Round Table Discussion: Geeking Out With Gillette’s New Avengers-Inspired Marketing Video
On the table today: The “Gillette Rebuilt With Avengers-Inspired Technology” video.
This video is cross-promotional marketing effort from Gillette, a well-known men’s razor brand (the 90s jingle “Gillette, the best a man can get” may be playing in your head right now), that ties in several superheroes from the upcoming blockbuster movie sequel, Avengers: Age of Ultron.
Take a look…
Musings on Gillette’s Marvelized Marketing Mini-Movie
After clamping their eyeballs Clockwork Orange-style and forcing them to watch this over and over, we asked our team to give us their reactions to the video — and whether it offered a clean shave or left them blotting the blood with toilet paper.
Here are their thoughts…
Is It All Just a Cruel Hoax, Gillette?
Godzilla (AKA Patrick):
I’ll be honest—I was confused at first. Can I buy these razors? Is this a gimmick razor series that exists? Can I shave my face with a Hulk-sized razor that gets angry at missed facial hair?
Sadly, no. It’s just an ad for the ProGlide razor with flex ball technology. What is this subpar razor they want me to be happy with after showing me the fantastical evolution of shaving? Basically, they want us to shave our faces with a razor that looks like a Dyson vacuum cleaner.
Maybe this is the best razor ever made… maybe it doesn’t ever lose suction. So why do I sound so irritated? I guess the nerd in me wanted to believe in Gillette. They teased us with Avenger-like powers and then stripped them away. Not cool Gillette… not cool.
Is this really the best a man can get?
So the ‘Brand of Steel’ Wants To Be Marvel
Bigfoot (AKA Shad):
A few things immediately pop into my head upon watching this video:
1. We may soon live in a world where every product is tied to a Marvel movie or character
Whether they make sense or not. Charmin toilet paper inspired by Thor (“when you need comfort and power”). Iron Man dish scrubbers (“extra armor for extra impact”). Black Widow yogurt (“killing you with flavor”). And, of course, Daredevil socks (“just because they can’t be seen doesn’t mean they can’t be awesome!”).
2. Who knew Gillette had a sense of humor?
I can’t recall them ever trying the comic marketing thing before. Usually their ads are in the serious-and-epic mold: We’ve added ten blades for ultimate closeness and comfort! They’re more like the recent Man of Steel movie than a Marvel movie. No ones cracking a joke or even a smile. They’re actually parodying that approach in this video. Well done, Gillette. I didn’t know you had it in you.
3. If these products were real and available on the market, I’d buy one immediately.
Well, maybe not the Hulk one. But definitely the Captain America one which cuts your facial hair “not once, not twice, but up to 87 times.”
Could Shaving Finally Be… Not Boring?
Frankenstein (AKA Dru):
Initial thoughts…
- Graphics and animation are awesome
- Design of the different shavers are really fun
- The arbitrary ’87 passes’ for Cap’s shield is gold
Unfortunately, it makes me a bit squeamish because I don’t think it’s too far from what they’d try to foist on a consumer anyway… which sucks, because I personally am sold, and want them all NOW. In this particular instance, they’ve done their job well, and I am HAPPILY THAT CONSUMER!
The tech tie-in is really nice… I’m curious to see if they’ll show Tony Stark or someone else shaving with a knock-off of one of these (a bit more subtle than the designs in the animation, though…)
It almost gets you excited about shaving again, until you come back down to earth and realize nothing’s going to make it anything other than what it is—a boring, sometimes painful, chore. But we can dream…
All in all, a really fun take and tie-in. Two thumbs up.
Going Through the Five Stages of Grief
The Blob (AKA Bob):
I watched the video and I have to say that this made me go through the stages of grief. Here is a step-by-step on how I was feeling and thinking while viewing it.
I started the video, watched the first few seconds then thought…
1) AWE & JOY
Wow… How COOL! Really!!! They make these? I WANT ONE!!! They look so AWESOME!!! (Panting heavily having a mega-nerdgasm)2) CONFUSION
Wait… Did that just shoot a laser out of it? I… But… (Crinkling my eyes and cocking my head sideways like my dogs when they hear a weird noise outside)3) ANGER
DAMN IT!!! These aren’t real. They are fake. They TRICKED ME!!! And I really really really wanted one. Hell, I wanted them all. GRRRRRRRAHHHHH!!! (like HULK)4) DEPRESSION
I am so sad. They looked so cool. I wanted one so bad. I feel so used and dirty now. (Small tears trickle down my face as I say the above sounding like Droopy Dog)5) ACCEPTANCE
Alright, this is pretty damn funny.Once I got past the fact that they were not real, I started laughing my ass off. The way they integrated all of the powers into the product was genius. It was way over-the-top and ridiculous which made the comic-book dork in me applaud.
They know what niche market they were going for and they did it wonderfully. And it kinda made me want to go out and buy one.
