Gentle Giants
Seminal Spot: Wind Energy Initiative (Epuron/BMU) "Power of Wind" (Agency: Nordpol, Hamburg; Prodco: Paranoid Projects, Paris; Paranoid US, LA).

Other iterations: Melbourne City "Imaginary Guide" (Agency: George Patterson Y&R, Melbourne; Prodco: Revolver Film, Sydney); Monster.com "Legs" (Agency: BBDO, NY; Prodco: MJZ, LA).

The Idea: "Our brand identity is meek and selfless, just like a friendly giant."

WTF?: Nothing says vulnerable like a dorky-looking giant wearing a funny hat and toiling away in a life of forced servitude. After The Vikings' excellent "Power of Wind" spot captured everyone's imaginations at Cannes, suddenly these oversized asexual renaissance men were all the rage - and not in a kitschy Jolly Green Giant kind of way, but in a neo-fantasy Terry Gilliam way. Odd, but as far as trends go it could be a lot worse.

Weird Beards
Seminal Spot: Skittles "Beard" (TBWA\Chiat\Day, NY; Prodco: MJZ, LA).

Other iterations: Energizer "Beard" (Agency: Grupos Gallegos, Long Beach; Prodco: Colibri Films, LA); Coca-Cola "Beard" (Agency: Ogilvy, Buenos Aires; Prodco: Rebolucion, Buenos Aires); McDonald's "Beard" (Agency: Cossette, Toronto; Prodco: OPC, Toronto); Panasonic "Birds" (Agency: Scholz & Friends, Berlin; Prodco: Motion Blur, Oslo).

The Idea: "Let's make fun of facial hair!"

WTF?: Suddenly beards are the new T&A. Perhaps realizing that audiences may have overdosed on repeated appearances in spots from dumb blondes, kittens and Will Ferrell, someone must've thought, "Wait a minute! Let's jazz 'em all up with creepy, overgrown facial hair!" Skittles did it best (and creepiest), but the others might be a bit too dependent on the shaving-resistant sight gag.

The Great Pop-Up Plague
Seminal Spot: Fergie "Clumsy" (Prodco: DNA, LA).

Other iterations: Persil "Pop-Up Book" (Agency: BBH, London; Prodco: Blink Productions, London), Lexus "Pop Up" (Agency: Team One, El Segundo; Prodco: Smuggler, LA), MasterCard "Seven Wonders" (Agency: McCann Erickson, NY; Prodco: Therapy Films, London).

The Idea: "Let's dazzle yuppies with a VFX extravaganza that harkens back to their childhood memories from the '80s and '90s."

WTF?: Since "Clumsy" was basically an ad for Mac Cosmetics and Nokia disguised as a video, we're including it in the Great Pop-Up Plague of '07-'08, which infected practically every product imaginable: detergent, cars, credit card companies and of course, Fergie. This trend features giant pop-up books telling the story of a brand or product (or Black Eyed Pea), reflecting a simpler time when commercials (and music videos) had bigger budgets.

Our Brand Was There
Seminal Spot: Mariestads Beer "1848" (Agency: Calle & Olle, Stockholm; Prodco: Flodellfilm, Stockholm).

Other iterations: Smirnoff "Signature" (Agency: JWT, NY; Prodco: Paranoid US, LA); Johnnie Walker "Striding Man" (Agency: BBH, NY; Prodco: Backyard, LA); Jeep "Heritage" (Agency: Cutwater, SF; Prodco: RSA Films, LA).

The Idea: "Let's extol the brand's heritage by associating it with iconic moments in history."

WTF?: Remember the Russian Revolution? Smirnoff survived it. The Berlin Wall? Johnnie Walker and Jeep were there. It makes sense: while your ancestors were fleeing Communism, brands were crusading to spread cars, cocktails and capitalism to the free world. Truth be told, inserting product into The Teletubbies is probably innocuous and it's not like anyone inserted the Michelin Man into the Zapruder film. After all, brands only show up for the good times.

When A Car Is Not A Car...
Seminal Spot: Skoda "Cake" (Agency: BBH, London; Prodco: Gorgeous Enterprises, London).

Other iterations: Ford "Orchestra" (Agency: Ogilvy, London; Prodco: Biscuit@Independent, London); Ford "Human Car" (Agency: Y&R, Toronto; Prodco: Blink, Toronto); Audi "Strings" (Agency: DDB, Barcelona; Prodco: Agosto, Barcelona); Toyota "Harmony" (Agency: Dentsu America; Prodco: Tool of North America, LA).

The Idea: "People will think our car will poison the environment a little less if we show it being constructed out of fun things like cake, string or an interpretive dance troupe."

WTF?: After inundating us with car-bots, agencies have changed tactics, perhaps thinking sheet metal might give the wrong impression to those worried about environmental degradation. Instead, they've painstakingly created hybrid cars out of more "organic" parts. The jury is still out on whether viewers are buying it, but one thing is certain: the ads look darn complicated to produce.