Up Scene 12 Summary

Carl Has a Change of Heart

  • Carl starts dragging his house toward Paradise Falls yet again. Russell follows somberly.
  • When Carl stops to double-check Ellie’s childhood drawing of the house and the falls, Russell rips off his sash full of badges and throws it on the ground. “Here,” he says, “I don’t want this anymore.”
  • Carl’s made it to Paradise Falls, but the victory is hollow. He goes inside the house and takes out Ellie’s Adventure Book. He looks through it, and when he gets to the page marked “Stuff I’m Going to Do,” he tears up.
  • Then he looks again. That section’s pages are filled with photos of him and Ellie: getting married, celebrating a birthday, feeding birds, and so on.
  • On the last page, there’s a handwritten note from Ellie: “Thanks for the adventure. Now go have a new one!” Ack! That lint’s back in our eye.
  • Carl picks up Russell’s sash and thinks for a second. He goes outside to find Russell.
  • Russell’s up in the air. He’s tied some of the remaining balloons to himself and, aided by the trusty leaf blower, he’s going to go help Kevin even if Carl won’t. Russell speeds off.
  • Carl has an idea. He lugs all of his and Ellie’s belongings out of the house, lightening the load. Suddenly, his house is airborne again! He sails after Russell.
  • Just then, there’s a knock at the door. It’s Dug!
  • Dug asks if he can stay, and Carl’s all “Heck, yeah! You’re my dog, and I’m your master!”