I just got sickled and hammered
These ads come from not too long after the Iron Curtain became the Iron Drapes, and Western culture began flooding the former Warsaw Pact. It’s obvious that there was still a little bit of a learning experience going on in 1996 as far as marketing electronics goes. However, I believe more things are going on here than meets the eye. It seems the ads tell some sort of story.
From left to right in the gallery:
- A man pointing a gun: He says, “Do you know PlayStation,” and the text at the bottom reads, “at your own risk.” This one doesn’t really make sense (to me), until you see the next ad.
- A sexy biker boy: Ol’ long, tall, and greasy here is looking a bit nervous as he exclaims, “No!”
- A bloodstained wall: Someone has been killed here, and the text states “Well, now he’s dead.”
Taken individually, these make absolutely no sense. When you put them in order though I believe you get the story of: A Czech male in search of a PlayStation finds a vacationing American. The Czech, knowing the American must have a PlayStation because he is a filthy, rich Imperialist who is only in the great Czech Republic to steal their women, demands a PlayStation. The American exclaims that he does not have one. The man shoots the filthy American pig, and the point is made to carry PlayStations at your own risk because they are valuable.
What a window into the past these ads are!
@necrosofty [Twitter]
