And To The Bananas, For Which It Stands

I think we should all take a moment to appreciate Banana Republic. Not for their expensive prices. Nor their inescapable ads reminding you that you are not rich, not slim, and definitely not in a field somewhere with your beautiful lover and child.

No. Banana Republic deserves our respect for one major reason: having successfully achieved their image of casual luxury, despite using one of the stupidest, stereotypically silliest words in our language.

I thought "banana" had always been reserved for pratfalls, second rate superheroes and backwoods comedy clubs. And adding "republic" to it? Doesn't that only conjure a mess of insulting, historical implications? Yet, somehow and someway, Banana Republic effectively pulls it off.

So really. Good work, guys. Unless you were actually going for that whole small, backwards dictatorship of goofy, wacky monkeys image. Then you've still got some work to do.

(Re. Lated.)