Most Annoying

The Female Version:
A woman with her child is waiting on line to get onto something - is it the playground or a bus - I don't remember. But another mom with her kid cuts the line. There's a brief exchange and the first hapless mom utterly defeated - she's just lost all her dignity. Hapless mom sees and ad for a Hummer and in a couple of quick cuts she sells her mini-van buys a Hummer and is happily cruising away. The graphic says: Get Your Girl On - and the song in the background is strong and powerful, though the lyrics say something about "I put it in the pot..." which I don't get. Probably I'm in the wrong generation to get it.

The Male Version:
Man is standing on line in grocery. His grocery items are all modern wimp man stuff like Tofu, carrots and the cashier has to swipe his Tofu a couple of times. Behind him on line is a "real" man who has various types of meat - ribs, steak, and gives the Tofu guy a strange smile. Tofu guy - feeling unmanly - also sees an ad for the Hummer and after another couple of deft cuts he's happily moving down the road in his new fortress.

Ads for big ticket items like a Hummer aren't just made up on the spot. There are tons of focus groups; and long meetings where each detail is examined. So the blatent message of the ad: if you feel like other people are stepping all over you and you are powerless in these little exchanges between peers - then buy a hummer. Buy it for the power it represents. It is the magic suit of armor you've been dreaming about at night.

Now - when I was a kid, there was always an ad in the back of comic books where there'd be a little runt that got sand kicked in his face by the big bully. I think the ad was for the Charles Atlas method of bodybuilding.

I thought those ads made sense. Someone made you feel insecure - here was how you could build up your body so you could defend yourself. And here is the same idea - in highly polished, carefully conceived million dollar ads - saying that if someone kicks sand in your face, just go out and buy a big car.