Monday, February 12, 2007

Misogynist advertising again

First I couldn't drink Coca Cola, and now I can't eat burgers.

The Burger King ad for their double whopper has been around for a few months, but after disappearing for a while it's back on british TV. This involves a parody of the feminist anthem I am Woman sung by a lot of men who are so pissed off at having to do girly things like eat in civilised restaurants that they band together and run riot in the streets, smashing up cars and stuffing their faces with 990 calorie burgers.

Now microwave burger merchants Rustlers have jumped on the bandwagon with straplines that sound like leftovers from the Coke Zero ads in a new TV advert that involves a guy bringing a girl home. The clearly uncomfortable girl says she can only stay for a coffee. He goes into the kitchen and taps on a keypad next to a hatch that opens onto the other room, creating a frame that makes it look as though the girl is in a microwave. The couch on which the girl is sitting then revolves like a microwave plate and she transforms into a seductive lingerie model. The slogan being something along the lines of "If only women could go from not interested to hot to trot in 70 seconds without you making any effort, just like our tacky burgers."

Edit: While I was looking for the ad on Youtube I found another version where the revolving girl is replaced by a inflateable sex doll. Otherwise it is identical to the original. I have no idea where this comes from, but if it was a self-parody by the original ad makers intended to undercut the misogyny of the original it might work better if they ever actually showed it.

EDIT 2: I also found an Australian Coke Zero ad that has the same message as the UK version but without the misogynistic aspects. In fact it makes an effort to be female-inclusive.

EDIT 3: Huh?

6 comments:

That's the Spirit said...

All that is really sad.

Anonymous said...

If it is any comfort at all, I don't think most of the blokes who survive on microwave burgers are capable of reaching the stage where they can get a woman to agree to stay for a cup of coffee.

The Jaded Skeptic said...

That BK commercial really kills one appetite for beef.

What is wrong with enjoying good food, pleasant conversation, and fuel efficient cars? In truth, most guys aren't like this. But too many wish they could be.

Anonymous said...

Fast food is bad for you. Watch "Super Size me"

Anonymous said...

(I can't use YouTube where I am, so bear with me, please.)

Is your Coke Zero ad anything like the one that's on American radio now? Where the man says it's good to have a zero-calorie soda, and his girlfriend starts yelling at him for calling her fat? Becaues, y'know, all women think they're fat and are easily insulted?

Although I'm thinking the 'guy culture' ads have hurt Burger King, at least in the Philadelphia/Southern NJ area. Most of them are either closing or ghost towns, even if there's no dip in actual food 'quality'. Odds are the ads are leaving them associated with jerky guys.

notintheface said...

To be fair, most of those commercials you cite come from England. By most American commercials' standards, "misogynistic" means the commercial says "Women OKAY, men bad".