Gillette Fusion: Are Five Blades Too Many?
Is the Gillette Fusion on the cutting edge, or have razors officially gone out of control?
During the Super Bowl, Gillette advertised their Fusion razors, boasting five blades!
This tops the aptly-named Quattro by one whole blade. With the release of the Quattro, we all thought, "Well, that's about it. No one is going to bother to release a five-bladed razor." Turns out, we were wrong.
If four weren't enough, then I guess it's not out of the question to expect a six-bladed razor in a year or two. How many is enough?
An interesting note: On October 11, 1975, Saturday Night Live played a paridoxical commercial after the two-bladed razors came out. This commercial was for the "Triple-Trac," a razor with (a then-rediculous) three blades. That commercial ran in three subsequent episodes in 1976 as well, and ended with the line, "Because you'll believe anything." Mary Tyler Moore also appeared in an SNL skit (in 1988?) titled "Lady Rhemington Shaver." The primary joke here was the massive leg hair, but the razor had 300 blades.
I personally use a disposable, two-bladed razor. My theory is that, if the first four don't get the job done, what's that fifth one going to do differently? My biggest annoyance about the Fusion's Super Bowl commercial is this: Don't make a fifth blade sound like a huge government secret. You added another blade. Big whoop.
The Gillette Fusion Power handle features an on-board microchip that optimizes the razor’s performance. I optimize my razor's performance by using shaving cream.
The razor even has a sixth blade on the back, specifically for trimming sideburns, shaving under the nose, shaping facial hair, and cutting your thumb.
Are we Americans really still stuck in the "more is better" mindset? Perhaps in most things we are, but not when it comes to razors.
Update: Schickette has now announced a nine-bladed razor. Read the news brief for more information on the Schickette Novenary.
Related posts:
February 7th, 2006 at 11:22
I'm just waiting for the ten blade razonr that not only removes hair, but the first and second layers of skin on your face.