Super Bowl Ads of 2007: Where Did All of the Good Ads Go?

If the days of watching the Super Bowl just for the commercials aren't gone yet, they're clearly on their way out. It's certainly no secret that the quality of Super Bowl ads has been declining as steadily as their price has been rising. So, if you gave up on watching with the hopes of seeing something good, here's the little bit that you missed. (Commercials are available for viewing on ifilm.com.)

Best of the First Half

1. Budweiser, multiple ads

It was a rare commercial break that made no mention of Budweiser or Bud Light. Fortunately, Budweiser makes something of an effort to deliver entertaining commercials. Most are definitely guy-oriented, but their humor is impossible to miss.

In the first half of the 2007 Super Bowl they gave us three particular funny (and clearly relating to their product) ads.

Rock, Paper, Scissors was the first Bud Light commercial of the 2007 Super Bowl. Two guys at an outdoor party find themselves in the unfortunate position of staring down the last bottle of Bud Light. Is there a better way to solve this dilemma than a quick round of rock, paper, scissors? Well, the guy who got hit with a real rock probably could think of a few.

Budweiser followed this with the Auctioneer Wedding. A tower of ice and Bud Light prove too tempting for a normal length wedding. Lucky for the large number of guests ready to jump and run, one of the ushers has called an auctioneer to help the confused couple finish their vows quickly.

The third Bud Light commercial worthy of mention is an English as a second language class starring Carlos Mencia. He teaches his students to ask for a Bud Light in the local slang of a couple of areas. To cap it off, he reminds them of the proper response in case someone asks them for a Bud Light: "No speak English".

2. Coca-Cola, 'What Else Haven't I Done'

I hesitated to add Coke's ads to this list, in protest of their lack of originality. Coke's first two first-half, as well as their first second-half commercials having been airing for months in movie theaters, if no where else.

Coke's 'What Else Haven't I Done' made up for that. An aide gives a Coke to a gentleman in a retirement home and inspires him to get going on some of the other things he's never tried. After calling an old flame to let her know that he's always loved her, he tries out the high-dive, gets a tattoo, joins the running of the bulls, and takes a ride on a motorcycle.

3. Career Builder.com, Office Jungle

Career Builder wants you to know that you don't have to settle for a job you don't love. They invite America to "Do more than just survive the work week" by checking out their website. Their 'Office Jungle' commercial shows an attack of the office supplies, followed by the office workers accidentally running off a cliff in their hurry to escape. I think anyone who has ever worked in an office will relate.

The Best of the Second Half

Apparently the advertisers felt that some of us wouldn't make it all the way through the game. The first half commercials greatly out-shined the second half. If it weren't for Budweiser/Bud Light, CareerBuilder.com and Coke, I would have hated watching all the commercials.

1. Bud Light, 'Hitch-hiker'

Can we assume that the writers of this commercial enjoyed the hype for the new film 'The Hitcher'? The commercial was great anyway. Despite the woman's protests of "he's got an ax", the man is more than willing to pick up the hitchhiker because, naturally, he's holding Bud Light.

Their current slogan is that Bud Light is worth it, after all. The real humor comes in when the first hitchhiker objects to picking up the second. His problem with the guy is that he's carrying a chain saw. I guess that is a little worse than the ax.

2. Emerald Nuts, 'Robert Goulet'

The best thing about this commercial is easily the vicarious fun of imagining to be Robert Goulet. Emerald Nuts reminds viewers of that mid-afternoon slump by showing Robert wreaking havoc in an office. The one guy whose office doesn't get trashed is, of course, enjoying some Emerald Nuts.

The afternoon slump is a real problem, and I'm sure that a few Emerald Nuts would help. If you find your keyboard covered in coffee, though, I doubt blaming Robert Goulet will get you off the hook.

3. Budweiser, 'What Would Carlos Do?'

What wouldn't Carlos do, actually? For those unfamiliar with his show, there's really not much he wouldn't do. When a guy comes home to find his girlfriend entertaining her friends, he channels Carlos for the appropriate response.

Carlos spills a few tidbits sure to have the girls scattering (one he calls fat, another he accuses of cheating with the third's boyfriend). Ah, they can enjoy there Bud Lights in peace. Well, at least until the girlfriend finishes damage control with her friends.

This year's Super Bowl ads were fairly disappointing. There were some that were worth a few chuckles, but not many that are likely to bring out the water-cooler chatter.