The best, the worst, and the most WTF – from Beyoncé to Bennifer

Verizon

Remove the blue sequins, polish your skates, and start sending Taylor Swift congratulatory gifts. As the country engaged in the senseless orgy of capitalism also known as Super Bowl LVIII, real people know that even though the Chiefs came out on top in a late overtime win over the 49ers, the real highlights from every Super Bowl Sunday These are amazing sites. Judging by the trappings of the past, some years commercials are downright bizarre, while other eras for the most part focus on agonizing emotion. There was even a year when Mr. Bennet died (Trembling)

For the 2024 version of the Big Game set in Vegas, advertisers decided to gamble on spectacle: the main reveal (evil! Beyonce!), big stars and recurring favorites (Jennifer Coolidge, Ben Affleck, Tom Brady). Every 30 seconds came at a price of $7 million.

Here are some of the most extravagant, dazzling, and questionable ads that ran during Super Bowl LVIII.

Beyonce
Verizon

Potos? Bar Bay? “Drop new music?!” Only Beyoncé could turn Verizon, the company known for corny ads like “Can You Hear Me Now,” into a hashtag-inducing commentary on celebrities' efforts to break their souls (I mean break the Internet). Not only does “Your and My Queen” appear in this hilarious and epic ad, but she's also teased new music in the form of the second part of her three-part ad Renaissance Project – the star's long-rumored country album (it immediately followed with a pair of new singles: “Texas Hold 'Em” and “16 Carriages”). It's another W for bright star.

Scorsese
Square area

Forget Taylor and Jason: the most interesting dynamic duo of the year was Marty and Francesca. Yes, the legendary director and his Gen Z actress daughter have been making magic on TikTok for a while. (Have you seen the movie in which the director found Hollywood's newest star: female dog?) Fortunately, the powers that be at website builder Squarespace wanted to get in on all the fun and featured the two in an endearing father-daughter teaser showing the duo trying to build a website. It was the lead-up to the Big Game commercial, with a punchline that only die-hard New Yorker Marty himself could come up with.

Timo?!
Timo

Formerly obscure shopping mall Covered He terrorized the American public with a host of ads that bordered on global harassment. While we're all for giving Jeff Bezos' orange-arrowed monster mentioned above some healthy competition, for the love of all things holy, please allow this without forcing our eyes to watch another Temu commercial. For evidence, check out the internet's reaction to the attack, which falls somewhere between shock and hostility.

J Cole
Discovered by the card

Since her well-deserved return as part of the cast White lotus, Coolidge was an ordinary lady Old Navy And Elf cosmetics (With her midget spot airing during the big game just last year). Now it's adding the Discover credit card cartel to that stack with an ad similar in style and humor to all the others.

a 30 Rock Reunion
Booking.com

The vacation planning website is no stranger to silly ads featuring today's top comedians (see: last year's site featuring Melissa McCarthy). For 2024, the site has enlisted Tina Fey as an alum 30 Rock A reunion featuring fellow cast members Jane Krakowski and Jack McBrayer in a fun setting where everyone pretends to be Faye for the day. However, the cherry on top was a cameo from Glenn Close, and yes, Fey was just as surprised as you are. The whole shebang seems to have paid off: even before the broadcast premiered on Big Game, the YouTube clip had already racked up nearly 100 million views.

Gina Ortega and Abuelas
Doritos Dynamitas

A word to the wise: Don't mess with anyone Abuela On a mission. For this loud and bustling Doritos spot (which clogs up rolled tortilla chips called Dynamitas), we're taken on a wild ride when two tough… Abuelas (named Dina and Meta, of course) are betrayed to the highest degree when someone – Gasp! – beats them to the last bag of potato chips. Starring Jenna Ortega and Danny Ramirez, the script flip was a slick and triumphant relaunch of the crunchy snack brand.

Swifties
Cetaphil

Choose your own opinion: A) What an absolutely wonderful place about the sacred bond between fathers and daughters and how Taylor and Travis brought the country together in beautiful, loving harmony. b) How did this greedy company dare to exploit the relationship between two people to sell skin cream by displaying non-copyrighted pictures of friendship bracelets, red shirts, and the numbers 13 and 89?! And the worst: him Possibly uploaded from TikTok creator without credit.

Bennifer loves Dunkin'
Dunkin'

What's up with celebrities and their penchant for enjoying Dunkin' Donuts? Critically examining Adam Sandler jack and jill, The only bright spot was star Al Pacino rapping about the store's fictional cappuccino drink, Dunkaccinos. Then last year, after photos of Ben Affleck tripping over Dunkin' Donuts products went viral, he starred in an actual ad for the brand (a superlative marketing move that led to the company's best-selling day ever). Now, we have Affleck, along with his wife Jennifer Lopez and pals Matt Damon and Tom Brady, vying hard for Dunkin' once again. (And throw in Jack Harlow and Fat Joe for good measure.) What kind of stranglehold does this company have on our nation's celebrities?

Mr. T
Skechers

Listen, you idiot! When Mr. T speaks, we have no choice but to open our damn ears and listen. Sneaker company Skechers has cleverly tapped the '80s icon, along with NFL broadcaster Tony Romo, in this clever ad that reflects on how there's no “T” in Skechers… by putting in Mr. T in Skechers. Logical? good. I pity the fool who doesn't follow such a simple and enjoyable premise.

An anti-vaxxer whom his relatives can't stand
American values

We all know that Robert F. Kennedy is a wacky conspiracy theorist — like that distant uncle you meet at family functions and make polite small talk with while counting down the seconds until it's over. His political action committee's decision to replicate his uncle's iconic and catchy campaign ad, one of the best ads ever created in the medium, along with 1960s-era imagery, was disingenuous and opportunistic (just Ask my nephew Bobby Shriver, who said his late mother would be “appalled by his murderous views on health care”). RFK Jr., in a bizarre move, even apologized if the ad “caused pain to anyone in my family.” On Twitter While he appears to be distancing himself from it – and also pins the ad on his Twitter profile. Make it logical.

One with Uber Eats
Uber Eats

Continuing its great tradition of unveiling a wild commercial filled with disparate celebrities, Uber Eats has done it again this time with its old likes friends (Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer), distinguished artists (Jelly Roll) and even a reclusive millionaire (Victoria Beckham) and her husband (David Beckham). Cameos are nice when they're surprising. But filling an entire commercial with ads that seem out of proportion is like waiting for a ride that goes in circles.