In the first episode of this documentary, a man describes the comparison of Pepsi and Coke as two shit tasting drinks. He's not wrong. And many of the people featured in this documentary seem to have a similar stance on how the two drinks are just sugary water with a high profit ceiling, and that's all that's really going for it. Though what we don't really notice is the massive advertising battle between the competing brands, the ways in which companies attempt to sell something that has no real use or benefit other than just tasting a certain way. By now we're all aware of the massive scale of the advertising industry, but things weren't always this way. A few decades ago, the idea of mass advertising was only just starting to form, and this came about with the mass consumption of pre-internet media like magazines and television. In attempt to break through Coke's first mover's advantage within the cola industry, Pepsi decided to ramp up their advertising spending like mad to make the brand seem cooler to the youth, grasping the attention of people by throwing models, actors, and various fun actions on the screens and in the magazines that everyone read. Pop culture was being weaponised on a scale we hadn't really seen before; though today it's all too familiar to us.

With Pepsi ramping up their advertising spend, it came with massive teams attempting to figure out the best way to advertise and keep throwing out something new and different so that the consumer didn't get bored and move on. The idea that the marketing efforts only had to increase and grow more intensive. A normal, for that era, plan was formed: collect a certain number or something, and have the possibility to redeem those points or items for something greater. In the case of Pepsi, they offered points which were then to be redeemed for various Pepsi merchandise. Mostly in the realm of clothing. Though in one of their advertisements made for the television, they missed a certain note of importance when attempting to make a joke regarding how far those points could really go. This advertisement finished with the statement that 7 million Pepsi points would get you a Harrier jet. A military-made fighter jet that at one point was top of the line and carried a $32 million dollar cost per unit. With Pepsi points, this would've been reduced to a cost of just $700,000.

Naturally, someone smart enough to notice the lack of a fine print in the advertisement immediately saw opportunity, and began to figure out how to make this work. They wanted that Harrier jet. What ensued is the chaos of Pepsi scrambling to realise the mistake they've made, while the original buyer fights on legal terms for the right to purchase something as advertised.

Pepsi, Where's My Jet is a four episode documentary series that takes to telling the story from the very start. Introducing the characters responsible for this moment in time one by one. With narration directly from them as they tell their life stories and give us context as to how this all came about. Starting off with the 90s and how the ambitious mind with some connections came to noticing a very large flaw in the marketing of that Pepsi advertisement. Noticing both the lack of fine print, as well as the price differences between an actual jet and the cost of points, which Pepsi stated could in fact also be purchased with real money, led to becoming obsessed with the idea of owning that jet. The idea of what to do with it after led to excitement over the business opportunities that come with owning a fighter jet. The legal side was researched and with many calls, they discovered it was legal to own one providing certain technologies were removed that made it operational but not to the same level as being war capable and ready. Sounds awesome, right? Owning your own fighter jet, winning it from a contest in which you just have to buy a horrible sugary drink. Reducing its cost significantly. Their stories speak of ambitious individuals that seek opportunity and can't accept no or failure for an answer. The people that seek thrills and are never the type to back down from a challenge.

The storytelling of the documentary features moments of old archival footage from different decades, as well as Pepsi's own advertising team which worked on the ad back then. So we don't just get the story from one perspective, we actually have narration and interviews directly from those at Pepsi at that time. How they reacted and attempted to deal with the situation. Mixed in are some scenes that are more a dramatic retelling of certain events, sort of like reconstruction. I wasn't much of a fan of these moments, while they were shot well, with a more cinematic approach to it all, I just felt it was more filler than something that was really necessary to tell the story. Sometimes it feels used a bit too much, other times it's more used sparingly and gives us that balance of old footage and images mixed with the interview segments. I prefer things this way, but I guess there had to be a mixture of things to give audiences something more fun and hold their attention, I suspect a result of Netflix putting their hands into the documentary and requesting certain features to be added to it. After all, documentaries don't interest most people. Especially ones with lots of talking that are about 30 to 40 minutes per episode, with numerous episodes to tell the story.

Within the documentary is the soullessness of a corporate life, the people that don't understand the weight of their actions and how the everyday guy with a bit of motivation can outsmart them. After all, the advertisement is clear in stating that the Harrier jet is redeemable at 7 million points, with no disclaimer stating otherwise. Clear as day and presented no different to the rest of the products. The legal battle here comes with the standard expectation that the Harrier should be given while Pepsi is panicking to find a flaw in their argument when there really isn't one. It shows how corporations use time and money on their side to put such things aside, hoping that the endless paperwork would tire people out. Alongside a stupidly organised lawsuit in which Pepsi used fear tactics by suing the people asking for the Harrier. The family explains how they began to feel nervous over the assumptions of being followed and watched while the notice was attempted to be served. Pepsi turning this into a legal battle in which they sue for people asking for the very thing Pepsi claimed could be obtained is disgusting to say the least. But this led to a counter sue, the battle of lawyers begins.

It's weird how Pepsi decides to make this a legal matter that then puts that entire advertising scheme at risk by showing they may sue you and not deliver on what you want, as advertised. You'd think they'd find a way to settle or even deliver on the Harrier somehow while finding a way for it to be a good advertising opportunity for them. Pepsi's attempts to fix the problem for them resulted in more mistakes and problems for them as they attempted to sue someone, instead just digging themselves deeper. For Pepsi the whole thing is a joke, but resulting in republishing the ad with changes and claiming it was a joke the whole time, leading to an admission of guilt in the process by not doing so beforehand. The documentary is great in its storytelling, showing the ways in which both sides attempted to continue trying to win. The lengths a regular citizen goes to to ensure that justice is served. The whole thing going beyond the Harrier and more in giving a corporation a bit of a slap for their greed and cruelty in assuming their power would always win over the common person.

This documentary is great, one of the best I've seen in a while. I'd really suggest watching it. I won't say anymore about it though, you'll have to watch it and figure out how it all ends!