Heartwarming / The Spoony Experiment

• Dr. Insano, of all people, gets one at the end of the Street Fighter 2010 review when his attempt at creating an Eldritch Abomination instead results in a tiny, cute pink ball creature. At first he's despondent over this latest failure, but soon his new creation comes over and becomes his one true friend (and adopted "son").
  "You hear me, world? Do you?! I love my pink, freakish, orb-shaped son!"
• His Thanksgiving Message of Thanks, where he expresses his massive gratitude towards his fans and his incredible humbleness. Special mention going to somebody who anonymously shelled out $2,000 to send him the entire Adobe CS4 Master Collection, which could count as a CMOH itself.
• Spoony's response to Roger Ebert's review of the movie Fanboys. It's a Rousing Speech in which Spoony points out the hypocrisy of how he baits fanboys while also being a fanboy. He goes on to end it on an awesome note.
  Spoony: You are not stupid for seeking people you identify with. You are not an idiot for finding friends and feeling like you have somewhere you belong. Your particular brand of happiness might be pretty fucked-up, but you're not fucked-up for pursuing that happiness. As long as you're not hurting anyone, wave that freak flag high. Final Fantasy VIII may suck, and you may suck for liking it, but I'm the captain of this suck-filled leaking failboat, and I'm not going to have some jerkoff movie critic who's never cracked a Player's Handbook in his life call my homies STUPID.
• The numerous well wishes on his forum after he revealed his heart condition which prevents him from doing too much strenuous activity. Many went on that they were perfectly fine with him taking time off from his videos, in contrast to the usual suspects who keep complaining that they come out too slowly.
  • Although that didn't stop quite a few trolling idiots from complaining... although this was followed by probably one of the only times a majority of his fanbase did something unanimously in trying to throttle them.
• The opening of his Q&A panel at the 2010 ScrewAttack Gaming Convention. If you've ever doubted the humility behind the man's caustic persona, look no further.
• The moment in his commentary for the Highlander: The Source review where he gushes over Freddie Mercury, and says if anyone out there can legitimately imitate his voice, they need to get into the music business right now. Especially since it comes shortly after his somber reflections on one of his fans committing suicide.
• In the Final Fantasy X finale, he managed to talk Black Lantern Spoony out of a murderous rage by reminding him of why he started the site in the first place. Followed by trying to blow him up with a box of grenades, but still, the speech itself was legitimately "awww" inducing. And then he has the two of them be genetically merged rather than kill him.
  "This isn't what we started reviewing games and movies for, this isn't what you started reviewing it for. We did this just to have some laughs, to make other people laugh. To share our experiences with bad movies and games. Not to hurt people, not to kill people and take over the world. I'd like to go back to that. You're right, what happened to you was wrong. That's why I'm glad you came down, because I was hoping after a good fight we could hash it out and... I could give you your christmas present at last."
• Towards the end of February 2011, Spoony anounced that all future videos were to be delayed due to a personal matter. When he revealed what the matter was in a thread on his forums in order to stop any rumours from spreading, nearly every response was offering him support & telling him to take as much time as he needed.
  • Plus, his refusal to give details on how his and Scarlett's breakup happened, as she's sure to have her own version and he doesn't want his fans to get angry and mass-flame her.
• At PAX East, Teddie cheers up a down in the dumps Spoony. Awww.
  • Also, at the end of his Magic: The Gathering/Pokemon Online video, Spoony laments that he's probably too old for the Pokemon franchise at this point, before saying that he knows one little gamer who will be looking forward to the game, whilst showing footage of a little girl happily playing the game.
• Somehow, the fact that he still gets choked up by Kodo's death in The Beastmaster is very touching.
  • Equally touching is his joy at seeing Podo's babies at the end of the film.
• In his commentary for his April Fools Day review of Zombie 5, he tells the story of "the time he got mad at Doug Walker." Yes, a story about how he was mad at Doug managed to be a heartwarming moment.
• The story about the kid in the theater during X-Men: First Class who was fascinated by the promise of "4D" in Spy Kids: All the Time in the World.
• After a rather harsh report on Nintendo in one of his E3 2011 videos many of Spoony's fans felt personally insulted. About a day later Spoony held a live stream so he could talk to the fans and better explain himself as well as apologize for hurting people's feelings. What followed was an hour and a half of Spoony talking with his fans, debating whether or not Zelda has gone through any real changes and answering questions even though he admitted on the stream that he was still really busy and stressed.
• Any time his fellow contributors start talking about puppies, he joins in. It's quite adorable.
• It was sweet of him to host the Cinema Snob's videos on his site after the Snob's channel got taken down on Youtube.
• In his vlog on his trip to Vienna, he overflows with gratitude for the convention-goers who made gifts for him, and insists we don't have to thank him for coming to the conventions, rather, he thanks us for coming to see him.
• In his most recent vlog, Spoony tells us that he has a new doggie! The dog's name was Wishbone, but he didn't like it, so he asks the fans to name the dog (they chose Oreo). All the while he's playing with the dog, letting her sit on his lap, and even playing a bit of Fetch with her.
  • Doubly Heartwarming because if you know a bit about Spoony's life outside of reviewing crappy games and movies, he doesn't have it easy. So seeing him getting something in his life that brings him utmost joy makes you feel happy for the guy.
  • Watch it for yourself here.
• His very simple point about how messed up the relationship between Edward and Bella is.
  You shouldn't have to beg for love and if you do, it ain't love.
• In a recent blog he explains to his fans that the reason why he's been so slow on making new videos is because he was recently diagnosed with depression and that it's been interfering with his work. His fandom responded by telling him that they hope he gets well soon and that they wish the best for him.
  • During the end credits of his Skullduggery review - his comeback review after sticking to v-logs and other non-review work due to the above reasons - he includes the message "Special thanks to all the fans for all your patience and understanding. You brought me back, and you keep me going." It's obvious that he cares for his fans, and they care for him - it's great.
• His response to one fan who's been going through a tough time with medical problems (some of which Spoony also has) and offering to have a Skype call with him.
• Linkara and JewWario sticking with him for 90 minutes so he has someone to rant about Breaking Dawn with.
• This video a tribute has never been more touching
• Bit of a weird one, but in his livestream of the DOS game "Castles", the game gives him a moral choice over whether to let his brother (and former enemy) Prince Arthur return to the country and forgive him (or HAVE HIM MURDERED!). Spoony replaces the name in the in-game dialogue with "Prince Miles" (his Real Life brother) and then immediately forgives him and lets him come home.
• These Twitter posts. Oreo is officially a Loyal Animal Companion.
• Spoony playing with Oreo while dressed like a Jedi.
  • Really, most anything that involves Oreo. She's practically Heartwarming incarnate
• In his "Top 11 Spoony Moments of 2011" video, he talks about that while his enjoyment of Reb Brown films is partially in an ironic, So Bad, It's Good way, sometimes it is also genuine and he believes that Reb could have made it big as a mainstream action star if he'd had more lucky breaks.
• Two things at the end of the Ultima 8 review. First the obvious Oreo vs Headless post credits scene, which Spoony calls "the most adorable thing I've ever seen." And something small you probably wouldn't notice: he's got a pair of plush Zero Punctuation Imps on his bookshelf, merchandise from Yahtzee's show, the person who once called Spoony his favorite internet personality. Makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside to think about.
• Oreo now has her own Twitter account... so far it's basically been 'Oreo' tweeting in LOLcat speak. It is quite possibly one of the cutest things ever.
• During his commentaries for The Clones of Bruce Lee and "Bloodwings: Pumpkinhead's Revenge", he states that tracking them down are not worth the viewer's time and money - the film is largely boring and he cut it down to the funny bits, and the game is notoriously bad (as seen in the video) and would likely not work on modern computers. He really cares about his audience - he doesn't want them to suffer to his extent.
• His happiness at seeing Burton for the first time. He's concerned over him, but just pleased to have his friend back and tells him that the show isn't the same without him. It's adorable.
• His genuine praise for the climactic concert scene in Final Fantasy X-2. He likes the music, if the lyrics are a bit poorly translated, and felt far more emotionally involved in the flashbacks of Shuyin and Lenne than the love story between Tidus and Yuna in the original game. He makes the comment that he has to find something about the scene to nitpick at so he can complain, and all he comes up with is the rhythm minigame prior to the scene because it involves Yuna dancing even though she doesn't dance during the concert.
• This tweet is on par with Dr. Insano declaring his love for his pink, freakish, orb-shaped son.
• Seeing Noah and Miles both struggling to keep Oreo happy while also not disrupting the video in their vlog on Prometheus. That's two guys devoted to their dog.
• It may be a minor thing, but Noah taking Miles to E3 for the first time in 2012.
  • Speaking of E3, Spoony's face when he discovers X-COM: Enemy Unknown as he's about to do an interview with the developers.
  Angry Joe: What's the opposite of "betrayal"?
  Spoony: (raises his hands into the air) LOYALTY!
• Noah is taking his departure from Channel Awesome very well.
  • He explains that Obscurus Lupa had nothing to do with his departure and that he wants the bickering to end.
  • He has still expressed his pride in participating in To Boldly Flee.
  • In his elaboration of the situation, he makes it clear that even though his professional relationship with the core site has ended, his personal relationships with many of the producers are still strong and open to working together, specifically mentioning the Cinema Snob and Linkara. Reinforcing this was the upload of a crossover with Diamanda Hagan that same day.
    • He also stated that Doug and Rob have essentially left the door open for him, even though he most likely will not rejoin Channel Awesome. It's just good to know that there isn't a lot of hard feelings between him and his fellow reviewers.
  • In the same commentary, explaining his mental health situation at the time^note long story short, he was on meds for depression that were not working because he did not yet know that he in fact had bipolar II disorder but making it very clear that he is not using it as an excuse and fully owning up to his behavior. Considering how hard it is for many people to talk about mental health and the tendency for it to be used to excuse behavior that really isn't excusable makes him especially brave for talking about it so publicly.
• While reviewing Ultima IX, he takes the time to give a completely serious rant about how disgusting it is that you're repeatedly forced to kill children throughout the series.
  • Later in part 4 of the review, Spoony explains how he and his brother used to play through the Ultima games when he was only four, his brother teaching him to play Ultima IV, and how that game taught him how to read and got him interested in the fantasy genre as a whole, influencing his entire life, and thus demonstrating just how much the series means to him, and how truly horrified he is that Ultima IX ended up the disaster it was.
    • Also notice his tone in this bit. It's not the Acting!Spoony we normally see in his reviews, but a far more conversational tone you tend to see in the VLogs and such. This sort of shows that it's not entirely scripted and that it can be entirely from the heart.
• During one of his E3 videos, the fact that he's genuinely hyped up for Final Fantasy XV, which, considering how often the franchise has betrayed him, says something. If the game comes out and ends up being a positive review, that may end up on this list as well.
• In Spoony's Livestream playing of X-COM Enemy Unknown, he's not only named his squad after some of his colleagues, (Angry Joe, Benzaie, MarzGurl, The Nostalgia Chick, Jew Wario, etc.) but also customized them as best he could to look like them, even sometimes acting out their character personalities as he plays.
• Spoony actually seeming to enjoy himself while reviewing Breaking Dawn Part 2 was pretty heartwarming considering the state he was in when he reviewed Part 1.
  • Also, by part 4 (the review is in segments), Oreo is sitting next to Spoony with her head on his lap, and Spoony is fussing her as he talks.
  • Considering, most dogs take a while to warm up to strangers, seeing Oreo take a liking to April is pretty sweet too.
  • With all the hubbub going on earlier in 2012, still seeing him doing friendly interaction with someone from Channel Awesome helps remind us that for all that happened, he's still friends with the people on that site even if he's not a full or even associate member.
• So, how does Spoony begin his Final Fantasy XIII review? By taking back many of the negative things he said about Final Fantasy VIII, admitting he was wrong on several points. He even apologizes for the infamous "gay, gay, sissy-gay" joke he did in the first part of that review, feeling genuinely ashamed for it. "I don't know what the hell I was thinking; I deserve every single rebuke you can give me on that one."
• In his commentary of the the Final Fantasy X finale, he apologizing for the joke encouraging his fans to kill fans of the game, along with not meaning his other murder related jokes. He states that he's not a fan of the game, but also states it's personal taste that if people are fans of JRPGs, he feels that they would like the game. He also went on to dismiss the Fan Hater accusations that had been thrown his way for years, saying that even if he doesn't like a work, he is not such a dick to dislike people for finding passion in something they enjoy. This even went to him going out of his way saying that when he did say that back during FFVIII, while it was simply for the sake of comedy, he admitted it was a dick move regardless. His final words in the commentary?
  "This is Spoony, and this game may suck, but trust me, you don't suck for liking it."
• The fact that even after Ultima IX, he and Richard Garriot (aka, Lord British) watch each other on Twitter.
• He defends Jaden Smith's performance in After Earth, saying that while Jaden wasn't very good, he did his best in order to make his dad happy. This leads both him and Bennett the Sage to call Smith out for putting too much pressure on his children.
  • In the same video, he also takes a moment to defend the possibility of Ryan Reynolds playing the lead in a possible Highlander reboot, pointing out that the then-recent Green Lantern (2011) being a bad movie was not Reynolds's fault, and that it's not fair to judge his acting abilities based on that one movie.
• His adoration of Macho Man Randy Savage while reviewing the WWF VCR game.
  • At the end of the video, despite the jokes he made in it about not allowing fans to pick what he refuses to let them vote on what he reviews in the future, he gives thanks to everybody that voted.
• Taking the time in his review of Saints Row IV to correct the impression that he hated Pacific Rim, saying he should have made it clearer that when he was talking about how stupid and loud and full of robot fights it was, he meant that he liked those things.
• In his The Bureau review, noting the game's massive Development Hell, while he bashes the game itself, he does state he's sympathetic to the developers given how long they were forced to work on the product. He doesn't blame them for the game's current state when its long development meant it was taken apart and started over repeatedly, and instead blames the game's state on Executive Meddling.
• Oreo trying to play golf along with him.
• At the end of the Gone Birding! review, he pulls off what might be one of the sweetest ways that that the trope Screw This, I'm Outta Here has been used. He calls up April and says, "I was just thinking, I live in a house with a Pumpkinhead video game... and not with you. We have really gotta change that." D'awww.
  • Really, the whole ending of that episode, when Spoony finally escapes the horrible board games, takes Oreo for a walk and is, for the first time in a long time, genuinely happy.
    • The scene is also spliced with various short scenes of birds which Spoony recorded while outside. Implying that instead of playing a horrifyingly boring board game about identifying bird, you could rather go outside and look for birds yourself, having the benefit of being outside.
  • And it's all accompanied by a non-Soundtrack Dissonance use of "What a Wonderful World," which is also a nice break from its constant use to underscore horrific scenes of violence or depravity.
• The end of SWAT 4 Mission #15 features a note about Reynolds and Girard getting married in New Jersey (the video was posted shortly after gay marriage was legalized there).
• Noah's meeting with Richard Garriott, where his childhood idol talks about how much he is a fan of Noah's work, rendering him largely speechless.
  • Not to mention the fact that the two are now best buddies. Ascended Fanboy to the max.
• In the finale of his Final Fantasy XIII review, there is a very obvious close-up shot of a photograph of the Kickassia crew on Spoony's shelf during his fistfight with Snow.
• In his commentary for the FF XIII review, he says he still hasn't lost faith in the franchise, and with each new entry he hopes he'll be able to say it's back on track.
  • And explains that he went pretty easy on Hope in the review despite him being The Scrappy to most people, since his supposed Wangst is fully justified by the situation.
• His sheer joy at Reb Brown's guest spot on Miami Vice, where for once he was utilized absolutely right so that the terrible script doesn't even matter. "Oh my god, I'm so happy right now!"
• His video reminiscing about the Ultimate Warrior in light of the man's untimely death, and calling for everyone to please not treat the man's death as a joke despite the amount of Memetic Mutation surrounding him, even while admitting that the man was not a saint beyond his onscreen persona, the guy was still a real person that still had a family.
  • His following review for The Barbarians serves as a retirement for his Ultimate Warrior character, with a quite touching and still funny But Now I Must Go letter.
• In his review of The Amazing Spider-Man 2, he declares he wishes he could make a deal with Mephisto to have the film not exist ala One More Day. April interjects she is not going to break up with him for the sake of erasing the movie from history. "Forget it then, not worth it."
• From "Wrestle! Wrestle!: Battlegrounds 2014": Considering his "Spoony hates everything" reputation, hearing how much he respects The Great Khali for soldiering through the immense pain he feels every day to wrestle, simply because the guy loves his job, is pretty cool.
  • Also, him thanking his mom for getting him a one year subscription to the WWE Network. Brief, but nice.
  • He often stresses that, while he has problems with IWC punching bags like John Cena and Roman Reigns, he will compliment them when they deserve it and often says that, regardless of his personal feelings, he does not want anyone to get hurt just so they won't be on TV.
• After his review of the Big Trouble In Little China (Commodore 64) game, you'd expect Spoony to go on an anger fueled rant about how this game ruined one more thing that he loved. Instead, Spoony almost happily says that no lousy licensed game could make him love Big Trouble in Little China any less. He even quotes the movie with a smile on his face as he does so. It's genuinely nice to see him have something that is beyond ruination.
• Before going into his viewer's choice pool for the next Black Hole of Board Games, after making a joke that fans were trying to break him and failed and that he's not afraid of them is why he starting up another poll, he takes off his character and says that letting fans pick the game was one of the best ideas he's ever had and that he wouldn't change a thing.
• The vlog after his Patreon reached the level where he promised he'd make a movie, which he hadn't taken seriously at all. He's so overwhelmed that he's barely able to talk about it for a few minutes.
• April's appearances on the vlogs are often full of cute and slightly Adorkable couple moments between the two, such as them mock-biting each other's faces or playing with Oreo.
• Spoony's review of The Firing Line ends with Spoony admitting that it was the last movie that Reb Brown starred in. Spoony says that, for all of the ups and downs of Reb Brown's career, he enjoyed it all, and admits that there will be a void on The Spoony Experiment that few other people could fill.
• Noah's unexpected interview with Paul Morgan Stetler in October 2022 became one right away due to not only how well the two get along and sincerely like one another but for seeing Noah in good spirits at all, especially after the past few years, and fans in the comments just genuinely happy to see Noah doing better and hoping it will be the start of a recovery.

---