美国国家公共电台 NPR Super Bowl Ads 2019: Stunts, Self-Deprecation And Celebrity Sightings（在线收听）

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Some Super Bowls are thrilling. And some are like last night, when the New England Patriots beat the Los Angeles Rams in the lowest-scoring Super Bowl game in history. Of course, the game is only part of the spectacle. Were the halftime show and the commercials any more exciting? We have a tweet review here from one Rachel Martin of NPR News, who writes - you wrote, Rachel - well, that was horrible. So I think you didn't love it very much.

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

No.

INSKEEP: NPR TV critic Eric Deggans has his judgment.

ERIC DEGGANS, BYLINE: The most unexpected moment in the Super Bowl halftime show didn't come from headliner Maroon 5 or guest Travis Scott. It came courtesy of characters from the cartoon "SpongeBob SquarePants," who introduced Scott's part of the performance.

(SOUNDBITE OF SUPER BOWL LIII HALFTIME SHOW)

RODGER BUMPASS: (As Squidward) And now, a true musical genius who needs no introduction.

TOM KENNY: (As SpongeBob) (Vocalizing).

BUMPASS: (As Squidward) Oh...

TRAVIS SCOTT: It's lit.

DEGGANS: The cartoon clip was a shoutout to "Sweet Victory," a song that SpongeBob SquarePants once played on an episode the parodied the Super Bowl. It was a hip surprise and a halftime show that also included appearances from Outkast member Big Boi and a gospel choir. Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine stripped off coats and a shirt until he was bare-chested, showing off his tattoos while singing one of the group's biggest hits, "Moves Like Jagger."

(SOUNDBITE OF SUPER BOWL LIII HALFTIME SHOW)

ADAM LEVINE: (Singing) Take me by the tongue, and I'll know you. Kiss me till you're drunk, and I'll show you all the moves like Jagger. And I've got the moves like Jagger. I got the moves - yeah.

DEGGANS: It was professional, mildly exciting, the kind of inoffensive Super Bowl halftime show that the NFL might have been hoping for after its controversies over players kneeling to protest police brutality. But it was also kind of boring, like most of the Super Bowl commercials. Perhaps to avoid social media backlash, many of the ads in Sunday's game were not edgy, groundbreaking or even all that funny. Consider one of Bud Light's commercials, which featured medieval characters from last year's Bud Light Super Bowl ads preparing to watch a joust...

(SOUNDBITE OF AD)

SYDNEY LEMMON: (As Dilly Dilly Queen) It's a beautiful day for a joust.

JOHN HOOGENAKKER: (As Dilly Dilly King) Indeed. Sun's out. Got my lucky loincloth, cold Bud Light, comfy throne. I don't have the plague anymore.

DEGGANS: ...When their Bud Knight is killed by a character from "Game Of Thrones" called The Mountain. Then a dragon sets fire to the jousting arena, and the whole thing turns into a "Game Of Thrones" commercial.

(SOUNDBITE OF RAMIN DJAWADI'S "'GAME OF THRONES' MAIN TITLE")

DEGGANS: I'm not quite sure how scenes of carnage and fire sells cans of Bud Light. Maybe it makes you thirsty. Harrison Ford fared better in an ad that showed fictional failed products featuring Amazon Alexa, including a dog collar.

(SOUNDBITE OF AD)

ALEXA: Ordering dog food.

(SOUNDBITE OF DOG BARKING)

ALEXA: Ordering dog food.

HARRISON FORD: You can bark all you want. I'm not paying for any more dog food.

(SOUNDBITE OF DOG BARKING)

ALEXA: Ordering gravy.

DEGGANS: Yeah, there is nothing funnier than watching Indiana Jones chase a small dog around his house. Pepsi earns some multi-generational cool points by having Chance the Rapper remix the Backstreet Boys' hit "I Want It That Way."

(SOUNDBITE OF AD)

CHANCE THE RAPPER: (Rapping) Ooh, hot stuff all over my nachos, walking like a taco, driving over potholes, hotter than a pot roast.

DEGGANS: And The Washington Post scored with a serious ad aimed at reinforcing the value of journalists and journalism. As images of reporters like slain columnist Jamal Khashoggi appeared on screen, Tom Hanks provided a reassuring narration.

(SOUNDBITE OF AD)

TOM HANKS: When our nation is threatened, there's someone to gather the facts, to bring you the story - no matter the cost. Knowing keeps us free.

DEGGANS: Now, I might be a bit biased, but seeing some of the most expensive real estate in television used to remind America that journalism is a key to democracy seemed like the best use of a Super Bowl ad that I've seen in quite a while. I'm Eric Deggans.

(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "I WANT IT THAT WAY")

BACKSTREET BOYS: (Singing) Don't want to hear you...