Unilever takes Axe to the web and wants to stay there.

Unilever, the owner of Axe brand, is trying to keep their brand top of mind with young lads in the united states by sending fictional characters Evan and Gareth out to try out score-lines on unsuspecting babes. Evan and Gareth 'videoblog' their adventures and the idea is that hopefully, this whole thing will go viral, alas, it hasn't yet. It's been seeded on heavy.com and has seven linkbacks according to technorati so far.

Some of the films are funny, like when Gareth tries the pick-up method he calls "love song" by singing HEY THERE BEAUTYQUEEN at the top of his lungs.

If this universe seems a little different than the recent Axe print ads in South Africa with older women predators and the Dance Club kidnap stunt, it's because it is. Even in the states Axe has been all about "one whiff drives women mad" as they launched with the commercials where a woman was ravishing a store mannequin back in 2002.

It's not just the universe that's changed, the media chosen is a big shift for Unilever who relied heavily on the 30-second commercial when they launched. These days reaching the target of 18- to 24-year-old men who are all armed with zapping remote controls and short attention spans isn't easy. Unilever believes that they can reach the target by creating compelling content on the net to foster brand loyalty, they hope that the funny films will be emailed around - in short, they want it to go viral. It's not Axe's first time on the web, www.theaxeeffect.com had some pretty raunchy films and a little graphic content.

Conductor, the firm behind the campaigns for the Spiderman films is helping to launch this site. Watch for the big bang on May 18 when a game called Mojo Master will appear on EvanandGareth.com, where players can test their pick-up moves on virtual vixens using their home PCs. That kind of sounds a lot like the subservient chicken and the recent beer babes, let's hope it isn't.

Axe is has the market lead with 80% share, deciding where to go next while Tag is mimicking Axe in old media like the press and on TV, Axe has set its sights firmly on the internet and new media like cellphones, blogs and video games.