Sex and Cute Animals Are the Big Themes for 2013 Super Bowl Ads

The Super Bowl is on Sunday, and it is the biggest (and most expensive) day of advertising all year in the United States. Some people do not even care about the game and just watch it for the commercials. 

In a move telling of the state of the US automotive industry, automakers will dominate much of the ad time on Sunday. Most, but not all, of this year's ads have been released already online in even complete or shortened form. The ads this year fall into two categories: sexy lady tries to sell you a car or cute animal tries to sell you a car. Here is a rundown of what has been released so far. 

Mercedes

Given that the Super Bowl is being held at the MercedesMercedes-BenzGermany, 1924 > present197 models
9852 photos
33 videos
Superdome in New Orleans this year, it makes sense that Mercedes would have a heavy add presence. 

This ad received the most buzz of any of the ones released so far. It shows American, lingerie model Kate Upton washing a new Mercedes CLAMercedes-Benz CLA-Class Gen.1Germany, 2013 > present63 versions
89 photos
in slow motion. That is it; Mercedes did not try to break any intellectual ground with this ad. 

Mercedes other ad is also for the CLA and also features Upton, but tries a little harder to be clever. It shows a guy ready to make a deal with the devil, played by Willem Dafoe, for a CLA, fame and fortune. It also features singer Usher, and the CLA racing a Mercedes F1 car what appears to be incongruously the Indy 500. 

Toyota

ToyotaToyotaJapan, 1937 > present155 models
4570 photos
10 videos
decided to combine the good-looking woman and cute dog approach with its ad for the new Rav4Toyota Rav4 Gen.4Japan, 2013 > present24 versions
41 photos
. It stars The Big Bang Theory actress Kaley Cuoco and a Chihuahua as a genie answering a family's wishes. 

Audi

AudiAudiGermany, 1909 > present83 models
8213 photos
27 videos
also went with a version of the attractive women idea but with a twist. The ad has a young man going to prom alone. 

Volkswagen

VolkswagenVolkswagenGermany, 1938 > present98 models
9654 photos
31 videos
is bucking the trend and has neither attractive women nor animals in its ad. It just stars a guy who really likes his BeetleVolkswagen Beetle (modern) Gen.2 [A5]Germany, 2011 > present118 versions
206 photos
5 videos
. 

Hyundai

HyundaiHyundaiRepublic of Korea, 1967 > present79 models
1921 photos
3 videos
will be running four ads during the game. The first is a clever ad for things you do not want to follow on the highway. 

The second tries to give the GenesisHyundai GenesisRepublic of Korea, 2007 > 201439 versions
91 photos
sedan R-Spec more notoriety.

The third has two parents competing for who the more fun is. 

The final ad has a boy collecting a team to play football. 

Kia

KiaKiaRepublic of Korea, 1944 > present52 models
1724 photos
4 videos
took the sexy lady approach last year with the Adrianna Lima in a man's dreams ad. This year it decided to go with cute animals instead. 

Fiat

FiatFiatItaly, 1899 > present159 models
4864 photos
35 videos
also took the attractive women approach with an ad for the 500LFiat 500L 1.3 Multijet S&...Italy, 2012 > present9 photos
. It plays on the awkwardness that comes when two families meet. 

Subaru

SubaruSubaruJapan, 1953 > present34 models
1174 photos
6 videos
is doing something unique for its ads. They are not playing during the Super Bowl. The brand claims that 70% of the people who own its cars in the US also own a dog. So instead of paying for the very expensive ad time during the Super Bowl, it bought an extensive amount of during the Puppy Bowl. Puppy Bowl is a program that the TV channel Animal Planet puts on every year where instead of a football game, it shows puppies playing for several hours. Needless to say, Subaru's ads are very dog focused. 

Dogs with the new ForesterSubaru Forester 4Japan, 2013 > present12 versions
17 photos

A dog buying a car.

A dog financing a car.

Finally, the doggy car salesman