Seasons Greetings fellow Otaku & Metalheads!
As you might recall from last year, I took a look at 10 of the most iconic Christmas/Holiday commercials out there. To be honest, I had a lot of fun doing it. Discovering old classics & modern favorites really brought out the festive spirit in me, so from now on, I’m turning this into an annual series! Once per December, I’m devoting one post to advertisements that call upon this time of year, and low & behold I found a few more commercials to take a look at. So with that said, get on your ugly sweater that you want to burn but can’t, fill up a mug with hot cocoa, and enjoy my take on more top 10 Christmas commercials. Let’s begin!
10) Heroes of the Storm - Toys, Toys, Toys! (Link) & Overwatch - Winter Wonderland 2018 (Link)
The Nexus calls to us once again this holiday season. For years now the festival of Winter Veil has occurred during this month, but in 2018 things are quite a bit different. This year we get a festival of toys & childhood! Honestly, this trailer was just adorable: the kid announcer sounds like a lot of us back when we were young on Christmas Day. Back when we got something cool from under the tree, and just how quickly our imaginations went to work with the worlds our newly acquired gifts would inhabit. The HotS team did a really good job here!
And then we get the holidays in the world of Overwatch. I covered 2016 & 2017's ad for the Winter Wonderland event last year, and I basically said that they were some of the sweetest & most heartwarming commercials ever put out for a game. 2018's advertisement is no different: it’s still charming, there’s a lot of wintery colors, and the music they use is equally sugar coated. My only gripe is that 2018's Winter Wonderland trailer is much shorter than 2016's or even last year’s, and it doesn’t quite have as much staying power as the previously mentioned 2. Still, it’s a nice nugget of Blizzard goodness, and just gets me ready for the holidays more.
9) A Christmas Story Trailer (Link)
Alright, I had to get another movie trailer onto this list. Last year it was the incredibly hokey trailer for The Santa Clause, but this year I’m going a bit further back in time. Back in time to a movie trailer for a film that has become a permanent staple of the Christmas/Holiday season. That’s right, I’m talking about A Christmas Story this year! From top to bottom, it gives us snipbits into the life of a young child & his efforts to get the toy of his dreams. Along the way, we see just how odd life is around him during December. Things can’t be said any further, other than to watch it and enjoy!
8) Staples Snowbot (Link)
Though it’s only 30 seconds long, this has to be one of the funniest Christmas commercials ever put out. It’s 2 Staples employees talking about the new snowman robot in store, where it helps customers with technological gift ideas. Simple enough, but then a guy asks about a fax machine, and the robot begins to fly off the handle, refusing to help and saying that it’s his girfriend. A small fight breaks out, and the 2 employees from earlier give the robot a power cable as a new girlfriend. Again, it’s pretty short, but you’ll be laughing for much longer.
7) Nestle Christmas Commercial From 1992 With Farfle (Link)
Hellhounds. Somehow....someway...Nestle managed to conjure up hellhounds in 1992 to advertise holiday candy. Not just any normal hellhounds, mind you, but hellhounds with eyes that pierce your soul, and mouths with only a lower row of teeth. I guess Nestle wanted you to feel pain as these fiends sang about the sugary treats they tempt you with into their lairs. Thank goodness it’s only 30 seconds long, cause the hellmouth might have stayed open for longer!
6) Folgers Christmas Commercial: Brother & Sister (Link) & Folger's Coffee: Peter Comes Home For Christmas (Link)
The second of 4 ties on this year’s list (The 1st was number 10), we start off with two iconic commercials that are well known......for widely different reasons!
Let’s begin with a rather demented take on family & coffee. We see a young man get dropped off at his house (After being away in West Africa for some time apparently), and is greeted by what is shortly reveled afterwards to be his sister. The brother comes in, they talk, they drink coffee, and exchange gifts. Then the sister puts a red bow on her brother, he asks what she’s doing that for, and she simply says that he’s her present this year. For a few seconds afterwards, you’re giving the most intense staredown between the two, as if they want to bang...but then the parents come in, and it’s a nice, happy moment. I can see why people might like it for a moment, but the massive incest vibes are incredibly off putting. Since it’s release, countless parodies have cropped up, and all of them bank on the incestuous nature of the original. In fact, I covered a parody on last year’s list, so you should check it out!
Now if you want family & coffee done right, then this classic commercial will certainly warm your heart! We see a young man get dropped off like the original, but this time we don’t know where he’s been. He comes inside the house, and turns a switch, lighting up the tree in the other room. A little girl comes down, and it’s then that we learn his name is Peter, and he’s the big brother to said girl. The two are careful not to wake up the rest of the family, and proceed to go into the kitchen.....to wake everybody up peacefully (So odd). We get some brewing coffee, the parents upstairs smell it, wake up, and come downstairs to find their son. Judging by the Mother’s reaction, it seems as if he’s been gone for a while. Simply put: this is how you do coffee & Christmas right!
5) Japanese KFC Christmas Commercial (Link)
Of all the commercials on this list, this KFC Christmas commercial from Japan was the hardest to find. I searched on Youtube for what seems like months (A year or two, if I’m being honest), and was only able to find 2: a really short commercial from 1989 (Which you can see here), and the one you see in the link above. Upon finding it, I was surprised by how tame it is. Hearing all of the stories about how big KFC is in the land of the rising sun, I was shocked at how big this thing was. Make no mistake, this thing is still pretty odd. Just not as odd as I was hoping it would be.
4) Pepsi Holiday Nintendo Game (Link)
Handheld gamers of a certain age might recall this classic commercial, and like the Staples commercial from lower on the list, it’s only 30 seconds long. You see Mario traversing through a grocery store, showing off various Pepsi products. All the while, the narrator shows off the various things you can win....as long as you buy and drink Pepsi. Even with that said, I can more than understand why many people get nostalgic over this one, and coming from the PC Master Race camp.....I can’t help but smile a little too.
3) Merry beeping Christmas from Oral B (Link)
To be honest, I had never heard of this commercial. It just happened to be in my “Suggestion” section on Youtube one day, so I decided to give it a look, and holy crap is this a good one! It doesn’t exactly last long, but that doesn’t stop it from being one of the most hilarious yet strangely charming & heartwarming Christmas commercials out there. It’s just a bunch of people trying to get ready for the season, and things don’t go the right way. They swear profusely, and the beeping just makes the screwups even funnier. Despite said screwups & swearing, the heart of it all doesn’t fade in the least. Certainly one to keep an eye out for!
2) Edeka Christmas Commercial 2015 (Link) & Kellog’s Christmas Ad (Link)
I honestly wasn’t sure what to do with this one. I knew about this one for a few years, but didn’t really watch it until recently, and.....I’m conflicted. One the one hand, this is an emotional commercial. A Grandfather is all alone at his house during the holiday, and his family is nowhere in sight to celebrate with him. So what does he do? Fakes his death, and sends notifications to as many family members as possible to come to the house to attend his “funeral”. They step inside, and instead of a gloomy atmosphere, they see a nicely decorated table, and said grandfather steps out from the kitchen, and all is well. This has to be one of the most manipulative advertisements ever made. I’ll give Edeka credit in making something that tugs at the heartstrings, but if this ever happened to me in real life, I would slug someone in the face if they pulled this kind of stunt, good intentions or otherwise!
Now one emotional Christmas commercial I don’t have issues with is this Kellog’s ad. I think what makes this one so great is just how well they made it out to look & feel like an old holiday add from back when (80s by the look of things, despite the 2013 remaster). The kids are adorable, as is their mission to bring a nice breakfast to Saint Nick instead of the usual. I cried a little when I first watched this, as the innocence & happy emotions are really strong in this 1 minute ad. I hope it’s used more & more throughout the years, as it deserves to be called a commercial classic!
Now before we get to my number 1, I wanted to go over some commercials that didn’t quite make it onto the main list. These advertisements weren’t terrible by any means, but they didn’t have as much of the holiday spark as everything else on here. With that out of the way, here are my honorable mentions of Christmas commercials....part 2!
HM1) Norelco Razor Commercial (Link)
Every once in a while, I see a Christmas commercial from the past that leaves me scratching my head in confusion. Case in point: the old Norelco Razor commercials from back in the day. We get Santa using a razor as a sled, and he comes down the hill all jolly & happy, not to mention a delightful little Christmas town. Apart from that, they don’t feel like a holiday commercial to me. Not 100% at least. Despite that nitpick, I can see why people feel warm & fuzzy when they happen to come across this classic online, and I confess it even gets me to smile a little.
HM2) Icelandic Glacial Commercial (2016/2017) & Joey Ryan Starring in The Sleaziest TNA Impact Wrestling ShopTNA Commercial Ever (Link)
Both of these commercials made me facepalm immediately (I think I hit my eye one time). Like, they made me facepalm hard. Both are over the top, both get shockingly kinky, and yet there’s a warped charm to either one. If I’m being honest, I’m not exactly surprised by the Joey Ryan one, especially when you take into account the character he plays as on the Independent Wrestling Circuit. The Icelandic Glacial Commercial on the other hand......yeah, that came out of left field for me! If both of these weren’t so out there, I might have found a spot for them on the main list. Maybe even tied with my number 5 spot. Regardless, if you need to spice up your holiday season, then these commercials are for you!
1) John Lewis Christmas Advert 2014: Monty The Penguin (Link)
If there’s one thing that the English do right (Besides tea, Heavy Metal bands, and the proliferation of Chicken Tikka Masala), it would be creating some of the most whimsical, magical, and emotional Christmas/Holiday commercials every to air on television. Case in point is the 2014 add from the equally legendary British store chain John Lewis (John Lewis & Partners, to say the name completely), and it concerns a little boy and the penguin that’s his best friend & playmate. They go through the days leading up to Christmas playing & doing stuff, when his penguin starts seeing images of love around him. From a couple in the park to some images on TV, it’s obvious that he wants a companion of his own. Then on Christmas Day.......na, not gonna spoil things this year. This is one you’ll have to watch to find out instead! Regardless, this is one of the most touching adverts out there, and more than earns it’s spot at the no. 1 spot on this list.
So those were 10 more of my top ten Christmas commercials. Ten more timeless advertisements from the past few decades, they’re sure to stay in our brains until the end of days. There’s a little bit of content left, so see you all in a few days, when we’ll look at some quality holiday anime goodness. See you soon!
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