Feature Article   The Commercials of Super Bowl XLIII by Melissa Minners                Ah, it’s that time of year again – time when millions of people sit down in front of their televisions, drinks and goodies in hand, to watch two football teams battle it out for the rights to be called the best team of 2009.  That’s right, it’s time for the Super Bowl!  Super Bowl XLIII to be exact and this was one promising game featuring the almost unstoppable Pittsburgh Steelers and, for the first time ever, the underdogs known as the Arizona Cardinals.  What an amazing game!  The win was up for grabs until the last few seconds of the fourth quarter when the Pittsburgh Steelers completed the game, victorious for yet another year.             But we all know that some folks don’t watch the Super Bowl to cheer on their favorite teams.  As with Super Bowl XLI and XLII, there are those who watch the Super Bowl simply for the advertising.  That’s right, it’s the commercial breaks that make the Super Bowl fun for these fans and each presentation of the Super Bowl seems to bring about more imaginative commercials.  This year’s ad spots were quite entertaining, but I do have my favorites.             For example, let’s talk about the Doritos ad featuring the Crystal Ball.  Find something you want, say the Doritos in that vending machine over there.  Now, watch as the Crystal Ball and watch as the power of the ball gives you exactly what you want.  Be mindful of the shards of broken glass.  Oh, and remember that the Crystal Ball is not for use on people.             How about that Bridgestone Tires commercial featuring Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head?  Mrs. Potato Head just can’t keep her mouth shut much to the chagrin of Mr. Potato Head.  Her incessant yakking almost causes an accident, but the Bridgestone Tires hug the road and afford Mr. Potato Head the opportunity for some fancy maneuvers that save the day…especially when one of those maneuvers causes Mrs. Potato Head’s mouth to fly off.             The Budweiser Clydesdale commercials have always been a favorite of mine.  This year, one of the Clydesdales learns how to fetch.  We learned about Jake Clydesdale’s great grandfather who came to America from Scotland and eventually landed a job with Budweiser.  And then there is the Daisy love story, featuring a Clydesdale that will do anything to be with his mate, even after she is sold to the circus.             Pepsi Maxx featured a rather funny commercial about men and their need to pretend that everything is fine, no matter how much it hurts.  The “I’m Good” add is painful to watch, but easily understood.  Every man can relate to the ad while every woman will nod, knowing they have a man just like the ones shown in this ad.             The Pedigree Adoption Drive commercial had me in stitches as Pedigree goes out of its way to prove that some animals just should not be adopted.  Take for instance the rhino who wants to go for a walk…or the ostrich chasing the mailman.  Too funny!             The Coca Cola Company usually has some funny ads playing during the Super Bowl.  This year, we watched as insects, lead by a rogue ladybug, steal a man’s Coke as he lays blissfully unaware on a bright, sunny day in the park.  We also got to see a remake of the famous Mean Joe Green Coke commercial.  This time around, the football star is Troy Palomalo of the Pittsburgh Steelers and the drink is Coke Zero.  But this is not the uplifting commercial that won the hearts of millions – this, my friends, is the ultimate spoof.             There were the Evil Flowers that, once delivered, proceed to tell the recipient how much they hate them.  This is a warning to all of us flower-buyers out there to never send flowers in a box.  Order from Teleflora, because when you send flowers in a box, “you never know what they might say.”             But my favorite commercial of all was the CareerBuilders.com ad discussing when it’s time to find a new job.  It features a woman screaming in her car, co-workers who don’t respect you, a worker wishing they were somewhere else, a worker who cries all the time, a worker who wants to punch small animals all the time, and a weirdo you may be sitting next to in your cubicle.  I laughed so hard at this commercial, I nearly cried.  This is one everyone can relate to and that’s what makes it so funny.             Runners up featured the singing eTrade baby, Death returning to his accountant after having his taxes redone at H&R Block, the Heroes Super Bowl Ad, the LMAO! NBC Thursday night line-up ad, and Cheetos saving the day from an obnoxious cellphone girl.             For the most part, the rest of the commercials were alright, but nothing to write home about.  The steamy GoDaddy commercials were nothing more than teases – you have to go to GoDaddy.com to watch the endings of each one.  The highly publicized 3-D Sobe commercial featuring the Sobe lizards dancing with NFL football stars was cute, but not equal to all of the hype.  The Gatorade commercials were characteristically lame as were the Heineken ad, the Bud Light with Lime ad, the Castrol monkeys ad, and the Nextel Roadies Run the Airport ad.             So, with another year of Super Bowl ads making it into the history books, one can only wonder what those creative ad geniuses will come up with for Super Bowl XLIV.  Until then, enjoy reruns of the Super Bowl XLIII ads on television, YouTube, and on websites all over the internet!      For feedback, visit our message board or e-mail the author at talonkarrde@g-pop-net.