| Image via Adstorical |
That’s stupid. Let’s watch it. (Waitstaff dishing out mouthwatering mounds of rigatoni and breadsticks.) Dad: “I love our family tradition of passing our plates to the right.” Daughter: “When did that become a family tradition?” Dad: “When you ordered that!” (Daughter rolls eyes; fun-loving family laughs harder than it has in years.) And that’s probably the most cerebral dialogue of the whole maddeningly inane campaign. So here’s the question: are we being had? I’ve bristled at those silly commercials since they began, but on the other hand, I’ve also memorized most of them. I don’t care for the food, personally, so it’s a wash for me, but obviously folks aren’t entirely put off by the ads because they’re still eating there. On a recent podcast in which he broke down the musclebound but brainless movie “Fast Five,” ESPN’s Bill Simmons called it “being in on the joke” when actors and producers can deliver with a straight face something they know is brutally stupid. So, how often are these marketing guys in on the joke? When the Olive Garden crew dreams up these comedic gems, I imagine the flustered new guy says, “Wait a minute, are these supposed to bother people?” to which the old-timer winks at him: “Bingo, kid. You’re getting it.” Most recently the wool was pulled over my eyes with NBC’s “The Voice,” an American Idol-ish show that features enough exposure to Christina Aguilera’s mind to warrant an advisory from the Surgeon General. The premise is that four music stars, all of questionable acumen, conduct auditions with their backs to the stage so they can objectively assemble rival chorales that will compete against each other on a three-month excursion to a tropical island with nothing but the shirts on their backs. (I might be confused on that last part.) But guess what? After mocking the previews for weeks, my wife and I have inexplicably watched four or five full episodes. Granted, it comes on right after “Biggest Loser,” but for all our derision, you’d think we’d shoot the TV out like Elvis before watching a even a nanosecond. I’d ponder this question more, but right now I’m in the mood to crack wise over a steaming plate of chicken primavera. |
