I always have-- this is not just a side effect of Nike being a client of mine.
This new Reebok ad reminds me why. Basically, it takes the trend of signing ever-younger sports prodigies to (one hopes, lest there are fetuses out there with hoop dreams) its limit. If it were a parody of Nike's recent signings of young stars, it would almost be acceptible (though it would taste of sour grapes, as Lebron James chose Nike even though Reebok offered more money.)
Rob Walker's analysis of the ad for Slate is, as usual, dead-on:
A 3-year-old saying "I am Reebok" strikes me as just about the creepiest and most disheartening image that a company could possibly offer to society. But I suspect that many viewers will have a different reaction-- more along the lines of, "I want in on that. My boy can be Reebok, too."
Eww.
Posted by jay at June 11, 2003 10:17 AM | TrackBack