Samsung has a long history of taking jabs at its biggest rival, Apple, through ads. From the “Ingenious” promo series to the iPhone X-inspired notch-shaped haircuts Apple fans are sporting in Samsung's imaginary world, the Korean tech giant has put out a lot of amusing material at Apple's expense. The more recent one is the “On the Fence“ series, which mocks Apple for not joining the foldable phone market.
Some think Samsung's jokes are clever; others believe the company's attitude toward Apple betrays immaturity. But regardless of which description might be more accurate, Apple never really took the bait and responded in kind. The company that, in 1984, released its now-iconic dystopian Macintosh ad depicting one individual fighting “the system” has never responded directly to Samsung's anti-Apple TV spots in the same manner.
So you can imagine my surprise when I heard the words “not a fan of the Galaxy” within the first 30 seconds of an Apple ad that kicked off its recent Halloween-themed October 30 event. Now I was really paying attention! I had to rewind the video to make sure I didn't mishear. “Is Apple finally poking fun at Samsung in an ad?” I wondered.
It turns out that wasn't really the case, to my mild disappointment. What happened was that Apple's ad featured Steve Cherundolo, among other prominent people. Mr. Cherundolo is the head coach of the Major League Soccer team Los Angeles FC. And one of LAFC's rivals is another Los Angeles-based team called LA Galaxy.
So, you see, when Steve Cherundolo claimed that he's “not a fan of the Galaxy,” he was likely referring to the rival soccer team and not the Samsung Galaxy brand — even though the primary topic was actual galaxies and astronomy. Feel free to watch the first 30 seconds of the Apple Event video above and see for yourself.
In my world, Apple just dissed Samsung in an Applesque way
Even though this was not aimed directly at Samsung Galaxy, I like to imagine that Apple knew what it was doing and sneakingly dissed the Korean tech giant. I mean, I always wondered what an Apple joke at Samsung's expense would look and sound like. And now that I think about it, this pretty much fits Apple's mildly passive-aggressive way to a T. Apple thinks too highly of itself to openly mock Samsung the same way Samsung mocks Apple. But a clever subliminal attack hidden inside a double-meaning joke — which makes it a triple-meaning one? I can see that happening.
I know, I know. It's a stretch. But I like to think that Apple doesn't do things at random. And, hey, there's no harm in letting your imagination run wild sometimes and having fun with scenarios that may or may not exist.
So, if anyone asks what my thoughts are on this matter, my final answer is that Apple just gave Samsung a warning shot in a very Applesque, roundabout way. It sent out a message that is hidden enough to make you question the whole thing without making you dismiss the possibility entirely.
And even if this was no intentional poke at Samsung, this is precisely how I now imagine Apple would go about making fun of its rival if it chose to. Somehow, having a prominent figure saying he's “not a fan of the Galaxy” while holding a MacBook in their hands and seemingly referring to something other than a Galaxy Book feels very Apple-like. Whether Apple wanted to or not, it planted that seed in a Samsung fan's mind — mine.
