Hardee’s/Carl’s Jr. seems to be in a constant marketing tug-of-war between using half-naked girls to sell their menu and attempting to move away from sexualizing their products entirely. When David & Goliath won the biz at end of 2010/beginning of 2011, the agency starting producing spots for the fast-food chain that seemingly mocked the company’s usual over-the-top, sex sells approach while, simultaneously, not skimping on the bikini-clad models.

It seemed as though everyone was happy, that is until David & Goliath stopped putting sexy girls in the ads altogether. Rumor has it that this angered higher-ups at Carl’s Jr./Hardee’s parent, CKE, who were all like, “Where are the sexy ladies, dudes?” So, in less than a year, D&G lost the business.  72andSunny, which took over on the CKE account almost immediately, has proven their loyalty to the topless-girl-eats-a-sandwich-in-slow-motion style of execution with their ongoing TV spots. However, the above ad, “No Tomorrow,” seems to again be moving away from sexy people in favor of sexy ingredients.

As someone who tries to avoid fast-food UNLESS we’re talking about breakfast, Hardee’s Pork Chop ‘N’ Gravy Biscuits actually look very mouthwatering in this spot. I understand that Hardee’s advertising usually is a bit more conservative than Carl’s Jr.’s, but I wonder if this is the kind of execution that the latter could benefit from as well. As history has shown, a lack of sexy girls is a risky move for any agency working for these brands in particular. However, I hope this works out for 72andSunny, as they are able to do for Hardee’s what McGarryBowen tried (and failed) to do for Burger King. Credits after the jump.
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John Cusack wants to know: “Why just go from A to B when imagination can take you everywhere?” It’s a valid question, especially coming from the guy who played Lloyd Dobler. Would  the boombox move from Say Anything exist with conventional thinking?

The tagline is the adspeak centerpiece of Commonwealth’s new Chevrolet campaign titled “Find New Roads.” The 90-second spot premiered last night alongside irresponsible tweets about Katy Perry‘s cleavage and Justin Timberlake‘s bad haircut. Chevy’s ad acts as a trailer for what’s to come, showing off the Volt, Spark, Sonic, Impala, and Stingray. There’s also a robotic pet dog and a doe interacting, which may be awkward symbolism for combining technology and nature, but we can just pretend that part doesn’t exist. The response thus far has been positive, and the ad already racked up a six-figure view count on Youtube.

It makes sense for Commonwealth to jump outside the box. The agency, which unites folks from Goodby and McCann, was born thanks to unconventional thinking from ex-GM CMO Joel Ewanick, who didn’t want to waste money on Super Bowl ad space. One could easily see “Find New Roads” debuting during last week’s game, but it didn’t have to compete with farmers and sloppy kissing noises. GM fired Ewanick last summer, but his auto agency and some of his ideas are still in play, apparently.

I guess he didn’t try the boombox move with GM’s senior leadership. Credits after the jump.

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Last we heard from Virgin Mobile, the brand and its agency Mother New York were regaling us with Richard Branson‘s rather whimsical life story. Now, the two parties have returned to actual product promotion by touting Virgin Mobile’s $35/month phones, which as you can see above, cause people to purposely ditch their current mobile devices in a variety of ways. In this world, the price point and lack of contract lock-ins at Virgin Mobile are deemed worthy enough to engage in a variety of “happy accidents,” whether it’s tossing your phone off a roof or into a blender. Credits after the jump.

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Football fans, IT’S ALMOST TIME!

The past few months have been hard. Sure, we were excited when the MLB season kicked off, but we’ve reached the mid-season lull where it’s become too difficult to feign interest anymore. And yes, the Olympics are finally here, but let’s be real for a second: SWIMMING? REALLY? THIS IS THE BEST WE CAN DO?!?

If you’re anything like me, football withdrawal has led you to make some stupid decisions. Last Saturday, I rolled out of bed, went to Best Buy and dropped $60 on a copy of NCAA Football ’13 just to fake myself into thinking that football season is kinda sorta happening almost. But, it’s just not the same, and David&Goliath knows that. To kick off NFL Network’s Thursday Night Football broadcast season, the agency has created three new spots starring a blue-suited man who, as Kiran notes, looks like former Chargers QB Dan Fouts (but with a better mustache). Yeah, I guess you can say he’s another Ron Burgundy/Old Spice guy archetype, but my excitement is outweighing my criticism here. Plus, he’s pretty funny.

Yes, Dan Fouts guy, I DO like blitzes, blocks and even penalties, so long as the penalties are against whoever is playing the Packers. Speaking of which, I’ll see you on Thursday, Sept. 13 for Packers/Bears at Lambeau. Thank God Thursday Night Football is starting early this year, especially if you’re one of the lucky ones with NFL Network. See credits and one more spot for Fantasy players after the jump. Oh, and stay away from Calvin Johnson in your draft this year, as the Madden Cover Curse shows no mercy.

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Yes, that does appear to be the guy who gets dissed in that Michael Jordan Hanes ad from last year, but now he’s the star of this latest Carl’s Jr. effort from David&Goliath that promotes the chain’s “Made from Scratch” biscuits. The mustachioed stranger in the ad above emerges from the sand and interrupts some SoCal beach revelry with his over-exaggerated drawl and basketful of buttery treats. We guess his intrusion, though, is not as egregious as Carl’s Jr. actually trying to convince people that they make biscuits like those scrumptious ones from the south. Could we just bring back Olivia Munn already? Credits after the jump.

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From David&Goliath and production company Smuggler comes a new series of TV spots for Hardee’s fried bologna biscuit.

When D&G first picked up Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr.’s creative business at the beginning of the year, the agency seemed keen on using the brands interchangeably and continuing the sexy advertising that the CKE-owned fast-food chains had used in the past. However, in June, we saw work for Carl’s Jr. take a more silly (ridiculous) approach for the brand’s turkey burgers. And, it seems with this latest round of spots, David&Goliath is steering Hardee’s in a similar direction, albeit one that makes a bit more sense.

If there’s anyone that’s full of bologna (we guess), it’s rambling old guys who sit on lawn chairs and spout nonsensical tales to anyone who will listen. Pretty pun-laden, but is it anything compared to Red Lobster’s recent tagline? Bologna sandwiches will fill you full of bologna, and that’s just the way it is. Two more spots and credits follow after the jump.

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Have you ever seen cricket look so cool? Better yet, have you ever seen cricket look so action-packed? Even better yet, have you ever seen cricket?

This spot, featuring Mahendra Singh Dhoni of the India National Cricket Team, is one of eight colorful new spots from DDB Berlin for the new Reebok ZigTech shoe. The spots focus on sports stars from around the world including go-to product endorser from the NFL, Peyton Manning, the Washington Wizards’ John Wall, British pro boxer Amir Khan and Spanish soccer player Iker Casillas of Real Madrid. Give Reebok some props for looking all around the globe for different faces to plug the ZigTech sneaker. Credits and another spot follow after the jump.

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Back in the early 2000s, the Honda Civic might have seemed like an appropriate buy for a street racer looking for a light car with a lot of engine space for illegal parts. But, we’ve come a long way since The Fast and the Furious, and this new campaign from RPA reminds us of the timeless adage, “To each their own.”

The spots feature five original Honda-driving characters (who each will have their own individual spots), the Urban Woodsman, the Zombie, the Monster, the Ninja and the Champion Luchador who goes by Cesar. In a statement, RPA EVP/ECD Joe Baratelli says, “We want to talk directly with our target by tapping into their appreciation for ‘collective individualism’-addressing the diversity of Civic drivers while also engaging them around their common interests.” On the online front, full homepage-takeovers are planned for YouTube and MSN. If RPA gets lucky, maybe the Honda Civic will become the go-to vehicle of Generation Y. At worst, we’ll see a couple more Luchadors cruising around in Civics. Credits and another spot after the jump.

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McGarryBowen tapped the seemingly workaholic folks at Psyop (and Smuggler, lest we forget) to develop the animation in this pop-up book spot for JP Morgan Chase, the financial firm that received a nice $25 billion bailout back in ’08 and insisted it was putting the cash to good use.

In this piece, which makes us want to revisit Inception for some reason, JPMorgan Chase gloats about how many homes and small businesses it’s saved since 2009 while increasing the company’s lending commitment by $10,000,000,000 (yes, we believe we have all those 0′s right) and giving businesses an opportunity for a second review.

It’s a nifty visual piece, but will anything Psyop produces measure up to “Happiness Factory?” We’ll let you be the judge. Credits after the jump.

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Taking a cue from Jaws, Y&R New York sets the scene in this spot for the LG Kompressor Elite vacuum cleaner. Everything is all fine and dandy, as all the toys are enjoying a day at the carpet until a couple gets separated from the group. They start, well, having fun until (cue the score) things go to hell real quick when some uninvited guests show up for dinner.

The team at Psyop (with the help of Smuggler) built a set on a stage, keeping the CG to a minimum and shot all the plastic toy soldiers, Barbie look-a-likes, designer toys, stuffed animals, etc on that set and implemented CG to give the dolls different facial expressions. The sharks and other subtleties were obviously generated as well.

Psyop CEO and CD Marco Spier says in a statement, “We of course got personally connected with the toys, their characters and the story. Carefully placing them personally on set to get the best performance out of them, kind of like actors. We also liked the idea of having unusual combinations of different characters because that’s how kids play – free form, mixing and matching, and grouping things together based on what they have no hand, or what their siblings or friends have.”

We think it’s safe to say this turned out to be a nice spot with some good imagination – much better than an infomercial of a vacuum sucking up coins and marbles. Credits after the jump.

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