8 of the Saddest Moments in Anime

Anime is a powerful form of entertainment. The animation is breathtaking and the storylines run deep. The characters are layered and full of emotion — and you learn more and more about them as you dive deeper into the ongoing seasons. It’s why we cosplay these characters, bringing a Demon Slayer Tanjiro sword and green and black checkered jacket.

But it’s not all anime fights. Some moments will really touch you, however, and have made even the toughest anime fan cry. Here are some of the saddest moments in anime ever:

Grave of the Fireflies

This dramatic anime movie is from Studio Ghibli, which explains how it expresses various emotions so well. This deep film studies the impact war has on civilians, including main characters Seita and Setsuko. They try to survive the war-riddled countryside but Setsuko eventually dies from starvation. It’s even more upsetting because it’s right when Seita finally found food. When she sees that her younger sister has passed away, you’ll be balling your eyes out right along with her.

Your Lie in April

Every anime fan has heard of Your Lie in April — but not all are brave enough to watch it. Instead of violence and gore, this anime will scar you with pure emotions. A boy just lost his mother and has lost all hope of being happy until he meets a positive violinist. As you may have guessed, the violinist, Kaori, has a life-threatening disease that takes her life. She leaves behind a letter admitting her feelings for the main character, leaving even the coldest of people heartbroken that she never got to say how she felt before passing away.

Demon Slayer

While this anime series focuses on fighting demons, it is full of layered characters with horrific backstories. When Rengoku sacrificed themselves, it left the anime community reeling, especially when they saw that even Inosuke couldn’t hold back their tears. It’s a death that pains characters beyond the initial moment, with Tanjiro still thinking about it while on his mission with Tengen. Tanjiro experiences a lot of survivor's guilt, a complex emotion that’s explored in the coming episodes.

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Naruto

Naruto is one of our favorite animes of all time. Everyone grew up watching Naruto and really relating to the characters. While Jiraiya made us cringe with some of his creepy behavior, he remained likable for a lot of his other qualities. When he ended up dying at the hand of his own student, the Naruto fanbase was left heartbroken. He was a father figure for many Naruto fans and many felt close to him due to growing up with the character for so long. To see him die was shocking.

One Piece

One Piece may be about finding the treasure, but the bond between the Straw Hat crew is what really keeps fans invested. The bond between Luffy and Ace is something fans latched on to early on. Ace ends up taking a fatal blow to save his younger brother, stunning the anime fandom. When Luffy’s face pops up on screen full of tears, it’s even harder to digest. This is one of the most emotional moments in the 1,000-plus episodes of One Piece.

Attack on Titan

This drama series is dark and gut-wrenching from beginning to end. The city of Shiganshina is destroyed by Titans in the first episode, people getting killed left and right. But the scene becomes even darker when a Titan destroys Eren’s house and eats his mom right in front of him. In that moment, Eren knows that he must avenge her and fight the Titans. Every time they show the flashback, your hair will stand on end and your eyes will well up, especially as you see the astonishing things Eren goes through as the episodes continue.

Fullmetal Alchemist

You’ve probably seen this creepy, ghost-like dog cosplay all over conventions. But why are people so scared of it? Well, one of the saddest scenes in Fullmetal Alchemist involves a once-happy girl named Nina getting turned into a chimera by her father. She is never able to turn back to her normal form. The idea of a parent’s betrayal and a once-positive girl having her life altered against her will is harrowing.

Pokemon

Pokemon may be seen as light-hearted and fun, a tale for kids, but it has a lot of heartwarming moments. The first Pokemon movie was especially impactful. During a battle between Mew and Mewtwo, Ash tries to stop the battle but is caught in between and becomes frozen by an attack. Pokemon fans were left heartbroken when Pikachu tried to revive Ash in vain. While Ash eventually came back, watching Pikachu struggle was heart wrenching.