I RATE ADS

sjbooher: Cars! Cars! Cars! Steal a car! This one is really well done. It is worthy of Super Bowl Sunday and manages to stand out amongst the throng of car ads this year. Good work, Kia. A-.

jtherkal: Epic indeed. So epic that I would probably never remember it was Kia. Kia has to do something to make me even consider them as a car producer. Something that when I hear it or see it makes me think “that was for a Kia, because I know this is the claim that Kia makes…” But it was entertaining and memorable, so I can’t give it a bad grade. Not great, not terrible, but probably cost a few million to make. So I’ll go with E for epic here.

sjbooher: Mascots and push button engines? I’m in. A.

jtherkal: Boom! I love this. So many great moments, just pure fun. I like the music, the bits, the toy choices, Vegas! Although it misses on branding, since Shannon thought it was Hyundai, and really it was Kia. And he thinks “toys” are called “mascots.” A.

sjbooher: Hyundai and Kia aren’t the same thing? C+, then, I guess.

jtherkal: Ding ding ding! We have a winner. I love this ad. I like the song, I like the concept, I like the familiar feeling you get when you see someone get out of the car and realize they’re on the wrong side. And to equate that with the fact that you never stop for gas because the car is fuel efficient is great.

In related news, I can’t be 100% sure, but it’s possible I like this so much because during my time working on GM and Buick I wrote the exact same spot. I firmly believe that people like their own ideas best. So I’ll sometimes represent an idea to a creative director that he/she killed six months ago. The reason? They might not remember it exactly, but somewhere in their head it seems familiar. Part of their brain says, “I recognize this, I think this was our idea, therefore it is good.” This has only worked once. Anyways, A.

sjbooher: This has that sing-songy, folksy piano song feel made popular by recent Apple spots, and that’s okay, but hopefully there will not be too many more copycats. I like the concept as well, and it reminds of the below picture I took of the exact same situation! I was laughing hysterically at that knucklehead. Ha. A.