Super Bowl contenders the Patriots and the Eagles also met for the championship back in 2005, a distant era when George W. Bush was president, the iPhone still didn't exist and "You're fired!" was the TV catchphrase of a certain future commander-in-chief.
In retrospect, it was not a banner year for Super Bowl ads. There was one true WTF spot, a lot of so-so commercials and four we do recommend, courtesy of the handy Super Bowl Ad Archive. Here's hoping this year is different.
CareerBuilder.com - Monkeys
To be fair to the 2005 ad bowl, this classic by Cramer-Krasselt is only one of three good ads in the game (see also "Titanic" and "Whoopee Cushion"). The trio, CareerBuilder.com's Super Bowl debut, introduced viewers to a hapless human (Griffin Creech) and his chimpanzee officemates at Yeknom Industries—"monkey" spelled backwards—a theme that would continue for years.
Budweiser - Applause
"A reprise of a 1984 Bud Light spot honoring Olympic torch-bearers," Ad Age reviewer Bob Garfield wrote back in 2005, this DDB Chicago spot "was touching without veering into mawkishness, respectful without bloodlust or jingoism."
Bud Light - Skydiver
No. 1 on USA Today's annual Ad Meter, "Skydiver" by DDB Chicago was somehow both simple and surprising.
Emerald Nuts - Unicorn
Emerald drummed up a little attention before running its first Super Bowl ad by emailing reporters about a leprechaun character who appeared in an earlier version of the ad, by Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, but was cut from Super Bowl Sunday. The emails sent people to angryleprechaun.com, while Emerald Nuts' own website added the warning "Don't go to angryleprechaun.com." The spot works just fine without.
Previously from the Archive: The Super Bowl's 5 Best Ad Anthems.