I saw the most amusing advertising product placement on last weeks episode of Alias. If you don’t watch Alias, it is full of spy’s, secret agencies, conspiracies and many dimly lit scenes. In this scene – Jack, one of the main characters, gets into his vehicle with his daughter’s half sister, Nadia (oh yeah, there are crazy family ties all over the place and of course they all work for secret government agencies). So they get in the car, the camera kind of of goes over the outside of the vehicle, then stops on the large Ford logo at the front of the vehicle, cut to commercial. At this point Brian and I look at each other and question: “Jack drives a Ford?” The head of the most covert US secret agency and suddenly we know that he drives a Ford? Having watched this show for several years and never noticing the brand of any of the characters vehicles. Back from commercial… Jack and Nadia are on their way to stake out a secret meeting between Nadia’s dad (yes also a spy type person who later in the same episode kills his own daughter) and a secret agency called Prophet Five. Mind you the whole show is always full of knock down shot out fights, murder, mystery, espionage, scantly clad spy women and buff spy men. As they start to drive away, Nadia says something like “So you finally got the Ford hybrid?” and Jack says “Yes, it is fuel efficient, gas and electric, quiet for stake outs like this.” The camera then goes outside again for a pan of the now apparent Ford Escape Hybrid then zooms in to the back corner as they make a turn focusing in for several seconds on the word “Hybrid” branded on the back of the car which is now taking up the entire television screen. We bust up laughing. It was hilarious. The lines were so stiff and out of character, heck out of the whole feel of the show. I think it is the worst product placement I have ever seen. It was blatant and amusing and did not make me desire my own Ford Escape Hybrid. But then again, I’m not a spy working for a secret government agency, perhaps if I were I would be at the Ford dealership right now.
Usually product placement isn’t quite so blatant! I guess they figure the show’s ending sonn, so why not.
Yeah, that show has been going downhill for a while now. I gave up on Alias when they killed the Rembaldi (sp?) story line. I heard they brought it back a season later, but it was too late for me. But even back then, being the car guy I am, I noticed every car in the stinkin’ show was a Ford. When the Mustang came out, there were many scenes with it!!