As the Cartoon Brew article points out, this commercial is actually getting pretty 'heady' into the idea of what is 'cartoony' and what is not, mostly by the fact that they show the gecko (the CGI version) in an unusually extreme close-up, one which really emphasizes the texture of his skin, the motions of his eyes, and subtleties of his expression. To my eye, this is "GEICO goes Meta" -- it really has very little to do with selling car insurance, and a lot to do with the art-form making fun of itself.
As the Cartoon Brew article points out, this commercial is actually getting pretty 'heady' into the idea of what is 'cartoony' and what is not, mostly by the fact that they show the gecko (the CGI version) in an unusually extreme close-up, one which really emphasizes the texture of his skin, the motions of his eyes, and subtleties of his expression. To my eye, this is "GEICO goes Meta" -- it really has very little to do with selling car insurance, and a lot to do with the art-form making fun of itself.