• by John Capone , November 3, 2008

Perhaps all iPod spots - even before Feist got in everyone's heads - have begun with the music. The latest are no different, but they don't end there. The tag claims the newest iPod touch is "the funnest iPod ever." At first, the latest interactive ad for the mp3 player that does it all doesn't look that fun. Just sort of like a regular banner ad with video. Cue previously-obscure-and-now-heavily-downloaded-indie soundtrack. But then, as seems to be TBWA and Media Arts' wont lately, the spot comes out of its tiny box. This one, unlike many banners that just won't do what they're told or stay put, sort of has a reason to wander into the nav bar. The hands in the ad turn and shake the little iPod, which acts as a controller for a series of games. So the overall impression is actually that, yes, the Game Boy you are toting around is beat and you should shell out another 200 bucks so your Nano doesn't get lonely in its charger cradle. Speaking of the Nano, and TBWA making Apple ads that get into everything: There's also the banner for the Nano. Cue "Bruises," by Chairlift. Nanos float over the masthead to their proper spot on the banner and get in color order and then drip paint right down the page and all over Nylon or Papermag or style.com's content.

While these ads are no Wario busting up a whole damn YouTube page, they are further proof that we need to keep our eyes on banner ads, lest they wreak havoc all over the Internet like the little terrors they are.