Commercials are usually despised by the viewer that has to sit through the advertisement and watch a boring, irritating production. When someone sees a commercial or ad, their first instinct is to click the skip button or change the channel to find one without a commercial on. However, one day every year in February, people watch their television screens and admire the fascinating, ironic and funny commercials that fill in the gaps between the NFL’s Super Bowl. 

Millions of people watch the Super Bowl annually. The big game does not reel in viewers just because of the game itself, but rather the side dishes that come with it like the halftime show and commercials. In 2022, 112 million people tuned in to watch the Super Bowl; it’s no wonder companies are willing to pay millions of dollars on a 30 second campaign during the game but they know this money can’t be put to waste. This is why they make the commercials they produce for this grand event as best as they can be. Some succeed, and make historic commercials that last in the memories of the viewers for years, while others fail miserably. 

“I look forward to Super Bowl commercials every year as they find a way to engage the audience with celebrities or jokes while still marketing the product or company,” WCHS freshman Nick Denecke said. 

The competition between companies to have the best commercial is high, which is why brands seek the most notable celebrities they can to star in their ads. Without a star, it is a bit hard to have a memorable commercial. However, it is definitely possible. Avocados from Mexico had a very solid ad that embodies this quality even though it lacked any celebrities. The ad was just 30 seconds which still costs the company $6.5 million, but Avocados from Mexico made great use out of this money spent by making the ad comedic and clever. 

“My least favorite commercial was definitely the Pringles commercial. It was very awkward and the punchline did not hit at all,” WCHS junior Vasisht Ishwar said. 

Pringles had a commercial also with no celebrities but this one was exceptionally bad. The commercial seemed to drag on for quite a while and it made the product seem more annoying than enjoyable. The entire plot behind the commercial had to do with someone getting their hand stuck in the Pringles can, for life. Basing an advertisement behind the disadvantages of the product packaging is never a good idea. Do better pringles. 

A commercial that took an exceptionally different approach to production was from the company Coinbase. Coinbase is a platform for the exchange of cryptocurrency and their commercial that lasted an entire minute actually crashed their site. The commercial was simply a QR code that drifted across a black screen just like the classic DVD logo. The QR code, which prompted millions of people to take out their phones and scan it, took the users to the Coinbase site. This very clever commercial was a huge success and showed that Hollywood superstars and large budgets are not necessary to make a classic advertisement. 

On the reverse side, there were tons of commercials that did have celebrities. For the most part, they were all really good. Michelob Ultra had a phenomenal commercial that featured Peyton Manning, Steve Buscemi, Brooks Koepka, Jimmy Butler, Nneka Ogwumike, Alex Morgan and Serena Williams in a scene where all of them are all having a good time while bowling. Zendaya, Seth Rogen, Kevin Hart, Kanye West, Scarlett Johansson, DJ Khaled, Doja Cat and Miley Cyrus also all had valid cameos of their own, and that’s just half the list.

“The commercial with the best celebrities in it was definitely the Michelob Ultra commercial. The commercial displayed some of the best athletes in the world, such as Serena Williams, Peyton Manning, and Jimmy Butler, coming together to go bowling,” Nick said.

All in all, the commercial that takes the cake for most outstanding was the Bic commercial featuring Snoop Dogg. The commercial was extremely ironic and hilarious. The foreshadowing was amazing and the commercial had overall great vibes. Although the commercial may not be exactly PG, it was definitely the superior advertisement campaign out of the 80 or so total commercials. Not only was it witty, but it did actually do a great job of tying in the product itself by displaying the variety of uses for a Bic lighter. Having one of the stars from the halftime show as well is bonus points.

On the opposite side of the spectrum, UberEats had an awful commercial. The commercial was meant to reveal that UberEats now delivers more than just food, but the commercial was grotesque and got old very quickly. Portraying the actors as eating items that weren’t actually food definitely missed the mark as it was not funny at all and a bit repulsive. These types of commercials do happen and are not unexpected since everyone is taking the risk to be different and stand out against their competitors. Having a flawed commercial like this one is necessary every once in a while so that the commercials that truly were good can be spotlighted. 

“My least favorite commercial was the ‘Uber Don’t Eats’ commercial due to the fact that the people in the commercial kept eating everyday supplies such as sponges, dish soap, diapers, and more. This really bothered me because I was enjoying delicious nachos when the commercial made me lose my appetite,” Denecke said. 

It is also important to note that this year’s commercials featured a ton of eco-friendly twists. There was a whopping amount of electric vehicles displayed from the likes of BMW, Chevrolet, General Motors, Nissan and Kia. In addition, Hellmann’s had a commercial starring Pete Davidson and Jerod Mayo conveying a positive message regarding food waste. Although a bit repetitive, it is great to see more companies advertising sustainability of their products.

Even if one isn’t a huge fan of sports, it can still be entertaining to watch the commercials that come alongside the Super Bowl. All of them are online as well and can be watched over and over again if desired. For now though, it looks like viewers will be stuck with the over repetitive, boring commercials of normal television. 

“Overall, I really enjoyed the Super Bowl commercials this year because most of them were really funny. The commercials made the breaks during the game very enjoyable,” Ishwar said.