With Christmas just around the corner and the Christmas season getting into full swing, companies looking for opportunities to take advantage of the holiday are releasing their season-specific ads. Admittedly, two have been reasonably good. Chevrolet released one to much applause from the right, as it was non-woke and heartwarming, and an ad released by the UK department store chain John Lews did much the same thing and released a non-woke, tearjerker of an ad in support of charity that online commenters loved.
In fact, online viewers quickly took to praising the video for being non-woke compared to so many other ads that have been flooding the airwaves for so many years, saying that this non-woke John Lewis ad was a “breath of fresh air” in comparison to those.
The story of the ad is that a foster father is, in the run-up to Christmas, learning to skateboard. Inflicting many bumps and bruises on himself along the way, the foster dad perseveres in the activity, even watching tutorial videos at work in an attempt to figure it out. Meanwhile, he and his wife decorate the house for Christmas, sticking up a Christmas tree and other classic decorations of the season.
Then the reason for the man’s persistence becomes clear. A foster child named Ellie is coming to say with him and his wife for Christmas, and arrives for the holiday clutching her sticker-bedecked skateboard tightly to her chest. Elle then relaxes when she sees that the foster dad has a skateboard of his own that he’s holding. Watch the ad here:
John Lewis are well celebrated for their Christmas adverts, and for us, this is their best ad campaign yet! They’ve captured the true essence of skateboarding. Excellent job to everyone involved.https://t.co/Kt7rcl6lB7
*Skateboard GB is not in partnership with John Lewis pic.twitter.com/yw1aTTt5L8
— Skateboard GB (@SkateboardGB) November 10, 2022
In addition to being heartwarming and fun, the ad appealed to many because it lacked the woke themes present in seemingly every other ad. The Daily Mail, reporting on their reactions, noted that people said things like, “Ahh a breath of fresh air not a woke advert for 1st time in years John Lewis advertising to the 89 per cent of the country for a change” and “Thank God they haven’t gone down the predictable woke route this year well done.”
The Daily Mail added that others posted about how emotional they were from watching the ad. One quoted commenter, for example, said, “Teared up so much watching the John Lewis Christmas advert, my phones facial recognition technology doesn’t recognise my face. Big up care leavers and those still navigating their way through the system.”
Similarly, others said things like “Okay John Lewis, you got me this year, I’m crying and even that Blink 182 cover is quite good” and “The John Lewis Christmas advert just came out of NOWHERE with that sucker punch! Incredibly well done as always, very sweet, but I’m absolutely a John Lewis casualty.”
The much-liked ad came as part of John Lewis’s Action for Children and Who Cares? Scotland program. For this year, it will invite foster children to the Santa’s grottos in its department stores and help decorate the communal spaces of residences run by Action for Children with decorations donated by the public. It will also sell certain goods the proceeds of which will be donated to charity.
Louise Hunter, CEO of Who Cares? Scotland, commented on the ad, saying, “We know that Christmas can be difficult for lots of people, and that’s particularly true for our Care Experienced community who may not have family to spend it with. As the national membership body for Care Experienced people, we know that the Christmas period can bring loneliness, isolation and a sense of being different from others who enjoy a more traditional Christmas Day. We’re delighted that the John Lewis Christmas advert will feature a different kind of family, one which will resonate with the many thousands of people across the UK, with experience of care. At Who Cares? Scotland, our vision is a lifetime of equality, respect and love for all Care Experienced people and we are excited to have the support of the John Lewis Partnership in making that a reality.”
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video
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