Droga5 Sydney has a new spot for Lynx (aka Axe in the UK and Australia/New Zealand) and it’s pretty ridiculous. Imagine the attempted suaveness of an Old Spice ad from a couple of years ago mixed with a slightly toned-down American Axe spot and you’ve got the idea.
Maybe the Axe comparison is more apt since it’s the same brand, but this ad uses words that we wouldn’t expect American pre-teens (since that’s who buys Axe) to know — words like “anarchy” and “philosopher.” Words you might get called “gay” for using in middle school. But “Show Her What You’re Made Of” has the same goal in mind: Convincing awkward pubescent and pre-pubescent boys that if they use the right male hygiene product girls will suddenly stop ignoring them and find them attractive.
The way they go about doing this seems strange, at least to this American viewer. Droga5 gets a handsome man in a suit to talk about “men” and “boys” (he repeats both these words ad-nauseum in the opening 20 seconds alone) as we see shots of boys attempting to act manly and men acting like boys. Then enter a hot woman (walking in slow motion, of course), prompting said man to discuss what it is women want: boys and men “at the same time, in the same body.” For some reason I find this description (and this whole spot really) kind of creepy.
On the bright side, “Show Her What You’re Made Of” has ping-pong in it. Who doesn’t love ping-pong, right? Plus, this acts as a concession of what the advertised product actually does: keeps you from smelling like balls when you get all sweaty.