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Japan is a country rich in traditional culture, and within its plethora of anime series lie many that are deeply poignant and meaningful. Japanese anime encompasses a diverse range of themes, but a significant number of directors prefer to explore melancholy and profound narratives. In this article, Software Tricks presents to you the Top 15 Most Heartbreaking Anime Series.
1. Grave of the Fireflies
When asked about heartbreaking anime in Japan, one title invariably springs to mind: 'Grave of the Fireflies.' This film not only encapsulates pure sorrow but also condemns the acts of war among nations, which subject people to various forms of suffering. The story revolves around two siblings who lose their mother due to American airstrikes and their father due to his service in the Imperial Japanese Navy. Seita and Setsuko struggle to survive on a daily basis, but the challenges prove too much for the 17-year-old older brother. Eventually, Setsuko also succumbs to malnutrition at a tender age, leaving Seita to grapple with the harsh realities of life alone.
2. 5 Centimeters Per Second: A Tale of Melancholy
5 Centimeters Per Second is hailed as the most inspiring sad anime, influencing many directors and artists alike. It tells the poignant love story of Tono Takaki from childhood, marked by frequent relocations due to his family's job circumstances. Throughout the film, he reminisces about significant milestones in his life. He forms a promising friendship with a girl during his youth, but whether they will reunite or both choose separate paths towards promising futures remains uncertain.
3. Your Name: Love Transcending Space and Time
Your Name, released after 5 Centimeters Per Second, is often contrasted with it: while 5 Centimeters Per Second teaches that distance can blur feelings, Your Name shows that love is powerful enough to overcome both space and time. The film revolves around two individuals, Miitsuha – a high school girl living in the mundane town of Itomori, and Taki – a city boy in bustling Tokyo. They inexplicably switch bodies despite being separated by vast geographical and temporal distances. Will they find each other to fulfill their final body-switching promise or remain lost in the chaos of fate?
4. Weathering With You: A Tale of Divine Separation
Weathering With You shares a familial bond with Your Name, continuing the exploration of melancholic anime intertwined with time reversal. The story follows Hodaka – a teenager who leaves his small island to seek life in bustling Tokyo, and Hina – a girl with the supernatural ability to control the weather. Hodaka and Hina meet and share many interests and aspirations to make life beautiful, but the divide between a child of a deity and a mortal proves insurmountable in the long run.
5. Your Lie in April: The Symphony of Heartbreak
Your Lie in April centers around Arima Kosei – a piano prodigy who was once celebrated in the music world. However, a major upheaval occurs in his life when his mother passes away. She was his source of inspiration. Following this psychological shock, he loses the ability to play the piano due to the loss of his hearing and music perception. However, after two years of abstaining from the piano, Kosei encounters Miyazono – an amateur violinist who reignites his passion for music.
6. Hotarubi no Mori e: A Bittersweet Love Tale
Hotarubi no Mori e tells a poignant love story full of injustice and unfulfilled wishes, yet beauty thrives in its unfinished nature. The film revolves around Hotaru – a six-year-old girl who gets lost in a forest of spiritual beings, where she sheds many tears. Gin, a teenage spirit, comes to Hotaru's aid and earns her trust, leading them through the passage of time together. However, Hotaru remains unaware that any physical contact with Gin would cause him to vanish into the wind and clouds.
7. Wolf Children: A Tale of Unconventional Parenthood
If you seek an anime portraying familial love and sacred motherhood, then this is undoubtedly the perfect choice for you. The story centers around 19-year-old college student Hana, who falls in love with a solitary, wolf-like young man deep in the forest. The story takes a complicated turn when Hana's partner passes away, leaving her to care for two children alone. What makes the situation even more complex is that her children are not ordinary humans but rather wolf-human hybrids.
8. The Flower We Saw That Day
The Flower We Saw That Day is an anime deeply imbued with the sadness of childhood, full of innocence and playfulness. It tells the story of a group of six friends who used to play together in the rain but lost touch after one of them, Menma, died in an accident. Ten years later, Menma remains trapped in the afterlife and reaches out to Jinta (one of the friends) for help. Jinta gathers the group, and together they journey to the other side to rescue Menma, but they can't return...
9. Elfen Lied
Elfen Lied revolves around Lucy, a genetically altered individual with a range of weapons capable of defeating anyone with just a 'note.' Lucy harbors a deep hatred for humanity due to their discrimination against her, especially towards the one who created her. However, will anything help Lucy change her mindset and start afresh, or will she forever tread the path of sin...
10. Angel's War
Angel's War brings tears to viewers' eyes with the distant stories of characters in the timeline beneath hell. Set in a sinister underworld where dull souls struggle to survive, they realize their purpose in life just as they vanish forever from existence, compelling them to strive for survival and achieve their life goals.
11. Plastic Memories
Plastic Memories is a melancholic anime fused with futuristic science fiction. It revolves around a future where humanoid androids populate the world. Companies focus on producing SA Corp Giftia androids – androids capable of full human emotions. However, over time, these androids encounter numerous issues and can no longer exist...
12. Charlotte
Charlotte revolves around Otosaka Yuu, who possesses the unique ability to possess other people's bodies for 5 seconds. Thanks to this, Otosaka Yuu manages to enter a prestigious high school with astonishingly high scores. However, his power is exposed by others, and Yuu must face unforeseen threats that leave him overwhelmed...
13. A Silent Voice
A Silent Voice tells the story of a deaf girl named Yoku, who transfers to the same class as Ishida Shoya. From then on, Shoya constantly seeks ways to engage in mischievous antics to bully Yoku. Yoku becomes the center of attention in class discussions because she is not as complete as others. After Yoku transfers to another class, Shoya becomes the target of jokes and discussions. It is at this point that Shoya realizes his past mistakes towards Yoku and decides to seek her out to make amends...
14. The Garden of Words
The Garden of Words is a melancholic love story of 15-year-old Takao, who dreams of becoming a master shoemaker. One rainy day, 27-year-old Yukino seeks solace in the park while Takao skips school to be there. They make a pact to meet in the park on rainy days, but what happens if that year there's only sunshine?
15. Death Note
Death Note centers around high school student Raito, who accidentally picks up a notebook called Death Note. The instructions in the notebook specify that anyone whose name is written in it will die. Initially skeptical, Yagami doubts the authenticity of the notebook, thinking it's someone's bizarre prank. However, after using it to kill two criminals, he starts to believe in the miraculous power of Death Note...
In this article, Software Tricks presents to you the top saddest anime films. Have a great day, everyone!
