That is so gross. And beyond offensive. I was speechless for about five minutes after watching it.

People are sick, aren't they?

The Mac commercials they're attempting to emulate are clever, pointed and funny. This is, to say the absolute least, not.

It sure tells you what the grand high muckity-mucks at G4 think of their viewership, though.

You know, I've read many articles written by feminist media critics who suggest that ads like that are simply the last gasps of a dying construct of male-similicity and sex-bot femininity. I disagree --this shit grows and grows and grows and is becoming more pervasive, more accepted even. What the fuck? Stop it, just stop it--how is that going to help sales? Seriously? You're alienating 50% of the population--do you want your market to grow? Ads like that demonstrate that the jack-asses of the ad biz would rather make waves than sell products (not that I particularly care about their bottom line, but if they are supposed to be apologists and pushers for our consumer-mentality, they might as well do it well.)

Yeah its really too bad G4 is choosing to go down the "uber-macho" path to be a mini-spike tv. The dork in me loved the idea of a network that I could always turn to to get my video game, computer-nerd or star trek fix : ). But the change after the G4-tech tv mess, with the addition of the man show, cops, dog-eat-dog, etc., I am losing interest.

WTF?!?!

Too awful for words.

OKay, I dont think this is going to be a very popular view...but I think you may be misreading it.
I took it to be a spoof off the mac/pc commercials, in which the pc (which is obviously the better choice *dodges flying mouses from the mac users) is the frumpy guy and the mac is cute and trendy, but the mac/pc commercials downplay the reasons why pc is better, because there are pros and cons to each(which isnt the point of this post so i wont get into that), the thing is this "ad" is pretty much comming out and saying that the ps3 is better in most ways but the wii(which is a stupid name anyway) is laid back and good for a cheap thrill. it seems more to me to be mocking not only the mac/pc thing and alittle bit the downfalls of both systems, but the idea that the wii-girl(the blonde) is "cute as a button"
this "sexy wii" isnt advertising for the wii- they are going for family gaming, maybe i am way off..opinions?

hmm, read my post and it didnt seems to make sense, I should use the preview button more :P, my point was that it may actually be making fun of (along with the pc/mac, the wii and the ps3) that rediculous type of advertising

hmm, read my post and it didnt seems to make sense, I should use the preview button more :P, my point was that it may actually be making fun of (along with the pc/mac, the wii and the ps3) that ridiculous type of advertising- where an attractive person is supposed to mean a better product

I'm not sure, you may be right not "bitch" but it is still extremely tasteless and tacky...

:)

When the Mac commercials first came out, over-weight, middle-aged didn’t complain that they were being stereotyped as blah and boring. Can you really blame G4 if the majority of their target market it happens to be really intrigued by a great set of T-and-A? After all, it’s not like those losers ever get up from in front of their consoles to actually get any themselves. If there’s anything that’s entirely unoriginal about this ad, it’s that it ripped off the Mac campaign, and wasn’t even the first to do it! But I guess that plagiarism isn’t offensive if you agree with the cause, right? Geez, it's just a fucking commercial. It's marketing: it's supposed to be bankrupt. Get over it.

well, opinionated, I like that interpretation, but I'm pretty sure this is a Nintendo commercial, rather than a Sony commercial. Thus, they would want you to think that the Wii is in fact the better machine. Thus, better = Wii = flighty and sexy.

As a female video game nerd, I'm fucking PISSED at Nintendo. And to think I was really looking forward to getting a Wii after the crazy shopper-kill-spree insanity dies down... guess I'll just stick with my PS2 instead.

Bourbs, wrong. My understanding from reading a fair amount of marketing articles about the Wii was that Wii was trying to make itself stand out from the PS3, not on the basis that it was somehow "better" than the PS3 (since anyone with even a passing familiarity with gaming technology knows that this is a joke), but rather on the basis that it had broader-based appeal. Wii appeals to nontrad gamers much more so than does the PS3, in large part because of its unique gaming interface. Nintendo was, from what I understood, trying to recoup its market share, not by going after hardcore gamers, but by opening the gaming market back up to people who haven't bought consoles since... well, since the last Nintendo.

This ad goes completely against that strategy and makes it clear that Nintendo doesn't give a shit about gamers like me. I spend thousands on electronics and associate media every year. I prefer shopping at Best Buy to shopping at Bloomingdale's. My taste for video games rivals plenty of boys' (my only problem is that, since I work a ridiculous amount of time, I don't have nearly as much time to spend playing them. Nonetheless, I have money and I'm not afraid to spend it on stereotypical boys' toys). And yet somehow, the fact that I don't have a penis means I'm less valuable to them.

Fucking retarded. Screw you, Nintendo!

Oh, and to be clear: although I'm a gamer, I get PLENTY when I want to, I'm 5'7", great skin and hair (all of which I keep clean), I wear a size six (four on a good day), and I rarely go out without being hit on.

Just in case anyone wanted to try more of that stereotyping bullshit.

http://wii.nintendo.com/wiicommercials_index.jsp

if you look at nintendo's site, I dont see it anywhere

if the ad pisses you off, I understand why, but being mad at nintendo, if they didnt make it, doesnt make much sense...

The Mac/PC ads are starting to wear thin already so this ripoff doesn't help and of course Nintendo isn't going to have a hot, sexy, intellengent woman representing the PS3 because that would admit that the PS3 is everything men want while they have to "settle" for the Wii, which is hot but unintellengent and may even end up breaking your t.v. (google Wii misshaps sometimes, funny shit). They're basically admitting they're desperate because they know they can't compete with the PS3.

opinionated... then this could be problematic for whoever made the ad. It flashes "Nintendo" at the start which clearly makes it appear to be sponsored by Nintendo. If it isn't, well, my trial-lawyer-spidey sense is tingling :)

I agree with Heather that this sort of advertising seems to be getting more popular, not less. Maybe it's time for some serious counter-campaigning.

Unfortunately, I'm feeling really ADD right now and not sure where to begin, there are so many infuriating things about this ad... anyone wanna suggest a good form letter of sorts?

To be honest, this looks like a spoof commercial from one of the gaming television shows (Most likely X-Play) demonstrating the pros and cons of each gaming system, not an officially endorsed commercial. (Although it's still in poor taste.)

Therefore, it's not plagiarism (as suggested above), but parody.

Personally, I have other issues with G4 and the video gaming industry, like the Dead or Alive: Beach Volleyball video games where the point is just to check out some virtual T&A. They show the videos on Cinematech like all day. There was a sex game video thrown in there, as well as a video about a game that has a bunch of minigames played by girls in bikinis. One of the minigames involved the girls stroking a tube with water in it to see who could make the water shoot out the fastest.

No, I'm not kidding. I'm not sure of the name of the game, but that video was definitely on there a lot.

all i could think while watching it is christ those women are bad actresses...not even commercial grade!

anyone who plays video games knows that the ps3 goes faarrrr beyond the wii which makes this commercial a little more confusing for me (i have no clue what they are getting at with the 2 girls, it really doesnt make sense when you think about the ps3 and the wii)

Wait... there are actually people out there that think this is an advertisement?

I must remember to write a letter of protest to Sam Waterston since I lost money buying that Old Glory Robot Insurance that he was hawking on Saturday Night Live.

norbizness,

whaa? ps3 and wii are actual products whereas the robot insurance isnt. or did i completely misunderstand your comment hah

I'm pretty sure Mary B is right - from what I can gather from youtube, this is made my G4, and really has nothing to do with Nintendo (other than the obvious). So I wouldn't take this out on the Wii, I'm pretty sure that G4 is actually making fun of Nintendo. And norbizness, I definitely appreciate the Old Glory reference - robots may strike at any time.

Elektro: Well, we know that about robot insurance NOW.

Speaking of sexist commercials, check out this gem.

now that i think about it..japan will probably be needing that robot insurance these days. theyve got em there you know

As a commenter pointed out earlier, it says a lot of what G4 thinks of their viewers.

Personally, I'm really miffed by the ad because, point-blank, I'm a geek. When I call tech support, I talk to them on THEIR level, and I just turned 18! Fine, I'm not supermodel material - I'm short and have healthy measurements - but I don't have glasses, I'm of average weight, and I do have interests besides geekdom! This stereotype is not only stupidly wrong - it's utterly out of date. There are TONS of women out there who work with computers and know their technology - and people are becoming more aware [I'd hope, and at least in my experience] that they don't, by any means, all fit the frumpy stereotype.

The mac/pc commercial is clever. This is a lame attempt to mimic it. A failing attempt.

And in addition, as someone else pointed out - it makes no sense in relation to the PS3 or Wii... I don't own either system, but I know enough to say that neither girl fits the system she "represents."

I'm in a coffeeshop and can't watch the commercial right now. But your discussions got me to thinking.

Obviously there are lots and lots and LOTS of commercials that use hot, scantily-clad young women to hawk their shitty wares. It annoys me to no end, because essentially advertisers are expecting that I make purchasing decisions based on a boner. I mean, sure -- I've made decisions with my dick before (good ones and bad ones). But I (and many of my male friends) don't make purchases at the imagined command of some actress who I'll never ever see/talk to/fornicate with.

But (yeah, there's a point here), I can't think of a whole lot of commercials that use, as a selling device, the comparison between a "hot" woman and an "ugly" woman (save for this one). Can anyone point any out to me? I don't want to say they don't exist, but I'd expect myself to remember at least one.

What I can remember is a tampon commercial I saw yesterday, where some boyfriend arrives with a bucket of chicken, and is immediately replaced by a better-looking, better-dressed guy with flowers. I remember because it pissed me off, since I'm neither rich nor particularly well-dressed, and I like fried chicken, and my girlfriend still loves me. I know I've seen more than a few ads where two men -- one hot, one dumpy or fat or bald -- are compared to each other in much the same way as this G4 ad. Advertising in general is really, really, really damaging to women, but this particlar device is one that seems more often applied to men.

(I like the Mac/PC ads, mostly because they allow John Hodgman to shine, and because they encapsulate the whole conflict really well. )

What amuses me is how many people (women and men) who game or are interested in technology leap to defend their interests by saying something like, "I'm attractive!" "I'm not ugly!" etc. Isn't this supposed to be about skill? Who really cares how much you get, or how much you can bench, and so on. Reminds me of a great series that was started on the official shrub.com blog. http://blog.shrub.com/archives/tekanji/2006-11-29_457

I agree with hi fi parasol who makes the point that all of these adds that seek to present human beings as commodities to be up-graded based upon their offerings (normal guy w/ fried chicken vs. male-model type with flowers) is exploitive. What is this kind of advertising saying? That people (and our core relationships...I've even seen ads in which whole families are "traded-up") are goods/commodities/
things/etc? Hello, 13th Amendment help clear that up. Of course, sites like Femininsting.com is certainly more likely to pick up gross examples of when women or girls are commodified more than women, but the point goes for both--that crass advertising that appeals to the inner-Paris Hilton- materialist ain't appeal; doesn't present products in the best light, and most of all, further seeks to alienate the American consumer from themselves and a sense of authentic community.

Peace

Just to clarify, this is not a real ad.
It's just G4 being stupid. I've never watched the channel, but from what I gather from my gamer and non-gamer friends is it's like MTV+AOL+Your average 12 year old boy+marketing.

So in short, a waste of the spectrum.

If they made a similar piece without the body size, sexuality, and intelligence related "jokes" it would be about half as offensive.

I think Nintendo should sue them. Hell, Sony and even Apple can join in on the suit.

I loathe gamer culture because it's generally racist, classist, sexist and very homophobic. As well is just plain immature.

Still, I'm saving up for a wii.

I don't care if it's put out by Nintendo -- it flashes their logo at the beginning. If they want to disown the ad, let them sue G4 and get their logo off that disgusting "commercial."

That ad nearly made me cry. I was so infuriated and hurt after watching this, I told my boyfriend (who watched it with me) that if he ever buys a Wii, I will kill him. I spend so much of my time as a woman just trying to be myself, and it hurts -- bad -- to think that advertisers of *any* caliber think that this type of shit is OK. How is this acceptable?

Who cares if it's parody or not? These stereotypes are fucking harmful and offensive.

EvilPotato, good point, but you should also attack him if he buys any beer, since all brands are notorious for sexist ads.

a_human, if I ever see a commercial for beer as fucking disgusting as this one, I'll be sure to ban that beer from coming in my house. Right now, however, I don't have TV, as I find the majority of it disgusting, so I don't see that happening anytime soon.

good point...I'm calling Nintendo right now to tell them to sue G4, or atleast issue a "we do not approve of this crap" statement.

the dour-frumpy-smart-girl stereotype

You forgot one word in there. FAT. Because that's what makes this "ad" work. Big old fat girl in an ugly outfit standing next to a hot, skinny girl who is just dying for you to fuck her. Which, of course, you want to. Desperately. Because she's not a joyless fatty.

Because, of course, all men who are hardcore gamers are delicious specimens of physical perfection, what with their hours spent sitting in front of a computer/machine. Naturally, they could never waste time with a fatty.

8 bit hold music...

EvilPotatoe, you're being kind of silly. While I agree that this is in the poorest of taste, you really can't blame Nintendo for it. G4 is parodying the Mac ads and doing so inreference to two companies products. It would make so much more sense to be angry at G4, but I guess you've got a right to be irrationally angry at whoever you like.

Ok, I got someone at Nintendo to issue an internal memo.

OK, I just watched it. LORD that was bad on so many levels. Why would the women agree to be in it? Why would the PS3 woman agree to be in it?

Even aside from the amazingly degrading portrayals of women, it was just BAD. Poorly made. Someone needs some editing skills. Christ.

Angie, agreed on the fat comment.

I guess any work is work.
Actors do a lot of stuff they normally wouldn't.

I'm not by any means saying it was right for G4 to produce such a peice of crap, but actors do what they do.

I don't see how the "fat" role was any more degrading. Atleast she was treated human, whereas the other one was treated as an empty sex toy.

hi fi, I think part of the reason you don't see a ton of commercials playing up ugly women against pretty women (whereas you see the reverse for men) is actually pretty simple: ugly women just aren't in commercials. There's no need to do a comparison because ugly women have been deemed not appropriate for use in trying to sell items.

Seriously, can you think of any major commercial right now featuring an ugly woman in ANY context?

Whereas, sure, ugly men sometimes get made fun of, but at least they are in commercials, and not always and solely as the butt of jokes. There are plenty of commercials (think beer commercials) that in fact show fabulous things happen to ugly, lazy dudes. You NEVER see anything good happen to a fat or ugly girl.

This one particularly bums me out because, like someone else noted, I actually like a lot of G4's programming. As a gaming/sci-fi nerd, I LOVE shows like Star Trek and X-Play. I'm disgusted that these fabulous shows are sullied by their association on the same network with idiocy like The Man Show. These shows are SOOOO much better than that.

weetz, the reason we good-looking gamer protest is the same reason anyone protests stereotypes. The implication that I'm fat and ugly just because I like video games and science fiction is offensive and annoying, just as the implication that I'm a sex object just because I'm a woman is also offensive and annoying.

human, how do you know you got Nintendo to issue an internal memo? I think it's fantastic, I'm just wondering how you did it :)

CoasttoCoast, I don't think it's irrational to hold Nintendo responsible for an ad that uses their logo. At the time that I made my post, they had not yet issued a memo denouncing the ad (which a_human so amazingly got them to do! Kudos!). I don't think it's silly at all to hold a company responsible for something that appears under their corporate insignia. Now that they've issued a memo disowning the ad, I have no problem with Nintendo. What's so irrational about that?

I watched that THING, and whether or not it's a parody, I have to agree with all of you on how nauseating it is. I can't even put into words all the different things that upset me about it.

I just don't understand who gives these idiots the chance to spout this tripe, and what's wrong with them.

This is idiotic and offensive but do not take it out on Nintendo. In developing their system they went out tof their way to take human factors into account: like the fact that women often act as gatekeepers for purchases in families and that they were interested in game content that was interactive, more physical and less violent. In developing the system they went for features that would please non-gamers and that is why the gamers are making fun of it. They are denigrating both women and both systems it is not the manufacturers at all.

This is gamers trying to please their perceived audience and thereby alienating a section of their actual audience.

OK, this is my third time typing a comment, the first one was long, this one won't be, perhaps a future one will...that'll teach me to leech other peoples' wi-fi. :-p

Anyways, I talked to three people, got redirected, listened to hold music, and told them my story politely.

They said they would issue an internal memo and that they may investigate it, or may allready have.

NINTENDO DID NOT MAKE THIS ADVERT.

That desperately needed pointing out, not only for those of you who are still overlooking this point but also those of you who hold the fact that Nintendo has done nothing about this advert against the company. It is very difficult for NOA (Nintendo of America) to do ANYTHING about this. As a gaming network, G4 was within its rights to use the Nintendo/Wii name. Nintendo may decide to forward its complaints to G4 and request that it not be shown again (which it probably wont be anyway) if enough were made, but you'd be better of just directing your complaints straight to the actual offenders.

This is G4's mess (or so I believe) and it's them who you should be targeting your anger towards.

As for the actual video, I was pretty annoyed at it myself, and couldn't begin to understand why either woman agreed to it. I guess they somehow thought it was light-humoured and didn't see the bitter side of it.

Phil, the women likely did it because they're actresses and need to get paid. Acting is probably THE hardest profession to succeed in, and it beats doing porn.

I think most people here are no longer directing anger at Nintendo, but rather at G4. Nonetheless, it's important that Nintendo be made aware of this (as it currently is, courtesy of a_human), if for no other reason than that, given the use of Nintendo's trademark, it may very wish to look into suing G4.

Whereas, sure, ugly men sometimes get made fun of, but at least they are in commercials, and not always and solely as the butt of jokes. There are plenty of commercials (think beer commercials) that in fact show fabulous things happen to ugly, lazy dudes.

Right. I suppose the rationale is that advertisers know that men have purchasing power and thus don't want to intimidate them. It's sort of a corollary of the King of Queens/According to Jim rule -- If you have a dumpy guy with a hot wife, it's cool because it's a fantasy, but the opposite turns people off.

Phil, even if Nintendo didn't make this ad, they have a responsibility to respond to it. And it's not very difficult for them to do anything about it -- this is the same company that (IIRC) threatened legal action against someone for talking shit about their product on a Sucide Girls forum (someone should fact-check me on the details if they remember more about this, but I know I have the gist right). Nintendo has cadres of lawyers working for it, so they certainly have the resources.

Wow. Even if you didn't read Jessica's post it should be completely obvious this is a parody and not an ad. So why are so many people so quick to pounce on Nintendo? This leads me to suspect that there are some SERIOUS grudges at work here. Sure it was freaking impossible to play Top Gun and those stupid turtles with the hammers got me EVERY TIME in Super Mario Bros.. but c'mon. That was 20 years ago. You can't hold it against them forever. Nintendo just wants to play!

arg be done defending nintendo already. thats not the freakin point.

anyways, i really think differently about G4 now. they have ladies that are prominent in the gaming world, and i always liked that since you know, girls play video games too. but what really weirds me out is how it just doesnt make sense at all...i thought G4 of all people would know what a ps3 and a wii is and judging by this fake commercial its seems as if they have no clue what there talking about. wtf G4? am i going to have to stop watching you now?!

gamer culture because it's generally racist, classist, sexist and very homophobic. As well is just plain immature.

oh for fuck's sake.

I don't see how the "fat" role was any more degrading. At least she was treated human, whereas the other one was treated as an empty sex toy.

Objectification of women is commonplace at this point. What was more unusual is the juxtaposition of "unattractive smart woman" and "attractive dumb woman" and all that suggests.

I've always hated G4 for this type of thing-- so much of the programming I've seen on the channel has been sexist. If you really want to be grossed out, check out their E3 convention coverage in May(?-- I'm not sure exactly when it happens). This year I caught a wonderful segment where two anchors walk around making demeaning jokes about the women hired by the companies to promote games and products, who are supposed to serve less as serious salespeople and more as eyecandy for the convention-goers (because I guess only men should play games?). The whole segment was despicable, but the thing that absolutely infuriated me came at the end. The men went up to a woman who was clearly serving some other purpose there-- I don't remember what, maybe she was a businesswoman-- and made incredibly sexist jokes at her expense to her face. When she said something, they pretended to be surprised and said, "Oh! You're not a booth babe?" Funny, funny-- I mean, who would've thought that a woman could serve any purpose besides being an object?

In other words, media is saturated with images of attractive, ditzy women e.g. Paris Hilton, Britney, Lindsey Lohan, Jessica Simpson but to physically juxtapose a ditzy attractive woman with an unattractive "educated, worldly" woman as the video stated suggests that smart women are unattractive. At this point, it's a more harmful, hateful message because there are men who are threatened by upwardly mobile women and want to keep them down.

the only thing dumber than video games is the TV required to play them.

what more do you expect from a TV show dedicated to video games?

This was a comedy sketch. If you have ever seen the adventures of Special Agent Bob and Secret Agent Steve (making fun of Splinter Cell), it might be easier to relate. Similar to "Spishak" sketches from Mad TV.

The didn't like the original Mac/PC ads because they were so grossly one-sided. I laughed at this sketch because it insulted both the PS3 and the Wii.

Pleasure its self is never innocent or neutral and there is a danger in valorizing pleasure without looking at its context.

Accepting something as a 'spoof' or something that is supposed to mock the product is just as harmful as if it were to be a real commercial. It's not funny to sit back and laugh at a spoof of a white guy whipping a black man who is on all fours, so why is it funny or acceptable to just brush of something like this as parody?

Nintendo could sue G4 for tarnishing their trademark. This is a parody, but it was not necessary for G4 to use the Nintendo trademark at the beginning of the video, which has clearly confused and offended some consumers, as shown above. It would seem Nintendo has a very strong case.

Unlikely Nintendo would sue, though. Free publicity and I think most people watching G4 (myself included) think this is pretty funny.

As for a white guy whipping a black guy being funny, Chappelle's Show did that. It was pretty funny.

As for a white guy whipping a black guy being funny, Chappelle's Show did that. It was pretty funny.

The key being that it's a black guy's show.

First of all i would like to point out that they ARENT alienating 50% of their possible consumers. why do i know this? bc most women dont care about stereotypes like this. i mean hello. if they found two women to do the commercial i am pretty sure they arent worried about alienating anyone. while we are pissed, and have every right to be, half of the reason it has been so hard for feminism to take off is bc so many woman ARENT with us. if every woman, or even most women, were outraged at this sort of thing, it would stop, bc we would stop buying the products. guess what, sex sells whether its a man or a woman, and it sells bc most people arent like us.

secondly, no matter what anyone says about sony being better then nintendo etc etc, i just read that intendo out sold sony, so i dont know about that assessment either.

"secondly, no matter what anyone says about sony being better then nintendo etc etc, i just read that intendo out sold sony, so i dont know about that assessment either."

price of wii: 250$
price of ps3: 600$

people buying it has nothing to do with which is a better system. most people just dont have 600$ to spend on something like that but really, technologically speaking, the ps3 runs circles around the wii. sooo sony does have the better system, which is part of why its so expensive.

hotblack, I think you're wrong about Nintendo's take on this. I agree that at this point they're somewhat unlikely to sue, but I would be surprised in the EXTREME if they didn't take this seriously.

For one thing, Nintendo's marketing strategy, as I've said before, is to use the Wii to connect to a wider market than the teeny bopper fanboy base. Commercials like this, where people are ACTUALLY confused about the sponsorship, is like Kryptonite to that strategy. I'd imagine a cease and desist letter will be forthcoming.

As an IP/entertainment litigator, I can assure you that corporations, by and large, do NOT take unauthorized use of their trademarks lightly, by any stretch. I've seen clients sued (and lose hundreds of thousands in legal fees alone) over less.

"people buying it has nothing to do with which is a better system. most people just dont have 600$ to spend on something like that but really, technologically speaking, the ps3 runs circles around the wii. sooo sony does have the better system, which is part of why its so expensive."

Also, Nintendo has released more Wiis than Sony has Playstations. It's a pure numbers issue -- Sony only got out 400,000 before Christmas. Nintendo's on schedule to put out twice that many. The market for either is nowhere near saturated yet, so it's pointless to make comparisons about "how many" units are sold. Right now demand exceeds supply for both of them -- that's why people are paying thousands of dollars for them on eBay.

TLF
yea i forgot to mention you CANNOT get a freakin ps3 and some have sold for 10,000$ on ebay. ah those sony jerks. they know what there doing!

i need to move to japan

Katie, most women aren't going to see this commercial. The ones that are, are likely gamer geeks. And gamer geeks may not self-identify as feminists (you know, because of that whole feminists are man-hating lesbians stereotypes) but gamer geeks are *well* aware of the fact that, as women, they occupy a precarious place within the gaming world.

Women who game (or women who do any geeky thing, including build computers, program, watch sf programs, get into anime, etc.) are constantly being told they don't belong in the paradigm. The gamer geek has to be a guy! (And a loser guy at that, but that's a different problem.) Women exist within the gaming sphere to be sexy eye candy for gamer geek guys. To be a woman gamer yourself, you probably like guys as pals, you have a lot of guy friends, you identify to a certain extent with the guys (you may even have contempt for "average" women and their "tee-hee! a girly like me doesn't get computers, I need a big strong man to run my virus checker!" acts)... but at the same time, you really resent the notion that women are either sexy eye candy or nonexistent, or that woman gamers have to be ugly.

So yes, G4 is going to offend the majority of the women who actually *see* the ad. And the really offensive thing is... it would never occur to them to care. Because if they had any clue that there *is* such a thing as a woman who watches a gaming network and likes science fiction and computers, they might not have thought of the ad. Male geeks and non-geeks of both sexes are convinced that female geeks do not exist, Willow Rosenberg notwithstanding.

I'm with not "bitch", "opinionated": I think it's making fun of the fact that people don't want to pay the extra money to get the extra benefits of a PS3 but would rather have a cheap ride with the sexy-looking-but-empty-wii...although I also think it goes a little too far with the T&A.

Oh, doy, I wrote "twice that many" when I meant "ten times as many"... there are 4 million Wiis out by Christmas.

Whoops.

LawFairy: Sorry, I'm not being clear. I think that Nintendo cares about the unauthorized use of their trademark, and should send a letter even if this parody didn't seem so controversial to those who have commented here. My point is that they probably don't care what the commercial says per se, they just care about its effects on the sale of Wii's. They might sue if the commercial seemed like it would offend more people. My opinion is that is just isn't very offensive, which is just my opinion. There is no accounting for taste. But I expect most people would share my view. I suppose this is just an "I feel" statement unsupported by additional rationale or fact, but it certainly is not the first use of this type of statement in these comments.

Annejumps: Why would the Chappelle skit lose its funniness if it wasn't on Chappelle's show? For all I know it WAS written by a non-black person. It would have been just as funny if it appeared on a show like Saturday Night Live.

Would the Nintendo "commercial" change if the woman representing the Wii did the commercial in spite of a jealous boyfriend who forbade her to participate in such a titillating role on TV? Would it magically change into an affirmation of the freedom women now fight for over male domination?

It would still have the problems everyone has pointed out above.

Wow, you've only recently figured out G4 is dumb and out of touch? Well thought out commercials are tailored to those watching them and the only people still watching G4 are morons. Dont look so much into it, its not very important or something to fuss about. Also, caring about a commercial while a major landmark for freedom for arab women was recently made is beyond incompetent. Feminism For The Lose.

This isn't the first time that the contrast between idealized/non-idealized body types has been used in advertising that primarily targets a male audience.
A few months back there was a Speed Stick ad featuring some new Power Stripe or whatever. The setting was a rollerderby oval. "Odour" was represented by larger, muscular women portrayed as being less attractive, while the power stripe was portrayed by a row of blonde, thin, "attractive" women who broke through the line of odour, thereby creating a greater, prettier, less smelly world. It starred that Bam Margera guy or whatever his name was. It was highly offensive, and I'm not surprised that it doesn't air anymore.

G4 is a completely useless and sexist network. My brother and I were watching Arrested Development on that channel, and up came the news crawl. "And Men Rejoice Everywhere. The FDA approved silicone breast implants after being off the market for 14 years" (or something like that). There's no difference between the appearance of silicone implants and saline ones. Or is it the fact that if the silocone ones burst, the woman's life is threatened that turns men on to fake boobs so much?

engineeringmajor, you are so lofty and above all us moronic G4 watchers. please tell us more about what you think we should be talking about.

or not.

hotblack, I think I understand what you're saying -- you're saying that Nintendo is cynical, and they would be upset not because the commercial is anti-feminist, but because the stir it causes might hurt the bottom line, correct?

If so, I agree. Although I disagree with your assessment that the commercial is not offensive. I understand the inclination to shrug off things like this as "not a big deal," but at the same time, the fact that this is seen as "not a big deal" is itself troubling. Making the very clear implication that attractive women are flighty, and smart women are frumpy, does women a disservice. Women are multidimensional, just the same as men. Marginalizing women into a tired, sexist stereotype sets us back, ever so slightly. So, yeah, I think a lot of people WOULD find it offensive, at least if they thought about it.

I do believe the commercial is offensive, slightly to men and more so to women. But the location of the commercial doesnt warrant as much of a reaction as some of your are seeming to give it. Its a pointless commercial on a pointless network dealing with a pointless hobby(I am also a gamer). A good example of this would be the superbowl a few years back. An exposed breast is nothing to get worried over if its seen on an adult film, but on live tv, at the superbowl, its something to cause a commotion over. Until this commercial migrates to a more serious network I would suggest reining in your outrage.

Engineering, I think part of the insult is the perception among those of us here who DO watch the network, that the network just plain doesn't care about us. Like a big "fuck you" to the viewers who believe in equality. For me it's disappointing because I love a lot of G4's programming (and really hate a little bit of it) and it's frustrating that they apparently don't care about alienating viewers who otherwise seriously enjoy the network.

And, frankly, a lot of people who enjoy sci-fi can be VERY progressive. Sci-fi has served as a vehicle for normalizing all kinds of social change. Star Trek alone is responsible for all kinds of fantastic progress -- it featured the first televised interracial kiss. It regularly features women and minorities in roles of power and authority. Hell, Star Trek even touched on homophobia in the 1990s before it was uncontroversial to question its prevelance in contemporary society. It's legendary that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was a huge Star Trek fan, in large part because of Nichelle Nichols' prominent role on the show. Sci-fi fans are not afraid of maturity and equality, so it's incredibly insulting to treat us all like slobbering teenage boys.

Too, part of the irritation is, I think, that they don't *need* crap like this. Gamers and sci-fi nerds will watch the network with OR without it, because it has quality shows that appeal to them, that are difficult to find on other networks. Your average male gamer is no more likely to watch X-Play knowing that it's interspersed with commercials featuring attractive women. He's going to watch X-Play because he likes X-Play. I mean, who watches TV for the commercials?? So it's unclear to me who they're using this commercial to attract. I can only conclude they're trying to "broaden" the network's appeal from its base of sci-fi nerds and gamers, to frat boys with only a passing interest in the actually interesting side of G4. This is beyond annoying. Every time I start to like a stereotypically "male" network, it has to go overboard like this. Spike TV used to be pretty cool to watch, but it fell prey to the exact same market forces. I'm worried the same thing is happening to G4 -- and then where will I go for my Captain Picard fix?

Better buy the DVDs, I guess...

I thought G4TV was cool since they played Arrested Development re-runs. Oh well, I'll stick to watching Fox Soccer Channel on cable instead.

I hate G4 for exactly reasons like this.

TechTV used to be a fantastic network. It was full of smart, clever programing, and treated the viewers with respect, and recognized that men and women were interested in technology, computers, and video games.
Then, G4 comes along, and everything that they do seems to be aimed to ruin the work that TechTV did. They have idiotic programing that does nothing but reinforce the typical fan-boy, game-geek stereotypes. They've all but abandoned the notion that, gee, women might actually like games.

I've wrote when they changed over from TechTV to G4 out here, and I cancelled my cable not long after- but I'm more than happy to write again.