While some people enjoy watching the Super Bowl to see both football teams fight for the win, others tune in to bask in some of best advertising that television has to offer.
Companies big and small spend fortunes for 30-second or less commercials. Many of those commercials are enjoyable and keep viewers’ attentions, but others were just meant to be kept off-air.
Here are some of the most notable commercials from the 2018 Super Bowl:
1. Doritos Blaze vs. Mountain Dew Ice
Actors Peter Dinklage and Morgan Freeman both represented the two brands in this rap battle, with Dinklage lip-syncing Busta Rhymes' verse of “Look At Me Now” and Freeman lip-syncing Missy Elliott’s “Get Ur Freak On.”
Both nailed it at trying to entice an unusual duo of spicy Doritos and lemon-lime Mountain Dew.
2. E-Trade — “This Is Getting Old”
Old people were part of a joke without it being too harsh in this commercial, which showed them still working at their jobs because their retirement accounts are empty.
3. Budweiser — “Stand By You”
Budweiser has never been afraid to get a little emotional in its Super Bowl ads. This year’s commercial showed the beer brand’s employees canning water instead of beer to send out to areas that have been affected by disasters.
4. Amazon — “Alexa Loses Her Voice”
With cameos from Rebel Wilson, Gordon Ramsay, Cardi B and Anthony Hopkins, the stars make Amazon Alexa users uncomfortable as they replace Alexa’s voice.
The commercial can be enjoyable to almost anyone, even if some viewers may not know who some of the stars are.
5. NFL — “Touchdown Celebrations to Come”
New York Giants duo Eli Manning and Odell Beckham Jr. re-enacted the iconic scene from Dirty Dancing and had the time of their lives.
6. Tide — “It’s a Tide Ad”
The brand has been in headlines because of a challenge that has taken over social media, and the company decided to use the new publicity to its advantage.
David Harbour of Stranger Things appeared in the commercial within different scenarios that mocked cliche commercials, such as car, beer and razor ads. In doing so, it made viewers think that they were not actually watching a commercial for the laundry detergent.
7. Pepsi — “This is the Pepsi”
Pepsi pulls past commercials and references to the product to show a timeline of how the brand has been represented in popular culture, including in music videos from Ray Charles, Michael Jackson and Britney Spears, to movie appearances in Back to the Future. The commercial provides nostalgia for every generation.
8. M&M — “Human”
The commercial begins with Red M&M complaining about people trying to eat him all the time, and he “wishes he were human.” Then, Danny DeVito appears, and it all makes sense. He perfectly depicts the Red M&M with his personality — and even his height as a human version of the candy coated chocolate.
9. Febreze — “Bleep Don’t Stink”
Febreze tells the story of Dave, the only guy in the world who doesn’t leave behind a smell when he leaves the bathroom. The commercial includes interviews with his parents, former coach and even his ex-girlfriend who all claim that his “bleep does not stink”. The point of the ad is to say that not everyone is like Dave and that you should buy Febreze for your bathroom.
10. Tourism Australia — “Dundee”
The commercial tricks viewers into thinking about a Crocodile Dundee sequel coming to theaters this summer. Danny McBride and Chris Hemsworth begin their journey across the country, but something doesn't seem quite right. It turns out it is actually just an ad to promote tourism in the Australia.
