Move over Elton John. The wait is over, Christmas is officially here, John Lewis has released its much anticipated Christmas ad for 2019. This time with a brand new star, Edgar the excitable dragon.
There is a lot to unpack here, so many emotions to sort through. This tiny excited CGI dragon, named Edgar, just radiates Christmas cheer and love and is a wonderful play on a typical holiday tale.
Yet his excitable, uncontrolled flame-throwing snout causes trouble and he is shunned by ye old townsmen. Goddamit he just wants to partake in the festive activities! The production team did a fabulous job at picking the most depressing sounding band (Bastille) to remix the classic ‘I can’t fight this feeling anymore’ by REO Speedwagon,
As magical and beautiful and expensive as this ad is, I have questions. How does an eight-year-old know how to make Baked Alaska? Why do the townsfolk keep highly flammable things around when they know a physical dragon lives down on the main street? Where are this girl’s parents?
Following on from 2018’s Elton John masterpiece was never going to be easy, who in their right mind wants to go on after Elton John? However, Edgar holds his own and delivers a striking performance. Bringing in all the Christmas feels.
This year marks the first ad for the new John Lewis and Partners pairing with Waitrose, as the two merged in October of this year. This campaign has obviously hit a strong note already, racking up 3.5 million views after being online for less than 24 hours. Elton John’s TVC hit a total of 14 million.
What are your thoughts and feelings? Do you feel 100 percent more Christmas-y? Are you also, about to research how to make Baked Alaska? Let us know.
