This entry is part of my "Videodroming Project," which you can read about here. Basically, it is to record my impressions of entertainment media that I watch...with a view especially towards semiotics -- or how entertainment programming and commercials draw on the social and political issues of the day.To follow up on my earlier entry about "Life on Mars" – here are my impressions of the ad spots that played during that hour (ABC, last Wed., 2/18/09, 10 PM). To start off with…there were ads for prescription drugs. One was a drug for treating Fibromyalgia. Right off the bat, the woman who was the main character of the ad said, "My Fibromyalgia pain is real." This seems to be the motto for this condition (or at least for the promotion of the drug treating it). I saw a truck some weeks ago that was painted with this tagline, advertising a website for clinical trials. From what I understand, Fibromyalgia is somewhat controversial, especially within the medical community. So the PR seems to counter the kind of great divide of opinion that has persisted around, say, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. As is typical with these kinds of ads, it was in soft-focus -- at least after the drug was introduced as the remedy. Next it showed the main character enjoying life, which is likewise the pattern of these ads. As is typical, this part was shot in pastoral, Rockwell-esque (or Spielbergian?) imagery -- with the woman playing croquet, etc with her friends and family, thanks to the wonders of modern medicine.

Other key examples of this kind of commercial are the ones for anti-depressants which start off in stark, grey tones showing the character in misery and isolation. But then after the drug is introduced (with the concomitant CYA disclaimers – don't use while operating a forklift etc), these ads end with the main character in soft-focus showered with the warm love of friends and family members.

Another health ad that played this hour was for clogged arteries. It showed a healthy-looking, even athletic, thirty-something man being followed by a gurney through various locations, such as a museum. If I recall correctly, this part of the commercial was shot in stark, chrome-like colors. Then there was a microscopic image of blood platelets, etc to show the menace of the condition that was not outwardly noticeable (save for the pursuing gurney). After the drug was introduced into the commercial, it went to soft-focus as the man was in a friendly, reassuring setting in his Dr.'s office, with a wonderfully warm, caring Dr. Welby-type.

There were a number of car commercials during the hour. A key theme emphasized was the car as the extension of oneself – molded around the driver for ultimate comfort and safety, thanks to the miracles of technology. A Lexus commercial showed a head-on collision with a truck about to happen. It was photographed in an overhead shot, with a high-tech, chrome-colored look. The voiceover went something along the lines of how we can't rewrite history, but we can build a better car. Then it showed the scene being re-enacted, with the head-on being prevented (interestingly, this was followed by a Microsoft commercial about a CEO of a client company saying, "Without technology, we'd be nowhere." More on that shortly). [Appending this comment: Interesting that these ads emphasizing the values of today's high-tech played during a show set in the early  '70's, that plays on a compare/contrast with the present, including a comment by a character saying that 2009 is not like the '70's, because "there is hope."]

Lincoln had a couple of spots, emphasizing high-tech features. One tagline, "for a Starship, you don't need keys." A later one featured David Bowie's "Space Oddity" – singing "Ground Control to Major Tom." Ever since the baby boomers came to be the prominent adult consumers (and especially with the rise of generation x) – there has been a greater infusion of rock music into TV and commercials (and sports too – more on that later). The main reason of course being to enhance personal identification with the product by the target audience.

And then there was of course the good ol' car commercial preaching aphorisms. In this case it was a Honda ad…with the voiceover saying at first general things like "it's a different world out there"… "need is want." Then it ended with the specific…"most durable in its class." I think it's important to note what is actually said in commercials. Just consider how many taglines from ads actually become catch phrases that people repeat all the time (e.g "Where's the beef?", "I love you, man," "priceless" -- to cite some classic examples).

Back to the Microsoft ad featuring a CEO (of a client company) touting Microsoft's products and services. It was a free-spirited, almost psychedelic, cartoon, with the CEO as the main character. In it, he said he is a surfer, and the ad showed his cartoon likeness riding a wave. This is something that is often depicted in ads – making a CEO seem friendly and down-to-earth (even cool)– in a context that is strikingly at odds with the image of corporate culture that is technology-based. Right now, there is another ad like this featuring the GE CEO Jeffrey Immelt, that is shot in fuzzy black-and white. In it, Immelt comes off as so personable and fatherly, as he touts technology in warm, naturalistic, Americana settings (greatly offsetting the worst image of GE – as the shining example of a military-industrial complex corporation). As I wrote above, in the Microsoft ad, the CEO said, "Without technology, we'd be nowhere"…which was interesting to hear right after a high-tech car ad (which contrasted so sharply in style with this one). I'll have more on this later as I discuss a major theme of the Superbowl ads, which seemed to be about enhancing the image of upper-management, while putting down middle-managers.

Also during the hour, there was a warm-fuzzy commercial about Oreos, with two girls on different trains (one white, one Asian) looking through their windows at each other -- magically-bonding in their love of that cookie. This is the theme of community/connection that is recurrent in ads – with shared products causing people to transcend differences, even international ones. (The most obvious types of ads playing on these themes are ones about telecommunications and computers). The girls looking at each other through the windows of their trains, reminded me of the famous opening of Fellini's "8 1/2" (except that was through the windows of cars) – which Woody Allen spoofed so well in "Stardust Memories."

Similar in tone, was what I call a "shiny, happy" people commercial. As is typical, it was shot in vibrant colors – as pretty people seemed to find nirvana thanks to the kitchen and laundry appliances of Electrolux. This ad especially emphasized the joyous freedom obtained as a result.

There were a few ads that at least to me, echoed "Life on Mars." There was a credit card ad that showed people gathering around a statue, with an oracle-like spirit floating around, which was a symbol for the financial analyzer the company offers (bringing them to nirvana/fulfillment in some magical way). This made me think of the mystical sequences of LoM which I discussed in the earlier blog. At this point, I need to emphasize that these are connections I was making . Someone else may not see these connections at all. Again, it's what each viewer experiences that really counts -- for him or herself. 

There was also a Mastercard Ad that featured various cartoon foods icons such as Charlie Tuna, the Gorton Fisherman and Count Chocula around a real-life dinner table (it can make one smile just writing about such things!). "Having everyone over for dinner, priceless." Okay, this one was pretty cute in a way that definitely appealed to people's attachment to these characters (obviously playing on their nostalgic quality, and akin to the Oreo's ad in terms of theme and tone). Altogether, this made me think of the retro-driven "Life on Mars" – which is clearly about nostalgia for the early-70's. A side thought -- I suspect that part of the reason for LoM being brought to American TV is the re-interest in the pop-culture of that period, thanks in part to Tarantino and Rodriguez's "Grindhouse" films (no doubt the films have been very popular DVD rentals). Interestingly, I have noticed some '70's styles coming back (i.e. women's scarves from the early '70's) -- as well as '30's depression-era ones– such as the women's hats and skirts of the time. As my parents would often say – when the economy goes south, the skirt-lines drop. [Appending this note:  a possible message I glean from the Mastercard ad is "use Mastercard to have all your favorite food for dinner....especially if  you don't have the cash!" I wonder if these ads are package deals with these other companies that Mastercard adds as plugs. They must be.]

But it was the first ad of the hour that immediately made me think of "Life on Mars." It opened with a folk-singing hippie playing guitar, almost as if it was a character from the show among the other zanies in the precinct's waiting area. But as the camera tracked back, it revealed that he was in fact in a cobble-stoned European village. The main character was a girl who was chewing a certain gum and people kept colliding with her and crashing to the ground, while she stood relatively unscathed. The ad touted how the gum is fortified with calcium.

Mainly, what struck me is how loud and violent the ad was (albeit in the "nobody really gets hurt" cartoon way). But in watching the Superbowl, I noticed there were also a number of ads like this. These ads also featured some downright hostile behavior, as did another commercial that played during a "Life on Mars" ad break. It was a Verizon commercial with the taped-horned-rim-glasses guy – but it was dominated by the appearance of a very nasty, abrasive, loud man. This nasty, hostile, even violent tone seemed to keep popping up in the Superbowl ads. I'm thinking especially of the Doritos and Bud Light Ads, and the spots for "The Office" which eerily echoed the Doritos commercials. In any event, I have (artfully?) worked out this segue…so that I can at last get to…

My Much Belated Review of the Superbowl and the Superbowl Ads

I really wanted to do this right after the Big Game – but things got in the way. Anyway, I am going to append a series of comments about the Superbowl and its commercials below, so check back later. I felt it was too late to post my analysis of the Game in its own blog entry, and I don't want to make this opening post too gosh-darned long. In any case, I feel that this kind of analysis needs to be done – especially since the viewing of the Superbowl ads has become the most significant event in terms of advertising on Television. For what it's worth, I didn't watch the Oscars this year – that would have just been too much – since those shows also have loads of content, social and political. Hopefully next year I can take on the Big Night – as well as cover the Big Game in a more timely manner.