By KATHERINE KELLY
CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Every year, companies spend millions of dollars just to debut a new commercial during the Super Bowl. Super Bowl commercials are hot topics and YouTube hits for days following the big game, and this year’s crop of commercials did not disappoint. The overall spirit of this year’s commercials could undoubtedly be defined as heartwarming. In addition to the several adorable animal appearances, celebrity appearances from Ellen DeGeneres, Danica Patrick and the “Full House” cast members Bob Saget, Dave Coulier and John Stamos elicited smiles and laughs. Here is a closer look at some of the most heartening commercials that aired during the big game.

Budweiser outdid themselves in what was probably one of the most adorable commercials ever released that left viewers everywhere sighing “awwws.” What is more adorable than the relationship between a man and his dog? In this case, the addition of some charming horses. The commercial “#BestBuds” left viewers wanting not just another Budweiser but also a furry, loyal companion of their own.

Sticking with the canine theme, Audi scored some laughs with its cartoonish dog dubbed “Doberhuahua.” And if the scrappy dog terrorizing the city was not enough to make you chuckle, the parody of the notoriously depressing Sarah McLachlan “Help the Animals” commercials was.

Chevy hit the big screen with two 60 second commercials, one paying a tear-jerking tribute to cancer survivors and the other highlighting the romance between a man and his truck.

Doritos gave audiences two helpings of cheesy, crunchy chip delight. One commercial featured an adorable little boy who lures an adult into his homemade time machine, insisting that Doritos power the machine. The other commercial shows a lovable cowboy and his sidekick pup in a showdown with his rude peer who refuses to help unload the car. In the end, the fun-sized cowboy lassos the Doritos from his enemy.

The lighthearted theme continued with the “Full House” gang back together in a Dannon Oikos Greek yogurt commercial. What started out as a raunchy scene between John Stamos and an attractive woman quickly turned to a roar of chuckles after Dave Coulier appeared with Bob Saget. Saget took on his role as the clean freak and germ-a-phobe, Danny Tanner, and scolded his friend for making a mess.

Go Daddy’s commercial featured Danica Patrick leading dozens of running body builders to a tanning salon. When the buff bodies arrived at the salon door, the salon worker whipped out her tanning spray and it was “go time.” Meanwhile, a song playing the lyrics “It’s a beautiful, wondrous, glorious day” echoed the happiness of the preceding commercials.

Of course, it would not be TV without Ellen DeGeneres, as she plays a modern day Goldilocks searching for the perfect music. When Goldilocks pulls off her hood and unveils herself as Ellen DeGeneres, audiences smiled from ear-to-ear. DeGeneres enters an apartment, and she tries mamma bear’s, papa bear’s and teenage bear’s music before settling on Beats. As the commercial advertised Beats, the comedian busted a move with some bear friends that enjoyed her stellar music taste.

Could we even call the Super Bowl an All-American game if the country’s beloved Muppets did not make an appearance? When a man pulls over in his Toyota Highlander to see if the inhabitants of a broken down bus need help, the Muppets emerge and take control of the Highlander, showing that the Highlander is spacious enough not only for a group of furry friends, but also for their musical equipment. Viewers rocked out and bopped their heads to the tunes in delight as the Muppets belted fun tunes on a ride through a bingo night, rock concert and parade.

Although Coca-Cola’s multilingual cover of the song “America the Beautiful” sparked some controversy, it still captured the essence of America as it showed Americans doing typical things while holding a cold bottle of Coca-Cola.

However, what evoked one of the biggest audience responses was the first commercial after the big game. Esurance advertised that any viewer could tweet the hashtag #EsuranceSave30 to win $1.5 million. This contest might have brought more joy to viewers than the game itself.

With commercials advertising everything from cars to food to beer, by the end of the night it was clear that the number of commercials that scored a touchdown far surpassed those of the Broncos. It is apparent that the commercials of Super Bowl XLVIII definitely left viewers satisfied and grinning from ear to ear.