of humor (incl. a cameo from one of Jim Mourey’s trio of Super Bowl secret weapons: a cute, elderly person). There are really two issues here: 1) what are the products, and 2) when should I use them? We have to wait until the end to see the products up close. I’d have started the spot in a grocery store or at a vending machine where these three products are sold. Kathryn can choose her smoothie. Derrick can choose his to-go cup. Maybe it’s a split screen. One of them is going to the gym. The other is going to the office. Maybe there’s a third celebrity using the third product? The trolley and San Francisco hill are cute, but I think I’d rather see how people are consuming Oikos products every day in relevant situations. Make Oikos the brand you think of when you want a filling mid-day snack or a quick, healthful breakfast. Maybe it’s a late-night binge option? Just show us more of the product and more of the many ways people use it. You can still make it funny, and you can still use celebrities, but let the product be the star of the show. Make yogurt a pop-culture reference (...see what I did there?)
****
Xfinity - “Jurassic Park...Works”
What if Jurassic Park didn’t turn into a disaster? Well, this commercial implies that had the park been using Xfinity WiFi, its security system would have never gone down and led to the havoc that came after (including many disastrous sequels). Instead, Jurassic Park turns into a lavish resort. “WiFi always finds a way!” We see Jeff Goldblum, Sam Neill, and Laura Dern make appearances as this new species of WiFi emerges on the scene. We end with the Xfinity logo and an Xfinity agent getting in a car with a dinosaur who...still scares him off.
Grade: B-
Appreciate the throwback here, and the premise – what would happen if the security system didn’t go down at Jurassic Park – is a clever/funny one. What was missing was a few more ties to the brand and, if possible, specific claims about Xfinity’s ability to keep its network up and running relative to the competition. I guess we can take them for their word and appreciate this cute commercial, but that data would be nice to see and remind the audience why you should want Xfinity over the competition.
****
Bud Light – “Keg feat. Manning, Malone, and Gillis”
In a “Who’s who” of what I can only imagine are the “Inside Out” characters that live in the brain of every doofus (I say this lovingly), these spots feature Peyton Manning, Post Malone, and Shane Gillis (that guy fired from SNL - before even stepping foot on the stage - for making racist and homophobic slurs) delivering a beer keg to a wedding. The beer keg was on the registry, apparently, and the rest of the commercial feels like they just improvised lines and little songs. The first spot ends with the trio arriving at the wedding and is, incidentally, we learn that the driver is a rideshare driver (I think?). The second spot picks up at the wedding where Peyton is having the first beer of the wedding. Post asks if there’s enough for everyone, we see someone transporting the keg, but – oh no – he trips and the keg is now rolling away! Cue “I Will Always Love You” and show all the wedding guests running after the keg, including the bride in her dress and grandma (?) like Cooper’s Hill Cheese-Rolling and Wake (Google it). This is funny (but it goes on for far too long). There’s a joke about how unnecessary the rolling was (”There’s a trail.”). They find the keg. “Heck of a wedding,” Peyton says, but continuing the theme of commercials not ending when they should, we get Shane mumbling, “Hey, this is a great ceremony…” to the bride before breaking the fourth wall and say, “I give it a week” (longer than his tenure with SNL…maybe that’s the joke?).
Grade: C+
Celebrity cameos are a lazy Super Bowl trope, and these three live rent-free in the heads of the audience you know will love this commercial. Here’s the thing: I’m confident we did not need two :60 spots to pull this off. The second commercial alone does all the real work here. I did chuckle upon seeing grandma rolling down the hill, but I think we could have seen more of this. I want to see the wedding cake rolling down the hill. Show us the priest, the DJ/wedding band, the florist – let’s lean into the wedding tropes. Then what we do is we swap out that first :60 spot for three or four 15-second spots: the bride dancing the “first dance” with the keg, the bride and groom tapping a keg that looks like a wedding cake (instead of cutting the cake) and then spraying each other in the face (like smashing the cake), and – my personal favorite – the bride tossing the keg over her head, bouquet style, and it lands with a thud on grandma. Here’s why that works: the keg is the center of attention (so we constantly see Bud Light), people can emulate those gags at real weddings, and we form positive links between the product and humor/feeling good. Anheuser-Busch, I’m from St. Louis and here for your Super Bowl ad needs.
****
Squarespace – “Unavailable”
This spot begins with an artsy fartsy B&W style and Emma Stone screaming upon learning that emmastone.com is unavailable. She tosses her laptop in the fire, and then a servant brings her a new laptop where she promptly checks for emmastone.com again, expecting a different outcome. No luck. She tosses it, and it lands among other, broken laptops. Another laptop is delivered. She checks again. Still unavailable. The spot ends with the text, “Get your domain before you lose it. Squarespace.”
Grade: C+
This spot isn’t terrible, but it feels – how do you say – a bit misplaced? Don’t get me wrong, sometimes contrast is good! A black and white spot will stand out from the hyper-saturated colors of most of the commercials playing during the big game. However, it’s also kinda boring. I love Emma Stone, and fans of Yorgos Lanthimos will get the style, but rather than a fear appeal, why not use humor? Like, what would happen if we saw why her site was unavailable? Maybe Emma is someone’s pet rock (Emma stone)? Maybe Emma is a singer who only sings one note (Emma’s tone)? Maybe Em Mastone is an Italian nonna who bakes cannelloni? Like, show us who else bought emmastone.com (and/or pick a different celebrity whose name would lend itself to this kind of humor and the importance of getting your domain name before someone else does – here’s looking at you Just In Timber Lake). Also, is the real value prop of Squarespace obtaining your domain name or building a website easily? Seems like a very dramatic way to highlight a relatively insignificant feature.
****
Hims – “Rich People Spotlight”
This spot begins with imagery of wealthy people and the narration, “Rich people live longer.” We see people getting facelifts, taking vanity trips to space, getting IVs at home, etc., while normal people are shown rolling their eyes at these wealthy folks. Statements like, “The wealth gap is a health gap” accompany these images for the first :30 of the commercial. The narrator says, “They get the best of everything, so why don’t you?” The spot pivots to a woman clicking on the “hers” app on her phone, and we get a guided tour of what’s now available through “hims” and “hers” – diagnostic testing, weight loss treatments, menopause and testosterone hormones. The spot ends with “hims” and “hers” on the screen with the URL for either (hims.com and forhers.com…I’m guessing “hers.com” was taken and that somewhere, in some weird castle, Emma Stone is screaming about it in black and white).
Grade: C+
Look, I’m all for being healthy, but is the Super Bowl the place to have this conversation? Right now, you’re sitting in front of bowls of chips, an assortment of dips (including the edible kind), drinking whatever your beverage of choice is for the evening to help you forget that you invited Sheila to this party but she said she was busy with work stuff, but you just saw she posted an Insta reel from another Super Bowl Party…the point is: are we really thinking about “diagnostic testing” and “early cancer detection” (it’s in the commercial; look for it) via an app right now? Plus, let’s be honest: most people really know about hims and hers because of the boner pills and weight-loss drugs they sell or, as I like to call them collectively, Bonezempic. You’ll never forget that portmanteau, but if you do wind up having some memory issues, I’m sure there’s some pill you can buy for it on hims or hers. A different approach here might have criticized the silly, ridiculous things wealthy people do – e.g., facelifts that make you look like a cat, Botox so intense you can’t show emotion – that actually make them look/feel worse compared to the better solutions found on hims and hers. In other words, don’t sell us on wanting to be just like the wealthy; sell us on the fact that we’re different, smarter, and healthier than the wealthy.
****
Hellman’s Mayo – “Sweet Sandwich Time”
The spot starts with a woman upset that no one supported her in a meeting. Then, out of nowhere, a song starts. We see a guy wearing a “Meal Diamond” denim jacket. We can already see where this is going. It’s an (almost unrecognizable) Andy Samberg singing to baloney, his best friend, until he met Hellman’s mayo. We get some lyrical puns set to the familiar tune of Sweet Caroline (e.g., “ham…touching ham…touching cheese…touching you”), before we hit the big idea for this spot: sweet sandwich time (bah, bah bah). “Hellman’s makes it taste so good.” We get some weird jokes about how this character lives in the walls, makes friends by squirting mayo on their sandwiches, and wonders who his parents are. The spot ends with a quick picture of the product and, “It’s sandwich time.” Wait, no it doesn’t. One more irrelevant joke! Elle Fanning (random?) is eating a sandwich, Andy sidles up beside her and says if she marries him then the curse is broken and he can leave. She says, “No thank you.” He responds, “Yes!”
Grade: C
Hellman’s always seems to come so close but never manages to cut the mustard. First, while “Sweet Caroline” is instantly recognizable, it’s almost too recognizable. No one is going to be singing “Sweet Sandwich Time” after seeing this commercial later that night or the next day when the tune is stuck in their head; they’ll be singing “Sweet Caroline.” Speaking of recognizability, why would you make Andy so unrecognizable when attempting to evoke Neil Diamond? And the silly subplot really diminishes the product/marketing message. Even more offensive, why wouldn’t you end the spot with “Sweet Sandwich Time” on the screen instead of “It’s sandwich time.” No one caught that?! But, friends and fellow sandwich lovers, here’s the BIGGEST missed opportunity of all: “May-o, Mayyyyy-o, Spread the Hellman’s On and It Tastes Like Home.” People would be more likely to start singing “Banana Boat (Day-O)” as “May-o,” it evokes the nostalgia of childhood sandwiches (which has legs for future ads), and – in tribute to the greatest legend of all time, Catherine O’Hara – we can even re-enact the dance from “Beetlejuice.” RIP Queen. Also, feel free to call me about this idea for next year, Unilever.
****
Dunkin’ - “Golden Cringe”
Ben Affleck is pitching ideas, dropping pop-culture tidbits like 6 7. We don’t actually see to whom he is speaking in the teaser spot. It turns out to be Matt LeBlanc, Jennifer Aniston, and Jason Alexander. There’s a funny joke from Aniston about she doesn’t believe Affleck actually directed Argo because whatever video he has created is super cringe. We won’t see the cringe video until the day of the game, but they’ve set it up nicely.
Grade: C
This is how a teaser should work. Playing on the “cringe” culture, Dunkin’ is banking on the fact that people will want to see what about this video is so cringe. Points for that. However, I can’t go higher just yet (without having seen the cringe video) because we’ve got nothing here about the company, its products, or anything new. Sure, we have some celebrity cameos, but beyond that, we’re clueless. This may all pay off when the cringe video launches, especially if it is designed to be distributed and shared on socials, but for now, we’re going to stick with the middle-of-the-road grade.
****
Pepsi - “The Choice”
The spot opens with a polar bear doing a blind taste test of Pepsi Zero Sugar and Coca-Cola Zero. He indicates he prefers...Pepsi?! Oh, no! After years of Coca-Cola leaning into its polar bear campaign, Pepsi’s knives are out. The next scene is of the polar bear visiting his therapist – this must be an existential crisis. The couch breaks under the weight of the polar bear (and this decision). We then see the polar bear walking down the street. He sees patrons of a pizza parlor laughing, eating, and drinking Pepsi. He puts his hand on the window, desperate for Pepsi. What’s this? Another polar bear (a female) is there on the street offering him a Pepsi. Next thing we know, we’re at a concert (with Pepsi logos) and the two bears appear on the jumbo-tron – Coldplay style – except they don’t dodge thecamera. The copy reads, “You deserve taste. You deserve Pepsi.”
Grade: C-
This received a lot of pre-game airtime primarily for the bold decision to use a competitor brand’s icon (Coca-Cola’s polar bear) as a central feature of the spot. That’s fine, and it elicits a chuckle, but what are we saying here, Pepsi? Do people actually prefer Pepsi Zero Sugar in a blind taste test? I wonder if there’s a textbook example of people preferring Pepsi over Coke that we could rely on? Oh, there is? Maybe a variation of this ad would have been a quick montage of real people doing the blind taste test on a city street with data overlaid to show that XX% of people preferred Pepsi Zero Sugar to Coca-Cola Zero in a blind taste test. Then have a polar bear walk by, come up to the table to do the taste test, and launch into this spot. But then show the bear questioning all of his decisions: why live in an igloo home when you can have indoor heating? Why eat a cute baby seal when you can go vegan? Why let your hair go white when you can dye it? Let people know it’s okay to question your taste and to try new things. Then, the message is less about “deserving” anything and more about “trying something new that you might like.” I’d have “Landslide” as my music (“Well, I’ve been afraid of changing ‘cause I’ve built my life around you. But time makes you bolder...”). Coca-Cola may have been the beverage of your past, but it doesn’t have to be the beverage of your wiser future. Also, the Coldplay bit? It will play well with some people, but it feels dated and memed-out by now. Plus, if you’re going to do it, the bear should be squeezin’ on a Pepsi can. I love Taika Waititi (who directed this spot), but there’s room for improvement.
****
Totino’s - “Somehow Chazmo Returns?”
In a mockumentary-esque format, actors are discussing Chazmo, an alien character that has appeared in previous Super Bowl spots for Totino’s. This is all hype for a 10-minute video featuring Chazmo in a musical. The spot begins with the Totino’s logo and ends with Totino’s Pizza Rolls 10 for about $1.
Grade: D
I didn’t care much for Chazmo when he appeared, and I don’t care much for him now (who has time to watch a deliberately bad 10-minute musical except for very loving parents at their kids’ summer camp showcase?). Kudos to Totino’s for continuity, but when you think of all the opportunity Totino’s offers, well, there must be more we can do here. The simplest story (in my humble opinion), is that Totino’s is “pizza on the go.” We all love pizza. We would all eat pizza every day if we could. Why not present Totino’s as your portable pizza snack option. Instead of Chazmo, give me Signore Totino. Lean into some positive Italian tropes. Show us Signore Totino collecting the freshest tomatoes, the best Italian sausage, the most delicious Italian chickens...but, uh oh, his guests don’t have time to stay for dinner? Nessun problema (no problem!), he cuts up the pizza, rolls it into the familiar pizza roll shapes, and – light bulb moment – he gets an idea. Now, he goes from the life of a simple Italian farmer to a big shot corporate mogul, selling the most delicious portable pizza Totino’s rolls in a variety of flavors (that we see on the screen). “Totino’s: The Perfect Portable Pizza for People on the Go.” It’s fine that it’s cheap, but sell us on the convenience and quality.
****
State Farm - “Halfway There”
This spot opens with Danny McBride and Keegan-Michael Key singing a parody of Livin’ on a Prayer to Hailee Steinfeld who is seeking insurance and asking if their service is “just like State Farm.” We see a montage of McBride and Key singing about how their insurance company doesn’t really cover much, a random cameo by girl group Katseye, and then a billboard with the State Farm logo in the background as Hailee says, “I should have gone with State Farm.” The pre-release ad seems to be a teaser for something else (and hopefully better) to come on game day.
Grade: D
I love “Livin’ on a Prayer,” so I can’t give it an F just for that, but what in the world is this? Although we hear a lot about what this fictitious insurance company cannot do, we never hear what State Farm *can* do. Sure, it’s implied, “I can’t just go on an app or talk to a representative,” Hailee says, while holding her phone with the State Farm logo displayed on the screen, but what have we learned here? There may be more info coming in the full spot, but I’m not at all curious to watch it, so the teaser has failed in what a teaser should be designed to do: make me want to watch more. Let me ask you this: if you replaced Key, McBride, Steinfeld, and Katseye with everyday actors, would it change the effectiveness here? Probably not. And where’s Jake? This feels like a waste of money, and in a time when most folks struggle with insurance claims, well, maybe the company should think a bit more clearly about the messaging it’s sending out in this moment?
****
Kinder Bueno - “Yes Bueno”
In this over-the-top dramatic spot, a spaceship with two spacemen travels among the stars. It’ a bit confusing as to what, exactly, is happening. There’s a control room, aliens hanging out, and a series of people saying, “No, bueno...yes, Bueno” over and over. Near the end, the two men change into babies and repeat the line. The candy bar floats in zero gravity. The narrator says, “Irresistible chocolate, wafer, hazelnut. Yes, Bueno.”
Grade: D
Sorry, I love me some Kinder chocolates, but this spot was confusing. If you want to riff on the joke of “No, bueno / Yes, bueno” let me take you back to my childhood to one of the funniest cartoons in human history: Animaniacs. A short often featured on Animaniacs was a bit called “Good Idea / Bad Idea.” A narrator would begin, “It’s time for another good idea, bad idea. Good idea: Kissing a loved one. Bad idea: Kissing a total stranger.” Let’s see some “No, bueno” situations followed by “Yes, bueno” situations, seeing the candy bar’s name and branding in the latter condition each time. Give us a feel-good, happy commercial while hitting us over the head with the brand name, particularly for American consumers who are likely less familiar with Kinder. Ich bin hier, um zu helfen!
****
Ramp - “Multiply What’s Possible”
We see Brian Baumgartner (from The Office) working in a cubicle job using “Ramp,” which, by nature of the visuals and the narration, helps us to, “Multiply what’s possible.” We see multiple versions of Brian getting work done more efficiently. He’s consistently the Employee of the Month. We even see him carrying something (probably chili?) across the office, which is an easter egg for fans of The Office familiar with “Kevin’s chili.”
Grade: D
Loved Kevin in The Office, and we get the gist that Ramp is a service that helps make our work easier to do, but...what is it? Visiting the website suggests that it includes AI, corporate card management, accounts payable, travel expenses, and more. So, it’s an AI-forward software as a service (SAAS) company. That’s fine, and clearly it needs an awareness campaign to inform us that it exists, but is the Super Bowl the correct venue? It feels like it should be a bit more targeted to media that business owners and leaders read. So, thanks for the entertaining ad and the throwback to The Office, but you might want to ask your AI service a better, more efficient way to spend your marketing budget to reach the decision-makers most likely to purchase what you’re offering.
****
Raisin Bran - “Will Shat”
In what feels very much like an Austin Powers-level bit, we have William Shatner, being referred to as Will Shat, and a series of jokes about how “Will shat.” Every darn day, in the house, on the car. The point here is that Raisin Bran is full of fiber. “High fiber – happy gut.”
Grade: D
I get what they’re going for here, but associating your breakfast cereal with pooping feels...weird? Unless Kellogg’s is really making a play for people who need more fiber in their diet, this just feels like blue humor leading an idea for a commercial that winds up not being super funny or super original. Remember Walmart’s “I Shipped My Pants” commercial from several years ago? It’s fine if Kellogg’s wants to lean into the healthful, fiber-focused market, but is that worth a Super Bowl ad spend? I can think of any number of other channels that make more sense to appeal to that group. Not sure this is selling boxes, but it is a good example of a crappy ad.
****
Skittles - “Deliver the Rainbow”
This is a teaser ad for a campaign in which Elijah Wood will be delivering Skittles to someone’s house in cooperation with GoPuff. In a very Napoleon Dynamite-esque high school (feat. very dry, ND-esque actors), a girl blows a horn that summons a...unicorn centaur? It’s unclear. In any event, this creature is played by Elijah Wood, who sits in a chair in a small living room platform that moves and answers the horn’s call. There’s a bit of back and forth about entering the contest to have Elijah Wood “Deliver the Rainbow” to your house on game day and instructions on how to apply.
Grade: D-
Look, I know people will enter this contest, and maybe the actual delivery will be the payoff here, but this was super dull, sort of confusing, and uninspired. If you want to do a Deliver the Rainbow campaign, give me the cast of Queer Eye or some out celebrities, turning drab, black and white spaces into bright, exciting places full of color, joy, and good music. Will it upset a small subset of the population, the so-called “reclaim the rainbow” types? Probably! But that’ll make for great PR and social media fodder as bigoted people out themselves. Encourage people to “deliver the rainbow” to other people in their lives as a symbol of accepting them for who they are, no matter their color or stripe. Donate proceeds of sales to a cause. That feels more magical than whatever this was supposed to be.
****
Rocket Redfin - “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?”
We have Lady Gaga talking about Mr. Rogers and the song “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” She wants her rendition to be kind, heartfelt, and warm. We see her working through the song in the studio. We get some (probably too) complex info about the musicality of the song, which most people probably don’t really care about.
Grade: D-
This spot is so...dull. For the first half, we just hear them talking about covering “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” Then, we get the song. Of course, Lady Gaga does a fine job – she’s a talent. But we basically just watch her recording the song. Why not show us people actually becoming neighbors? In an era of divisiveness, let’s see people of different stripes becoming friendly neighbors. We get this a bit from Lady Gaga and her producer discussing Mr. Rogers’ values, but there’s a missed opportunity to show us and to include the Rocket Redfin logos in a way that tells us they, too, reinforce that message. This may be a teaser (as we get a 2.8.26 date at the end), so it remains to be seen what they do with this. Love Lady Gaga, but this commercial could have packed a stronger emotional punch with images like those suggested above and a clearer marketing message of the values we stand for (...well, most of us).
****
Expedia - “Going Places with Ken”
We see Ken – yes, that Ken – standing on a lifeguard tower in need of an adventure. He goes on Expedia to book a trip. We see him traveling the world, having adventures, and doing silly things like driving on the wrong side of the road. Expedia: The One Place You Go To Go Places.
Grade: D-
This spot could have just as easily been for Booking.com, Travelocity, or any number of other travel booking sites. The saving grace here is that we do see the brand name throughout, but the features they mention are sort of hard to hear/understand, and, honestly, the pacing of the video makes it feel rather frenetic/hard to follow. Switching between Ken and the narrator talking is also confusing. And whom are we targeting by using Ken, by the way? Feels a bit dated and removed from the Barbie movie’s time in the spotlight. I’d simplify this, include both Ken and Barbie, show them in different destinations, and – most important – talk about a feature exclusive to Expedia that they leveraged for each trip, making, at most, three to five salient points. Maybe even play around with famous types of Kens/Barbies (Malibu, Skier, Astronaut – for out-of-this-world trips) to show that Expedia has options for every type of “you” there is (although this does teeter into Booking.com’s positioning). Still, let’s engage these characters a bit more if we’re going to bother with paying to use them.
****
Instacart - “Bananas”
Benson Boone and Ben Stiller star as 1970s/1980s Italian musicians (...um, what?). There’s a song about Instacart letting you choose your own bananas. Benson does one of his famous stage flips, and then Ben attempts to imitate this and fails. Here’s the rough part: we watch this chaos again and again for the rest of the commercial. No more mention of anything about choosing your own bananas until text appears: “Bananas just how you like. Instacart.” The end.
Grade: F
Lots of missed opportunities here. First, what does it mean that you can choose your own banana? Do you add a note in a text box to your shopper? Is there a new feature? None of this is ever explained. Instead, we get a painful attempt to be funny that never really lands (...that’s actually funnier wordplay in this context). Listen, if you’re going to talk about choosing your banana, then make the falling on stage *slipping on a banana peel.* Picture it: there’s a banana peel on stage, Benson’s foot catches it, he does an incredible, Olympic-worthy flip, and lands on his feet. The audience goes wild. Ben, super jealous, decides he’s going to get a banana, opens his Instacart app, CHOOSES A BANANA (showing whatever feature they’re trying to market here), it’s delivered immediately (again, highlighting the speedy, convenient delivery of Instacart), he scarfs it down, tosses the banana peel, and slips. Instead of flipping gracefully, he falls. He points out that the first banana was too green. He gets out his phone, orders a super ripe banana from Instacart, it’s delivered immediately, he eats it, tosses the peel, “slips” again, and falls miserably. Finally, he orders a third banana, this time mid-ripe, it is delivered, he slips, and...he NAILS THE LANDING. The crowd goes wild. The copy is, “Get it right every time” or “Exactly what you want when you want it. Instacart.” or “Exactly the right banana at exactly the right time. Instacart.” See how easy that was? I’m here if you need me, Instacart.
****
Uber Eats - “Hungry for the Truth”
This spot features Matthew McConaughey, Bradley Cooper, and others (Parker Posey!) as Matthew tells Bradley all the ways football is really just “selling food” (e.g., a football post was designed after a fork). One of the biggest (attempts at a) joke is that the Football Hall of Fame looks like a juicer. It culminates in Bradley telling Matthew, “You’re never going to convince me that football is selling food, so let’s squash this beef.” Matthew points out that both squash and beef are food. We get some text – When football makes you hungry, order Uber Eats.”
Grade: F
Who cares? I like McConaughey and Cooper, but I couldn’t care less about whether football is really just “selling food.” And, one step further, if I’m at a Super Bowl party with more food in front of my face than usual, why do I care about Uber Eats in this moment? Let’s switch it up a bit. Why might I need Uber Eats while watching the big game? We’re out of something. We forgot something. Someone has a food allergy we didn’t account for. Give me Matthew and Bradley in various scenarios with Matthew telling Bradley he needs to be prepared for anything. Each time, Bradley thinks he’s covered all the bases, but Matthew questions something – Bradley sneakily uses Uber Eats to get exactly what he needs in the moment before Matthew checks. Now, the value of Uber Eats is more than just “food,” it’s exactly what you need before you need it. Maybe show that it extends beyond food – diapers before a baby has an accident, flowers before your wife arrives home on the anniversary you forgot, a bone before your dog can ruin your new pair of shoes (and now we have a baby and a dog in the commercial). I’ll take this over the rehashed “football is selling food” joke.
****
Liquid I.V. - “Against All Odds”
EJAE, famous for the hit song “Golden” from K-Pop Demon Hunters, stars in what essentially is a music video for Liquid I.V. where she sings Phil Collins’ “Against All Odds.” There are some notes about being sure to stay hydrated, to not be thirsty, etc. Otherwise, it’s just EJAE in a bathroom (?) featuring a piano, a golden microphone (subtle nod), and her autographing packages of Liquid I.V. as she does a bunch of vocal runs.
GRADE: F
EJAE can sing. Love her. Do not love this “commercial.” What is Liquid I.V.? Do you put it in your beverage? Do you inject it in your veins? Help me out here, company. And way to squander the use of an incredible talent and pop star. Does she use the product to stay hydrated to sing? Are athletes supposed to use it to stay hydrated when training/playing? Am I supposed to put it in my daily morning coffee? If you want to show the value of this product, put us in the desert, cover Everything but The Girl’s “Miss You” (“And I miss you like the deserts miss the rain...”, and make Liquid I.V. the oasis.
****
Volswagen - “The Great Invitation: Drivers Wanted”
This ad is...all over the place. We see people running around, dancing in the rain, driving, playing with a dog. There are some Volkswagen cars here and there. The song “Jump Around” plays. The spot ends with the copy “Drivers Wanted” followed by the VW logo.
Grade F
Save your money, Volkswagen. If the goal here is to appeal to young drivers, using a dated song from the 1990s while failing to show any cool, tech-tricked-out features of your car is not the way to do it. I wasn’t sure what I was supposed to be watching for or looking at here. The people? The cars? An attempt at some narrative thread or cohesive story (spoiler: there isn’t one). If you want a car message that resonates with young people in this economy, hype your affordability, gas mileage and/or eco-friendliness. In fact, show me young people “jumpin’ around” over those feature instead of AI, and we’re cooking.
****
TurboTax - “The Expert”
The teaser spot shows Adrien Brody delivering the line, “I can handle that for you,” in what appears to be the trailer on the set of a production. The actual commercial is Adrien Brody dramatically delivering lines to make the point, “Now taxes are drama free.”
Grade: F
Nothing groundbreaking here. We get the joke. We understand that tax services should make filing our taxes easier. You know what else would make filing taxes easier? If the government would just send you a postcard with how much you owe. Other nations do that. So, maybe spare us the drama-free talk, TurboTax. If we really wanted no drama tax policy, companies like TurboTax wouldn’t have a business model.