@ N. Gorman Part II

I'm already drying out, running out of "interesting" things to write in this blog and I have nine more to go. So, as whims carry you...

I was in the shower last night thinking about my blog and Gorman's. I was thinking about my last line concerning United Colors of Benetton - "Let's go shopping." I started to think that maybe my point was that these images would do more than simply SIGNIFY something other than shopping. Perhaps I was also saying that I wouldn't prefer the presence of these images, and that something more palatable would be preferred.

I really started to question myself. Because, let's face it, I hate advertisements. I'm not looking forward to the day that the Internet explodes over the issue of AdBlock. If you don't use Firefox and you don't use AdBlock, you still see banners and ads on the web. AdBlock users don't and it's wonderful.

Back to the issue: Would my preference then be that advertising is less real? This is what I seem to be saying, that I prefer the insanely pleasant in advertising and that topical issues are somehow bothersome. Darfur? I've got homework to do!

Maybe the solution is a happy neither. Let's neither misrepresent products through over-realism (UCoB), nor through hyper-awesomeism ("Good to the last drop!")

Let's shoot for reality! My Lemonade advertisement would be this: A bunch of young kids are playing soccer in a field as cheesy music starts. We cut to a mother pouring Lemonade from a pitcher. Next to the pitcher is my carton of lemonade. Brand name: Good Lemonade. She calls the kids and they coming running over, forgetting about the soccer. One young boy (clearly the mother's son) reaches for a big tall glass of Good Lemonade.

We then cut to a slow motion segue of Good Lemonade, ice, and lemons dropping across the screen. They explode across a white backdrop. It's a perfect image of refreshment.

Cut back to the mother: She looks at the kids and says, "boy you were thirsty!"

Cut to the kids who are sitting around distracted. One boy didn't really want any lemonade, he's just sucking on a piece of ice. The son of the mother looks up with a half-impressed face.

"Meh. It was kinda good. Maybe."