This ad where some middle-aged woman complains about her
moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis always makes me chuckle a little bit.
It’s not that I enjoy rheumatoid arthritis or anything; it’s just that people
don’t usually say things about moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis in
normal conversation, so it strikes me as extremely awkward dialogue.
Couldn’t you see the following conversation between a middle-aged
woman and her teenage daughter?
“Mom, what’s wrong?”
“Oh, my moderate to severe
rheumatoid arthritis is acting up.”
“Oh, you have moderate to severe
rheumatoid arthritis? Moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis must be difficult
to live with.”
“Yes, my moderate to severe
rheumatoid arthritis is unpleasant at times, especially when it goes from
moderate to severe.”
“I can see how moderate to severe
rheumatoid arthritis could be unpleasant, especially when it goes from moderate
to severe. Wow, I sure hope I don’t get moderate to severe rheumatoid
arthritis.”
“I hope you don’t get moderate to
severe rheumatoid arthritis too, dear.”
People just don’t say stuff like: “moderate to severe
(whatever disease)” in casual conversation, so why not have ads like this use
normal dialogue from the actor, and then have the announcer say the clunky
stuff like “moderate to severe (whatever condition)”? That would work a lot
better, I think, and as such, we’d get the message, rather than making fun of
the clunky, unnatural dialogue.
Here’s the clunky commercial:
