Since our discovery of www.adcritic.com, we are instituting a new feature: Whenever
possible, our reviews will include a link to where you can view the commercial online.
Allegra was one of the first prescription drugs to advertise on television ... we think.
In all honesty we can't remember what those first commercials were for, since they
never actually told you what the drug was supposed to do. Presumably because if
they advertise the benefits, they must also state the side effects. The side effects
of Allegra, though there is a low occurence of them, include coughing, cold, nausea
and menstrual pain.
In spite of the side effects, Allegra has created a first in prescription drug advertising.
They have made a commercial that's almost as amusing as the list of side effects at
the end. In this spot, a tennis player is sneezing so much she can barely return the
balls. A shadow appears above her as a 20-foot dandelion comes over and starts hitting
her, knocking her to the ground.
After taking allegra, we see the same dandelion, but it is then crushed by the tennis
player's sneaker.
Okay, so it's no beyond.com, but it's not that bad either. The interesting thing is that
this commercial is similar to commercials for non-prescription allergy medication. I
wonder how soon it will be before we have commercials saying, "Too much stress?
Try Valium!" or "Oh, the pain of compound fractures! Thank goodness there's Demerol!"
Of course, cynical.com takes the view that these examples would be hilarious and
would definitely constitute entertaining commercials. Therefore, we applaud the trend.
Rating: 15 seconds. No need to turn the channel. This
might even make you smile once. Kinda.
Conclusion: Use Allegra if your doctor thinks you should and you have allergies. Damn, how
are we supposed to know if you need it or not?
