Media MonsterMLBVideo

This New Era Ad Is Fantastic

After a 2011 season filled with Alec Baldwin and John Krasinski tormenting each other/doing horrible things in the name of the Yankees-Red Sox rivalry, New Era is shaking their baseball ad formula up a bit this season with a different regional battle and different stars of NBC sitcoms. This year, it’s all about Cubs-White Sox: the former side represented by Parks and Recreation’s Nick Offerman (a.k.a. the man himself, Ron Swanson), and Craig Robinson (Darryl Philbin from The Office) – both Illinois natives. And while the teams and faces have changed, the bad blood remains the same:

Not bad, New Era, not bad. Baldwin and Krasinski always had good chemistry in their spots, so there was a chance that shaking the formula would spell doom, but these two picked up right where their predecessors left off. Highlights, for us: the Rod Blagojevich reference, and Offerman’s glare after Robinson’s pizza crack. Ron Swanson Nick Offerman can glare like few others. And we’re hoping to have that glare back for several more of these segments – if it’s anything like last year, there are five more to go. Just no spray-painted dogs this time, guys.

[Grantland, via Amy]