Hey Arnold!/Heartwarming

• When Mr. Hyunh finally reunites with his daughter in "Arnold's Christmas"
  • And how. It's been four years since this troper last watched that episode and she still cries happy tears just thinking about it.
• How about Helga sacrificing her own gift (these special boots) in order to make it happen without any recognition and without any sort of notice. And keep in mind that this was from her parents who seem to have a "Well Done, Son" Guy relationship with her. So for her to sacrifice that rare bit of recognition and love from them in order for Arnold to make Mr. Hyunh's wish come true is just...it's a mix of a Crowning Moment of Heartwarming and a Tear Jerker. And no one will ever know.
• The end of "The List," where Grandma finally finds a place for her piano, on the roof, after spending all day trying to get in in the house, and sings a song to Arnold, who's had a long string of bad luck, about not letting the misfortunes of life get you down.
• The end of "Sally's Comet," when their plan to work get everyone to turn out their lights works so they can see the comet in all it's glory, just like Phil did with his dad seventy years ago.

Grandpa Phil/(Flashback)Phil's Dad: "Twenty Three Skidoo! Boys, you're going to remember this for the rest of your lives!"

• • Also:

Arnold: "So, what do you think we'll be doing in seventy years?"
Gerald: "Lookin' at this comet again!"
Phil: "Yes sir! Course, I won't be. I'll be... y'know."
Gerald: "Man, no ya won't, Phil."
Phil: "Will you stop calling me 'Phil?'"

• The end of "The Beeper Queen". Miriam's finally taken some initiative and has proven she's more than a "smoothie"-guzzling scatterbrain by taking over for Bob at the beeper emporium, and she loves it. But once she realizes she's neglected Helga, she gives it all up to come back home, and she and Helga even hug. This being the Pataki family makes it all that more meaningful.
  • Also, any time Big Bob shows some Hidden Depths and love toward Helga.
• The ending of "Crabby Author". "Even if you're afraid to go looking for magic, magic still may come looking for you. The end."
• The Veteran's Day episode that ended with Gerald's dad re-meeting the man (and meeting the family of) whose life he saved in Vietnam.
• Also the ending to "Phoebe Skips". It shows how Helga and Phoebe`s friendship means to each other.

Helga: "You're more than just my sidekick. You're my best friend."

• In "Helga on the Couch," the Flash Back to how Helga and Arnold first met surely qualifies.
  • And is preceded by a Crowning Moment of Heartbreaking in the previous scene, where Helga is announcing that she's going to preschool, only to be completely ignored by her parents.
• "Field Trip", where Arnold and his grandma team up to free an old, ill-treated turtle from the aquarium. The episode ends with them watching him swim away to the sea, as the sun rises.
• Chocolate Boy finally being free of chocolate provoked an IRL "awww" from me. Especially when he's seen all clean at the end of the episode. Awwww.
  • And it sticks, too, flying right in the face of Status Quo Is God. He's now addicted to radishes. ...Well, at least they're healthy.
• Arnold hugging Helga at the end of "Arnold Visits Arnie".
• Four words: "You keep the money."
• This troper hasn't seen the episode in years, but one moment rings in memory: Helga's father gets tickets for a function she wanted to go to, thinking it was a musical. In reality, it was a wrestling match. Despite the mixup Helga and her dad enjoy the show together.
  • What's funny and heartwarming is that they bond by mocking the musical.
• In the Thanksgiving Episode, Helga returns home - expecting her family not to have missed her. Instead, she sees Miriam demanding the police find her missing daughter, Big Bob about to get in his Hummer to patrol the city and Olga having just finished dozens of fliers she intends to hang up. Naturally, they're overjoyed to see her safe and sound.
  • Meanwhile, at the boarding house, Arnold returns home to gladly celebrate their tradition of Fourth of July (as Pookie flips the holidays every year). However, his grandparents and the borders have set-up a bonafide Thanksgiving dinner for him on the roof.

Arnold: Thanks a lot. Do you think we could still have fireworks?
Pookie: Oh, Arnold, it wouldn't be Thanksgiving without fireworks.

• In "Best Man," Coach Wittenburg asks Arnold to be just that at his wedding - saying he's his only true friend.
• Any episode starring Big Patty, really; how Arnold manages to convince her to fake a beatdown on Helga and they share a bit of heart to heart, how Harold stands up to Stinky and Sid when they mock Patty (twice; first time after a dance together, second time after losing an arm-wrestling match to her with pride and dignity) and even Rhonda who gave another snobby materialistic girl a verbal beatdown before things escalated into a repeat of the reform school they both went to, or worse. By the end of each episode, they all gain a bit of respect towards Patty and find that she isn't so bad as they first thought after all.
• There was an episode where the kids try to take the subway but it ends up malfunctioning leaving them along with a hobo, a blind man with his dog, a psychologist and his patient trying to overcome claustrophobia, a retired nurse, and an old man stuck underground. Of course tensions run high but near the end, Arnold notices there's something wrong with the blind man's dog and points it out. The retired joins Arnold while the blind man sits back and worries. Some moments later he asks if his dog is alright, Arnold reassures him and tells him his dog was actually female and then moves out of the way to reveal puppies! The blind man just starts crying tears of happiness and says "I'm a grandpa!" (or something like that). And to make it even better, the subway turns back on and everyone cheers!
• In "Casa Paradiso", where Grandpa tries to sell the boarding house and tries to make Arnold, who refuses to leave, come with him to live in a condo. The heartwarming part comes in as the residents stand by Arnold's protesting of selling their home, and they swear that they'll take care of him.

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