The last time I felt inspired to write about the annual MLA Lamb Ads it wasn't complimentary.
I wrote that they had lost their way in 2022 - and I'm here again to say that, IMO, they're BACK!
This ad taps into the culture of warring generations and suggests the solution to bridging the "generation gap" is lamb; "At least we can agree on something."
It's not, obviously - but this ad is delightfully inclusive, and nails the generational tropes beautifully.
It's delightfully Australian and brings the MLA's annual TVC back to the glory days. The agency responsible, The Monkeys have been widely praised by local industry press, and this ad is so bizarre to international audiences that I've seen it shared and discussed by marketing and ad folks from the UK and the US. Bonkers is a word that has been used more than once.
Technically being a Gen X (cusp Millennial) I'm actually surprised we feature in the ad at all, as most conversations around generations exclude us completely (we don't mind, if anything we're glad to be left out of it) but the main focus here is on the divide between Boomers (1946 - 1964) and Gen Z (1981 - 1996).
Why are their phone torches always on?
The generation wars are topical (as the MLA ads always are) and have wide appeal due to their inclusivity and portrayals of subcultures that aren't overly cringey or tokenistic, so I'm not surprised this ad has made such an impact.
There's even a cameo from John Howard (sort of) that nails the Gen Z approach to news and politics.
Will it increase sales of lamb?
Who knows.
Proof is in the (lamb) pudding...gross.
Stay tuned for our next podcast episode drop as I'll be discussing this ad with Clayton. Will he agree? Do you? Let us know.
Slay.