Many of you have emailed me with the alert that His Hair and Chesticleness, Fabio, is the new Old Spice Guy. Previous incarnations of the Old Spice Guy were the marvelously smooth Isaiah Mustafa.
Alas, Fabio doesn’t quite have the same appeal. For one thing, I can’t quite understand him. For another, there’s a totally different attitude with Fabio’s spots vs. Mustafa’s.
Here’s an example: Fabio seems to be … I have no idea what he’s doing here:
I will admit, this one made me giggle:
though the explanation suggests they’re also mocking Fabio’s use of language: “Smell the smell that is of what New Old Spice Guy Fabio has when he says Fiji.”
Huh?!
Mustafa’s style in the ads was more appealing to me:
Now, from this one, it seems Fabio is challenging Isaiah to a duel, and Mashable confirms that:
The Mashable article states that Mustafa will respond sometime around 1pm today
but I haven’t seen anything yet.
It’s up! And I totally LOL’d:
If so, I wonder – whose team are you on? Team Fabio or Team Isaiah? I’m all for the Old Old Spice Guy myself. And I also think I’ve been thinking about Old Spice a bit too much.
Grew up with Fabio on the covers, so I think the whole campaign is a successful tongue-in-cheek – ROFLMAO. I loved Isaiah’s response to the duel challenge as: “Being lightly rubbed across the cheek very slowly with a damp sponge or exfoliating loofer”. I think it’s very savvy of Old Spice to pit these two together – look at the dialogue it’s already generating.
For the record: Team Isaiah. But I give credit to Fabio for trying.
@India – Really? When I was a kid my brothers and all their friends wore Old Spice.
Jamie—I am a LOT older than you are! :}
Ladies, this is all an ad campaign to get us talking about Old Spice and remembering Fabio. I might be biased because he is my client, but I am team Fabio all the way.
You gotta love a man who will stand up to George Clooney on behalf of a lady, challenge a man to a duel in this day and age AND make fun of himself to give us a good laugh. He knows he is no longer 25, but he loves the romance community and think you will be seeing a lot more of Fabio VERY soon.
BTW—He loves the romance community!
Best,
Louise Fury
@Louise Fury
Agree with you. I was surprised at the number of people who commented on youtube that just didn’t get it. Yes, I prefer Mustafa but this is all done tongue in cheek. Credit to Fabio who is willing to make fun of himself. There are youtube comments attacking Fabio’s looks, age, etc. Why make personal attacks on someone for agreeing to do a fun role like this? If Fabio was seriously saying that he was better than the old Old Spice guy, that might be a different story but he’s clearly not.
Yes, Linda Hilton, yes. I too drooled over Patrick Wayne and vote him my sentimental favorite, just like Old Spice. It was the scent that meant Dad was putting on a suit and taking my mom out, and there would probably be dancing. It will give me warm fuzzies when I catch a whiff in stores, or passing in a crowd because every memory is tied to the romance that shaped my childhood. It is now & always has been my favorite aftershave.
And there’s no such thing as a bad Old Spice Guy. Some are funnier, some are sexier, but I’d follow them all home led by my nose.
Team Isaiah…though if getting Bruce back was even an option…sigh.
Isaiah. Fabio was creepy was he was young and he’s creepy now. Never saw the appeal.
I can ‘t believe I just watched 8 commercials for Old Spice in a row, plus a parody.
What a successful campaign.
Seriously, I had no clue Bruce Campbell had done some Old Spice spots! I’ve been a fan of his particular tongue-in-cheek since Brisco County. And Fabio! – between Fabio and the Ashley Butler fabrics I’ve been working with, I’ve had some serious blasts from the past this week. This has been a hilarious smackdown, although I have to say Isaiah still owns it if there MUST be only one.
And agreed, this is brilliant marketing, making a product that should have been way past its prime hip and popular again without even changing the product OR its packaging. Without even really NEEDING the product in its own commercial! Brilliant.
still84: Fabio will still be cool when he is 84.
I’m totally Team Isaiah.
I liked the Bruce Campbell ones, too. And Grover’s take-off is my absolute favorite (but his was for the word “on” not actually old spice 😛 )
Team Isaiah totally. Fabio is just so not attractive..
I’m joining everyone on Team Grover. Sorry, human guys.
Is it me or are Team Isaiah’s spots funnier?
Also, Louise Fury, is Fabio’s accent exaggerated. I would think that he’d barely have one anymore (or rather that his italian one shifted into an american one)
Also check me on this but I think the age difference between the two is 15 years
keep56:I can keep spouting at least 56 more useless bits of trivia
He does have a very thick accent, but then again so do I.
I have been in NY for 10 years and I cant lose my accent no matter how hard I try. He also spends a lot of time in Italy.
But the videos are scripted. He doesn’t talk in broken English or use his name as a verb.
LOL
Isaiah Mustafa. Hands down. Although Grover is a close second.
I think the problem is that the Old Spice people are trying to make Fabio into the same kind of Old Spice Guy as the Old Old Spice Guy.
Those of us who grew up admiring Fabio’s gleaming hair/chest recognize that what HE is is the strong silent, foreign type who just…really…shouldn’t be talking. They should make him more a la “The Most Interesting Man in the World” than trying to do the same thing with him that they did with Isaiah.
I like the use of “Fabio” as a verb…I think they should do more with that. “I can Fabio” (Show some posing), “I can Old Spice” (show some posing), “You can Old Spice” (things), “We Old Spice Fabio together” (posing). Heck, use some of the things Fabio really does and likes (motorcycles, home theater…oh lord do I really know this about Fabio? I’m hating myself right now….)
LIKE THAT ANYWAY!