In our current political climate, it seems like a long, long time ago that Pepsi got into hot water for its “protest” ad featuring Kendall Jenner.

Let’s rewind to last week, though, and go through the details of that ad.

Structure

Let’s start with the fable. Let’s just list everything that happens.

• There’s an opening montage of two artists (a cellist and a photographer) and a crowd of protesters
• We’re introduced to Kendall Jenner, in the middle of a photo shoot
• The protest catches Kendall Jenner’s attention
• The protest catches the cellist’s attention
• The photographer is frustrated at her work
• The photographer gets her camera and goes out to photograph the protest
• More montages of the protest; there are now dancers who have joined guitar players and the cellist
• Kendall Jenner is still doing the photo shoot, but watches the protest
• The cellist invites Kendall Jenner to join the protest
• Kendall Jenner takes off her blonde wig, wipes off her lipstick, and joins the protest
• We’re introduced to a line of police officers
• Montage of the protest crowd, with Kendall Jenner moving through it
• Kendall Jenner picks up a can of Pepsi
• Kendall Jenner moves to the front of the protest line, past the cellist, fist-bumping people as she goes
• The photographer catches Kendall Jenner moving towards the police line
• Kendall Jenner hands a police officer a Pepsi
• The music stops, and we hear the sound of a can opening, while the photographer lines up a shot in her viewfinder
• The police officer drinks the Pepsi, the music starts underneath the sound of cheers
• Kendall Jenner moves back into the protest front, cheering with an arm up, like the rest of the crowd has
• We see cheering crowd members, the photographer embraces someone, and Kendall Jenner is celebrating and high-fiving the crowd
• The police officer turns to a crowd member next to him and shrugs
• Kendall Jenner applauds
• A group, with Kendall Jenner at its head, approaches us, while the text, “Live Bolder”, “Live Louder”, and finally, the Pepsi logo with “Live For Now” is shown

That’s it. The next step is to find the dramatic parts, and this is where things get tricky. Which item in this list introduces us to the problem (the Inciting Incident) and which part solves the problem (the Climax)?

This is why this commercial feels like a college Freshman’s theater project with a $20 million budget: there’s no problem, and there’s no solution.

The Climax is clearly the moment when Jenner hands the police officer the Pepsi. The biggest hint, of course, is that this is a Pepsi commercial, but beyond that, it’s the point where everything stops, and the point where there’s a transformation. It’s supposed to feel like a climax, but it isn’t one.

What problem does it solve? Was the officer thirsty? Was he being uncool? If there was anything in mind about a can of Pepsi solving anything, we’re left guessing, because the police officer doesn’t leave the police line, and his life post-Pepsi is a smile at his fellow officer.

Arguably, if the solution had to do with a line of protesters and a line of police, we should find the problem in the theme of the protest. Everyone immediately noticed that the protest was about nothing. The protesters hold signs saying “Join the Conversation” and “Peace”. A cellist was comfortable enough to carry his cello through the streets, so in any case, it’s likely a low-stakes event.

The only semblance of problem-solution pairs in this ad are 1) the photographer and 2) Jenner’s photo shoot.

The only emotionally compelling moment in the entire ad was the photographer, frustrated and angry at her desk, reviewing proofs. Even this, though, didn’t have any setup and it didn’t have any clear resolution. Why is she frustrated? What does she see that makes her head to the streets when the protest goes by to get a better shot? There is an attempt at a resolution. We see the photographer hugging a member of the crowd later, after she got the shot of Jenner handing the police officer a Pepsi. If it’s meant to be the end of the photographer’s story, it’s a weak one. Without any clear problem (other than “frustration”) it’s hard to know what she has to gain. With only the images of her taking a photograph and hugging someone, we can only guess that she’s got what she wanted.

Jenner’s photo shoot is the opposite: there’s a solution, but no expressed problem (so it’s just like the commercial as a whole). The climax of this little story-within-a-story is Jenner answering the cellist’s call, ripping off her blonde wig, and wiping off her makeup. It’s the solution to a problem we never see. The closest thing to it is Jenner noticing the protest going by. We are left to guess that she wanted to join the protest, but… couldn’t until a cellist came along?

Meaning

The meaning of a can of Pepsi is bound up in the story the can is involved in. Historically, Pepsi has been involved in stories of musical rebellion, Back to the Future adventures, and — fundamentally — the youthful, fun side of a soft drink as opposed to the sometimes “sanctimonious” Coke. ¹

Pepsi hasn’t given us any kind of story to work with, just pseudostory elements (it sure felt like a climactic moment).

Instead of giving us a story to tell me how Pepsi could fit into my life, they’ve given us random images they want their brand to be associated with.

Here are some, in the order they appear in the ad:

• There’s an opening montage of two artists (a cellist and a photographer) and a crowd of protesters
  Pepsi is consumed by passionate and skilled artists and young people, many of whom are involved in protest actions
• We’re introduced to Kendall Jenner, in the middle of a photo shoot
  Beautiful people drink Pepsi
• The protest catches Kendall Jenner’s attention
  Pepsi is a part of what young people are doing
• The protest catches the cellist’s attention
  Young people choose to drink Pepsi when they are finished with their creative endeavors
• The photographer is frustrated at her work
  Without Pepsi, creative work is frustrating
• The photographer gets her camera and goes out to photograph the protest
  Pepsi is a part of things that are worth photographing
• More montages of the protest; there are now dancers who have joined guitar players and the cellist
  Pepsi is youthful
• Kendall Jenner is still doing the photo shoot, but watches the protest
  Drinking Pepsi makes you a part of somthing
• The cellist invites Kendall Jenner to join the protest
  Pepsi is a part of youthful rebellion and freedom
• Kendall Jenner takes off her blonde wig, wipes off her lipstick, and joins the protest
  Pepsi helps you be who you really are under all of the constraints placed upon you
• We’re introduced to a line of police officers
  Authority figures are uncool because they don’t like Pepsi
• Montage of the protest crowd, with Kendall Jenner moving through it
  Pepsi appeals to the people who inexplicably decide they should be in leadership positions
• Kendall Jenner picks up a can of Pepsi
  All meaningful events have Pepsi freely available
• Kendall Jenner moves to the front of the protest line, past the cellist, fist-bumping people as she goes
  Pepsi appeals to the people who are inexplicably in leadership positions
• The photographer catches Kendall Jenner moving towards the police line
  People are never afraid for their safety in situations where Pepsi is involved
• Kendall Jenner hands a police officer a Pepsi
  Figures of state authority can be easily persuaded, provided you have the proper taste (a taste for Pepsi)
• The music stops, and we hear the sound of a can opening, while the photographer lines up a shot in her viewfinder
  Moments worth photographing contain Pepsi
• The police officer drinks the Pepsi, the music starts underneath the sound of cheers
  If there’s a confrontation with police, it must be because you weren’t part of the correct culture (the one Pepsi is a part of)
• Kendall Jenner moves back into the protest front, cheering with an arm up, like the rest of the crowd has
  We’re all on the same team, as long as we have the correct sensibilities (the one where Pepsi is involved)
• We see cheering crowd members, the photographer embraces someone, and Kendall Jenner is celebrating and high-fiving the crowd
  Success is easy, providing you’re the kind of person who solves problems with Pepsi
• The police officer turns to a crowd member next to him and shrugs
  People in the correct culture (the one that drinks Pepsi) have nothing to fear from police
• Kendall Jenner applauds
  Success comes easy with Pepsi
• A group, with Kendall Jenner at its head, approaches us, while the text, “Live Bolder”, “Live Louder”, and finally, the Pepsi logo with “Live For Now” is shown
  Concepts like “Unity”, “Risk”, and “Struggle” are made easier by Pepsi

This is, of course, ridiculous.

All ads have some kind of ridiculousness to them, and create problems where there may not actually be one. That’s why an ad is a sales tool.

This ad goes further, and literally gets rid of any real problems, but still proposes that the answer is Pepsi. Mass protests, resistance action, self-image, artistic struggle, race relations, professional achievement, religious coexistence, police presence, state authority… just have a Pepsi.