The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade is a weird parade, unlike any you’re likely to see in real life. It’s not just the balloons either, it’s the weird performances they pause to do at the end before the reviewing stands, with pop stars lip synching tunes (do they do this all along the parade route?), odd celebrities waving, and a succession of floats and pageantry tied to one thing: merchandising.There isn’t a balloon that doesn’t have to do with some sort of new campaign for something. Even the Mickey Mouse balloon was decked out in a captain’s uniform to plug Disney cruises.
So when the KAWS studio balloon, this year’s artist’s entry in the parade, went by, it almost looked like his character, also Mickey Mouse-like in his size and gloves, with monochromatic color and Bozo hair, was holding his hands before his X-ed out eyes as if embarrassed.
But why be embarrassed? KAWS follows in the tradition that previously brought Jeff Koons and Keith Haring balloons to the garish venture. Maybe he can do some merchandising and self-promotion as well, like the Power Rangers or the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, both back with new ventures.
The parade looked backward and forward like this all morning. All retro one minute, to have a high school band look like “Star Wars” storm troopers the next. And all the while, the toothy bunch from the “Today” show, their promotional patter all scripted, chattering away, not knowing honest commentary if they saw it.