Probably the most famous melting sequence in history would be when Dorothy Gale threw a bucket filled with water on the Wicked Witch of the West. Well, the famous melting technique has found its way into commercials as well…but it hasn't managed to become as much of a trend.

Instead of green witches, we’ve got regular men turning into piles of goop these days. In the recent “Sierra Mist-Melt” commercial, a typical guy (who's of course ruggedly handsome) is walking home from the grocery store with his dog on a very hot day (made clear by the egg that falls and fries on the street). He is noticeably perspiring. As we watch him walk along, his pace becomes sluggish. He looks down to find his foot is melting into the sidewalk! By the time he notices a vending machine nearby that might be his savior, he has dissolved all the way to his waist, leaving a goopy trail of his melted self in his path. He shoves himself through his body muck all the way to the vending machine. Just as his face is about to turn to glop, he grabs a Sierra Mist from the machine and gulps till his body flows together. He also saves his melted dog with a drop of the soda.
For some odd reason, I always thought that the particular idea would make a great Sierra Mist commercial…I mean, a regular guy starts to melt from some kind of heat exposure, and a Sierra Mist saves him. A great use for the technology of today. Two and two together, and you’ve got the perfect commercial. Therefore, you can imagine my surprise when someone else snagged the idea first.
In the “Elizabeth Arden-Provocative Women” commercial, Catherine Zeta-Jones goes to Italy sporting new cologne. Clearly looks can kill, but here scent is the new runner up in for that saying. As Catherine walks through the streets, men all over take one looks at her and…melt. Quite literally, in fact. They actually turn into water and wash away. The grand finale is when three men spot her from their balcony and suddenly Catherine is seen walking past a man/waterfall! Soon the streets of Italy are running with dead men…or water, rather. Catherine just smiles as the slogan “Men Will Melt” is said by the announcer. You can take a look at the print ad, and more background on the meaning behind the ad here:

http://www.thread.co.nz/article/1055

So, what’s so odd about these seemingly witty commercials? Well, other than the fact that there are melted men slopped everywhere, these ads did not have a very successful run. I only saw the “Men Will Melt” commercial once. The “Sierra Mist-Melt” commercial I barely saw as well. This is the only commercial of theirs that hasn't reached their site. You won’t find many conversations, or videos of these two ads on the Internet either. Of course the technique hasn’t been used since the early Capri Sun commercials. Guess the melting idea died out when the Witch screamed “Oh, what a world, what a world!"