Slog
News & ArtsThursday, January 19, 2012
TV / Media Product Placement Takes It to the Next Level
Posted by David Schmader on Thu, Jan 19, 2012 at 12:53 PM
As Mike Hale writes at NYT's Arts Beat.
Monday’s episode of “Hawaii Five-0″ on CBS, was particularly egregious—the most jarring, disruptive and insulting example [of product placement] I’ve seen. For nearly a minute, the unfortunate actors (Alex O’Loughlin, Grace Park and the former sumo wrestler Taylor Wily) stepped completely out of the story in order to plug Subway sandwiches, as the food-truck vendor Kamekona (Mr. Wily) is found eating five subs as part of his new diet. “Trying to eat smarter, brother,” he says. “These Subways sandwiches? So ono” (Hawaiian slang for “delicious,” though it’s also the name of a fish popular in island restaurants and presumably more healthy than a Subway sandwich). The spot — it’s a 50-second commercial, pure and simple — also works in references to the Subway pitchman Jared and several specific menu items.
See video of the incident here.
2
What is more painful? This or the Days of Our Lives Wanchai Ferry bit? Behold the actors trying to pretend they can’t hear this lady isn’t hocking garbage.
5
I quit paying money so I could watch commercials years ago. What's taking you so long to come around?
6
I don't watch that show but I randomly channel surfed and saw this happen. I don't really have any problem with it, and can't really blame them for trying new ways of incorporating advertisements. If anything I though it was pretty funny how incredibly terrible and blatant the dialogue was.
7
The show is a running commercial for Chevy already. It's hilarious. All the good guys drive Chevys and all the bad guys Fords or imports. Natural progression of ads into free content given the DVR FF function is just the world we live in. Not too different from the ads on Slog really.
8
Bones has some of the most hilarious prius plugs I've ever watched. 5 seconds in, you forget you're watching a show and wait for the commercial to end.
9
@4 it's not a bad show normally. Like a 40 minute Michael Bay film (in the Bad Boys vein) each week, if that's your thing. I love the stupid show.
11
I never had a problem with product placement as long as it was done in sublet not too in your face way.
12
@7 usually the adverts are more subtle, like a close up of someone reading a text on a Sprint phone or an iPhone, that sort of thing. But yes, this is what they have to do. Decent TV is very expensive to produce and broadcast TV lacks the money cash flow of cable channels from subscription fees to do an HBO or AMC style thing. So the money is commercials, or nothing. That's why you see ads in-game now on sports, too.
The Chevy thing, though, is actually played for laughs in the show, like when Hiro shows up in a new Camaro "just like Steve's".
The Chevy thing, though, is actually played for laughs in the show, like when Hiro shows up in a new Camaro "just like Steve's".
13
Every television show set in Las Vegas is the most insulting example of product placement I've ever seen. This is a distant second.
15
I don't know, this seems like a pretty good idea to me. I mean, eating at Subway is a good idea for most people. Certainly for those who are concerned about being healthy, at least. You are eating at Subway, right?
16
I'm guessing that Grace Park appreciates her Battlestar Galactica role(s) more than ever. It's awesome to get a network paycheck, but still... I imagine that a bit of your soul must die when you read a script like that.
17
Yeah, all I could think was, "Grace Park was a main character on Battlestar Galactica and now she's reduced to this?"
18
@15 It's a good idea not so much because of the product, but because talking about your lunch with friends or co-workers is pretty normal.
People talk about & use name brands all the time: TV writers need to learn how to blend that into their scripts, so product placement won't be as awkward as this H5-0 bit.
People talk about & use name brands all the time: TV writers need to learn how to blend that into their scripts, so product placement won't be as awkward as this H5-0 bit.
20
@ 18, the writers for "The Big Bang Theory" have already figured it out. I hate product placement of any kind, I notice it a lot, but it comes naturally in the dialogue. Something like, "Hey, who wants a Slim Jim?" It is peculiar, though, that a major character works at a Cheesecake Factory, which is mentioned frequently, but the restaurant set looks nothing like one.
21
Interesting. Never seen anything that blatant on a non-reality TV show before.
You could, I suppose, say that Hawaii Five-o itself is product placement for the state of Hawaii.
You could, I suppose, say that Hawaii Five-o itself is product placement for the state of Hawaii.
23
@22 ..i know..isn't that the place you go to when you want to have that proverbial 'shit sandwich ' ?
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