Don’t know why this bothers me so much but it does. I think it has to do with my general disdain for the concept as a whole when they hoisted it upon us several years ago and the fact that they decided to bring it back for another go ’round just annoys the hell outta me. And to top it off, they throw in the old switcheroo at the end. It’s enough to make me want to never eat at Carl’s Jr again. And considering that I consume 90% of my daily calories down my feeding tube, it’s a stone cold 100% lock that I will make good on my previous statement.
Here’s the beef:
Don’t Bother Me, I’m Eating. Those five little innocuous words have bugged me since they were strung together and forced unmercifully through our retinas and down our throats a bunch of years ago by the good people at Happy Star HQ. Not satisfied with an assault on two of my senses, the only sound the viewer is subjected to for a majority of the spot is the crispity crunchity explosion of the subject biting into his burger and sipping his drink.
I thought that they had moved on marketing-wise by replacing those commercials with ones featuring Paris Hilton washing her car and Hills star Audrina Patridge sunning herself on the beach. I was perplexed by the guy seductively staring at his dashboard hula dancer while chowing down but I let it slide. At least it wasn’t the Don’t Bother Me dude munching away.
And then they brought it back. If you haven’t seen it yet, here’s what you missed: A manly-looking man has pulled his vehicle to the side of the road and is silently — except for the thousand decibel bites — enjoying a picnic while leaning on the fender of his ride. A basso profundo voice utters my least favorite phrase — aside from You’ve Got ALS — while the fine print rolls and the commercial ends.
The first couple times I saw it, I turned away out of pure reflex. The next half-dozen times it appeared on my screen, I paid attention a bit more. And that’s when I got annoyed.
Apparently they are advertising two burgers for five dollars in this spot. I must have missed that fact the first handful of times I watched it. Then, as I read the disclaimer that appeared at the bottom of the screen and I learned that the loaded with cheese and onion rings burger Mr DBM,IE is loudly masticating on in the preceding commercial is NOT the burger being offered in the two for five bucks deal, I couldn’t believe my eyes.
I’ve seen some shady stuff on tv in my day but this was a first for me. Why wouldn’t they show the actual hamburger in the spot? Is it inferior to the one they showed onscreen? Is it less crunchity? Was it a budget issue? Too cheap to spring for some new footage?
Whatever the reason, it has really been bugging me since I noticed it. Thanks for letting me vent a bit on the subject. Have you seen it? Does it bother you or should I watch less tv?
The Adventures of ALS Boy 
I would say watch less T.V., but when you’ve got nothing else to do but write these hilarious blogs and create sentences for our class, i guess its alright
Based on the “for our class” comment, I’m assuming you’re one of my students. That being said, there are many errors in your post. Punctuation and capitalization rules apply even if it’s a blog comment. Thanks for reading Mr. Picetti’s blog!
I noticed that too, Jason. WTF? Talk about a “bait and switch”.
I’ve also always wondered why they have those massive scrolls of disclaimers and conditions (like car ads, for example) that no one could possibly read in the two seconds they streak across the TV screen. Why bother putting it on there? Probably because they’re legally mandated to, but if that’s the case, is it really complying with the spirit of the mandate if no consumer could possibly read the text?
Watch all the TV you want, just continue to be skeptical, especially when someone is trying to sell you something.
Just read an article that says that taco bell is being sued because their beef is in fact less than 35% beef. Not that I go to taco bell for health food or anything, but I find this particularly disturbing and another example of false advertising.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110125/ap_on_bi_ge/us_taco_bell_lawsuit
Oh, Mrs. Picetti, I’m an English teacher who loves ignoring the rules whenever I can! I wonder dare to forgo capital letters and correct punctuation when writing for your eyes, though!