The Trentonian (Trenton, NJ)

Here’s a look at the best and the worst Super Bowl ads

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NEW YORK » During advertisin­g’s biggest showcase, tame humor and messages about social causes ruled the day. Slapstick humor, sexual innuendo and chest thumping patriotic messages were, for the most part, nowhere in sight. After a divisive year, advertiser­s during the Big Game worked overtime to win over audiences with messages that entertaine­d and strove not to offend.

Here’s a look at the winners and losers during the biggest advertisin­g showcase of the year.

Winners AMAZON

An Amazon ad showcased different celebritie­s including actress Rebel Wilson, actor Anthony Hopkins, singer Cardi B and chef Gordon Ramsay subbing in as the voice of Amazon’s Alexa voice assistant. Budweiser Budweiser , as always the largest advertiser during the game, eschewed the usual puppies and Clydesdale­s to showcase employees that send water to places in need.

NFL

The NFL scored with a charmer that showed New York Giants quarterbac­k Eli Manning and wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. performing the choreograp­hy from the movie “Dirty Dancing” — complete with their version of Patrick Swayze’s iconic lift of Jennifer Grey.

PEPSICO

Pepsico’s brands Mountain Dew Ice and Doritos Blaze staged an epic rap lip sync battle between actors Morgan Freeman and Peter Dinklage, who respective­ly synced to Missy Elliott and Busta Rhymes.

Rocket Mortgage by Quicken Loans

Comedian Keegan Michael-Key cut through complex jargon to put things plainly in a humorous ad for Rocket Mortgage by Quicken Loans. When a restaurant patron is confused by a “beef-protein gluten-free pate,” Michael-Key explains: “It’s a burrito, filled with plants pretending to be meat.”

Losers COCA-COLA

Diet Coke attempted to be quirky by showcasing a woman awkwardly dancing to a rap song, but it garnered a lot of negative comments on social media when the approach came off more weird than quirky.

“It has no clear message and it’s not really interestin­g,” said Kimberly Whitler, a marketing professor at the University of Virginia.

FIAT CHRYSLER’S RAM TRUCKS

Ram trucks used a speech by Martin Luther King, Jr., to illustrate its motto, “Built to Serve.” The ad, timed to the 50th anniversar­y of the speech, showed people doing good deeds. But some thought the connection to the civil rights hero was too tenuous.

“Ram is being heavily criticized for its spot,” said Tim Calkins, marketing professor at the Kellogg School of Management at Northweste­rn. “The use of MLK to promote Ram trucks strikes many people are crass and inappropri­ate.”

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