MullenLowe launched a new spot for JetBlue, celebrating the airline’s recent status as “the official airline of the New England Patriots” with “Bring Your Nephew to Work Day.”
Given that the New England Patriots were caught “misinterpreting the rules” (again) during the playoffs last year, that brand partnership may seem more appropriate for Ashley Madison (the tagline writes itself: “Find New Ways to Cheat” or “Misinterpret the Rules with Ashley Madison”) but JetBlue is in full celebration mode nonetheless.
Rob Gronkowksi brings the same type of child-like enthusiasm to the spot that he did to W+K’s “Snow Day” for Nike; this time around, the Pats tight end presses his uncle, JetBlue chief pilot Paul Hocking, to let him fly the plane. After persisting enthusiastically in his argument, he finds there’s no way his uncle will let him get his hands on the controls, asking “Then what am I supposed to do?” before finding an alternative.
Whereas Gronkowski’s personality helped make “Snow Day” fun, the idea behind “Bring Your Nephew to Work Day” feels stretched even at 30 seconds, with Gronk’s pleading ultimately making for an uncomfortable watch. The ad promises to be the first of five in a series, however, so MullenLowe and JetBlue should work out existing kinks with further entries.
The campaign’s tagline “#GronkIsMyCoPilot” definitely has potential.