A New Tampax Campaign Gives A Boy A Vagina

Zack Johnson Has a Vagina! And Gets His Period!

Posted by: Ami Angelowicz Filed in: news, video
12:50PM, Friday June 19th 2009

I remember when I got my period for the first time. I had just gotten back from the worst day at school ever—I was in a crap mood and had what I thought was a wicked stomach ache. My mom dragged me to my grandparent’s house for dinner and that’s when I discovered what was really going on. I was mortified, scared, excited, in pain. Ever since, I (like all of you ladies except the skippers) have been navigating the complexities of cramps, menstrual products, and rebelling emotions.

So what would happen if a teenage guy woke up one day to find he had a vagina and was getting his period? Would he have a mental breakdown? Or an epiphany where he finally understands women? A new, extremely strange Tampax campaign is positing the latter. They’re pushing all sorts of boundaries with a character named Zack Johnson—a cute 16-year-old dude who wakes up one morning with lady parts. When I first saw his fictional blog Zack16.com, I was too dumbfounded to even know how to process it. The site chronicles his “changes,” day by day. WTF?

Day 1: V-Day. Zack Johnson wakes up one morning with a vajayjay! He kinda glosses over this, but I am left asking the obvious question…ummm…how? He goes to the school nurse and tells her that his body is changing. No crap, Zack. We find out he has a crush on a girl named Chelsea and he is worried that the disappearance of his pee pee will ruin his chances with her. Duh.

Day 3: Men are Pigs. Zack has a sister named Krissy. His new vaj motivates him to let his sister in the bathroom first, a sure sign of departing dudeness. Zack then makes the amazing discovery that “men are pigs” when he has to use the boy’s room at school and is disturbed for the first time by the toilet seats being up. Poor Zack has to hover to pee. Female fact of life.

Day 7: Uh Oh. We know this one well…Zack wakes up and he’s bloated, irritable, and emotional. He snaps at his best friend, is annoyed by all the dudes at soccer practice, and finally looks up symptoms online only to discover that he has…PMS. I’m thinking I know what comes next.

Day 9: Le River Rouge. While little Zackie is in French class, his red river starts to flow. He goes to the bathroom a couple of times and makes a “man pad” out of toilet paper. And then he discovers the Tampax tampons in the girl’s room and for the first time looks almost content. His takeway? “Getting your period sucks but I guess it’s not the end of the world. I mean, 50% of the world has a vagina and they seem to be doing pretty well.” Thanks for the shout out, Zack!

So what do you think? Is this ad campaign crazy or amazing? Will it make you buy Tampax tampons? And are you worried about this poor actor—I mean, it’s bad enough to be in a Valtrex commercial, but to forever be the dude who got a vagina and his period? Will he ever recover?

comments

Perceptible
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 12:59 pm: [report]

Are you kidding me?!

CheeeeEEEEse
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 01:02 pm: [report]

What. The. Fudge.

delovely
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 01:06 pm: [report]

I thought it was pretty hilarious. It wouldn’t be so bad if every teenage boy at a vag for a short time, now would it?

writergirl
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 01:19 pm: [report]

He will forever be known as “The Douchebag” and the term will have new meaning for him.

Hope they are paying him lots of moolah, because he may never get laid.

sadie
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 01:33 pm: [report]

Weird campaign. No I won’t buy Tampax until they stop using bleached cotton grown with pesticides. If you don’t know what I am talking about, read http://www.spotsite.org/village.html

Joey Daytona
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 01:42 pm: [report]

Oh man… reminds me of the 70’s National Lampoon mag where the guy gets his ‘period’ in the high school gym pool and freaks out, ends w/ his ‘friends’ date raping him in the backseat of a car.

snap
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 02:05 pm: [report]

this is cute and funny! way to go, tampax!

Kati-Anne
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 02:07 pm: [report]

What the what?

Antiquity
wrote on June 19 2009 @ 04:06 pm: [report]

Ummmm… Wow. Im somewhat disturbed by this. -shakes head- I think that poor kid needs a new agent.

dahveed
wrote on June 20 2009 @ 11:12 pm: [report]

You have gotta be joking me. Clearly this whole thing was dreamed up by women as a way of saying all the irrational girl behavior (like the toilet seat) is simply based on having a period and if guys had them, well, we would act just like girls. Of course, the target audience is women, so this may play well to that group.

Now that he has a snapper, does he get to keep the house if his marriage crumbles? Can he now justify having 70 pairs of shoes? Does he feel the need to share his feelings to everyone? Does he feel inferior if his purse didn’t cost $750 or if his boobs are too small?

Well, if his Johnson ever does come back, he’ll be the one guy that really knows what feels good to the ladies.

Daddy Is Tired
wrote on June 21 2009 @ 05:25 pm: [report]

I only watched the first video, but this is such a joke I can’t believe it. The two biggest flaws:

1. Any 16 year old who wakes up with a vaj isn’t leaving the house. Please…he’s staying home and exploring.

2. He totally has a chance with Chelsea, because she’s obviously a lesbian. All hot chicks in high school are. They must be, or they wouldn’t have ignored me like they did.

aries3_04
wrote on June 21 2009 @ 06:47 pm: [report]

I’ll give them points for the creativity.

Isista
wrote on June 23 2009 @ 06:34 pm: [report]

I guess it’s very creative, but it doesn’t encourage me to buy Tampax. At all.