When you’re up against huge brands, an arsenal of big ammunition helps. So Havas New York has fashioned John Alexander and a bucket load of New York humour into the second instalment of its When It’s, On Its On campaign for Mike’s Amazing condiments.

The campaign continues to hero Mike’s Amazing by righting the wrongs of poor food choices. The first instalment of the campaign won an Effie for doing so.

In each of the campaign’s two commercials, Alexander plays various characters – a diner, their partner, the waitress, the cook…Yes, the ads rely on Alexander’s fame but also a brilliantly memorable device and Mike’s Amazing attitude that it is the best, no question.

This is the story behind Mike’s Amazing (and attitude):

According to Mike’s Amazing webiste, the brand was born when “Mike realised that no mayo could possibly live up to the sandwich he was craving…or that none of the mayos or mustards out there were everything that a mayo or mustard could be.

“They’d cut corners with ingredients, and use flavours that were positively boring. It just wouldn’t do. So Mike got to work, creating the perfect blend of real, natural ingredients that delivered maximum flavour and texture.”