TOW #14 - Neighbors

It seems almost a little bit silly, doesn’t it?  A TV service provider is airing commercials on TV about their TV service.  That’s like advertising a Toyota Corolla in the cabin of a Honda Civic.  However odd the concept of this commercial may seem, Direct TV delivers a fantastic visual text that is extremely effective.  In Direct TV’s new advertisement “Neighbors”, the writers utilize a play on words and common references to the westward expansion of America in order to evoke laughter in the audience and thus make their audience more inclined to purchase their service.

Most of all, this commercial is funny.  The word play truly made me chuckle the first time I saw this advertisement and every other time I’ve seen it since then.  The premise of this advertisement is that there is an old time settler/pioneer family living in a modern suburban neighborhood.  The settler family “settles” for cable while the modern neighbors all have Direct TV.  The father is in is front yard plowing the dirt when his son comes out and asks his superior “why can’t we have Direct TV?”  His father replies along the lines of “Son, we are settlers, so that means we settle for cable.”  This word play of “settler” to “someone who settles” is quite clever and one that I had never thought of before.  It’s ingenuity and cunning structure made me laugh.  By making me laugh, Direct TV achieves its goal because I now buy in to what Direct TV is saying.  I am on their side, and now much more inclined to listen to what they are saying with seriousness.

This commercial also utilizes common references to the settlers’ well-known (and stereotyped) way of life.  Including quotes such as “Hey Jebidiah, how’s it going” “working the land, hoping for a fertile spring” makes the audience laugh while watching the commercial.  These obviously exaggerated and stereotypical remarks are funny but remain civilized and not offensive or rude.  They merely serve the purpose of making the audience laugh to get them much more eager to listen to Direct TV’s service proposals, which they end the advertisement with.