This 60-second Super Bowl spot had been promised to the winner of Fox’s “The X-Factor” singing competition all season, despite the fact that the prize ad would air on Fox rival NBC. (And even though NBC would follow the game with its own singing competition, “The Voice.”) But the ad, it was agreed, would not include any logos or identifying marks from “The X-Factor,” or make overt references to the show. If that seems simple enough, remember that in 2009, NBC scrapped a plan to have the cast of Fox's "Glee" sing Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" during the Peacock's broadcast of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.

The final Pepsi commercial via TBWA/Chiat/Day Los Angeles has Elton John as a bored king running a talent show and “X-Factor” winner Melanie Amaro as an unknown (and unidentified) revolutionary singer. Classic Super Bowl stratagems in play: contests, celebrities, surprising cameos and hit music (“Hot in Herre” by Charles L. Brown, Cornell Hayes and Pharrell Williams and Otis Redding's “Respect”). John, for his part, had appeared in a Super Bowl ad before, although not for Pepsi (see 1990's "Just One Reason").

Director: Noam Murro, who also directed Chevrolet's post-apocalyptic Ford diss "2012" in the same game. Production company: Biscuit Filmworks. Director of photography: Jeff Cutter. Managing director: Shawn Lacy. Executive producer: Colleen O’Donnell. Producer: Laure Stevens.

Chief creative officer: Rob Schwartz. Group creative director: Brett Craig. Creative director: Xanthe Wells. Art director: Kristina Krkljus. Copywriter: Armando Samuels. Executive director of integrated production: Richard O’Neill. Executive producer: Mila Davis. Senior producer: Nancy Sanders. Assistant producer: Stephanie Dziczek. Managing director: Bill Brooks. Group account director: Mike Litwin. Account director: Tara Mellett. Account supervisor: Andrew DeBenedictis. 

VFX: Method Studios. VP of production: Gabby Gourrier. Executive producer: Stephanie Gilgar. VFX supervisor: Ben Walsh. Digital effects supervisor: Doug Luka. VFX producers: Sascha Flick, Krystina Wilson. VFX coordinator: Anastasia Von Rahl. Lead Flame compositor: Jay Hawkins. Matte painter: Nick Hiatt.

Editorial: Spot Welders. Editor: Haines Hall. Assistant editor: Paul Sabater. Executive producer: David Glean. Producer: Shada Shariatzadeh. Sound: Trinitite Studios. Sound design: Brian Emrich.

BRAND: Pepsi

YEAR: 2012

AGENCY: TBWA/Chiat/Day

SUPERBOWL: XLVI

QUARTER AIRED: Q1