This past week, there was a lot of excitement — and it had nothing to do with endless mounds of chicken wings, chili and keg-stands. Many homes had something a little extra next to the standard Super Bowl fare. It wasn't a deli tray, either, but a selection of 3D glasses.

In case you were too busy getting that third helping of wings, last Sunday's Super Bowl spectacular included a few new 3D commercial creations from SoBe Lifewater and the soon-to-be-released DreamWorks film, Monsters vs. Aliens. Each used a process called ColorCode, which presents a stereoscopic image in red and green for the left eye and blue on the right. The end result delivered a few neat, kind of blurry, images popping from the screen. It also meant that your old, dusty 3D glasses from Creature of the Black Lagoon probably didn't create much magic. The very next day, the very same network used 3D to boost ratings for its dramedy Chuck. Some considered the 3D gimmick to be a death knoll for the struggling NBC show. After all, does anyone remember Jaws 3-D? Didn’t think so.

Still, for some reason, the magic of a hand coming out of the TV to slap your face still seems appealing after all these years. I remember my first 3D experience. It was channel 48's airing of Creature Double Feature on my dad's bulky, old TV. We clamored to get the glasses at our local grocery store. The end result was good for about two minutes. Then the glasses got a little itchy, sweaty and made my eyes start to twitch.

Many years later, people are still donning the goofy specs for even just those few minutes of movie magic. The technology probably had something to do with the $234 million haul of the remake, Journey to the Center of the Earth (c'mon, was it Brendan Fraser?). In a kind of cool move, even the DVD and Blu-ray come with four pairs of glasses (for a limited time). Although the box-office take isn't as large, I have to wonder if the tech is drawing some into the theater for the current release, My Bloody Valentine 3D. Even the Jonas Brothers are getting into the high-tech act. It's not just TV and movies, either. The most obvious placement for 3D would be for in-your-face gaming. NVIDIA's got a $199 3D gaming kit, which seems very cool. However, I have a hard enough time with a regular controller; never mind adding glasses/blinders into the mix.

So have we finally achieved must-see 3D? It depends. Someday those commercials might be considered groundbreaking. However, the reaction around the blogosphere was pretty mixed. Many websites have been chattering about the technology for the past few days, with most of the talk being bad. Many complained of blurry images and excessive coloring. Also, it doesn't look like the glasses have improved much since the '50s — unless you count sturdier cardboard. 

Chuck, on the other hand, did get a nice little boost. It didn't get a Super Bowl-sized audience, but the show did rope in 800,000 more people than its last original episode, which aired in December. Gimmicks work, people!

Apparently, manufacturers agree. Some have recently been showing off plenty of 3D presentations. Unfortunately, most of them require some type of eyewear and for the few that don't — well, they are currently exclusive to commercial applications. Electronic House had previously reported on NewSight, a company that has managed to take the goofy glasses out of the equation. However, they are just another group not ready to share that love with consumers just yet.

So when will consumers get to see some other 3D products? There were plenty of teases floating around last month at CES. LG and Samsung both had units that didn't require glasses. However, you couldn't catch the 3D magic from just any angle. Sony had impressive technology, too, but it required the good old glasses (even though they gussied them up to look like Ray-Bans). Of course, no one knew exactly when any of these TVs would be available for the home. LG had the closest thing to a response, with "sometime in 2010." The technology is rumored to add another $1,000 to the LG set. Of course, that doesn't include the cost for however many headsets you'll need. Yes — the glasses just won't go away; supposedly, it eases on the eyestrain.

As must-see as 3D seems to be, I just don't expect it to ever be part of my day — at least as long as those glasses are in the mix. I also have to wonder if 3D will become the new buzzword. Is 3D the new "green?"

Still, gimmicks work. Did you watch Chuck in 3D? (If not, check it out below via Hulu, although unfortunately sans the 3-D of the broadcast version of the episode. It was pretty entertaining, thanks to a guest spot by Lost's Dominic Monaghan.) What about the in-your-face action during the game? Do you see yourself strapping on glasses for regular TV viewing? Drop a comment with your thoughts below.

 

[Image credit: Header image from Flickr user Frazzled Jen. Used via Creative Commons. Chuck photo courtesy of NBC. Photographer: Trae Patton.]