Man, that bit about the owner showing the rust spots on his own trucks gets me. There was a guy named Sal who ran a little lot off Highway 80 near Forney and he did the same kind of thing, just stood there pointing at dents and saying flat out which cars he would hand to his own daughter and which ones he would not. Most of those late night ads are pure noise, you are right about that, but every once in a while somebody figures out that being honest on camera is cheaper than a fancy jingle and it sticks with you. My wife gives me grief for watching the dumb ones but I have dragged her to two lots because of stuff like that, so I get exactly where you are coming from. Sounds like you found one of the rare honest ones and honestly that drive to Mesquite was probably worth it just to see a guy not lying to your face. Feels good to be wrong about something like that.

Wait, so you're telling me the crackers are screaming and you still opened the box? That's on you, buddy. But for real, making the food look like it's in pain before you eat it is a bold move. Most ads try to make you hungry, not feel like a monster for having a snack. I'd say they got people talking, but nobody's out here craving haunted crackers.