“Got any leopard print? Thus ran the subject line in an e-mail from my husband about Grabaseat’s controversial Cougars ‘Win tickets to the NZI Sevens’ promotion.

Having missed out on tickets, he was harbouring a faint hope I’d turn cougar - by popular definition a 35-plus party girl with a taste for younger men -  and shove on a push-up bra and centimetre of slap for a shot at the prize.

His wasn’t the only message. My inbox was soon overflowing thanks to outraged girlfriends forwarding the website link.

The competition - now closed - must certainly have raised Grabaseat’s profile - and it was cleverly-written. While outraged over-35s in our office initially fell upon the site with sharpened fingernails, the place was soon ringing with reluctant laughter.

But is ‘all publicity good publicity?’ Not everyone was won over, with hackles particularly raised by the Youtube spoof documentary showing a ‘cougar’ dragging a helpless young man from a bar.

Media commentators variously branded the campaign “lame” and “awful” criticising it for painting older women as predators. 

For some the jury’s still out. Victoria University associate professor and gender, culture and media expert Delores Janiewski deemed it “funny and cheeky” but said it was hard to tell whether it was encouraging or denigrating single women.

For some, the ‘cougar’ label - coined in Canada in the 1980s - has been largely transformed from derogatory term to badge of pride, signifying an independent older woman. Cougars even have their own news and dating site www.gocougar.com

By the look of those who posted their pictures to Grabaseat, the term has moved beyond the party girl set. Yes, there was cleavage and leopard print but also a jolly group of lady hikers. 

Rape Prevention Education director Kim McGregor raised a very valid point, that a fifth of sexual violence happens around licensed premises and said she feared the campaign encouraged potentially harmful behaviour. 

True, there wouldn’t be humour in a male stalking a woman. Take the “It’s how we’re drinking” advert when a drunken girl is abducted by a man outside a club. Same subject, different gender but it’s chilling. 

But reversal of stereotypes has long been used as an effective tool in comedy, satire and advertising. 

In 1969, when concern about Hells Angels was at it’s height following the Altmont free festival deaths, Monty Python unleashed its Hells Grannies sketch about rampaging pensioners. The NZ advert “Have you seen what they have at Repco honey?” uses a similar technique - as did the Mitre 10 ad’ featuring small children talking about DIY like adults. 

Kiwis are known for their ability to laugh at themselves and this promotion pushes the boundaries of humour into a new realm. It’s okay to lampoon the behaviour of middle-aged men but, this time we’re laughing at our mothers! 

I guess the answer to whether New Zealand is ready for that or not will be reflected in Grabaseat’s sales.