I SAY: Latest ad is just creepy

By Michael R. Moser / mmoser@crossville-chronicle.com

May 14, 2009 03:19 pm

— Am I the only one who doesn't get these Burger King ads?
The latest "I like square butts" ad is disturbing and it makes me wonder about the folks who come up with the ad campaign, and the executives at the main office who think this represents the fast food chain and thinks the creepy icon called the King represents them well.
I must state here that I do patronize Burger King. I occasionally like to drop in for a quick breakfast item and have for years, since I was in college, found their burgers tasty and compatible with the contents of my wallet.
The first ad I viewed that I found disturbing was the breakfast ad of a couple of years ago where the clip was supposed to show the King waking someone to a bright new morning with the subtle hint that a breakfast from Burger King would make the sun shine all day long.
Instead, I viewed the ad as creepy. I mean, here is this over-sized cartoon-type character with a shellacked head and stupid-looking grin, leaning down and peering into second-story bedroom window. It wouldn't have been so bad if the King didn't have that weird grin on its face and if he wasn't peering into bedroom windows.
That is against the law in most states.
Now comes the latest ad and I am convinced my assessment of the King was on target the first time. He needs help. He needs counseling. He needs to be in community corrections.
The ad is a take-off on the kids television toon, Sponge Bob Square Pants. The ad is geared toward meals for kids and I assume (I have never watched an episode of Sponge Bob) they use the toon for this end. If I were Sponge Bob, I would be offended.
The ad features teen-age girls in tight red shorts with bricks or something like that inside their shorts to resemble square pants.
The creepy King with the creepy grin is looking at these kids' butts while dancing to a takeoff on the rap-style song with the repeating line, "I like big butts and I cannot lie."
While the gals are gyrating, the singers singing, "I like square butts and I cannot lie," the King with the grin is staring at their butts and really getting into the scene. That is very disturbing.
The ad won't keep me from patronizing the local Burger King when I get a hankering for one of the burgers or for breakfast, as long as the King isn't at the drive-thru window, asking if I want to super size my order.

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