I attempted to watch the Superbowl last night. Well, I attempted to watch the commercials, at least. And you know what? Either Superbowl commercials are not as good as they used to be, or I’ve just gotten older, or I watch so little TV these days that TV commercials have become a foreign language to me, or commercials are more fun when you’re watching them with other people. Most of the Superbowl commercials involved some combination of animals, bodily functions and misogyny. If I were a 14-year-old hetero teenage boy, I would have loved it. My favorite commercial (out of those I saw; I turned off the TV after the halftime show and wasn’t even looking at the TV when the infamous breast moment happened) was the one with the braying donkey who wants to be a Clydesdale horse. I also liked the one where the bear attempts to buy Pepsi with a fake ID. For some reason the idea of a bear trying to pass for a mountain man was cute.
Other than that, though, I felt like all of America was in on some joke that I just wasn’t getting. The Superbowl is one of those things that make me feel entirely alienated from the rest of the country. (This is another.)
Eventually I gave up and went back to my book (which I suspect not too many Americans are reading).
Isn’t that a great book? I think it’s one of the best books about the making of a musical that I’ve ever read. I think I may reread it, actually.
I have to agree…an excellent book.
When are they making a hiphop movie version of the book? Maybe Janet and Justin could be in it. I think the Stupor Bowl is so over-rated. I just don’t get it.
nobody gets the superbowl; you aren’t even supposed to get it. it’s a huge event because institutionalized sports betting has made football the most-watched sport in america, and the short-schedule season allows networks to hype every game nationally. add in that the football salary cap means there’s no team continuity and couple it with the fact that all the players are wearing helmets so you can’t see their faces. nobody identifies with any of the players; nobody even knows who’s playing. i think brett favre was the last football player to have any kind of face recognition off the field, and *on* the field he still looked like a big green hefty bag with a war helmet on.
i defy any casual fan to pick kyle brady out of a lineup.
Who’s Kyle Brady?
isn’t he the winning quarterback? i wouldn’t be surprised if i’m confusing him with someone else…
I think you mean Tom Brady. :)