Guss Pickles and BK 7 Incher ads - Has subtlety really died?

While it seems that yes okay the German Sprite 'BJ ad' was in fact a fake, and was pulled from every possible source within hours of the blogs going crazy for it, some brands out there still choose to go down the route of 'suggestive' content. Here are a couple of recent examples which are about as subtle as the Diesel XXX Party Viral released for their 30th birthday last year.



Pic 1 - Guss Pickles advert



Pic 2 - BK 7 Incher advert


So is subtlety really dead, or do some brands generally think that people these days are too busy to 'get it' when they put together an advert of risque innuendo and cunning imagery/ wordplay. Personally I think it's a case of good old attention grabbing, which is fine, but I do think there is a time and a place for it (selling a pickle emporium in a way which looks like a cut scene from the Incredible Hulk not being one of them).

Banned German Sprite Advert

This is an ad doing the rounds today which was banned in Germany for... well I think it's quite obvious why. Pretty random, and I'm sure quite uncomfortable to watch if you're one of Sprite's younger 'teenage' demographic watching TV with the parents, with a Britney Spears lookalike getting a 'Sprite Necklace' during the ad break.

UPDATE: It turns out that, yes, it was a fake all along! Although the original ad was pulled from YouTube, you can view below courtesy of Young Turks, and The Huffington Post.


Video - Banned German Sprite Ad