Grace O'Malley
“This past year has been anything but normal” – a phrase just about every article starts off with nowadays. Nonetheless, this is true.
So, like the past year…the Superbowl was a lot different than Super Bowls prior. Besides the masks and cardboard fans, the experience was also different for the viewers at home, especially the commercials.
The one year people aren’t watching at a noisy bar and can actually hear and see the commercials, major companies pulled their spots. Fan favorites such as Budweiser, Coke, Pepsi and Hyundai all decided to ride the bench for this year’s Bowl. With these four major companies sitting out on prime commercial air time, many companies were able to steal their forfeited spots.
Here are the Top 15 Super Bowl LV commercials:
15. Paramount+
Paramount+ did what other streaming services usually don’t, have an entertaining commercial. Typically streaming services just show you clips of movies and shows that they offer. For me, Snooki’s “I’m too hungover for this” is what landed them on this list.
14. Turbo Tax
Tossing Turbo Tax at #14 because I think they do a good job at selling their services in this. It’s clever and informative, there’s no way you knew that New Mexico residents who don’t croak past 100 didn’t have to pay taxes- before this commercial.
13. Fivver
Fivvers, one of the newer brands that aired a commercial for the big game, poked fun at a colossal press mistake this past year. Points for using current events and making a funny.
12. Michelob Ultra
At first I just thought it was the pregame mimosas catching up to me, then at the end I realized THEY WERE ALL STUNT DOUBLES. Solid twist with even better symbolism for all other hard seltzer retailers.
11. Uber Eats
No better time to promote supporting a local business and you can’t go wrong with Wayne’s World. You have to appreciate them blatantly using every marketing tactic in the book on this one.
10. Jimmy Johns
If this was a show, it’d be on Showtime and have a cult following…all I’m saying.
9. Cheetos
The most likeable Hollywood couple, plus Shaggy, doing a twist on 2000’s hit “It Wasn’t Me” instant crowd pleaser. Sidenote: I like how Cheetos is self aware of how “Cheeto dust” can get stuck on literally everything.
8. State Farm
Like a good neighbor, Drake is there. I’m noticing a stunt double theme this year.
7. Toyota
Athough I prefer most Superbowl commercials to be laugh out loud funny, we do need the ones that make us shed a little tear and pretend we got Cheeto dust in our eye.
6. Cadillac
I would have liked to see this as a motion picture film, but a 60 second Cadillac works, I guess. Also, for those of you who don’t know…Timothée Chalamet, who’s playing Edward Scissorhands in the commercial used to date Johnny Depp’s daughter, Lily-Rose Depp. I wonder how Lily feels about her ex playing her father’s former role…
5. NFL
In recent years, the NFL has made commercials that start as a video which then leads into a physical representation to start the game. An innovative concept that I think they execute well every year.
4. Amazon
This one was for the ladies this year. I think I can speak for all women when I say, where can I get a Michael B. Jordan Alexa. (Someone tweeted, who knew Amazon would have the horniest advertisement)
3. M&M
M&M played on societal mishaps in everyday life that you wish you were compensated in candy for. After this commercial, it’d be funny to carry around a pack of M&M’s just to incase you find yourself in an awkward encounter like these ones.
2. Bud Light
This past year has been nothing but lemons, we’ve all been saying it again and again. Bud Light found a way to take the phrase and combine it with their new hard seltzer lemonade. A little humor to cover up the terrible year that was 2020.
1. Anheuser-Busch
“When you say ‘Let’s grab a beer.’ It’s never just about the beer.” Couldn’t have said it better myself. Drinking is a universal social action, which oftentimes means more than just putting your lips to a bottle. As the commercial points out, it’s a way to bond with the people in your life. From celebrating to mourning, drinking goes hand in hand with human experience. It’s been a long year without drinking with others and the Anheuser-Busch reminds us that when things go back to normal, we’ll need each other; and what better way to catch up than with a beverage.
