This is Sportscenter

Still to this day the show Sportscenter is one of my favorite TV shows of all time.  Its not just the fact it consists of numerous sports clips and score updates, but the fact that it usually encompasses two of my favorite genres of television: sports and comedy.  Now the comedic side of Sportscenter is usually toned down for the most part during live shows and what not, meaning the sports highlights and interviews take center stage.  The comedy aspect of Sportscenter is most commonly seen in their Ads and commercials however, when the camera's are not live and the atmosphere is much more relaxed.  One of my favorite ads for Sportscenter of all time features one of my favorite hockey players, Alex Ovechkin, a Russian-born athlete who plays for the Washington Capitals.  The scene starts out inside the offices of ESPN, the main set for all of the "This is Sportscenter" ads.  Ovechkin is in full hockey garb filing some papers in the dark.  One of the Sportscenter anchors walks by and notices him in the room.  As he approaches Ovechkin and turns on the light he asks, somewhat sarcastically, "Hey why are you filing papers so late and in the dark?  Are you a Russian spy or something?" The two exchange laughs and the anchor walks away and leaves Alex to his business.  As soon as the anchor leaves, Ovechkin's face changes into a serious glare and grabs some papers as he looks to the ceiling.  The goalie for the Washington Capitals, Michal Neuvirth (a fellow Russian), appears out of one of the tiles and throws Alex a rope, saying "That was too close" in Russian, as Ovechkin agrees saying, "Too close" as well.  It is this kind of comedic genius that makes the Sportscenter ads so funny and so relatable to the athletes they are portraying.  Just the thought of an office being run by athletes from all sports and walks of life makes this ad one of my favorites, as well as all "This is Sportscenter" ads.

A sports ad that i have come to frown upon lately is the Peyton Manning commercial where he is promoting the new Buick car and is acting like a real southern hick while driving it.  Yes, everyone knows that he is a superstar football player.  Yes, everyone knows that he hails from the south and has always been immersed in that culture (graduated from Tennessee University).  But come on Buick, the commercial is just awful and the jokes seem kind of derogatory.  This is probably just my personal feelings on how I feel about the commercial, but I just don't like Peyton Manning or the way they are promoting the car.  Buick should take notes from Sportscenter if you ask me.