When DraftFCB and Kmart released their spot “Ship My Pants” last month, it was lauded far and wide as shot of adrenaline for both the retail brand and the Chicago office of the agency. Sure, it was silly, considering the spot’s entire charm rested on the fact that “ship” can sound like “shit,” but it was still a funny and delightfully unexpected execution for brand not known for taking risks.

After “Ship My Pants” racked up a whopping 17 million+  YouTube views, it would be foolish to switch up a formula that’s proven itself on such a grand scale. So, we now have “Big Gas Savings,” a new spot which tries to recreate the lightning-in-a-bottle success of its predecessor. Now first off,  it lacks the unexpectedness of “Ship My Pants,” not to mention that “gas” and “ass” is a bit further of a reach than “ship” and “shit.” And, of course, “shit” is a far funnier word than “ass.” Also, advertising discounts on gas might not be the best way to get people into your store. In other words, no, this doesn’t live up to “Ship My Pants,” but really could it?

Kmart was left with two options here when it became clear that they had to stick to an execution they knew would bring in viewers. The first, which they went with, was to use a different swear word. The second, which may have worked better, was to continue going with “shit” and come up with new jokes. This isn’t to say that “Big Gas Savings,” isn’t better than 90 percent of ads out there. In fact, it’s still a very enjoyable watch. It’s impossible to hit it out of the park with every swing, and a single sure isn’t anything to be ashamed of. Credits after the jump.

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It’s always wonderful when brands (and agencies) totally surprise you. That’s the way I felt upon viewing Kmart’s and DraftFCB Chicago’s “Halloween Costume Challenge,” a dark, Matrix-esque new seasonal spot starring dancer Monternez “Monty” Rezel of America’s Got Talent.

In the parking lot of a Kmart store on Chicago’s northwest side (the Addison and Kimball location for those familiar), Rezel set a Guinness World Record by going through 150 costume changes in just over six hours filming this spot. Set to David Condos‘ song “Like Wolves,” the spot freezes Rezel in midair during his dance, with a circle of cameras capturing his moves in 360-degree glory.

For those social mediaites out there (we know you’re out there), the live-stream of the event garnered 148 mentions, 33 retweets and 453,000 impressions. Alright, so those metrics aren’t that amazing (because I wasn’t invited and no one watches live-streams unless someone is breaking the speed of sound), but the end product is. And, really, when you have a spot this good, that’s all that matters. Credits after the jump.

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