5 Ads You Should Watch Right Now: Best Ads Of February 2018
For advertisers, February is a month like no other, with brands in the US battling it out to be the stand-out ad at the Super Bowl.
But this month’s round-up of the best ads is not just focused around the Big Game. Elsewhere in the list, we’ve got Nike’s hyper-local ‘Nothing Beats A Londoner’ ad and a surprise entry from Lotto New Zealand.
Enjoy!
5. Skittles
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wX72RPr9bzo
In early February, the Super Bowl offered up its usual share of advertising delights. Never one to be out-weirded on the big day, Skittles came ready with its most confusing concept to date: a blockbuster spot only to be shown to one specific person. While the candy brand were happy to tease the secretive ad (which features, among other things, David Schwimmer of TV show ‘Friends’ with glowing laser eyes), we mere mortals can only speculate at what actually took place in it.
4. Doritos and MTN DEW
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ey01ZlAoYes
Celebrity cameos are the lifeblood of Super Bowl advertising, and the dream team of Doritos and MTN DEW offered up some of the most unexpected casting. Pushing their new ‘Blaze’ and ‘Ice’ alternatives, the spot finds Game of Thrones star Peter Dinklage taking on none other than Morgan Freeman in a fiery snack-fuelled rap battle. Sadly, they’re both just lip-syncing, but it’s still a fun, silly watch for fans of Tyrion Lannister, or any number of godly, benevolent characters from the last 30 years. It may not be the most original entry of the month, but Doritos and MTN DEW prove that a surprising celebrity turn rarely misses.
3. Lotto New Zealand
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMpXhLeiPsE
One of February’s biggest surprises was an unexpected thriller from Lotto New Zealand. Directed with the sleek style of a 70s cop drama, the spot finds a pair of security van drivers threatening to drive off with their precious cargo. Stick around for the warm-hearted twist.
2. Tide
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=doP7xKdGOKs
After creating an unintentional phenomenon with tide pods, the detergent brand made headlines once again with this stellar Super Bowl outing. Featuring David Harbour, star of brilliant TV show ‘Stranger Things’, in a variety of roles, the ad cheekily speculates that every single ad featuring clean clothes is, by necessity, a Tide ad. In yet another great example of meta Super Bowl marketing, the brand handily parodies everything from classic car spots to beer commercials.
1. Nike
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n0j_CX1S2es
Nike created an instant hit with its ad, ‘Nothing Beats A Londoner’, a triumphantly fun spot that’s already being called one of the year’s best. Set to a soundtrack of grime hits, the Wieden + Kennedy ad shows young Londoners competing to show just how tough they have it in their ends. Whether running away from scooter kids in Peckham or evading helicopter parents in Battersea, the ad shows a verve and sense of humour perfect for cutting through the swathe of generic sports advertising. It also doesn’t hurt that it features an impressive array of music and sporting cameos, not to mention some brilliant cartoonish visuals.
