Shared experiences, especially the ones in which we laugh at ourselves a little, often produce the most appreciated story lines. In May, the freshest spot moments, surprisingly, came from a toilet paper brand. Angel Soft and its agency, DDB New York, made a bold move with ads capturing often-embarrassing, almost-always hilarious bathroom moments. Aired as coupled 15-second spots, they are snapshots of life in the least-seen room of the house.
A sleepy woman hits the toilet with a splash and yells at her husband, who has obviously left the seat up. In another, a woman plunging gets squirted in the face with toilet water. But perhaps the funniest of them all shows a family gathered around the bowl for a fish funeral. As they say goodbye to "Herman" with a flush, the son, dressed for the occasion, realizes too late that he's still alive. The voiceover explains, "This uncomfortable bathroom moment brought to you by Angel Soft. Comfort where you need it." It's a funny bit delivered by a toilet paper, with no category-cliché two-ply talk and no animated bears.
Another Best Spot humorously dived into an uncomfortable family moment, a spot for Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority, out of R&R Partners, that uses enough awkward pauses and averted glances to show someone's hiding a doozie of a secret. A couple comes home with luggage in hand as a teen, out of their view, cleans up a trashed house. "What have you been up to?" they ask. "Nothing," he replies, and asks the same. "Nothing," the dad answers, as they sheepishly make their way up the stairs without further talk.
Other picks had less to do with reality (or realistic moments) than with fantasy. In the best spot of the month, Nike pays homage to Chariots of Fire with a cinematic spot for a new shoe called Free that is supposed to make you feel like you are running barefoot. The spot, set to the film's famous piano score, makes an engaging argument for the experience with sweeping seaside scenes that are gently interrupted with city elements. First, a random parking meter pierces the peaceful parade, then a row of newspaper boxes, a taxi and, finally, a blaring bus breaks the lead runner's trance with a back-to-reality shot on a bustling city corner. The cinematography beautifully basks the runners in tranquil light and the slow switch from beach to cityscape nicely underscores the escapism rather than the training advantages�promised by the shoe.
An unexpected series for Middleton Lawn & Pest Control stars an animated frog who revels in his role as droll exterminator. In one spot, set in a kitchen, he reads the newspaper as oversized ants raid the refrigerator. Without so much as a glance, he tells them politely, "You'll have to leave, I'm afraid," to which the pack's leader counters, "We're not going anywhere." The frog ends the debate with a giant magnifying glass that instantly obliterates the attitudinal ant. It has the cartoon violence we've seen from other insect-removal products without the slick sell. And we could all use a little less of that, couldn't we?
-Eleftheria Parpis
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