I RATE ADS

jtherkal: I don’t understand. Were those men not really men, because they weren’t wearing their pants? I like the campaign thought for Dockers, men starting to wear the pants in the family again. But this ad missed the mark. And could it have come in a worse spot? Right after the Careerbuilder underwear spot! Take that, Dockers. D.

sjbooher: Let the manvertising begin. This ad set off a sickening trend in this year’s Super Bowl ads that left me near nausea. Over the past year or so, I have learned and thought a lot about what I will somewhat ignorantly label as “sexism”… probably “gender something or other” is a closer term, but whatever. This was sparked by conversations with my dear friend Colleen and my (at the time) impending fatherhood. Writers such as Ta-Nehisi Coates and Peter Alilunas, who runs manvertised.com have provided written catalysts for this education, especially the latter when it comes to advertising. He can speak on these issues at much higher level than I, so I’ll leave the meaty critique to him. All I know is, I have no problem letting my wife make a decision, I like the color pink, I LOVE the Rachel Zoe Project and I will freely admit Mark Sanchez looked good in that CBS Cares Ad. And I am VERY MUCH still a man. And if I decide not to wear pants? I am still a man. So don’t put me in your crude, neanderthal box, Dockers.

If you weren’t sure, that’s an F.

jtherkal: I’ve now seen this one enough to officially have the opinion that there’s something catchy about the music, but nothing that really makes me want the pants. It makes me think white people love San Francisco and that Dockers are for squares. Which I suppose is their target market. Mission sort of accomplished. In related news, for about seven years I wore nothing but baggy khakis and t-shirts. B-.

sjbooher: I love this commercial because of this, Gang Starr’s “Check The Technique”. Another musical commercial win. When this ad comes on, there is a good chance you will find me dancing wildly throughout my apartment. Awesome. Also, Dockers tries to make one thing very clear: “If it ain’t white, it ain’t right.” Can’t fault them for pinpointing a market, and going after it, I guess. I will say that the music and visuals make these people seem “cooler” than I normally would think they were. Success. A-.