There's quite a bit of chatter today about the violence and homophobia displayed in superbowl ads yesterday. This is another of those times I wish the lefty blogsphere would take a deep breath and then find a happy place. It's tough not to look shrill when you're being, I dunno, shrill.Sure the heart spot where the guy in the heart costume was basically kidnapped and rolled in a back alley and the "rock, paper, scissors" ads were a bit much. But one progressive blogger has taken to complaining about a digital snowman being ground apart to chill a coke product. Do we really need the "no living snowmen were hurt during the making of this ad" disclaimer?
Let's consider the venue guys. These ads aren't running during the Kennedy Center honors. This is the frickin' superbowl. As close as we come to gladiatorial games.
There's a certain amount of pop cultural ignorance at play here as well. One commentator took on the "racism" inherent in the coke spot featuring the white hoodlum who sets everything right in the city by giving away coke. At one point a woman has her purse stolen as black bystanders stand by.
Anyone familiar with a little video game called "Grand Theft Auto" knew what that from the first few frames that this ad was a send-up of that game, turning the world on it's head. The bystanders, etc. were all made to convey the feel of game in order that the hero could play against type. I personally enjoyed the heck out of that ad.
The last thing we need is for the superbowl and the ads surrounding it to be more tepid, more lifeless and more non-controversial than they are now. That's what I worry the fallout could be.
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