« Last week 23-Nov-08 | This archive, pg:  1  |  2  |  3  |  4  |  5  |  6  | Next week 7-Dec-08 »

Every Can of Pepsi Max Drives an Anxious Calorie to Suicide

calorie-wrist-slash.jpg

These ads are causing a bit of a stink. Variants -- with titles generously supplied by me -- include The Bullet or the Noose? and Puddles of Inferno!.

Are they really that bad?

According to Meredith Corp., 56% of women worry more about weight than disease, so you know there's enough hate surrounding muffin-tops to happily fuel many millions of sordid calorie suicides.

And come on. Who didn't enjoy the Garbage Pail Kids? Or Sin City? Or, hell, the Road Runner cartoons?

That was pure sadism. And what did you do? Shovel in another mouthful of Froot-Loops, that's what.

by Angela Natividad    Dec- 3-08    
Topic: Bad, Brands, Campaigns, Magazine, Poster



Get Bucked and Get Lucky at the Lucky Buck-Off!

angela-bucking-deer.jpg

Last month we made it pretty clear we weren't keen on wearing bikinis and riding bulls, but Lucky Brand Jeans thought it'd try us anyway.

Introducing the Lucky Buck-Off. After uploading your face onto the body of an elf, use your keyboard to get, well, bucked by a reindeer. (Why is his nose glowing green? Is he sick?)

Get a discount upon completion. Rumour has it the discount rises if your bucking abilities improve. (I faired rottenly! -- and still got 20% off.) Coupons and codes are valid until December 31.

By kirshenbaum bond + partners.

by Angela Natividad    Dec- 3-08    
Topic: Brands, Online, Promotions



ATTENTION: ALL CANADIAN AGENCY EMPLOYEES

adweek-canada.jpg

If you don't attend Canada's first-ever Ad Week, you'll top off your creative career hustling gold watches. Or zazzing tourists over three-card monty. Or as one of those silver guys that move really, really slowly.

(Okay, probably not really, but think of the fun you could have snickering at the too-cool creative douchebags that all seem to get their retro glasses and sneakers at the same off-Broadway boutique.)

Positively charming guerrilla and print work by Bos/Toronto and Trevor//Peter Communications.

more »

by Angela Natividad    Dec- 3-08    
Topic: Events, Good, Guerilla, Industry Events



Holiday-Style Frozen Pole Game Baffles

frozen_pole_dragon.jpg

It's official. Two makes a trend so the rebirth of the send-to-a-friend time waster is upon us yet again. Following Ceiva's Sit on Santa's Lap, Mullen has created Frozen Pole, an upload-your-face, choose-your-wardrobe, send-to-a-friend thing. It's purpose? To get your tongue stuck on...wait for it...a frozen pole. You know. Like in the movie.

One might assume this little effort could be for some sort of fireball-style candy or some hot chocolate brand or a even reverse logic effort to promote travel to the Caribbean. But no.

It's for...voice recognition company Nuance which is introducing a new product..

Hello? Hello? Anyone? Can some one explain this? Or at least point out my utter stupidity at not grasping the concept? Because it wouldn't be the first time my stupidity got in the way of grasping a concept.

UPDATE: Someone has saved me from my own idiocy. Apparently, though it wasn't clear when I did it, I've been told "when you send message to someone from the site, it translates what they are saying with their frozen tongue into a readable holiday message."

by Steve Hall    Dec- 3-08    
Topic: Games, Online, Strange



Franck Ribery is the New Pink Panther

pink-panther-wk.jpg

Wieden + Kennedy/Amsterdam reprise the intro to The Pink Panther with this catchy spot for Nike's Mercurial Vapor IV.

"He's a gentleman, a scholar, he's an -- acrobat!"

Cheeky. Wait for the tooth-gleam at :47. Makes me wanna watch soccer while cuddling a plush Ribery doll.

more »



Laptop Tattoos, Adult SocNets Exiled, Wal-Mart Roves for Digital Agency

arbys-hardon.jpg

- Wal-Mart's looking to unload its $40 million digital ad account. The shortlist includes Resource, Digitas, MRM, R/GA and Razorfish.

- Digital Mad Men! Watch. Watch. Because Vince Kartheiser talking Caturday is probably the funniest he's been in his short career so far.

- Dell cracks open Design Studio -- where users can pay $75 to get a unique image "permanently tattoed" onto their laptop lids. o_O That's a slightly steeper commitment than the peel-off-friendly GelaSkins.

- Arby's brings hard-ons. I really hope they don't put this on TV.

- MySpace does video streaming on mobile phones. With ad support.

- As of January 1, adult social networks will not be permitted on Ning. (Pretty good) reasons listed in the link.

- YouTube cobbles together digital chamber music orchestra.



Sexploitation for a Bike. It's Almost Genius.

titus-girlscout.jpg

Titus -- whose luxury mountain bikes can range between $3370 and $7495 -- hopes to appeal to young, budget-taut users with a campaign tagged "It's worth a second job."

Each print piece manages to be slightly humiliating without leaving the kiddie park. A delicate balance. See variants:

o Phone sex operators
o Nude model

Food for thought: with $7495, you could buy three Macbook Pros, 32 iPod touches or 94 white earbuds. (Lisa Simpson would die of envy!)

Or, hell, you could get one of these.

Not that we care where you spend your hard-earned shekels; we're just putting it in perspective.

By TDA ADVERTISING & DESIGN/Boulder.

by Angela Natividad    Dec- 3-08    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Magazine, Poster



'Here Comes Pete, the Meat Puppet!'

pete-the-meat-puppet.jpg

When this is over, don't look at us and go, "What the hell is Diesel smo-kin'?" because we sure have no idea. (To be fair, smiles cracked when coke, whores and other misfortunes drove Pete the Meat Puppet to eat one of his own legs.)

One ad like this is quirky. But two? It's practically a spree.

For Diesel by FarFar and Legs. Reception's been mixed, but at least one person on YouTube seems to think the company's intentions are heart-healthy and noble.

All-singing, all-dancing meat magic below the drop.

more »

by Angela Natividad    Dec- 2-08    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Online, Strange, Video



For Blurb Project, Ammo Hunts Wound-Licking Creatives Down on craigslist

blurb-website.jpg

Blurb ("Real Books. Made By You.") is on a quest for castrated creative pitches, which it plans to compile in a volume called Killed Ideas Volume 1.

God knows this well of slighted egos is full to overflowing. But Blurb isn't in the creative industry, and apparently has no idea where to find its minions, so it's enlisted Ammo Marketing ("Stimulating Enduring Brand Conversations") to twist Ad Land's tap and get entries flowing.

Ammo in turn published this ad on craigslist, soliciting for city-based Mad Men that'll elicit saucy entries from colleagues.

It's a creative pitch for failed creative pitches!

more »



Stella Basks Paper World in Warm Beery Glow

stella-paper-bird.jpg

Lowe Roche/Toronto and Psyop have put together a devastatingly charming holiday ad for Stella Artois.

In it, a Geppeto-esque craftsman builds an elaborate paper dove. When night falls, she flies off his desk and descends upon a sleepy paper town -- all to park a snowflake (or is it a star?) at the base of a Stella Artois goblet, glowing like the Christ child.

Make haste and see. Users on StellaArtois.com, where the video serves as an intro, can also send "paper" stars -- glorified beer invites -- to friends. Options for appropriate "tone" include Custom, Poetic, to the Point and Sincere.

I picked Poetic.

more »

by Angela Natividad    Dec- 2-08    
Topic: Brands, Campaigns, Commercials, Good, Online, Television



« Last week 23-Nov-08 | This archive, pg:  1  |  2  |  3  |  4  |  5  |  6  | Next week 7-Dec-08 »