Hang Tag Gore - Levi's Denizen

Sometimes you run across something so awful it doesn't even warrant a review - this is one of those times. Although Levi's is a premium brand in most of the world, in its home country of the US of A, it somehow is one of the most mass market name brands in existence. I'm fairly certain I stumbled across this in a Walmart, and although I only present this one example here, there were countless variations for different denim products.

What's wrong you ask? For starters, why is everything shouting at me in bold face all caps text? Maybe it is because the product is so bland and generic it would be too easy to overlook. There is a way to do text heavy design, but this certainly isn't it. I mean just look at the feature list - "Classic and comfortable for all occasions." That's fight, these can be your fancy jeans as well as your comfy jeans as well as your work jeans, all in one pair! I don't know if this is an officially adopted maxim, but if your clothing gives you permission to wear it either up or down, it probably isn't acceptable to do either.

And what is up with Levi's destroying the registered trademark symbol? I first saw it on the Denizen line name, and figured it was a misprint, but then I noticed it was done the same on the Levi's wordmark! Holy hell, what are they thinking? Is it supposed to be edgy?

I'll also call attention to the model - first, nothing says "Dad jeans" like that guy with his button down sleeves rolled up but tucked into his non-belted jeans. It is also a bit of a Photoshop disaster - unless he is a Gears of War character there is something seriously wrong with his over-sized feet, and his legs are about 90% of his total body.

And to top it all off, this is the Hang Tag Blog, and while I sometimes drift into related fields, this is not a hang tag. It is instead affixed directly the pants with plastic rivets, meaning you either need careful work with scissors or you end up fraying the fabric before you put them on. I'll also ignore the ham fisted "Denizen" name, the use of rivets next to the word durable, or the fact that Levi's surface the "236" name so prominently. If I had to pick something I liked about this, it would be the way the "236 Regular Fit" is set off from the rest of the tag - the red box with both upper and lower margin lines is classic design and well executed. I like the way it isn't constrained by the margin of the rest of the text and spills into the product image.

Levi's, I don't know who thought this up, but please, no more.