Review: Super Bowl LX Commercials

Every year, brands spend millions of dollars on Super Bowl ads to achieve reach.

And they do. The numbers are there. The impressions. The tears. The laughs. The cameos. The commentary.

But this year, I found myself wondering if we were mistaking performance for connection.

In 2025, Kendrick Lamar’s halftime show ignited a cultural conversation that lasted well beyond the game. And in 2026, much of the pre-game conversation centered on Bad Bunny and what that moment might represent.

This felt like a year where brands had permission to do more than perform. They had permission to truly reach people – beyond metrics.

Instead, many showed up to entertain when the real connection happened at halftime, whether you tuned in or not.

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I normally review the Super Bowl ads for creativity, quality, and impact. But this year, it felt different.

Less about which ads performed best and more about which brands understood the moment we’re living in.

The Fun One: Dunkin’

Starting off lightly, Dunkin’ continues to understand exactly who they are. Pulling in familiar faces, leaning into Ben Affleck, and having fun with tone. It worked. It was funny. On brand and enjoyable to watch.

Not everything needs to carry the weight of the world. This spot didn’t. It felt like performance and humor done well and right.

Brand That Understood Culture

A few brands recognized the country’s emotional and cultural temperature.

State Farm

I’ve sensed that the brand has wanted to pivot away from Jake and they took the opportunity to address what the competition isn’t doing. This felt less like entertainment and a repositioning moment for the brand.

In a time when people feel under-supported by the systems around them, this was a message about what real care, security, and protection should look like. A little Bon Jovi doesn’t hurt either.

“We barely cover boats by the dock,” gave me a chuckle, and was followed by a head nod. Is your insurance company actually serving you or the bottom line?

Hims & Hers

“Rich people …live longer.” The brand unapologetically called out the wealth and health gap. There’s a quiet class-warfare conversation happening around access, affordability, and fairness.

The brand didn’t just call it out… it named it. They stepped into the tension instead of avoiding it. The spot hit the right tone, even if I might question the product and services.

And leaning into “that’s rich” carried weight. I’m curious if the brand will continue the assault on healthcare and everything it is and is not.

A Fascinating Commentary on AI

Anthropic vs. OpenAI. Claude vs. ChatGPT. It was one of the most interesting dynamics of the night.

Anthropic spent their $10 million explaining what they are not – a competitor who embeds ads.

OpenAI spent their bag showing us what WE can do.

One felt defensive. The other felt inspirational.

In the biggest moment of the year, talking about your competition instead of your own strengths around privacy and trust felt like a missed opportunity. I remain a staunch supporter of Anthropic, but I would prefer they show us the promise of AI and Humans working together.

Ads That Missed the Moment

These weren’t bad ads. They just didn’t use the moment as well as they could have.

Instacart

Across online conversation the brand appears to have scored well. But, I own a 77″ high-definition TV for a reason. The VHS / 80s aesthetic felt disruptive in a way that made the ad less enjoyable to watch. The treatment became the story, and it got in the way.

Budweiser

A Clydesdale and a Bald Eagle. Patriotic imagery without a point of view. It felt good, but didn’t say anything about America today. In a year where there’s a lot to say, this felt like a safe, default play.

Liquid Death

In a rare miss, a brand known for cultural edge showed up with something forgettable. That surprised me.

Ring

They told me about a feature instead of showing me the emotional payoff of that feature. “Search Party” could have been a tear-jerker. Instead, it felt like a product demo.

Volkswagen

A strong emotional setup undercut by a generic tagline that didn’t earn the moment. If you’re going to talk about a great invitation to enjoy life, “Drivers Wanted” just felt like a miss.

Ads That Tried to Pull Us Together

A few ads leaned into emotion and connection in a way that felt aligned with the moment.

Lay’s

An emotional father-daughter story. Do we think about Lay’s this way all year? Probably not. But maybe that’s okay. It recognized that people are craving connection and heart.

Toyota

Interestingly, it mirrored Lay’s in a symbolic way. In both ads, keys were handed to the next generation. Different brands. Same gesture. That’s not an ad tactic, that’s a cultural signal.

“He Gets Us”

Whether you agree with the message or not, these continue to be effective, well-told stories that understand how to speak to people emotionally.

The Biggest Miss of All

With Bad Bunny headlining the halftime show, this was one of the most culturally significant Super Bowl moments in years.

The conversation before the game wasn’t about the teams. It was about what this performance might represent — language, identity, pride, and the global influence of Latin music and culture.

I heard some people say they struggled with the performance because it wasn’t in English.

But rhythm is a language. Visual storytelling is a language. You could understand the emotion, the pride, and the message without knowing a single lyric. Just like many of us do when we love an artist anyway.

That’s what connection looks like.

This was a rare night where brands weren’t just advertising during culture. They had an opportunity to participate in it.

And almost no one did.

Duolingo

Duolingo is the obvious example. A brand built to help us understand language and culture had a perfect moment to show up. They could have taught us a few key phrases, helped translate lyrics, or simply prepared audiences for what they were about to experience.

Instead, they stayed in their lane. And the moment passed.

Apple Music

Apple Music sponsored the halftime show. They were tied to the moment. This could have been an opportunity to celebrate how music crosses language barriers, to spotlight bilingual playlists, or to tell a story about how global music connects people.

Instead, the sponsorship mostly lived in the billing, not in the storytelling.

Uber Eats

Food and culture are inseparable, especially on Super Bowl Sunday. With Bad Bunny representing Puerto Rico on the biggest stage, Uber Eats (or Instacart, Grubhub, DoorDash) could have leaned into the connection between food, heritage, and celebration. They could have spotlighted Latin cuisine as part of the shared experience.

Instead, they leaned into familiar celebrity humor that could have run on any Sunday.

Budweiser

Budweiser. Oh, Budweiser. I had held a secret hope that you would find a moment of unity rather than generic patriotism and iconic imagery. Legacy is powerful. but only when it speaks to the moment we’re in.

Final Thoughts

It felt like people showed up for the halftime show and the ads more than the game itself. At least in my circle, no one was strongly pulling for either team.

And when that happens, brands have permission to do more than entertain. They have permission to lead.

Several brands had natural, built-in relevance to what was happening on that stage and in the surrounding conversation. But instead of stepping into that moment, they treated it like a media break. They advertised during culture instead of participating in it.

This year, many entertained. Fewer connected.

And that’s what made this year feel a little underwhelming. Not because the ads weren’t good, but because the moment was bigger than most of them.