(Opening lyrics to Coolio's Fantastic Voyage - for those of you who missed the 90s)

Have you noticed the trend in fantasy-themed commercials? Here are just a few to prove our point.

The most elaborate example is Kia's "One Epic Ride" commercial from this year's Super Bowl:

Coca Cola's "Siege" Super Bowl spot goes the route of ogres and dragons:

Old Spice's regular season football ads with Ray Lewis were in full-on wacky fantasy territory, with lasers, and seven heads of Ray Lewis:

So this begs the question - what's up with all the fantasy stuff? Yeah, CGI entertainment is having its heyday in Hollywood right now. But we think it's the context.

Imagine a bar full of football watching fans (or maybe that awesome super bowl party that just had too many people) where the noise level and distractions are over the top. This doesn't bode well for the traditional :15, :30 or :60 spot because chances are, you won't be able to hear it. But if you fill that 50" flatscreen with the most outlandish high-def fantasy gooyeness you can think of, you get people staring.

We think it works. These ads get your attention and maybe even the next time it comes on you'll turn up the volume to hear what they have to say about cars and deodorant.