All Jim Higley wants is for Huggies to portray dads as they are. Not to canonize them, but to simply portray dads as men who love their kids and who are comfortable digging in with the daily work of parenting.
Originally appeared at Bobblehead Dad
There’s one reason why the new Huggies Spaghetti Night Challenge commercial works. And that reason – at least for me – can be found in the photo above. More about that later.
The new commercial depicts a group of dads (real ones – not actors) with their kids (also real – not actors!) enjoying a spaghetti meal. And, as one would imagine, the kids make a splendid mess of themselves, their high-chairs, and their dads along the way. But thanks to the commercial’s hero – Huggies Wipes – the kids and their dads are left clean as a whistle, leaving us all with a happy-ever-after ending to this story.
Perhaps you’re asking, “Why even talk about this pint-size version of a cafeteria food fight?”
Ordinarily, you’d be right to wonder. But there’s a backstory here that’s put this commercial in the “dad-ad” spotlight. A month or so ago, Huggies kicked off a slick, new campaign, The Dad Test. The original intent was to be a “celebration” of dads. Unfortunately, the entire campaign backfired on Huggies as a public outcry of unhappy moms and dads called out Huggies for depicting dads as stereotypical doofuses who knew nothing about raising kids. To Huggies credit, they put all hands on deck to tackle this public relations predicament. They flew high-level Huggies personnel and Kimberly-Clark executives (the parent company) around the country to meet face-to-face with groups of fathers, they held mini-focus groups with dads, and they revamped the messaging of the entire campaign at a price tag I’m sure wasn’t cheap.
The irony of all this is that, due to some innocent (and perhaps not well-conceived) creative work, Huggies found themselves in the middle of a heated debate about the role of dads in our country. From their perspective, they were just trying to do something positive. I have to give them a pat on the rear for going above and beyond the call of duty to help smooth out a messy situation. They’re in the business of selling diapers and wipes – not leading the battle for dad-hood everywhere.
All I want from them – and brands across the country – is to portray dads simply as we are. Don’t celebrate us. Don’t canonize us. Don’t put us on a pedestal or portray us as anything other than men who love our children, dig in with the daily stuff, and – at the end of the day – value what we do.
Which brings me back to the photo above.
This is my oldest son, Kevin. I took it over 20 years ago. Consider this my version of the Spaghetti Night Challenge. Only this, I believe, was plums. But it really doesn’t matter, does it? What matters is that this commercial took me to a place that I value deeply. It gave me a “been there, done that” moment. A moment I’ve repeated over-and-over with my children for many years.
I know the creative people behind this ad are proud of the fact that they used “real dads” and not actors.
But honestly, I don’t care about that. Because, you see, I’m the real dad. And that’s what this commercial reminded me of.
It reminded me of something I cherished. Through the stickiness, the smell, and the disgusting crud I found in my ear two hours later – I cherished those moments. I cherished being quick and agile enough to outsmart my kids with pig-tying motions – pinning their two arms with my one free hand – while I swiftly wiped their face. And I could do it all while still wearing a tie.
I cherish those moments. A lot. And I miss them.
For it’s in moments like that, I was – and am – a real dad.
Photo courtesy of Bobblehead Dad
Focusing on a twig on the ground like this is a waste of time.
If there is truly a desire to stop the societal casting of men (not just stay at home dad / homemakers) and boys as incompetent idiots, go after ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, Disney, et al. However, if the only desire is to make sure society casts men as equally capable diaper changers and potty trainers, go after Huggies.
Eric, I like your bigger picture thoughts. You’re right….the issue isn’t about Huggies, or diapers or any other 30 second spot. I’d be curious – sometime – if you would jot down some of your thoughts on television and movies that a) stick to the old stereotypes and b) do a good job of breaking though those images. I wouldn’t mind tackling a bigger story some day. Thanks man.
Man fuck Huggies. They crossed the line, can’t come back now.
You’re treating this one little tree like it’s the forest. This is way bigger than a Huggies commercial. This is way bigger than commercials. It’s the other 24 minutes of the 30 minute TV show that really dis men, including fathers.
Very few TV shows, especially comedies of the last 20 years) potray men, whether fathers or not, as being competent in much of anything, including fatherhood. Somehow, only women, especially mothers, are competent adults.
The forest is made up of individual trees together. If you looked at chopping down the whole forest at once, you’d be fucked from the beginning.
One tree at a time, Eric.
I figure that some of our commenters here should start up their own media company in NY or LA and start making some change. Don’t like how things are working, go make the work you want to see in the world. And yes, Joanna, one has to do the work where they can. If enough people are chopping trees…well look what happened to the Amazon.
My two cents as a mom who is very aware that dads can do anything moms can (aside maybe from breastfeeding and let’s include trans in here but I’m tired and digressing). I think the ad would have been pretty perfect without the moms. I think there was a slight air of evaluation of the dads but a much bigger air of evaluation of the product. “if he can get that clean with THAT product” I would have asked them to focus on products not men, but that’s me. I wish marketing didn’t have to act so stupid most of… Read more »
This ad shows a good bit of improvement over that last ad about dads being the Ultimate Challange for Huggies diapers. Instead of that last ad where the dads were being monitored under the presumption they would fail this ad had more of a feel of the dads were simply doing their thing and were talking about the experience. However I still have one small problem with it. Maybe its me but those women watching the dads feed their children came off to me with an air of evaluation. Like the dads were being tested and those women were watching… Read more »
I dunno, I didn’t really see it that way. I agree that the addition of the women was unnecessary, but I didn’t view it as being judgemental or anything.
Of course, my critique is that everyone in the flipping commercial is straight…but that’s my own beef. 🙂 So maybe I’m just not seeing it because it doesn’t affect me, personally.
So maybe I’m just not seeing it because it doesn’t affect me, personally.
It probably is a matter of perspective. For instance it didn’t cross my mind that they all appear to be heterosexual dads. You don’t know the feeling of a man being judged by women anymore than I know the feeling of being a gay parent.
True enough.
Heather – it’s interesting you comment on the straight/blah blah blah part. Because I actually had a hard time figuring out if there really were 5 couples in this shot. Maybe I’m just a bad counter but I know there are 5 babies but I couldn’t match up 5 men and 5 women….and I actually thought about that whole side of it. Go figure! But thanks for your comments! Jim
I couldn’t match up the pairs exactly, but they were very much straight. Only women were watching and only men were with the babies. And of the men with the babies, they were all obviously caring for their own, separate kid. There were no men watching with the moms (which really would have been cliche itself). But also, there weren’t any male couples caring for the same kid…just in the wide shots they could have had two guys both cleaning up after the same kid.
I think Huggies could’ve improved on it by actually just NOT having moms in the video at all.
I don’t get why they were even in it.
But I still think it was a win.
Joanna, I agree….from a pure artistic/ social commentary perspective – the moms aren’t needed. The dads alone would have painted a good story. But this is a commercial. And it’s targeted towards moms (they still buy more diapers than men!) so I guess I understand. All in all, Huggies is really trying – in my opinion – to better depict dads in the advertising.
I did, sorry, but it was still a “lets see what happens when men try to be parents” kind of thing.
Because you know, women are naturally adapted to that kind of thing and go make me a sandwich etc. etc.
Very good point, Danny. The women are watching this afterward like a panel of judges. The message I get is that these men are stay at home dads, and the mothers make the money (they’re dressed like professionals, while the fathers are all in casual Fridays or worse) and the buying decisions, even on wipes.
And you’re right, Heather, they’re all straight, as well as able bodied, and there is the requisite one out of five who is black, while the rest are white. So they’re busting some stereotypes while leaving others intact.
“So they’re busting some stereotypes while leaving others intact.”
Yuuuuuuup.
Danny and Justin-
I kind of agree…I had the same thought about the moms kind of critiquing at the end. For me, I would have been just as happy (or happier) if it was only the dads. On the practical side – and after talking to Huggies – they sell to moms. That’s just a reality. So I guess I understand it from that perspective. But I think you’re points are totally on target!
I agree, there was a few very subtle things that were off about it, Including the mom’s evaluation. Nothing that would normally stand out to me, but given where this began, it’s a fair bit harder to just let it pass. But I’ll try none the less.
It seemed to me that the moms watching was more of an evaluation of the wipes than the dads. They only commented on the wipes and they didn’t seem like they were being judgmental of the fathers. And although the commercial was about dads and their babies, they still need a way to include moms in the marketing.
It seemed to me that the moms watching was more of an evaluation of the wipes than the dads. They only commented on the wipes and they didn’t seem like they were being judgmental of the fathers. Even still that gives the illusion that the dads can’t be trusted to give their own evaluation of the wipes and leave it at that. And although the commercial was about dads and their babies, they still need a way to include moms in the marketing. Why? If this were a product that was traditionally aimed at men being aimed at women would… Read more »
I just love the dads (and the moms, too) in this commercial. Huggies did a good job this time of characterizing modern parents. Thanks, Jim, for telling the story.