What a let down. It all started so nicely. 21-0, 28-3. I was happy! Like, really really really happy! Brady choking, throwing a pick six “¦ my house was rocking with celebrations. And then it all went wrong. America wanted the Falcons to win. Cheering for Tom Brady should be some sort of criminal offence in my book. Yeah, I’m taking the side of the underdogs. Yes, I’m refusing to acknowledge the greatness of Belichick, Brady and the Patriots team in general. But I don’t care. The true tragedy of the piece was Matt Ryan. What a season. He deserved a championship to sit on his mantelpiece alongside his League MVP trophy. I’m so heartbroken that I have to listen to Patriots fans proclaim themselves “champions” for the next whole year. Ugh. So, I can’t be doing with writing about this. It’s too negative in my head. Let’s focus on everything other than the game. I know it was because the game was the worst Super Bowl of all time.
But even outside the game, the event was a tad disappointing. It got off to a bad start when Wingstop forgot the boneless wings I’d ordered and I had to go back a second time to pick them up. The commercials were even a bit hit-and-miss this year. There was a lot of nothing. How many car commercials did we really need? I liked that Honda yearbook one (though what on earth did it have to do with a car?) and the post-game Hyundai military one was nice, but I saw enough vehicles to last me a lifetime.
Coca Cola’s multicultural America advertisement was actually a repeat of last year’s commercial and was even more poignant this year than last, especially with all the upheaval of the last few weeks. Executive orders may seek to divide us, and Coca Cola is not exactly the main campaigner for social justice, but it was a powerful image to see so many people singing “America the Beautiful” in so many languages. Coupled with Budweiser’s immigrants tale, there were some powerfully political images.
There were however some brighter, lighter spots, and the best few were, as usual, comedic. The NFL, for all its flaws, had a brilliant “Super Bowl baby” ad that included an incredible baby Von Miller and a fantastic baby Marshawn Lynch. Bai, who I’d never heard of before, made me an instant fan of their company with their NSYNC-inspired spot. Simple but effective and now I’m interested in trying their product. T-Mobile hit and missed with some of their commercials “” I thought the “Fifty Shades of Grey” inspired ones were a bit weird “” but their Martha Stewart & Snoop Dogg collaboration was immaculate. Dancing around the idea of Snoop being in possession of Marijuana was done with both genuine wit and a clever knowledge of their audience.
But the finest of all were from Buick and Skittles. The “Romance the Rainbow” advert poked fun at the traditional romantic gestures of throwing pebbles at the window of your beloved. Nice, family friendly and fun. But nothing was better than Cam Newton’s cameo for Buick. I know I slated car commercials earlier on, but the image of Cam Newton swatting small children away from his legs was truly beautiful. Great work from them and well worth watching back.
Speaking of worth watching back “¦ At the halftime show, Lady Gaga rocked in a way I really wasn’t expecting. Intel’s light-up, flying drones were insanely cool and would’ve stolen the show, but Gaga was having none of it. To perform at the Super Bowl in general takes guts, but to do all that attached to a harness and flying around after having jumped off the roof of NRG Stadium is absolutely insane. So at least Gaga has proven herself to be as insane as people have accused her of being.
But despite all that, I can’t shake the feeling of disgust that the Patriots won. Ugh. And now we have to wait another year for the ultimate circus show to return to our screens. Whilst it wasn’t the outcome I wanted, I can’t begrudge the fact that it provided me with a whole Sunday worth of entertainment. The Super Bowl proved once again why it’s the King of sports in America. It will not be moved from that pedestal for a long time.
