Heartwarming / Mr. Peabody & Sherman

"Every dog should have a boy."

• Penny, after joining in on the mass "I'm a dog" declaration, goes up to Sherman and hugs him. Doubly heartwarming considering that Sherman "being a dog" was what Penny had bullied him about so mercilessly at the start. Now not only is she fine with him being a dog, but is willing to call herself one with absolutely no shame at all.
  • Her trying to defend Mr Peabody against Mrs Grunion, saying that the fight at the school was due to her starting out. It doesn't work but points for trying.
  • Also Penny's parents, particularly Paul Peterson, who the film makers noted is the cause of her competitive cynicism. The fact that he is now willing to defend Mr. Peabody against Grunion demonstrates how much he has warmed up to him. Doubles as Funny by nailing his VA's original television persona.
    Paul: Ditto on that dog thing!
• Mr. Peabody finally tells Sherman he loves him, and the two hug (with Peabody's tail wagging happily as they do).
  • Furthermore, when Sherman invokes the Meaningful Echo trope with the "deep regard" line, it's a charming way for Sherman to make it clear that he has never doubted his adopted father's love.
• The montage set to John Lennon's "Beautiful Boy," especially the little added-on orchestral sting which brings us back to the main story. Here, all doubts in the audience that Mr. Peabody dearly loves Sherman as his son are surely put to rest.
  • When Peabody first finds him, “Sherman” is written on a post-it note attached to his blanket. We’ll probably never know who his real parent/s are or why they abandoned him, but they at least loved him enough to give him his name.
• The moment during Penny and Sherman's flight in Italy, using Leonardo da Vinci's prototype plane, really draws the two close together. She even becomes Sherman's new friend at the end!
  • It's interesting when after wrecking his flying machine, Leonardo is more focused on the fact that it worked than the fact that it got destroyed. It's not always the first reaction you'd get in movies, and actually kind of sweet when Leonardo tells Peabody he should be proud that his son was the first man to fly.
    • Also, Leonardo embraces his mechanical child near the end of the film, after previously referring to it as creepy.
• Sherman's camaraderie with Agamemnon. Agamemnon acts like such a cool supportive big brother, telling Sherman that he trusts him with his life, and constantly carrying him on his shoulder. You can tell how proud Agamemnon is to have Sherman in his army.
  • And the finale where Agamemnon lifts Penny onto his shoulder too.
• Paul Peterson's reason for not pressing charges against the Peabodys after Sherman bit Penny? Because Patty, his wife, asked him not to.
  • An extra dose of heartwarming for Patty wanting to make amends with the Peabodys, and trying to do so during the dinner night.
  • We don't see enough of Paul and Patty Peterson in the film, but their marriage has been shown and strongly hinted as a strong, close and sweet.
    • They've even been nicknamed, "The Sweetersons".
• There's also the lyrics of the bridge of the film's Theme Song: "And you're on own/Y'not alone/I know i'll see you again, again./And if all these things,/Come to an end/We'll always have...A Way Back When." Even better, there is a rhythm section singing a dog-like show "Aroo!" Perhaps Mr. Peabody got all the friends who helped him and his son in their darkest moment to back them up for this song.

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