Super Bowl Sampler

Here’s your chance to play Monday morning quarterback to the advertising agencies that are producing this year’s batch of Super Bowl TV spots--and paying $1.3 million for 30 seconds of air time.

After Sunday’s game, let us know what you think about the ads--which was funniest or most forgettable. Tell us if the high-tech wizardry worked, or if the digital tricks simply got in the way.

Qualcomm: The 30-second black-and-white spot to be shown during the second half of the game features a businessman who wakes up in a strange hotel room to the sound of cheering. He moves to the outdoor balcony--Q Phone in hand--where he mistakenly acknowledges the crowd that’s gathered to applaud a leader on the next balcony over. Agency: DGWB, Irvine

Mars: Two 30-second spots tout M&Ms; as the candy for the new millennium. In one ad, two anthropomorphic M&Ms; pitch the slogan to their boss, who worries, “Isn’t everybody going to be milking that thing?” In the second commercial, Dick Clark turns down a chance to host a new millennium bash. Agency: BBDO/Worldwide, New York

Royal Caribbean Cruises/Celebrity Cruises: A Royal Caribbean cruise ship sails into an orange sky as a legend urges football fans to reward their wives “before you get traded.” The Celebrity spot cuts from shots of the Alaskan wilderness to shots of on-board activities. The spots will run directly before and after the halftime show that’s sponsored by Royal Caribbean. Agencies: McKinney & Silver, Raleigh, N.C., Harris Drury Cohen, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Volvo: A truck driver tools down the road, dispensing advice along the way. Words of wisdom during the fourth-quarter ad: “And always run the best truck you can. . . . I still put my pants on one leg at a time.” Agency: Carmichael Lynch, Minneapolis.

Prime Star: During this third-quarter ad, a man protects his Prime Star satellite dish by using his vintage Mustang convertible to ward off a concrete pipe. The car is destroyed but the man is grateful: “Phew, that was close.” Agency: ABP/Draft Worldwide, New York

Oracle: The 30-second spot in the first half opens with people in a Third World nation running from an explosion as a voice-over announces, “Revolution is in our destiny.” Mayhem continues as the voice-over declares that the coming revolution isn’t about “guns, or swords or . . . countries” but about knowledge. The images shift to people living peacefully in the Information Age. Agency: Think New Ideas, Los Angeles

Network Associates: When an alarm sounds indicating their country is under attack, two Communist soldiers fire a missile at Los Angeles. One of the soldiers in this first-half ad has second-thoughts, but it’s too late: “Wait Boris! What if someone sent us a bogus launch command?” As the missile lifts off, a voice-over asks, “So, who’s watching your network?” Agency: Think New Ideas, Los Angeles

Auto-By-Tel: A women dressed in pajamas is transported through cyberspace via her computer. When she returns, she’s still wearing pajamas, but she’s also holding the keys to a new car. The ad runs in the second quarter. Agency: RBI Communications, Los Angeles

Pizza Hut: Elvis Presley--actually the deceased star’s image, a stand-in and some advanced digital technology--delivers his trademark “thank you very much” in an ad touting the Edge pizza. It airs in the pregame show. Agency: BBDO Worldwide, New York

Miller Brewing: The beer company will run five ads during the pregame festivities and one during the postgame coverage. One shows a man in a giant beaver costume taking revenge against homesteaders who destroy his home. Another shows a robot that shorts out while trying to drink a beer. A third features a man whose arm wags like a dog’s tail whenever he sees a Miller Lite. Agency: Fallon McElligott, Minneapolis

Nike: A 60-second spot running during the first half is the first ever for the company’s apparel operation. It uses strategically placed cameras to photograph naked athletes--including Michael Johnson, Terrell Davis and Gabrielle Reece. Agency: Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, San Francisco

Anheuser-Busch: The perennial Super Bowl advertiser is running eight ads--two each quarter, with the first half dominated by Budweiser and the second half focusing on Bud Light. Its well-known lizards will star in three Bud ads. Chairman August Busch III will talk about the company’s heritage, and during the second half, boxer Oscar De La Hoya will preach moderation. Agencies: DDB Needham Worldwide, Chicago, Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, San Francisco

Intel: Comedian Steve Martin is the voice of a detective who tries to uncover a crime at an Intel manufacturing plant. A first-half ad will invite viewers to vote via the Internet on how the commercial should end. The solution will run late in the second half. Agency: Euro RSCG Dahlin Smith White, Salt Lake City

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Comments will be published next Thursday in the Advertising & Marketing pages.