Super Bowl Ad Winners: Beer, Chicks and Doritos

Updated 1:06 PM PST, Mon, Feb 2, 2009

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The Steelers may have taken home the Lombardi trophy but the real winners of the Super Bowl are the old standards: beer, busty babes and Doritos.

The most popular Super Bowl ads used humor to get their (pricey) message to viewers and, for a select few, the roughly $3 million that companies shelled out for a 30-second Super Bowl spot was well worth it.

"Clydesdale Circus"

The Budweiser Clydesdales are back! A pair of love-struck horses are torn apart when Daisy the horse is whisked away to the circus and is forced to leave behind her beloved beau dubbed "Romeo" by their cruel handler. "Romeo" then gallops through fields, cityscapes and golf courses against the backdrop of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" until he crashes the circus, bolting off into the twilight with Daisy.

"Free Doritos"

An office employee holding what he claims to be a crystal ball shows his co-worker how the mystical orb works. "Free Doritos at the office today?" he coos to the ball. The employee then turns and throws the ball into the glass-faced Doritos vending machine and shatters it. His co-worker attempts to use the crystal ball to find out if he'll get a promotion by throwing it at his boss. "Promotion? Not in your future," the employee said.

"Tips"

The CareerBuilder spot was one of the funnier spots of the night and shows a series of hyperbolic scenarios that ought to determine whether its time for a new job and then plays them on a loop. A woman screaming in her car. A co-worker greeting a fellow employee by saying, "Hey Dummy." A worker punching a koala in the face out of frustration. These are all key indicators.

"Baseball"

The much-hyped GoDaddy spot was wildly popular but disappointed in its execution -- a nearly impossible feat with the winning combination of Danica Patrick, busty women and a decent story line. A lackluster Patrick, flanked by several big-chested women, is in a court room at the "Major League Enhancement Hearing." The race car starlet stands up and proclaims, "I've enhanced!" Patrick then says that she's enhanced her image with a domain name and website from GoDaddy. Then a busty brunette stands up and (predictably) says, "I'll show you enhanced!"

"One-Up"

Cash4Gold.com was an unlikely candidate for a spot in the Super Bowl ad line-up but had a significant impact. Ed McMahon and MC Hammer -- who have both had their share of money woes -- teamed up to convince Americans to give up their gold. "We melting gold, baby!" proclaimed MC Hammer, who said he could even hawk his gold pants.