e's Take on the Super Bowl

I don't know anything about football, let's just get that out of the way upfront. Football is my brother's forte. But I am somewhat of an expert when it comes to celebrity gossip.

So as I settled in at a friend's house to watch the Super Bowl, I was aware that the Patriots' quarterback, Tom Brady (an ex-U of M football player), had left his pregnant actress girlfriend (Bridget Moynahan) for supermodel Gisele Bündchen at the end of 2006. And I knew that this particular game was a big one for him and his team; it was their chance to have a perfect record. And all I have to say is... karma's a bitch, isn't it?

You can be sure that I was rooting for the Giants. I thought, Hey, that Eli guy seems nice, and it's cute how his brother is all alone up in that viewing room freaking out by himself. I will cheer for them.

It worked!

But of course, the best part of the Super Bowl is never the game (even though I admit this one was awesome in its final minutes). I live for the ads. And the half-time shows have been decent in the recent past, too. Prince rocked it out in the pouring rain last year, and Tom Petty was no slouch for the 2008 show, either. He has so many songs--it's easy to forget that you know a ton of them. He was a good choice to play (especially since he didn't sing that creepy "Don't Come Around Here No More" song, the video for which will haunt me forever).

The commercials were decent. Here are some of my favorites. First up, the Dalmatian training the wannabe Budweiser horse, set to the Rocky theme. LOVED IT.

Next up was the hilarious "talking stain" ad for Tide. Because you KNOW it's true! It's like when someone has fuzz in their hair or something in their teeth--you can't stop looking at it. You want to will it to go away. Tide captured that feeling perfectly with this ad:



I was a little bit late to my friend's house, so I was walking in the door to the sound of laughter when this Pepsi Max ad aired. I checked it out online afterward. Ah, the memories it brings back of SNL seasons gone by.



I had seen the Justin Timberlake/Pepsi ad already, and didn't think it was all that. The worst ads involved other celebrities... Carmen Electra promoting some sort of gum... Naomi Campbell dancing with lizards to Thriller (???), and the totally random hair commercial that used images of Madonna, Shakira and Marilyn Monroe. Hello, strange trio to choose.

I thought the Bridgestone ad with the screaming animals and then the second one with the unexpected appearances of Alice Cooper and Richard Simmons were good. And the Charles Barkley spot for some cell phone provider, where he kept calling that other basketball player (like I said, I'm not into sports) every five minutes, grew on me by the end.

Coke represented itself well this year with its "fighting Macy's parade balloons" and the "Carville and Frist bonding" commercials.

And lastly, Doritos had a few funny ones. One stood out to me, simply because it was SO bizarre that you just had to laugh.



The WORST ads were for E*Trade. I cannot stand "talking babies." I also get very scared by clowns. So what does E*Trade do but combine both of these to win my award for Worst Ad of the Night:



At least the clown never showed its face! Then I would've had nightmares.

- e