Mr. W is one of my favorite videos ever. Surprisingly, I covered it nearly a decade ago. (Time flies! Pun somewhat intended.) Someone shared an alternative Super Bowl ad for the Porsche Taycan that I was just watching and it didn’t take me long to notice that it was following the same format as Mr. W — despite the fact that I haven’t seen that video in years. But it was just that well done and unique. Apparently, it made a lasting impression on the creator of this new ad, Mr. E, as well.
Indeed — to check whether this was the same writer/director or not, I followed the links and found that he was also just a big fan of that original video, which was actually published in 2007. The creator of this new Mr. E ad, Jeremy Heslup of production company Valkyr, copied the core of the script closely, changing the details up for a focus on a different clean technology. Before I go on, I highly recommend you watch the Mr. W video and then the Mr. E one (below).
As I wrote above, that Mr. W video is one of my favorites of all time. Just checking the YouTube comments on it, I liked this one from 4 years ago: “This is truly an amazing commercial. Brilliant concept. The marketing/design/communications teams who created this deserve an award.” Someone responded 3 years later: “It did get an award: a Clio and an award at Cannes, among others!” The video has more than 5.6 million views and doesn’t seem to actually be the original — and, considering that it’s not a music video from a famous artist or about a hot topic like Tesla or Dogecoin, that fairly large number of views is completely attributable to the fact that it is a brilliant piece of art.
I like the new Mr. E spec ad, and I do think it beats most of the Super Bowl commercials I watched (which I have to say were surprisingly crappy almost across the board — with the GM one I ranted about probably being my favorite of them all), but it’s not really up to the level of the Mr. W original. Perhaps I was just expecting to be shocked into laughter (bad pun intended) at some point because I recalled how much I was surprised by and loved Mr. W. However, I think the main things are just that the underlying jokes and the execution of the actor were not on the same award-winning level. However …
Porsche Taycan and Mr. E. Image courtesy Jeremy Heslup, Valkyr.
Porsche Taycan and Mr. E. Image courtesy Jeremy Heslup, Valkyr.
Porsche Taycan and Mr. E. Image courtesy Jeremy Heslup, Valkyr.
Porsche Taycan and Mr. E. Image courtesy Jeremy Heslup, Valkyr.
One thing I found exceptionally executed is how the commercial highlighted the Porsche Taycan any time it entered the scene. It is a stunning car. There are a couple in my area that I see once in a while, and I admire them every time. But the video puts the Taycan in the best light, at the best angles, and at just the right moments. It excels in showing off the Taycan and making the viewer want one. It’s even quite moving in the end when Mr. E catches the lady’s attention. And the way Mr. E gracefully touches the Taycan, with the elegant strings playing in the commercial background, is similarly superb.
I lean toward saying this faux commercial actually deserves the Super Bowl affiliation (even if no one spent a few million dollars to run it), unlike almost all of the heavily funded ugh I watched last night. So, well done, Jeremy. And well done, Porsche.
Mr. W is still unmatched. And now I’m super curious to find out what the creators have gone on to produce since then. But kudos to Jeremy/Valkyr for making a new, electric version of it; and for reminding me of Mr. W so that I could enjoy it again and some of you can discover it and hopefully appreciate it like Jeremy, millions of others, and I have.
Photo by Markus Wiemann, Head of Project Execution — Onshore Wind NE&ME | Senior Vice President at Siemens Gamesa.
Before closing out, though, also be sure to check out some of our exclusive content on the Porsche Taycan. I typically don’t care much to read or write about expensive cars, since my chief interest in this topic is cutting emissions via mass-market electric cars. However, the Taycan is a beauty and a work of art, and I consider it to be one of the gateway EVs that open up people’s interest in the zero-emissions, torquey offerings and hopefully get many drivers into a more affordable electric chariot. We’ve had handful of interesting reviews of the Taycan. Check them out:
- Porsche Taycan Review: “The Best Electric Performance Car On The Market”
- Driving The Porsche Taycan Across Europe
- In The European Charging Jungle With A Porsche Taycan
- Porsche Taycan: Matching Fossil-Fueled Vehicles On Long Journeys (Almost)
- Porsche Taycan Beats Tesla’s EV Cannonball Record
Top image courtesy Jeremy Heslup, Valkyr.
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