Heartwarming / Elemental (2023)

"I'm so lucky."

• Ember's relationship with her father is incredibly sweet, despite her insecurities about living up to his legacy.
  • Any time Bernie suffers from a coughing fit, Ember is always right there to take care of him, and urge him to get some rest.
  • Rather than scold Ember whenever she loses her temper, Bernie only reassures her that she will eventually get it under control, seeing as how she's so good at doing everything else.
• Wade riling up the crowd to cheer for Lutz, who's playing poorly due to his mom being sick, during the game. Fans hold up hastily written signs saying "We love you Lutz" and the water fans do a (literal) wave. It's the first time that Ember sees him as the empathetic guy he is beneath the hair-trigger crying and awkwardness. It’s also heavily implied that in this moment she starts to have feelings for him.
  • In the same scene, when Wade frets over how Lutz is playing poorly because his mother is sick, a flash of compassion washes over Ember's face; she and Lutz may come from completely different words in just about every sense of the word but the pain of an ill parent proves universal.
• Despite getting off on the wrong foot, Gale is genuinely sympathetic to Ember's plight and offers to wave the inspection citations, so long as she and Wade figure out the source of the water problem in Fire Town.
• During their trip in the hot air balloon, Ember opens up to Wade as how she wanted to see a Vivisteria flower in her childhood only to be rejected by other elements for being fire, and Wade is sympathetic to her.
  • After that, Ember asks Wade how he connects with other people as she's unable to due to her fiery temper, and Wade reassures her that it's not necessarily a bad thing as sometimes it can be caused by her emotions telling her something she doesn't want to hear.
• Ember and Wade's first date, set to "Steal the Show". Sure, there are some minor hiccups (mostly due to the fact that Element City is not designed for fire people), but they both try to turn things around, and by the time the day is over, Ember is happily going back home.
  • Throughout the whole date, Ember is staring in childlike wonder at the world around her. Meanwhile, Wade can hardly take his eyes off of her.
  • Ember makes some shapes out of smoke rings for a group of kids on the skyscraper, and Wade is just watching her in completely lovestruck awe, resting his head on his hand and smiling at her.
  • At the beginning, Ember is shown hiding her head in her hoodie to not attract unwanted attention on, clearly anxious about how her date with Wade will work out. But as soon as she relaxes, she let it loose and spends the rest of the day without it.
  • Ember sneaking peeks of her and Wade's picture at work.
  • Wade dancing with the other elements in the park and his goofy little grin when trying to convince Ember to join in, which she quickly does.
  • As Ember walks home, she admires the waterfall created by the overhead train. In every prior instance, Ember understandably hated that spillover, either dodging out of its way or shielding herself with her umbrella because of the danger it poses. But now she gets close enough to the water to almost touch it, because now it reminds her of Wade.
• During Ember's breakdown at the beach, Wade just listens silently to her troubles and offers her comfort.
  Ember: I'm a bad daughter.
  Wade: Hey, no. You're doing your best.
  Ember: Ugh, I'm a mess.
  Wade: Nah, I think you're even more beautiful.
• After Ember fixes the crack with her glass making abilities, making a beautiful glass seal.
  Wade: [Almost crying]
  Ember: [Curious] What?
  Wade: [Voice cracking] I've just never been punched in the face with such beauty before.
  [Ember laughs]
• When Wade gives Ember the glass Vivisteria.
  Wade: Oh, here.
  Ember: [Surprised] You kept this?
  Wade: It's special.
• Wade's family comes off as a bunch of overly emotional weirdos and can be Innocently Insensitive, but they fully support Wade's relationship with Ember, accepting the latter as one of their own. Once they discover Ember's talent with glass works, his mom even calls in to a friend to get her a job opportunity so she could express her potential.
  Wade: See? I told you you're special.
  • Watch Wade's expression after Harold makes his Innocently Insensitive comment to Ember. He looks absolutely disgusted that his uncle would say something like that, and likely would have spoken up in Ember's defense had the conversation not moved on. Brook can also be seen angrily glaring at her brother as he says this.
    • To be fair to Harold, he immediately winces in regret at the faux pas.
• After failing twice to get a reaction from Ember during the "Crying Game", Wade then launches into a truly beautiful speech about how meeting Ember completely changed his life, and reveals his feelings for her in the process.
  Wade: Ember, when I met you, I thought I was drowning. But that light, that light inside you has made me feel so alive. And all I want now is to be near it. Near you. Together.
  • Ember was so moved by Wade's words that she lets down her playfully smug demeanor and sheds a Single Tear of lava. Although, the reason why she is crying (as shown in her mind) leans more into tearjerker.
• Ember's mother is initially in disbelief that Ember is in love with a water person like Wade, but once the love test Cinder does with them gets a positive result, she questions it no further and even helps Ember cover for Wade when Bernie suddenly arrives at the store.
  • Ember smiles in awe when Wade manages to light his incense stick, as if she sees it as hope for a relationship with him.
  • Lighting the sticks was an Impossible Task set up by Cinder to prove her point, Wade refracts the light from Ember's flame through his body to light his stick, showing his love for her is so great he will do the impossible to be with her.
• With Gale's help, Wade invites Ember to the abandoned Garden Central Station, and using a bubble to protect her from water, he leads her to the Vivisteria garden, knowing that she wanted to see it when she was a child. Even when she almost dies for it, she's overjoyed by this experience.
  • When they get to the "No Fire Allowed" sign, Wade knocks it down.
  • Before they see the Vivisteria flower:
    Wade: [To Ember] They didn't let you in there. Why does anyone get to tell you what you can do in your life?
• Wade talking Ember into trying to hold hands, and the sheer joy from both of them when they realize it's possible.
  • The two then go from holding hands to a full-on Dance of Romance, with Ember even cuddling up to Wade and resting her head against his chest.
    Wade: I'm so lucky...
• Wade's Love Confession to Ember at the grand re-opening at The Fireplace.
  Wade: There are a millions reasons why this can’t work, a million nos; but there is also one yes: we touched. And when we did something happened to us, something impossible. We changed each other’s chemistry […] Look. I had regrets when my dad died. But because of you, I’ve learned to embrace the light while it burns. Tìshók’. You don’t have forever to say what you need to say. I love you, Ember Lumen. And I'm pretty sure you love me too.
• Wade risking his safety to salvage the Lumens' sacred Blue Flame with a lantern, despite just pleading with Ember to leave it, because he loves her and he respects how important her culture is to her.
• While also a heavy tearjerker, Ember and Wade fully admitting their love for each other as the latter begins to evaporate when they're trapped in the furnace.
  Wade: Ember, I have no regrets. You gave me something people search for their whole lives.
  Ember: (in tears) But I can't exist in a world without you! I'm sorry I didn't say it before...I love you, Wade.
  • Even as he's slowly vanishing, Wade takes a moment to appreciate the beauty of Ember's light reflecting off the water.
    Wade: I really do love it when your light does that.
• As Ember is grieving Wade's apparent death, she hears the faint but unmistakable sound of Wade crying. She then starts reciting the same butterfly and lost summer love stories that he used during the "Crying Game", which is enough to prompt Wade's crying and causes his condensed form to start dripping from the ceiling. Her parents then chip in with their own heartfelt comments - Cinder tells him that his and Ember's love test was a perfect match, and Bernie unbans Wade from the store. Ember then finishes everything off declaring that all she wants is to be with Wade forever.
  Ember: I want to explore the world with you, Wade Ripple! I want to have you with me, in my life, forever!
  • The look of sheer elation on Ember's face as Wade is restored to life. She wastes no time throwing herself into his arms and he happily returns the gesture, before they both lean in for a Big Damn Kiss.
• Along with Fern and Gale plus Clod and a fire girl his age, other mixed element couples are seen, all following Wade and Ember's lead. On top of that, non-fire elements are seen living in and exploring Fire Town.
• Ember setting off for her new job with Wade by her side. As she begins to leave, she takes one last look back at her father and performs the traditional bow in respect, and he returns the gesture in full.
• The Creative Closing Credits show what happened to characters after the film:
  • Gale and Fern get a positive match reading from Cinder, and they proceed to make out until she sprays them like cats.
  • Bernie and Cinder coming over to the Ripples' for dinner, getting a warm (if wet) reception. After all the hurdles Ember and Wade went through, it's reassuring to see these future in-laws getting to know each other.
• Doubles as Tearjerker: At the end of the ending credits, there’s a "In Memory Of" list of people who passed away before the release of the movie. And it ends with a picture of Peter Sohn’s parents, as a way to thank them for everything they did for him.

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