… ten bundys and she's anyone's!
August 26th, 2008So the story goes like this: A guy who drinks a Certain Drink walks into a party, and to the chagrin of all his mates, manages to pick up the hottest girls there. Four of them, in fact.
Good for you, Heterosexual Advertising Guy! Way to score!
That’s kind of every ad ever made, yes? So why, all of a sudden, is the lucky guy picking up those lovely ladies, no longer a guy?
helloooo lover
Why is the Bundy Bear rocking up to parties and having women fawn all over him and his dyed-pink fur? Wouldn’t he much rather be off picking up lady Polar Bears?
And why is some bloke’s kelpie refusing to bring back his stick because he’s too busy frolicking in a hot tub with four hot XXXX girls?
Why, all of a sudden, are penguins pullin ladies by looking cool as they drive around in their hummer?
Because first of all that last one is biologically inaccurate, and OFFENDS me as a ZOOLOGIST because penguins are serial monogamists and male penguins spend most of their time when they’re not with their partner sitting on eggs and looking after their bbs. I know this because Morgan Freeman told me so in his narration of ‘March of the Penguins’.
See?
And secondly … really? REALLY? I could not be more baffled. Who exactly is the target audience for these ads? I know it can’t be me, because I am totally creeped out by them.
They also clearly don’t work on me, regardless, because I can’t even remember what the stupid penguins in the car are meant to be promoting.
I’ve seen my share of ads that objectify and sexualise women before (after all, I watch football, hoooooome of the sexist advert!), but when did advertisers decide the new way to hook customers was by implying animals have sexual tension with women?
It’s almost as unnerving as that cereal ad where the little boy makes brekkie for his mum and tucks her in bed and basically all-but-implies that he’s become some kind of reverse-gender oedipal substitute for his father. Shudder.
For one thing, implied bestiality is Just Plain Creepy, kthanks. But doesn’t this also represent a whole new level of the “sexual availability” undercurrent in all the previous ads that used women and sexuality as selling tools?
I know part of the objection to this kind of advertising, and the way it feeds into a raunch culture, is that it ingrains the idea that for women there is no higher value to aspire to than sexiness.
The purpose or pinnacle for women becomes nothing more than to be vessels to gratify others, to be available, to be sexually attractive, to be lusted after, and in doing so they rob themselves of their ownsexuality under the guise of being liberated. Eventually no one bothers to think anymore about who or what a woman might want, only whether she’s wantable.
So what does it say when what we are being shown in primetime includes women who are so ready to Be Sexy and to be seen as sexy that they’re not even discerning about species anymore?
Do you know what’s funny to me? When animals act like people! Do you know what’s not funny to me? When apparently women like shagging animals.
Even the animators of Jessica Rabbit had the decency to make her a woman instead of an actual rabbit.
If I’m assuming that all these booze and car ads are in some large part targeted at men, what’s the kicker? Tell me, as a woman, why do these ads make you happy? Why do they make you want to buy things?
PENGUINS CAN’T EVEN DRIVE CARS, YOU KNOW. THEIR FEET WOULDN’T REACH THE PEDALS. GOD.
kiki
sassy
lozzy
interns
I keep reading that as Ted Bundys and she’s anyone’s. Waaaah.
I dont think i’ve seen any of these ads but i dont get animal ads IN GENERAL. I know i’ve said it before but the Cadbury ad with the gorilla and Phil Collins … WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT SUPPOSED TO BE/MEAN? IT’S CREEPY!
I don’t know who is coming up with these ads but they need to stop smoking so much crack. What planet do they live on? I’d hate to see the ads that didn’t get approved.
well he was known as the ladies man for a reason!
srsly jessica. you just know Don Draper would throw that shit out of his office.
hahaha. Penguins.
As a women, i’m offended by a lot of ads. But with the recent revival of the ‘stupid man’ ad, i would be totally pissed off if i was a guy right now. I mean, you have anything from guys not knowing what panty liners are, to boys who throw an unopened sachet of sauce into a stir-fry.
BAH.
p.s i love the gruen transfer.
now that you mention it I’VE NOTICED TOO BEC.
sexism and bestiality must be the new advertising buzzwords.
guys! meeting! important news! male-bashing is back!
I have it on good authority that many dudes are that stupid. Like my brother for example, who asked me how to make a cup of tea and tried to boil an egg by putting in the microwave. Oh Justin ♥
I can only assume the Bundy Bear mingling at parties and picking up womenfolk is meant to appeal to men at some level… and was probably thought up by the same minds that bring us Ralph and FHM magazines?
Maybe it’s the ad world’s current replacement for that old feel good nerd-comes-good plotline? I think it’s meant to go if an oversized strangely bipedal and out-of environment polar bear can pick up simply becuase he drinks , then come on men! Start drinking it too and the women will just auto-swoon, and you won’t need be stuck at home lonely and watching dodgy TV shows on a Friday night?
But the step from sexualising an innocent nerd to humanising and sexualising any sort of animal – while women of course remain unchangingly passive/captive in whatever context – is worrying… and obviously thought up by my fellow men, god love ‘em!
Oh, and penguin pictures like that are just always cute, and make you feel all fluffy inside.
Not sure if it works in the same way for the penguins in the hummer though…
To play the devil’s advocate, perhaps these ads aren’t portraying the sexual affinity of women to animals, but rather showing that males, particularly males that are out to pick up, are similar to animals (let’s face it, they’re pretty spot on), behaving on instinct rather than rational thought.
Although I agree that this type of advertising is just plain idiotic.
good point stewart. as in hey isn’t it funny cause animals are being people-y and we’re all the same really, and then cuter than using people because … well, animals are cuter.
what I don’t get is why the ladies aren’t lady animals. IT MAKES NO SENSE.
*falls into foetal position*
How do they choose the animals they choose? There’s nothing about a polar bear that screams SNUGGLY. In fact, i hear most bears will claw you to shreds and maul you. HTH.
NOTE TO ADVERTISERS: use cute fluffy lop eared bunnies instead! Everyone loves a bunny. Or a duck! DUCKS ARE CUTE!
Well, the Bundy ads dont really work in the first place.
No one down here drinks that shit willingly.
And why does the bear not simply maul his friends to death for even attempting such an childish prank? Or maul one to teach the others a lesson.
Why is his spa full of warm water?
And any girl that still finds men wearing pink attractive has gotta get her head out of 2002 and re-join the real world where we all hate those douchebags.
It’s all about mesh singlets now a days and they looks damn good on me.
Touche. If the ladies were lady animals then they wouldn’t be able to fit their gender stereotypes. Pretty sure seeing big titties on a polar bear or penguin would be enough to scare scare the pants off any man, but maybe not get into the pants of one.
I wrote scare twice. Obviously for effect since it would be REALLY SCARY!
Oh and as for pink shirts/fur. No self respecting gay man would wear that shit. I secretly have a chuckle when I see confused straight men holding onto that craze for dear life.
maybe they wouldn’t have tits? the bundy bear wears no pants but I don’t think he has a penis.
also why is it my comments always end up involving animal-penis discussions??
(and I won’t even start on the pink shirts. it was endearing when a guy did it cause he JUST LIKED PINK, now it’s sad. SAD. almost as sad as an industrie screen print)
So true! Industrie = The devil. Only not as cool in an i’m evil and I know it kind of way.
I saw that cadbury/phil collins ad for the first and only time on sunday and I had no idea what was going on but it made me laugh. Esp when I saw the gorilla had inner ear moniters like phil. I’m amused by the smallest things…
I also love that song. I have added nothing to this post…
I DID kinda love that song until a Gorilla in a Cadbury ad ruined it for me.
*Boycotts*
Don’t you guyses ever read Snake Tales comix????
Yeh me neither, but you may recall Lady Snake and her giant tits from the one time you glanced at it accidentally.
i would totally pash the bundy bear. i love blondes.
Ooooh! Ooooh! What about the Libra beaver ad? It’s gross cos that’s what I actually imagine to be in womens pants.
(Or they are like those in star wars)
Hmmm… that didn’t work as planned.
Meant to say vajayjays are like those holes in the ground with teeth.
i dont know what vaginas you’ve been looking at stewart, but mine is more like a beautiful exotic flower -
http://www.calmpassionwarrior.com/orchid.jpg
It works Stewart, if you hover over the link.
But now I’m going to have nightmares about that very possibility….
Just wanted to admit to James that I remember Lady Snake’s obvious tits… which should set at precendent for the Bundy Bear being portrayed with a massive obvious swinging penis! Might even attract a whole new unexpected target market to Bundy.
It’s true, i’ve seen Kiki’s ladybits. In fact, it was the first thing she showed me when we met.
(NO, KIKI. I WILL NOT STOP TELLING THE STORY TO EVERY PERSON I MEET.)
you think you’re special, but it’s just how i say hello.
Helllloo Kiki.
Don’t say that. She’ll get her orchid out.
LOWEST common denominator = jokes about bits
“LOWEST common denominator = jokes about bits”
… got us in one, stewart baby.
Glad we’re all on the same wavelength then.
Well, it’s more like a beaver-orchid hybrid to be honest.
Beaver-orchid-sarlacc hybrid?
Sassy, you need either TiVo or Foxtel IQ, so you don’t have to watch ads.
That said, i LOVE the Cadbury Gorilla ad. It’s nonsensical and slightly daggy.
Beer ads don’t make sense to me, but they’re not aimed at me, so i don’t care. You should blog about Skincare ads though. They fill me with rage and make me want to throw things.
are we talking about dove? because that fills me with rage too. note to all flat-chested or slim-hipped women – APPARENTLY REAL WOMEN HAVE CURVES. YOU MISS OUT. SORRY!
(not to mention the way curves is now used a synonym for overweight. it offends me semantically).
and the pro-age and ‘beauty comes in all forms’ angle with the implication that you need their products to feel good about yourself. not to mention the emphasis they place on being ‘beautiful’ in the first place.
YES!
AND when I went on the dove site just then to see if they’re still running the campaign they’ve got some quote like “firming size 2 thighs is no challenge …”
so … ? we’re still being told that size 2 and cellulite free is the ideal way to be. we’re just being told it backhandedly. way to embrace every woman guys!