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LOOK BACK always hits me right in the feels. Just a really sad story about losing a friend, but does it do a good job of showing just how much was lost! A great watch; highly recommended if you can find 50 minutes to spare.
My favourite tragic anime would be Sword Art Online if all they adapted was the seventh book, Mother’s Rosary, but since it started as a .hack//SIGN knockoff, it’s not really tragic, it’s just redundant. I say that as a fan — I mean, they’re both a stack of MMO tropes from the 90s. SAO is actually good, though. But you can’t call it tragic because of seven episodes, unless you also mean the stuff about the Moonlit Black Cats (i.e. the true mother of Kirito’s and Asuna’s child), the fate of Eugeo, and a few other things. Anyway, I still think it’s well written, though, more so the books than the anime. (I swear, I’m a fan, I just never drank the Kool-Aid.) (Also, season 4 was fine.) (Really calling down the thunder with that last one. It’s like telling Tokyo Ghoul fans the second season was better than the first.)
But my real favourite tragic anime is Your Lie in April. Does it have the best writing though? I mean, they signpost the ending in the OP of the first cour. That’s not very good. Love it to death though. A close second is Angel Beats!, but the ending kinda confused me a bit. That’s gonna be the honourable mention.
For my money, it’s Clannad, but Clannad isn’t without its problems. First, the name. The anime is named after Enya’s family’s band, over in Ireland, but has nothing to do with them. They thought the band name meant “family” in Gaelic so they rolled with it, and did not change the name when they were corrected. They just doubled down, so we have an anime called Clannad that has nothing to do with Clannad. THIS is Clannad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zHTcxVjX0I Yeah, you’ve heard it before. I think it’s a law in Eire (Ireland), if you make a movie about Irish people, it has to have Theme From Harry’s Game by Clannad in it. You get an exception if you use another Clannad song, an Enya song, or a U2 song. I’m sure that’s a law. Okay, anyway, there’s also this kinda bullshit thing the second season has going on that makes no sense. And the ending is dumb. But they tried. It was based on a visual novel (one of those point and click games where you try to get your character to bang the girl you think is the hottest), except it was sad. If you ditch the ending and you ignore the robot stuff, yeah, it’s pretty solid.
If you’re not willing to make those concessions, it’s Angel Beats!. Your Lie in April had the better ending, and probably has the best ending of any anime, ever, at least since Sword Art Online got a third season. We can’t say best show ever, because Six Feet Under is still a thing. I mean holy shit, if you wanna get wrecked and don’t mind live action, the first 55-ish episodes won’t hurt you much, but those last few, and especially the last 10 minutes of the last one… I’m still not okay hearing that Sia song. (Though it’s awesome and I love how they did the video.)
But my real favourite tragic anime is Your Lie in April. Does it have the best writing though? I mean, they signpost the ending in the OP of the first cour. That’s not very good. Love it to death though. A close second is Angel Beats!, but the ending kinda confused me a bit. That’s gonna be the honourable mention.
Since you mentioned YLIA, the ending really resonated on me on a personal level. Like your point, the writing isn’t the best, though it’s up there. The tragic-related subplot in A Place Further Than The Universe is written better. Clannad is too convoluted to qualify as the “best”. I wouldn’t consider Takopi’s Original Sin either because of its ending disqualifies it as a tragedy for me. Steins;Gate? Yeah, sure, because I’m an OkaMayu shipper, but the multiple worldlines in that story makes the tragedy less clearcut.
That leaves a clear winner of “best tragic storytelling” after some thought: Maquia. All of the movie led up to its climax, and it paid off hard.
I’ve seen most of those. I didn’t really consider Maquia because it’s a film, though it is an anime.
My problem with Maquia is that you knew what it was going to do right from the start. Elves live forever and they avoid entanglements with the lesser races because losing generation after generation of them as you never age is heartbreaking. Lord of the Rings did it, D&D is based on that, and, like, everything with elves is about the tragedy of their longevity. So when Maquia sets itself as “exiled elf adopts human child,” most of us knew exactly how that was going to play out. And it did.
But the ending still kicks your arse. And I love it. I felt like some of the writing in the middle was weaker, it kinda dragged on and I found it difficult to stay engaged with it. Then the ending happened and I had a feeling it was gonna be one thing, and it was actually a slightly different thing.
spoiler
When Maquia sees the child and you think it’s her adoptive child’s child, but no, it’s his grandchild and you’re like OH… she really stayed gone two full generations… and then that line at the end. I’m sorry, I’m gonna post it, if you clicked the spoiler, you bought the ticket. Now you’ve gotta take the ride. I had to remember it, so now you do, too. “I’m sorry. But your mom… is going to break her promise.”
spoiler
😭
I’m gonna need more explaination on the girl from the Black are being Yui’s mother. I’ve read the first three books and watched all of the show.
Also I quite liked Your Lie In April, I think Anohana could give it run for its money as far as the ending goes.
Certain episodes of Violet Evergarden fit. Majorly the 10th one.
I haven’t watched I wanna eat your pancreas, just read the manga. But from what I heard, its a faithful and good adaption.
Want to add last love song saikano. Really hit me hard.
dont watch it unless you are mentally ok. Its crippling sad. I remember really enjoying it and then being in the dumps for a bit. A friend of mine didn’t believe me, started, and knew what I ment when the subber put “stop here if you want happy ending” at like espiode 6 and then didnt come out of room for a few days after finishing.
Mad in abyss is also a tragedy i cant stop watching. Really messed up show that only gets worse.
I’d say Gurren Lagann. I mean, it doesn’t evoke the same amount of raw emotion as Grave of the Fireflies (because I don’t think anything does), but . . . well. You’ve just gotten past the final fight, and everyone’s celebrating, and . . . then that wedding, and the closing part of the framing scene. It’s like a punch in the gut, and it absolutely makes sense in the context of the story. That was not easy to pull off.
Depends on the genre
- Dusk Maiden of Amnesia
- Gunslinger Girls
- Steins;Gate
- Vivy
- Ergo Proxy
I stand for Steins;Gate, it’s great.
Clannad. Easy.
The promised neverland. The anime was tragic, but the manga storywriting was very good.
The first two seasons of Hell Girl are excellent.
It’s an episodic series about people contracting a supernatural force to get revenge. Lots and lots of tragedy ensues.
Saikano
What if the girl of your dreams was a weapon of mass destruction.
