Commercials during the 2014 NCAA Tournament

This is the first DBR thread I've started in almost a year. I feel compelled to do so because the subject matter is so very important.

We are nearing the end of Day 1 of the NCAA Tournament and somehow have not yet dedicated a thread to the commercials. Last year's thread was a mild hit, so I thought we'd try to capture lightning in a bottle twice. Consider this the Tommy Amaker of DBR threads (setting aside, you know, the threads we already have about Tommy Amaker).

Today I learned (via WITHAG, a silly but helpful site) that the AT&T saleswoman is the same actress who despises the mixing of sauces at Buffalo Wild Wings:

Attachment 4013

Assuming Beck Bennett is not coming back for those deadpan AT&T commercials with the kids, she will be the face of the tournament.

Other observations:

1. Say what you will about the Fab Five, but the return of Chris Webber's flat top in the Burger King commercial is a thing of beauty.
2. Northwestern Mutual should hire Chris Collins to liven up their ads.
3. Craig Sager's purple closet in the Kindle commercial is so disturbingly appropriate... for him.

I want to kill the Dish kangaroo. All Hopper commercials are bad, but this one is particularly intolerable.

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Originally Posted by brevity

2. Northwestern Mutual should hire Chris Collins to liven up their ads.

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Couldn't they have found a few extras or CGI'd some fans into an otherwise completely empty arena where a putative competitive basketball game was going on?

Also, that 5-hour energy commercial. What is focus? It's every sports cliche all at once.

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Originally Posted by brevity

1. Say what you will about the Fab Five, but the return of Chris Webber's flat top in the [Burger King] commercial is a thing of beauty.

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I beg to differ, dear brev. That is not technically a flat top: there is a degree of curliness that strictly stands outside the traditional high and tight flat top. Also, look closely and the hairdo seems to take on another personality at the closing shot where Mr. Webber has the screaming fellow (nice touch that screaming, I will admit) perched upon his shoulders.

Alas, I will not be able to join the discussion again until next weekend. Off to Raleigh in the morning, chaps!
:cool:

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Originally Posted by weezie

Alas, I will not be able to join the discussion again until next weekend. Off to Raleigh in the morning, chaps!
:cool:

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Talk about jinxes...

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Originally Posted by hurleyfor3

Talk about jinxes...

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But I am going to be wearing my blue sparkling Converse sneakers!
I should be in a commercial.

Uh-oh...I just walked into something, didn't I? :eek:

I like Sam Jackson yelling at other people in movies. I don't like him yelling at me in commercials.

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Originally Posted by hurleyfor3

Talk about jinxes...

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Well, it does seems extremely likely that there will be more commercials again next weekend. And if we get jinxed out of commercials, I am okay with that.

The Charles Barkley CDW commercial where he and his coworkers get similar looking helpers that they don't need because of the CDW VMware cloud was hysterical to me. The best part? Imitation Charles Barkley muttering "terrible" on the way out because he's not needed.

There was a popular comedian who imitated Barkley's "turrible" and this commercial had me in stitches.

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Originally Posted by Edouble

I like Sam Jackson yelling at other people in movies. I don't like him yelling at me in commercials.

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Thank you! These are the most annoying commercials to me. I am not motivated to purchase a product from and loud angry man yelling.

Fact is, I am not motivated by any of these commercials to buy anything, because I usually don't even know what the product is, but SLJ trying to be intimidating is silly to me... he just seems... upset, that's all...

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Originally Posted by oldnavy

Thank you! These are the most annoying commercials to me. I am not motivated to purchase a product from and loud angry man yelling.

Fact is, I am not motivated by any of these commercials to buy anything, because I usually don't even know what the product is, but SLJ trying to be intimidating is silly to me... he just seems... upset, that's all...

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This is so true. Modern commercials try to be funny, cute, touching, or sometimes even self-righteous over actually motivating someone to purchase their product.

Growing up in the 80's, I remember when commercials were corny, cheesy, and poorly produced. But, you know what, I still REMEMBER them.

The jingles they would use like "Raise your hand if your "sure", "I feel like chicken tonight!", "What would you do for Klondike Bar?", "Break me off a piece of that Kit-Kat Bar" were all so bad but they worked because they made you think about their product for the rest of your life!

My question to modern Ad Firms is this - "Where's the beef?"!

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Originally Posted by BlueDevilBrowns

Growing up in the 80's, I remember when commercials were corny, cheesy, and poorly produced. But, you know what, I still REMEMBER them.

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There is a void in your life, and 80s Don Draper is here to fill it.

Examples:

'80s Don Draper ‏@80sDonDraper Aug 21
Reebok Pumps: A breath of fresh air into America’s soles

'80s Don Draper ‏@80sDonDraper Jun 23
There Peggy. We put a bow on Pacman. Happy?

'80s Don Draper ‏@80sDonDraper May 17
All pursuits are trivial. Your board game’s just the only one with the guts to say it.

'80s Don Draper ‏@80sDonDraper May 5
People want to feel good, and busting makes that happen.

'80s Don Draper ‏@80sDonDraper Apr 30
We'll call them Members Only, but sell them to everyone.

Grant Hill just saved the NCAA Tournament with his AT&T commercial. I was wondering why he'd need a family plan, but I guess his kids are old enough for their own phones. (Nokia, I assume.)

Otherwise, as others have pointed out, the ads this year have been a weak crop. I'm trying to picture how tired I'd be if I'd seen more of this tournament. Aside from Greg Anthony's line "He meant sign the receipt, fool" there hasn't been much to remember.

I've become a big fan of Lily from AT&T (as seen in the Grant Hill commercial, among several others). She's got the snark of Flo from Progressive mixed with the cuteness of the T-mobile girl.

Yep, yep, yep... Yep.

I think that is the only commercial I saw the whole tournament. Granted I did not watch the Final 4.

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Originally Posted by brevity

Grant Hill just saved the NCAA Tournament with his AT&T commercial. I was wondering why he'd need a family plan, but I guess his kids are old enough for their own phones. (Nokia, I assume.)

Otherwise, as others have pointed out, the ads this year have been a weak crop. I'm trying to picture how tired I'd be if I'd seen more of this tournament. Aside from Greg Anthony's line "He meant sign the receipt, fool" there hasn't been much to remember.

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Hill's oldest was born in 2002, so yeah, might be old enough for a phone. And who knows, the family plan might be a deal just for spouses.

The commercials I never want to see again are the doofy "up for anything" beer commercials that premiered on the Super Bowl and played about every two seconds during the Final Four.

I half watched these new Wendy's ads many, many times before figuring out that the young red head was supposed to be "Wendy". That's the impact of the DVR on viewers, you literally don't pay full attention to commercials anymore.

The one with the family where the hamster is supposed to be the father is ridiculous. They are all ridiculous.

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Originally Posted by Mabdul Doobakus

I've become a big fan of Lily from AT&T (as seen in the Grant Hill commercial, among several others). She's got the snark of Flo from Progressive mixed with the cuteness of the T-mobile girl.

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Her name is Milana Vayntrub and she has a decent resume (and some nice headshots). See http://www.milanavayntrub.com/ and http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2168927/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1. I agree she's pretty cute.