As many of us have already mentioned, both in our blog posts and in real life, the Super Bowl is about so much more than the game. Regardless of who we're rooting for, many of us show up for the snacks and tune in for the ads- at least that's how I'd define my attraction to the Super Bowl! The Super Bowl, as the biggest televised event of the year, has evolved into a culture in itself. Even though the football is what brings us there in the first place, we stick around for everything else: the halftime show, funny and/or moving ads, and of course, the party that usually accompanies all of the above.
Leading up to the Super Bowl, we're hyped up through social media. #SB50 was everywhere over the last couple of weeks, crossing over several networks to bring us all the info, ad spoilers, and snack ideas that have become such a huge part of the big game. Of course, once we turn on our TVs the night of, plenty of built up expectations are coming with that. That being said, I felt like this year was a little lackluster in the ad department. Sure, bits and pieces were fun: Amy Schumer, Ryan Reynolds, etc. (Lots of celebrity cameos this year...perhaps to make up for lack of excitement and creativity in other areas?) But after years of screaming goats, adorable puppies and highly anticipated movie trailers, nothing really jumped out at me this Sunday night. I didn't find myself wanting to talk about any particular moment with friends the next day, and I didn't hear others bringing anything up either. (Would this have turned out differently had I maybe watched the Super Bowl in a larger group? A smaller group? If others were able to point out things I otherwise wouldn't have noticed?)
Instead, I feel like this year's post Super Bowl conversation revolved around the halftime show. Was Beyonce making a political statement? Oh my god Beyonce is going on tour. Might Beyonce be overrated? Why isn't anyone talking about Bruno Mars?!?! Of course, this conversation has primarily played out on social media, in addition to the pre-Super Bowl conversation. And it will probably continue to play out for weeks to come...hence the power of the Super Bowl, even a somewhat dull one. No matter what, it seems like people will always end up talking about something, especially across these social networks that make it so easy and reach so many.
I totally agree with you on everything. i felt as though this year the super bowl was all about the halftime show and no so much about the ads. All of the social media that I saw and personally engaged in was about the halftime show (and about how fabulous Beyonce is).
ReplyDeleteI completely agree that the ads this year were a let down. The highlight of the game for me was the the half time show, and even that let me down a little. Instead of viewers talking about the ads, it seems as though they're gossiping about the performers of the half time show. Beyonce definitely stole the show by announcing her new world tour immediately following her show. I think that her PR team did a far better job on marketing than any of the advertisers did.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with you about how the ads let us down. I feel as though the companies who produced the ads did a weak job as a whole and were mostly all together pretty boring. None of them really stood out to me which is a bummer because I always love seeing what will be shown the night of the Superbowl. I also feel as if the celebs at the show were the most talked about during the night and days following. Hopefully next year will be different.
ReplyDeleteI liked how you talked about the events leading up to the Super Bowl. It is true that every year there is always so much hype before the event. There are ads targeted toward what food and drinks you should have at your Super Bowl party. And when the time finally comes, fans may not even be watching the game or ads all that closely. Maybe it is more about the halftime show.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely agree with all your ideas... I mentioned in my blog post that this year's Super Bowl was more about the halftime show because of Queen B than the commercials. She stole the whole show after announcing her new world tour and that totally made the commercials less important!
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