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Adweek's Top 5 Commercials of the Week: Feb. 14-21

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 02/21/2014 - 13:47

You're probably sick and tired of those feel-good Olympic commercials. So this week we have some fresh spots: one featuring a failed rapper; one with a "legen-dary" actor; two brands' humorous takes on modern struggles; and a heartwarming PSA to round out the bunch. Watch our picks for the week's five best commercials below, and vote for your favorite. If your favorite isn't shown here, tell us in the comments.

Neil Patrick Harris Sings a Sexy Song for His Favorite Sleep-Inducing Beverage

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 02/20/2014 - 19:02

Neil Patrick Harris goes all Miley Cyrus on a bottle of Neuro Sleep in this goofy music video for the brand's "Sleep with Neuro" campaign. The video was directed by Jon Jon Augustavo, who also did Macklemore's "Thrift Shop" video, and has NPH in full Barney Stinson mode, silk pajamas and everything. I guess that nightshirt phase he went through didn't last.

Ad of the Day: Old Navy Just Made Its Best TV Commercial in a Long Time

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 02/20/2014 - 17:43

Old Navy had a long and largely fruitful relationship with Crispin Porter + Bogusky. But the retailer seems reinvigorated creatively since splitting from CP+B last summer. Part of the problem was that the CP+B work was so fully realized—and in such a particular style—that it became limiting. The ads, from the SuperModelquins to the Funnovations, were always recognizable and well crafted, but they became a bit suffocating. Lately, though, freed from those constraints, Old Navy has done some irresistible commercials.

GE Gazes at Its Wondrous Inventions Through the Eyes of a Child

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 02/20/2014 - 16:37

IDEA: Here's one little girl who's going to lose her mind on Take Your Daughter to Work Day. The 6-year-old narrator of GE's striking new 60-second ad weaves fantastical stories of otherworldly inventions her mother is working on. But it turns out it's all true—underwater fans, talking airplanes, miniature hospitals—because her mother works at GE. "One page from the brief really stood out," said BBDO art director Eric Goldstein.

Hidden-Camera Video With Freezing Child Is a Whole Lot Warmer Than Most Ad Stunts

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 02/20/2014 - 15:40

If you saw a boy without a coat shivering alone at a bus stop, would you ask if he needed help? Would you lend him your gloves, scarf or jacket? Commuters do just that for 11-year-old Johannes in this hidden-camera video from SOS Children's Villages Norway, which is seeking to raise awareness and funds to help Syrian children in need. "The goal was to touch upon the fear of becoming numb to crises that don't affect you directly," SOS rep Synne Rønning tells AdFreak.

Samsung Breaks Out Its Own No. 2 Pencil as It Mercilessly Mocks Apple Again

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 02/20/2014 - 14:11

Samsung is keeping up with its favorite advertising pasttime: beating up on Apple. A new spot from 72andSunny takes aim at the iPad air, poking fun at the grandiose Apple commercial, voiced by Bryan Cranston, that played hide the skinny tablet behind a pencil. In Samsung's cheekier version, the pencil isn't starting poems or finishing symphonies. It's cheating at golf, and getting stuck in ceilings. And hiding behind the iPad air is an "even thinner" Galaxy tablet, with all kinds of extra whiz-bang features.

TNT's 'Dallas' Is About to Open a Gas Station in New York

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 02/20/2014 - 14:00

Last week, TNT revealed that it was launching an actual "Ewing Energies" gas station in the U.S. to promote the third season of its reboot of Dallas, the iconic 1980s Friday night soap opera. Now it's disclosing that the location will be in New York while opening for business on Monday just in time for the first episode.

This Agency Keeps Collecting Hits in Seattle

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 02/20/2014 - 11:49

Specs Who From left, Jim Copacino, co-founder and ecd; Betti Fujikado, co-founder and director of account management; Tim O’Mara, director of engagement strategy; Brandy O’Briant, managing director; and Mike Hayward, creative director What Full-service ad agency Where Seattle Celebrating its hometown like few agencies do, Copacino + Fujikado boasts seven clients with Seattle in their name, from the Seattle Aquarium to the Seattle Times to the Seattle Mariners, for whom