So, what was the best holiday commercial this year?

The consensus of many media sources was that this diabolically heartwarming short story via John Lewis, a UK department store chain, topped the tree; though, diehard Smiths fans probably moped hard over the use of the band's mope anthem. (Sorry Smithies, the Moz gave permission.)
The video has nearly four millions views on YouTube, and was a resounding success for the retailer. However, the jaded amongst us ad reviewers weren't so enamored. The best piss-take was written by the Guardian's hilarious Charlie Brooker. An excerpt:
"Take the John Lewis commercial....reports reached me of people blubbing in front of their televisions, so moved were they by this simple tale....Given the fuss they were making, the tears they shed, you'd think they were watching footage of shoeless orphans being kicked face-first into a propeller.
An advert for a shop. That's all the John Lewis thing is....Anyone who cries at this creepy bullshit is literally sobbing IQ points out of their body....A commercial has only made me feel genuinely sad on one occasion – 25 January 1990, when a falling billboard nearly killed 'Allo 'Allo star Gorden Kaye."
If you are likewise world-weary, you really should read the whole article.
Happy New Year, from Ad Challenger.