Super Bowl ads: super expensive, super perplexing

Why would any company spend $5.5 million for a 30-second Super Bowl ad that leaves viewers perplexed, as some glitzy and abstract commercials did? After production costs are tacked on, you’d think advertisers would want their messages clearly understood, especially in difficult times.

Some prominent advertisers, such as Coca Cola, Budweiser and Pepsi, traditional large buyers, skipped Super Bowl L...