These are some very happy lizards.
Chuck: I have so many questions. My mind wanders.
Ned: You need to feed it warm milk and a turkey sandwich, let it curl up in a sunny spot and take a nap.
Ned: You need to feed it warm milk and a turkey sandwich, let it curl up in a sunny spot and take a nap.
This page is for entire works that manage to be Crowning Works of Heartwarming! When you post a work, just remember to explain what in it is heartwarming!
If a work has a few Heartwarming Moments but is otherwise not particularly heartwarming, post them to that page. Sometimes related to the other kind of sweet dreams.
Highly recommended to drop by this page if you've been over at Nightmare Fuel and plan on sleeping, or at Tear Jerker and need to invite some positivity back into your brain.
Examples
- Anime & Manga
- Comics
- Fan Works
- Film
- Literature
- Live-Action TV (Includes Puppet Shows)
- Music
- Video Games
- Web Original
- Western Animation
- Real Life
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Advertising
- The World Is Just Awesome.
An ad... for the world, adventure, innovation, science, happiness, and life. (And the Discovery Channel.)
- This ad for Schweppes, which shows water balloons popping in slow motion.
- This commercial for a Dutch coffee brand. "It's not what you say, it's what you do."
- This advert for Animax Singapore. Awesome music and awesome imagery, you're bound to have some epic dreams.
- The UK's "Hedgehog" campaign, a lovely series of PIFs featuring animated hedgehogs singing about road safety. They're widely regarded as some of the best road safety adverts ever made. They are:
- This adorable commercial for Snuggles Fabric Softner where Snuggle is tucking in a sleeping baby named Cindy complete with a lullaby playing throughout this commercial.
- Travel Nevada ads. Beautiful footage plus a great song will never fail to make you smile. Even as a YouTube ad you won't mind it. An example can be found here.
- Most road safety PSAs take the Scare 'Em Straight approach and show you the gory consequences if you don't buckle your seat belt, speed, drink-drive, etc. Embrace Life takes a very different tack and simply wants to remind you that you should look after yourself because there are people who love you and who need you to come home safe. It's simple, powerful, heartwarming and a tearjerker all in one and no one will not want to wear a seat belt the next time they get into a car after seeing it.
- The "I'm a Pepper" Dr.Pepper commercial from the 70s, which feels like it could have come from some kind of musical. It's so happy and up-beat that it's hard not to crack a smile watching it.
- This Japanese PSA from Greenpeace. It has an old man talking about how Whaling affected the seas. Then he makes up for the Whaling by saving a whale.
- Mentos: The Freshmaker is a classic series of ads that function as this. People face simple, personal problems, such as Clothing Damage, or losing a belonging. Upon this happening, they pull out a packet of Mentos, and eat one. The fresh flavour clears their mind, allowing them to come up with a silly, yet fun solution, leading into the slogan. If that wasn't enough, all of this is set to one of the most uplifting jingles ever composed.
- This ad for a housing agency shows a young boy swimming in an underwater house to find a pearl he dropped in from his boat, with beautiful cinematography and music.
- This advert for K9 Advantix, which depicts a cute little puppy writing to his parents from camp.
- A bunch of adorable kitties running and jumping through an Ikea.
- While many Christmas ads from British store John Lewis qualify as this trope, special mention goes to The Bear and The Hare, a beautifully animated combination of cels and stop motion that tells the story of a bear that learns about Christmas.
- When they don't cause Sweetness Aversion, Disney Theme Parks ads tend to be this. Special mention goes to Disneyland Paris' tale of a duck that loves Donald Duck and Tokyo Disneyland's soothing anime.
- This advert for Polaroid, where the other Muppets cheer up a despondent Gonzo by taking, then complimenting, a photo of him.
- The "We're Not Candy" PSA is meant to warn about the dangers of overdosing or leaving prescription medication out in the open, but this is off-set by just how adorable the pills are, with cute puppeteering and soft, high-pitched voices, all set to a memorable and catchy tune.
- ABC's "Come On Along!" campaign, created for the 1982-1983 TV season. Like the Dr. Pepper ad mentioned above, the song is incredibly upbeat, and there's a bunch of cute moments in the video as well, including a cameo from Scooby-Doo, a boy asking a girl to dance at a square dance, and a Dance Party Ending in a Chinatown. The logo at the end is also a favorite of modern ABC, having shown up in Lost and a few other places.
- The Japanese McDonald's has created several anime ads (also known as "Yoru Mac PoteNage") focusing on the simple joy of sharing McDonald's with someone, whether it be your family, your friends, your significant other, or with a bunch of monsters. With their soft color palette and lo-fi background music, it's hard not to feel good about these ads. It later spread to Sony Music, who used an anime ad featuring an adorable couple to promote a Christmas music playlist.
Art
- Juan Ferrándiz was a Spanish artist, wood carver, and sculpturist notable for creating wooden sculptures, figurines, and paintings showing the positive◊ sides of humanity alongside stuff related to◊ childhood◊ and religion◊ (mainly Catholicism and/or Christianity). This even extends to his illustrations, which are extra charming. Sheep and lambs are frequently seen◊ in some of his◊ sculptures◊, wood carvings◊, and◊ illustrations hanging around with children◊ since sheep (especially lambs) symbolize childhood innocence.
- NintendoMaximus is a Deviantart user who creates shipping art for various cartoons, where the various couples he ships are always very happy together, and his use of vivid colors that are accurate to the original shows helps give shippers sweet dreams.
- Similar to Juan Ferrándiz, a Spanish artist that went by the pen name "Constanza" also made similar religious artwork and illustrations featuring children, shepherds, angels, and sheep all spending peaceful time together. Most notably Constanza's "First Communion" art made between the late 1950s and 1970s.
- Any art◊ and illustration◊ by artist and graphic designer Penny Parker. Especially the ones featuring animals◊ and rabbits. The bunny ones are the cutest ones to look at.◊
- Ruth J. Morehead (her full name is "Barbara Jean Morehead") was an American artist who loved making drawings and paintings showing the positive sides of humanity, similar to Juan Ferrándiz. She would even make Christian and Biblical related artwork that always turned out charming and lighthearted. Sheep and lambs would make frequent appearances◊ in some of her artwork◊, doing cute and peaceful things such as bonding with children◊ and angels◊.
Asian Animation
- Nana Moon has a very feminine art style and feel to it that might deter some from watching it, but if you can stomach it, you'll also find that it has some likeable characters in a quirky, vibrantly-colored setting on the moon, and an overall light-hearted aesthetic. The whole thing really does feel like it was pulled directly from someone's nice dream.
New Media
- The whole idea of The Daily Squee. Baby animals with bells on!
- Also, Cute Overload!
- Also, Cute Overload!
- This Youtube channel dedicated to the uploader's cat.
- PresentCatand CakeDogg. Everything about it is positively adorable.
- Where the Hell is Matt? This man goes all over the world and gets people to dance. Nothing more, nothing less. They just... dance.
- Mind you, this includes places like Kabul, Iraq, Bratislava, various African countries, and other places which are more accustomed to see a Westerner — especially American — in Humvee and with a rifle, than with a video camera doing stupid, if adorable, dances.
- Smosh especially Lunchtime with Smosh and the vlogs on Ian is bored, where the guys just have fun and let out their adorkableness.
Radio
- The Ku Klux Klan was listed in the now-removed Real Life section of the Nightmare Fuel pages, and quite rightly. But the method of their defeat, the complete changing of their image from a distasteful but marginally tolerable part of the American social fabric to a collection of hate-filled idiots, is most definitely this: Superman took them on, and won. No joke. For the serial "Clan of the Fiery Cross," one of the writers of the Adventures of Superman radio serial infiltrated a "klavern," as the Klan called their chapters, and loaded the script with every last possible bit of genuine Klan slang, methodology and doctrine. The Klan leadership was so panicked they even tried to get the serial cancelled by organizing a boycott of Kellogg's products in Atlanta. It didn't work.
- Michael Fassbender reading "Dracula" from BBC's "Book at bedtime" radio series. It's a scary story, but he makes it feel like a bedtime story. Very soothing to listen to at night.
- Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere, reimagined as a radio play, starring James McAvoy and Benedict Cumberbatch. Sweet dreams, tropers.
- I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue. There's just something utterly delightful about a group of men in their sixties and seventies cracking silly (and often subtly dirty) jokes. On top of that, it's been running since 1972, with a lot of the original cast remaining.
- The Joy Boys, for much of the same reasons as I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue. Two dorky university students cracking jokes and performing comedy bits. They are Willard Scott (see Live Action TV) and blind radio personality Ed Walker.
- BBC Radio nightly Shipping Forecast. No, really. There's a beautiful orchestral arrangement called "Sailing By" played in between the preceeding programme and the actual forecast (as a buffer, both to allow sailors to easily tune into the station and to fill time before the shipping forecast starts at 00:48hrs precisely), which is Sweet Dreams Fuel alone. Then there's the forecast itself, whereby the weather report for the seas around the coasts of the British Isles is read calmly at dictation speed. The whimsical names of the sea areas, the news of rough conditions at sea while listeners are safely at home and the hypnotic pace of the forecast make the programme popular beyond those solely interested in nautical weather. It's a Great British institution, and it aids a restful sleep.
Theater
- Circus Smirkus: a completely unironic circus with teen performers, beautiful costumes and music, and an all-around amazing show. You can buy films of their performances on Vimeo, or check out these clips for examples
- Almost all of Shakespeare's comedies have at least a little of this in the final scene. Typically, there are Weddings for Everyone. A Midsummer Night's Dream ends with the promise of eternal love for all the couples, because the fairies are protecting them and will protect their children—plus, the laborers have put on their play, and everyone's going to continue partying, day in and day out, for the next two weeks.
- Almost, Maine when it isn't being a Tear Jerker.
- War Horse, because SERIOUSLY.
- The Five Dragon Daughter - the allegory of Christ redeeming you in the form of a musical, dance filled, epic adventure, with a questing prince in a mythical Chinese-esque kingdom. The story turns out with all set right, and the original music is fantastic.
- "No One Is Alone" from Into the Woods.
- "All I Ask of You" from The Phantom of the Opera.
- "Favorite Things" from The Sound of Music in universe, and out.
- "Anything Can Happen" from Mary Poppins.
- "Alone in the Universe" from Seussical the Musical.
This Wiki
- This page is like a nest for these things.
- Sugar Wiki, of course! It just gives off a feel of joy on every page.
- Trying reading all of the Heartwarming Moments pages. And then the Tear Jerker pages.
- This page, too! Try reading through the Heartwarming Moments page and then this one and then not feeling like you're on top of the world.
- Seconded. Just reading all the examples brings up so many happy memories (of the examples you've experienced personally) and so much hope and curiosity about the ones you haven't.
- Read all the Moment of Awesome pages too,
- Funny Moments can sometimes provide these.
- Just discovering this wiki is a heartwarming moment for some. It's clear from the very first page one reads that this is where stories go to be celebrated.
- The Triumphant Reprise page, being about dark or sad songs being turned on their head into a happy song, can give great examples of concentrated SDF.
- The You Are Not Alone trope page is a little overemotional at times, but mostly it's just very genuinely encouraging.
- Ditto for the You Are Better Than You Think You Are page.
- The And the Fandom Rejoiced pages. Did you think you were the only one who cared about (insert obscure work here)? Of course not.
- The page image of Strawberry Shorthand. Just look at that tortoise ^_^ And the caption is just perfect.
- The first line in the description of Special Snowflake Syndrome.
- The Anti-Nihilist is this for some. Hearing about the multiple ways that people make something so beautiful out of something as depressing as nihilism is very touching.
- So My Kids Can Watch is perhaps one of the cutest trivia items on here! It's so great to see how the actors listed care so much about their children. It's especially adorable to hear how the kids react to seeing their parents in a movie or other work.
- Have a Nice Cup of Tea and Sit Down, specifically for tropers to praise each other.
Other
- Any Disney Theme Park, particularly because of attractions like Soarin', Philarmagic, Muppet*Vision 3D or the like. Hey, they don't call it the "happiest place on Earth" for nothing, even the sight of the Castle and meeting your favorite characters (Mickey, Minnie, Pooh, Tigger, Tinker Bell, Periwinkle, Rosetta, Iridessa, Cinderella, Ariel, Jasmine, Rapunzel, etc.) can make you feel emotional.
- This video for the Ringtone Tiger Boo. Also catchy.
- TED Talks. There's something about people talking about technology and how great the future will be that makes you feel happy.
- Pick up a copy of the audiobook version of Clockwork Angels, a novel based off the album by Rush. The audiobook is read by Neil Peart, Rush's drummer and lyricist, and while he isn't exactly the greatest actor in the world, his voice is deep and booming and soothing and kind of has a "grandfather-telling-you-a-bedtime-story" quality to it, even if the plot of the novel (set in a dystopian steampunk universe) doesn't necessarily constitute itself to a bedtime story. Neil's voice is just so sonorous and relaxing.
- Calm.Com, by design, is supposed to be this. It contains footage of rainstorms, rivers and slow paced music in order to do what else but calm you down.
- Sleep With Me, a podcast of hundreds of soothing bedtime stories with a gentle-voiced narrator who goes on silly, imaginative tangents. Say, that might make it literal Sweet Dreams Fuel.
- Japanese merchandise and production company Sanrio loves finding new ways to charm and win the hearts of people across the globe. However, its friendly adorable atmosphere is enhanced by their theme parks Sanrio Puroland and Harmony Land and especially their characters such as My Melody and Wish Me Mell.
- Precious Moments started by Sam "Samuel" J. Butcher, is a company specializing in making merchandise, sculptures, stuffed animals etc. Is most notable for its charming, peaceful and friendly character designs, from the human characters to animals. Even some of their Christian and other religious merchandise is adorable to look at. Special mention goes to four of their animated direct to video content from the early to mid 1990s such as "Timmy's Gift" from 1991, and "Simon the Lamb" from 1994. Especially "Simon the Lamb" since it's the sweetest and cutest of their animated content.
- Not Always Hopeless, a website devoted to feel-good stories involving heartwarming moments and acts of kindness. It really makes you feel as though humanity is nowhere near as bad as it could be.
- The People's Friend, a British magazine aimed at elderly women full of articles, recipes and other things filled with a gentle, cozy vibe. Special mention goes to the stories - every single one is a soothing slice of life, where people have very few worries and any conflict that arises is easily resolved. All in all, highly recommended for anyone of any age.
- Budsies is a company that hand-crafts soft plush toys based on artwork of characters people send to them, mainly children's drawings. Cue the endless delight of kids receiving a cute huggable plush of their crayon-created creatures they'd never thought would come to life! It has been hailed by Internet commenters as one of the most ingenious and wholesome things ever.
- The New '10s "crystal" idents of French TV network M6, with their nigh-surreal images and jingle, can be this to parts of the world that aren't generally so idealistic.
- In fact, many Vanity Plates are successful in replicating this vibe. Some of note include the majestic 2006 Disney castle, Davis Entertainment's magical mansion, the Awesome Music and Visual Effects of Awesome (it was done in live action!) of the current logo of StudioCanal, the less Nightmare Fuel and more hypnotically beautiful THX bump Amazing Life, and the relaxing lake and equally relaxing soundtrack of the logo for Lyrick Studios. Arguably the biggest example is the 2001-2003 shutdown for TV Asahi (at around 17:42 in this compilation) which shows adorable puppies and kittens playing before falling asleep.
- In fact, many Vanity Plates are successful in replicating this vibe. Some of note include the majestic 2006 Disney castle
- The old CityTV sign-off: an instrumental of the song "People City" commissioned as a theme song for the station, played over scenes of daily life, scenery, and the increasingly diverse population of the city of Toronto. Relaxing and dreamy.
And if you aren't planning on sleeping tonight...
