Year in review: The 10 ads that made us cheer

See all our 2016 year-in-review features: Brand crises; major appointments and departures; big launches; the best, worst and strangest ads; and more.

Today's list: The best 10 pieces of work, according to our editors.

1. 'Nursery crimes': One ECD's quest to stop child sexual abuse in Malaysia
Painful personal experience pushed NagaDDB's ECD, Alvin Teoh, to create a powerful campaign against paedophilia. 

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2. China’s “leftover women” stand up to marriage pressure and #ChangeDestiny 
‘Marriage Market Takeover’ for SK-II by Forsman & Bodenfors.

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3. Da da ding: Nike's call to women in India
Wieden + Kennedy unleashes an infectious anthem for female athletes in India.

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4. Philippines Smart Communications breaks barriers with LGBT community
Coming-out tale by Dentsu JaymeSyfu earns raves.

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5. Video of crying men makes an impact in Australia
'Man up' campaign by Cummins & Partners and TV show send an important message and get a significant reaction.

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6. Kiwis are 'Sweeter than you think', sings Zespri
Campaign by The Secret Little Agency attempts to sweeten the kiwifruits' sour reputation with a musical number.

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7. You'll laugh when you see why these people are so emotional
Thailand's Bar-B-Q Plaza, with GREYnJ United, introduces a new item, melodramatically—and skewers Thailand ad conventions.

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8. Uni-President serves up a new round of moments
Uni-President, with ADK Global, has released a follow-up to its award-winning ‘House of Little Moments’, a series of poignant short dramas set in a noodle shop.

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9. Coming out at McCafe Taiwan
‘Acceptance’ for McCafé by Leo Burnett Taiwan.

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10. Happy couple savagely murders sharks in wedding video
'Congratulations' for Hong Kong Shark Foundation by Ogilvy & Mather Hong Kong: An impressive bit of compositing work.

Bonus 1:

• Campaign Japan's favourite work of the year

Bonus 2: These 5 just missed the cut

• MJ Bale tortured this model for five days to prove a point about its suits
• Prudential challenges you to stare at the ones you love for 4 minutes
• Don’t neglect the gift that is your child’s imagination: Lego
• Minohodoshirazu: Not knowing your place is good, Nike says
• Built to survive a car crash, 'Graham' leaves Darwin in the dust