Best and Worst Super Bowl Commercials – 2017
Top 10 best list dominated by…household cleaners and laundry detergent?
(Editor’s Note: Some videos in this post are no longer available.)
This has got to be the “cleanest list” ever.
In the eleventh edition of T Dog Media’s annual Super Bowl Commercials roundup, there is a surprising bit of irony – four of the best commercials in the top ten belonged to either household cleaners or laundry detergent.
I guess you can say this list in “stain-free” (the real stains are in the “worst” list.)
Among companies, Procter & Gamble had three spots in the top ten – two for Tide and one for Mr. Clean. The other belonged to Persil ProCleaner, manufactured by Henkel.
But the top spot belongs to Melissa McCarthy.
The former Mike & Molly actress appeared in a hilarious Super Bowl Commercial spot for Kia where she was depended on to save the world (and got tired of it.) The ad tops T Dog Media’s Best Super Bowl Commercial List, as did USA Today’s Ad Meter – marking the second year in a row such an instance happened (Kevin Hart’s First Date for Hyundai did so last year.) Ad Meter launched in 1989; T Dog Media has been reviewing Super Bowl commercials since 2007.
In fact, several ads appearing in the top ten on USA Today’s Ad Meter List also appeared in T Dog Media’s Best Commercial Chart – Budweiser for Born The Hard Way, Tide for #BradshawStain, and Mr. Clean for Your Dreams.
McCarthy had a weekend most people would dream of: not only she appeared in a well-received Super Bowl Ad, but she also brought the house down in a hilarious Sean Spicer bit during a Saturday Night Live sketch.
This year’s theme took on a more political tone, given the results of the election which saw Donald Trump ascend to the highest office in the land. Unlike previous years, there wasn’t a really bad commercial that stood out, but a few were boring.
We’ll talk about the game and it’s ratings (and there is a lot to talk about) in the next post.
Here are the this year’s best and worst Super Bowl Commercials – back to ten each this year, from five the previous few years. Commercials airing during overtime are eligible. Not eligible for the two lists were ads previously run weeks before the game (many were from Coca-Cola), NFL ads, network promos (sorry Simpsons, but you had a great Daytona ad!), and local commercials.
Top 10 Best Super Bowl ads – don’t you dare skip these with your DVR:
1. Kia Nero, Hero’s Journey. As yours truly said before, this was a hilarious ad. Best of the bunch!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dQ9a5EFZeI
2. Budweiser, Born The Hard Way. This is one of those ads who took a jab at Trump’s “immigration policy”.
3. Tide, #BradshawStain. Terry Bradshaw spills something on his shirt and go nuts. Literally. And who knew Jeffrey Tambor lived in Houston? Oh, and where are Bradshaw’s pants?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xT85CFxs-lM
4. Mr. Clean, Cleaner For Your Dreams. Mr. Clean sold as Viagra for women. And it works!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDzMxlw2Fgo
5. Skittles. Romance. Kid throws one piece of Skittles in a window and a lot of hungry people take advantage.
To see the ads for the following, click the link on the title.
6. Avocados, Secret Society. The Secret Society isn’t too keen on streaming their activities. Nor Jon Lovitz showing up subliminally.
7. Persil, 10 Dimensions. Bill Nye comes out looking clean in this ad.
8. Netfix, Stranger Things 2. This is a reason why Netflix is better than Hulu (who also aired an ad during the game) in launching original series.
9. The Fate Of The Furious. Great movie trailer with lots of action. But more importantly, it beats the crappy Transformers and Ghost in the Shell trailers.
10. Tide, Restain. Follow-up to the earlier commercial, ranked third here. This time is Curt Menefee who spills stuff on his shirt. Jeffrey Tambor isn’t having any of it.
The 10 worst ads – skip ’em
1. Snickers, Old West. This was supposed to be live – they did tell us the score – but the set fell down around them. What was the point of this?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9M_wQDTTdk
2. Bud Light, Ghost Spuds. In a Scrooge-like commercial, Party dog Spuds McKenzie returns from the dead to tell a young kid who wasn’t around when he was alive the importance of partying with friends with Bud Light.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYeXldMEpV8
3. American Petroleum Institute, Power Past. An ad telling us how petroleum is cool.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1EaUkZdrvvw
4. KFC, Colonel Vs. Colonel. This ad was panned by a lot of reviewers. A cameo appearance by the non-bronzed Colonel doesn’t make this a competition.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aZo4yKpROL0
5. Intel, Brady Everyday. I’m seeing him in the game, why would I want to see him in an ad?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTw7eten1no
To see the ads for the following, click the link on the title.
6. Turbo Tax, Humpty Hospital. Humpty Dumpty was attacked by Game of Thrones cast members and he had a great fall. And this commercial was a great fail.
7. Proactiv, Towel Drop. You’re in a teenage boy in your bathroom and Olivia Munn suddenly shows up. There are several laws being broken here, I’m sure.
8. World of Tanks, Angry Moms. Terrible ad, but can the tank please interrupt an episode of The Bachelor?
9. Wendy’s, Cold Storage. For the 10,000th time, we know your beef is fresh, not frozen.
10. Sprint, Car. Verizon Sprint pitchman “Paul” – the “Can You Hear Me Now” guy – jumped ship. Too bad he didn’t jump off the cliff in this commercial.
Halftime Show: This year’s musical act was the Grammy Award-winning Lady Gaga, and she didn’t disappoint: stunning visuals, a vast array of colorful art, and of course, Gaga was damn good in her performance focusing on her music, not political statements or shocking the audience. And social media reaction was generally positive, another plus. Best Super Bowl halftime show since Bruce Springsteen in 2009. Grade: A.
Further Reading: This is the eleventh consecutive year T Dog Media has done a Super Bowl Commercial roundup. For past reviews dating back to 2007, click here (older videos posted in those reviews may no longer be available.)