Rant and Rave:
Television
by Mark May

Rave—Nike's latest MJ commerical—I never owned a pair of Air Jordans.  After my experience with PF Flyers as a kid taught me not to believe the marketing hype ("run faster and jump higher!"), I did not see the need to invest a day's pay in a pair of shoes, especially when my competitive hoops career ended when I was cut from the 9th grade team.  That led to me becoming the manager, and managers don't need fancy basketball shoes to film games, keep stats, or sweep the floor.

However, I always loved Nike's Air Jordan ads.  My favorites had Spike Lee as Mars Blackmon (it's "gotta be the shoes").  I loved seeing how much fun both Michael and Nike could have with developing his image.

The new ad from Nike/
Jumpman only shows Michael for about two seconds, but it still is a terrific spot.  It builds like a little drama over 60 seconds as young basketball players from around the world mimic MJ's most famous idiosyncracies and moves.  Michael shows up at the end watching a street game and nodding, as if he is an elder stateman who is approving the performance of the next generation.  My understanding is that it was made with almost no enhanced effects—the players actually executed the moves you see.  I expect that we'll see a lot of this spot on ESPN and CBS as March Madness heats up.

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