Top 10 Anime Moments That Made You Die Inside
For this list, we'll be looking at the times where an anime decided to drop a bomb that was so upsetting that it caused part of us to break. These scenes are bound to depress the hell out of you, though we will be excluding actual deaths. As you might expect, spoilers are aplenty!
#10: Mio’s Night Job
“Dororo” (2019)
In the back of our minds, we all knew that there was something sad about this lovely lass. Washing herself in the river, only working nights, showing shame when she learned Hyakkimaru could see into the souls of people. The writing was on the wall. Of course, that did nothing to diminish the pain when we saw that in order to support the orphans in her care, she resorted to selling her body to soldiers. We’re with Dororo on this one, that shit was hard to watch, not to mention gives her sweet song a much more sinister undertone.
#9: Joey Loses to Marik
“Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters” (2000-04)
So close! So close to knocking Yami Marik out of the tournament and delivering what could have been the greatest comeback in all of duelling history. Despite being threatened with losing his soul to the Shadow Realm, as well as being pelted with attacks that felt painfully real, Joey stood tall against everything the crazed being threw at him. If he had just managed to play one more card he would have won the whole thing! Sadly, the duel proved too much for him. We salute you, you beautiful Brooklyn bastard.
#8: Lily’s Past
“Zombieland Saga” (2018)
Well, that got dark fast. You’d think after watching so many heads fly off, we’d be used to the crazy antics of this undead idol group. And then we got a glimpse of Lily’s backstory. Up until now, the youngest member of the zombie gals had just been the token cute character…at least until we learned how her father’s obsession of putting her television had pushed her to literal breaking point. Did…did Zombieland Saga actually make us cry?!
#7: Shoko’s Misplaced Hope
“Valvrave the Liberator” (2013)
There’s little to no doubt that this scene was meant to maximize on shock value. In an attempt to galvanise her fellow students, Shoko makes an impassioned speech, all fuelled by her love and admiration of Haruto. Little does she know that while she’s making this speech Haruto is off in a park somewhere, consumed by his own vampiric rage and sexually assaulting Saki. What hurts the most about all of this is how blissfully unaware she is of this entire messed up situation.
#6: Mob Gets Bullied
“Mob Psycho 100 II” (2019)
It’s amazing, isn’t it? How despite knowing that he has enough psychic power to obliterate anyone who steps up to him, we can’t help but be protective of Mob because he’s just too much of a nice guy. Which means when we see a bunch of cocky shits physically and verbally batter him, it pushes our rage meter well over a hundred! Even if it was all a falsity conjured up be a vengeful spirit, watching Mob slowly crumble to pieces because of the abuse is almost too much to bear.
#5: Rem Rejected
“Re:Zero - Starting Life in Another World” (2016)
We’re not trying to reignite any waifu wars here, but even diehard Emilia fans have to admit, watching this adorable oni lose out on the chance of getting with the long-suffering hero of her dreams was…well…let’s just say we would have been happy with another restart. After giving so much, coming so far and showing such sincere affection to Subaru, we’re kind of baffled that he had the stones to break her heart then and there. Good job on sticking to what you believe in Subaru…even if you did choose wrong.
#4: Kaede Regains Her Memory
“Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai” (2018)
Due to suffering from adolescence syndrome, Sakuta’s beloved sister regressed to a more childlike state, one who was absolutely petrified of the outside world. However, thanks to her brother’s patience and compassion, she started to overcome her own mental hurdles. She was even on the cusp of going back to school…only to up the next day as her original self, erasing the Kaede we had all come to know and love in the process. The only person who took it harder than us was Sakuta himself.
#3: Kayo’s Abuse
“Erased” (2016)
Violence against children is always a heavy topic, one that should never be approached causally. As it happens, this series portrayed it in such an effective way that much like Kayo, we were totally overcome by the hopelessness of her situation. Determined to change her fate, Satoru investigates Kayo’s home only to find her beaten and abandoned in the cold. Hopeless, Satoru can only watch as Kayo’s mother manipulates her daughter into submission.
#2: Mitty & Nanachi’s Fate
“Made in Abyss” (2017)
Nothing could prepare us for what happened to these two Orphans who found themselves at the behest of the crazed scientist Bondrewd. After being subjected to the Abyss’ lowest level, Nanachi and Mitty are reshaped into entities that are the furthest thing from human. Especially when it comes to Mitty, who literally melts before her best friend’s eyes until she’s nothing more than a sentient blob of flesh, unable to be killed, and generally spending every waking moment in absolute agony. Remember when we thought this series was going to be lighthearted?
#1: Chimera Nina
“Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood” (2009-10)
Who knew such heartwarming moments would be followed up with one of the most upsetting scenes in anime history. Motivated by desperation and greed, Shou Tucker repeated history by turning his own daughter into a monster, fusing her with their pet dog Alexander, purely for the sake of retaining his State Alchemist’s license. Hearing Nina’s hollow voice echoing out of this unholy amalgamation never fails to cut us to the core, with her tragic fate serving as yet another motivator for Ed and Al to reclaim what they had lost.