You are now entering Ad Space, a realm of commercials, brought before us so we might examine how they work, and discuss why we both love and hate them so. So it is written …

The Product:
7Up (un)cola

The Promotion:

The Pitch:
Look! So pretty!

Looking back on the Ad Spaces I’ve posted lately, I noticed I’ve been on a bit of a negative streak, only highlighting ads where I felt there was something to mock or call into question.

There’s good reason for that. Negative criticism is fun, and commercials provide so much fodder for mockery, it’d be lunacy not to indulge. But I think it’s worth keeping some balance, and remembering that advertising can, on occasion, be an unironic work of beauty.

To wit, this week’s ad, a 7Up commercial from the 1970’s (could it be any other decade?) that goes all out making the most fascinating visual spectacle it can. A piece of animation that blends together suggestions of neon signs, old-school musical numbers, and phantasmagorical imagery to create something not quite like anything else I’ve seen. And accompanied by a jingle that … I don’t know if “catchy” is precisely accurate, but it certainly is fun to listen to.

I have no deep analysis here. No flaws I want to point out or any advertising strategy I want to appraise. I just think this ad is a joy to watch and to listen to, and I wanted to share it with all of you, my fellow ‘Cados.

Enjoy!