Throughout my youth, I distinctively remember Wendy ads. They stood out from all the many fast food commercials I saw. I always had faith that Dave Thomas was going to edify me with his good burger making know-how, as dependable as a sunrise. But when he died, a black-hole began to appear around Wendy’s advertising. A black-hole that evolved from conformity to just plain mediocrity.

Now Crispin, Porter, Bogusky has set a new style for fast food commercials with their work for Burger King. The Burger King work is odd ball, but more unique from the King through the recent “Whopper Discontinued” Ads. Wendy’s has been required to answer, but instead of something new and fresh was just a bad knockoff. They took Burger King’s style, replaced the BK King with an average Joe wearing a Red pig-tailed wig, who with this wig was supposed to proclaim individuality in the burger making world. This be-wigged but average Joe came to the realization that only a Wendy’s burger could lead him to true salvation. This came off as blatant mimicking of BK’s style. The Red Wig was lost in the shadow of the BK King.

Red wigs are absent from the new Wendy work. Instead there are just normal people enjoying Wendy’s burgers. Whether Crispin’s style of advertising is wearing thin or the consumer saw through Wendys façade, it is safe to assume Wendy’s misses Dave as much as I do.

Wendy’s Tactic

BK’s Tactic

The Yahoo!/Microsoft saga will no doubt drag on through Yahoo’s 1st Quarter Earnings Report, and then some. When it ends, it will be neither pleasant nor as profitable as it could have been for Yang and company. Balmer will prevail without mercy.

If only Jerry or at least Sue had read a good old Bodice Ripper, say The Flame and the Flower in their well-spent youths. Then they would understand how this type of narrative works. The unwanted suitor appears with a not unfair, if unwanted offer. He will not be refused. But in succumbing, albeit ever so unwillingly, to the first embrace there lies a guarantee, after many plot twists, to a much happier and lasting marriage.

Well we have had the plot twists, but, clearly the YahooCrew never dappled in this particular literary genre. Now they must pay the penalty. They have a very angry, powerful and determined suitor and their ending is more likely to resemble that of the princes in Shakespeare’s Richard III than of a romance heroine.

For the rest of us, it’s just been a winter of discontent.