Do you remember the PlayStation commercial from earlier this year that showed what it would be like if the Cubs won the World Series? Wrigleyville was beaming, women in Cubs hats cheered and cried, the streets of the North Side never seemed so vibrant. At the end of the commercial, a Red Line train whizzed by a lonely apartment and the message was clear: this is an advertisement for a video game, maybe the only realm where a Cubs championship is possible.
I enjoyed the spot, and not just because I'm a White Sox fan. It surprised me no one had come up with a similar idea sooner. And while the ending could be seen by some Cubs fans as a kick to the stomach, the prior :20 seconds should have appropriately warmed their cold, defeated hearts. Daydreams can be an important way to pass the time.
Adidas released it's latest Derrick Rose commercial today, and it pulls at similar themes. Only instead of the hard-and-fast realization of the Cubs' real life sorrows, the adidas jam leaves you floating only on positive vibes.
The commercial starts by documenting Chicago's collective sadness as Rose laid on the United Center floor grabbing his knee. It ends with Rose running back onto the same court, rehab complete, set to rescue the Bulls. Rose doesn't say a word, but he doesn't need to. While the Bulls struggle to stay in playoff position until Rose returns, the commercial will be a great way to pass the time.
Adidas' entire campaign for #thereturn has been highly ambitious, enough to turn off some of us too-cynical bloggers. After all, Rose isn't even five months into rehabilitating an injury that will take 9-12 months to fully heal. There is still a long way to go for the Bulls star. This latest commercial is perhaps the greatest example yet of how thick this narrative is already growing, though it might work better in this instance than ever before.
Here, adidas makes Derrick Rose look like Batman: a city-bred knight sent to raise the morale of his hometown. The parallels actually aren't that big of a stretch, right?