Post by Felix Falora on Sept 17, 2010 6:01:32 GMT -5
WARNING! THE FOLLOWING SUBJECT MATTER WILL CONTAIN A TON OF SPOILERS FOR THE FOLLOWING: FRUITS BASKET, DEATH NOTE, SUPER METROID, AXIS POWERS HETALIA, CODE GEASS, FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST, MOTHER 3, PERSONA 3, FINAL FANTASY V, ELDER SCROLLS IV: OBLIVION, AIR, AND CLANNAD! IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN ANY OF THESE AND WISH TO REMAIN UNSPOILED, PLEASE STAY AWAY FROM THIS LIST! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
TSI asked for this one and I thought I wouldn't do it... then I found myself writing out the list. I LOVE TO MAKE LISTS, IT SEEMS! Anyway, this started off as just My Top 10 Tearjerkers... but then I realized that everything that made me cry related to death and I thought, "Oh for the love of...!" So I changed the name. These are my Top 10 Tearjerking Deaths. I didn't put them in anime/game section this time because it will feature examples from both. As always, Your Mileage May Vary. What may have caused me to cry bucketloads... you could've laughed at while snarking down popcorn/hitting the attack button again and again. Anyway, no need to make anymore people wait. Let's begin.
Honorable Mention
Momiji's Mother
Momiji's Mother
DAMNIT FUNIMATION! Since all the actual clips of this moment have been taken down, you'll just have to settle with an AMV. This is an honorable mention because it's not a death, but I felt it was too good to leave out due to one thing... usually I don't cry reading books, and that adheres to manga as well. I'll admit that I didn't cry at the deaths of Sirius and Dumbledore up until I saw them on the big screen, even though I wanted to cry. And I had all rights to at those points in time; I was in my room and nobody else was watching. I have issues with tearing up in public thanks to the stereotype; in my schools, if you were seen crying and you were male, it usually meant you were to be targetted for bullying. It got the point where I was mentally scarred into running away from my parents when they were watching something that jerked my tear ducts. Well the scene where Momiji tells his story to Tohru got my tear ducts working... in the freakin' High School library. Needless to say this would not do and I got out of the public range as quickly as I could. It's just a sad story altogether, but I already mentioned Momiji's story when I put him in my favorite character's list.
#10
L's Death
L's Death
Starting off with something that is already full of Your Mileage May Vary, L's death hit off home with some pre-death symbolic value that dumb fangirls will forever interpret as their proof that Light/L should be a valid Yaoi pairing. Then to the actual scene itsself. Rem realizes that, if she does not act, L will get the upper hand and have Misa executed. So she goes about killing Watari and L to make sure no witnesses are left. As L falls to the ground, he is caught by a in-character Light and some more symbology seems to play out with the other kids, the shifting gears, the stained window glasses, and Rem's dying of course. Then L witnesses the evil smile on Light's face and realizes that he had been correct the entire time. Light was Kira... but now he had no way of telling that to the world. This scene hit home with me when it first played as I had come into liking L. His character was amazing to me, so when it was taken out, I just couldn't help but shed at least a few tears. Plus, even though I don't hate him, I am one of those that believe that Near just did not have the same charm that L did.
#9
The Baby Metroid's Death
The Baby Metroid's Death
Well it may not be a baby by this point, but believe it or not, this had me at a Tearjerking point. The baby Metroid you saved at the end of Metroid II is now overtly grown due to the Space Pirates and is a freakin' giant. It even drained your life supply near dry just to stop and realize... you were its mommy. That was heartwarming enough, but this... You finally defeat the Metroid I Mother Brain, thinking that's it, but then HO CRAP, Clipped Wing Angel boss (only one form) with killer plot device. It literally hits you with its penultimate attack, making you unable to stand up. Just when it's about to finish you off, however, you Metroid sucks it dry, or so it thinks, and then proceeds to heal you. Mother Brain comes back and starts to attack it while it heals you and gives you the Rainbow Beam, as some call it. If you're like me, you can imagine the Metroid crying in pain while it heals and powers Samus, maybe even Samus trying to tell the Metroid to save itsself. Then Mother Brain finally destroys the Metroid and it goes up in flames, a heartbreaking moment for Super Metroid players everywhere... that quickly turned into Samus', as well as yours and mine, ROARING RAMPAGE OF REVENGE, to where you just utterly obliterate Mother Brain with the Rainbow Beam. No more fucking around; it just became serious business.
#8
The American Revolution
The American Revolution
HOORAH for disabled embedding... DAMNIT FUNIMATION! At least their dubs are good, though, so I'll let them pass... for now. Now this may not seem like a death in the context it is played, but let's not forget that Axis Powers Hetalia is a playoff of wars that have happened between countries. Sometimes it'll make these wars look so silly that we either laugh in ignorance, laugh in knowing, or know and then question what the hell Japan was thinking for making such tragedies look like a stroll on the beach. But one of the wars that Axis Powers Hetalia actually took seriously was the American Revolution. Even though it was a short part, it was a part that nearly moved me to tears. America reminescing back on the war, he remembers the good times he and Britain had, which actually make them look like a nice family instead of, y'know, King George being a greedy asshole. Then the musket scene. I shed a few tears here. Britain weak and defeated, wishing that America would've just stayed his brother, would've just lived with him, both of them happy forever, and America commenting that England used to be so great. The atmosphere in that scene was simply depressing. Both countries were heartbroken at their seperation, but America was prepared to go through Hell to get his independence. Britain just had to be shot down in order to achieve it. And I count this as a Tearjerking death because it is a war, technically, so you know people died.
#7
Death of Lelouch Lamperouge
Death of Lelouch Lamperouge
Lelouch was like Light in many ways, yet also unlike him in many ways. He had a godlike power, but he fought to undo one nation whereas Light wanted to kill off evil in general. Lelouch, after fulfilling his mission, took over the world and began to perform greater attrocities. But all these attrocities were to make the world hate him because his final plan was to unify the world against one cruel dictator. Lelouch, in making himself look like an evil tyrant, was wanted dead by all the world. And no one would know that he was really concerned for them. Suzaku, playing off as Zero, slays Lelouch and Lelouch's will is complete. The world rejoices for their savior, Zero, and Suzaku is bound to play Zero forever as Suzaku Kururugi will forever be remembered as the Dragon who served Lelouch until his death. When I first watched this scene and Nunnally's reaction to her dear brother's death, when she alone realized what her brother had hoped for, I couldn't help but cry for the Heroric Sociopath's demise. Lelouch may have been evil, but as I mentioned before, in my eyes, he had a lot more going for him then Light Yagami. Now, realistically speaking, this could never work; with Lelouch out of the way, people would war over who would rule the world next. But it's an anime, so odds are it worked perfectly. Also, people debate on whether Lelouch is dead or not. I say he is for it leaves a more powerful impact on the ending of the series.
#6
Nina's Death
Nina's Death
Yeah, I know the Brotherhood anime will probably throw new Tearjerkers at me when I get further in it, but Nina's death is still, to me, one of the saddest moments in the anime. We get introduced to the daughter of Complete Monster alchemist Shou Tucker, the lovable Nina, and her dog Alexander. The show goes out of its way to make Nina this cute little girl that we would love our daughters to be like, that Hughes would've doted over I'm sure. Then Shou Tucker turns her into a chimera, fusing her together with Alexander. The result is a chimera capable of human speech, but also wracked in pain indescribable... at least in the manga. In the anime, it seems like Nina knew what was happening, which only made it worse, that Shou had twisted his daughter into believing that such a thing was normal. The final nail to the heart was the military planning to cover things up and make an experiment out of her. Thanks to Ed, Nina manages to escape only to run into Scar who, like in the manga, kills her mercifully. I cannot blame Scar for putting one who is suffering out of her misery. Nina's life would've been nothing but horror after being fused into that beast. But just like Ed, I couldn't help but cry when I saw the carnage left behind from her deconstruction. It reminded me of why I hate Tucker so much.
#5
Mother 3 in general, but Claus' death in specifics.
Mother 3 in general, but Claus' death in specifics.
Mother 3 is simply a great contrast to its prequel. Where Earthbound was a light-hearted whimsical adventure, Mother 3 was a tragedy from start to finish. It was a masterpiece with music that pushed the limits of the GBA and an amazingly portrayed story, but it was just absolutely heartscarring. However, since I want to try and limit these things to one situation only, I will talk about Claus' death. This death had already been caused by the Robo Drago that killed Hinawa, mother to Lucas and Claus, in Chapter 1. However, Porky robotonizes Claus and turns him into his robot slave, a process which, I swear, locks Claus' agonizing soul into his body, tormenting him as he is forced to watch his body commit attrocities in Porky's name. We find Claus a number of times as the Masked Man, but we only know at Chapter 8, the last chapter, that he is Claus. The final battle against him is absolutely heartrending; Lucas is unable to attack, so all you can do is defend and heal. Meanwhile, Hinawa's spirit will call to Claus, breaking him free from Porky's reign of control. When Hinawa finally gets through to Claus, each and every message is another stab in the chest. "Lucas felt heartbroken." "The Masked Man shut his eyes." "Lucas isn't sure what to do anymore." "The Masked Man shook his head." "Lucas wanted to cry." But finally the message that just caused the tears to flow. "Claus... Claus... Claus... Come to your mother. You must be so exhausted. Come here, Claus." ... ... ... DAMN YOU PORKY! *sob*
#4
Shinjiro's Death
Shinjiro's Death
And while we're damning villains, DAMN YOU TO HELL AS WELL TAKAYA! Shinjiro was one of the coolest characters in Persona 3. While he seemed to start off as an asshole, we learn that he's really afraid of himself because his Persona, having gone wild and out of control, ended up killing an innocent family, save one boy, who just so happens to be joining the party soon as well. He's a good character, has a nice Persona, just happens to be a badass, and he loves to cook. He's just so freakin' loveable... and then Ken has to come around and want Shinjiro dead. You know what, DAMN YOU TOO KEN! Useless piece of crap; I don't even use you in FES much. So while Ken is having his emo rant due to being the boy whose family got killed, Takaya takes his chance at trying to kill Ken. Shinji, being the epic badass he is, decides to take the bullet. He pretty much asks Ken if his death is what he really wanted and then up and dies. A badass even to his death, Shinji's death scene inspired a good amount of tears from me the first time I saw it... and then when I saw it again played to Vic Mignogna's Lion Dance.
#3
Galuf's Death
Galuf's Death
Aeris' death probably should've been a Tearjerker for me, but I couldn't overlook one gaping hole in the plot that was so evident. Why didn't they use Pheonix Downs on her? Maybe a Revive spell? It certainly worked on other characters when you wanted to bring them back from the dead, am I right? Plus they couldn't have been assuming we played Final Fantasy V first and saw this sad little tragedy play out; the GBA hadn't been made back in those days yet, so Final Fantasy V had still been Japan exclusive. Final Fantasy V pretty much showed us that trying to go against the plot doesn't work. After breaking the barriers to the crystals, the heroes are jumped by Exdeath who uses their powers to attack the heroes. Galuf's granddaughter, Krile, comes in to try and save them, but ends up getting assaulted herself by Exdeath's ring of fire. This leads to a pissed off Galuf breaking one of the crystals by fighting against its powers and then walking through the fire in order to throw Krile out of it. It then engulfs him instead and he attacks Exdeath while on fire! But the badassery doesn't end there. While burning to death, he literally fights Exdeath, taking on powerful Black Magic spells, not to mention Exdeath's Vacuum Sweep attack, and finally has to take on a Flare, a Holy, and a Meteor spell all at the same time... and yet Galuf still refuses to go down until he beats the fuck out of Exdeath. Of course, after exhausing himself in such a way, not even Curaga, Raise, a Phoenix Down, or an Elixer can bring Galuf back. The sadness comes when you realize a great character has been decimated, but some can also find it in the fact that they think they grinded him up for nothing. Well never fear as he adds to my tear ducts by using the Guardian Tree's power to contact Krile from beyond the grave, giving her his strength and the ability to help Bartz in his fight against Exdeath. So powerful and so epic; Aeris only wishes her death scene was as half as tragic as Galuf's.
#2
Martin Septim's Sacrifice
Martin Septim's Sacrifice
As an Oblivion addict, I was compelled to put this here, but in all actuality, I was really downheartened to see Martin died. Whereas Lucien deserved his death in actuality, even though I was upset by his death too, but hey, he was evil... Martin is the poster child that even those who are good pay a price for the sake of the people. His very existance caused Kvatch to be seiged, he once dabbled in Daedric magic and lost his friends, and when everything is finally going right in order to stop the Oblivion invasion, Mehrunes Dagon has come into Tamriel and the only way for Martin to win is via a Crowning Moment of Awesome. Martin turns into the avatar of Akatosh using the Amulet of Kings. Said avatar is a giant golden dragon. He utterly owns Mehrunes Dagon and sends him crying back into the pits of Oblivion. All we'd need for a happy ending is for Martin to come back and be crowned emperor, right? But this is Oblivion and anything that can go wrong will. Martin even knows he's to die as he bids you farewell before turning into Akatosh's avatar. After banishing Mehrunes Dagon back to Oblivion, the avatar turns into stone and Martin passes on. To have come to known such a great character just to see him fall... I am not afraid to admit that I cried.
#1
Clannad and Air
Clannad and Air
I COULD NOT JUST LEAVE ONE OR THE OTHER OUT, SO IT'S A TIE! IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT... oh to hell with it. But yes, number one is a tie between Clannad and Air... and in the end, between these two, there really is no way to choose just one sad moment. The two shows have a crapton of Tearjerkers on them and, if Kanon is about the same as Air and Clannad, then I am going to claim that Visual Key is just a highly sadistic company. The two shows have a way of making you love the characters, of portraying a deep story with emotion, yet without overdoing their characters or making them Sueish. Each character has their own set of pros and cons and we find ourselves loving them no matter what they're like. Then Visual Key finds a way to tear at our hearts by removing said characters, not like having them spontaneously dissapear from the show, but by having a tragic death scene play out and everything. The two deaths I am going to talk about are Misuzu and Ushio.
Misuzu is portrayed as this really lovable character who is suffering from an ages old curse. Due to it, her body is frail and she also suffers an illness that makes her cry whenever she thinks she's made a friend, causing her to be shunned in school. Only her Aunt Haruko and Yukito have been there for her, but then Yukito vanishes, supposedly dying because he comes back as the crow Sora. After that, it's up to Haruko to be like the mother Misuzu never had. For the remainder of Misuzu's life, Haruko takes her to many different places and the two have fun together, thus fulfilling Misuzu's goal of finding happiness. In the end, Misuzu wants to prove that she's able to overcome her limits by walking over to Haruko despite the illness crippling her legs. But she knows the curse is due to take her life and, as Haruko realizes Misuzu is dying, having lied to spare Haruko pain, she immediately begins feeling her own emotional pain, having wanted to be more like a mother to Misuzu and treat her better then she had before. This scene caught me off guard at an Anime Club. I was watching it with this girl I liked and, when the scene popped up, I couldn't stop crying. And this time I don't mean shedding tears, I mean full on crying. This scene always makes me cry and, considering how hard it is for me to cry at some things, that says a lot. Fortunately she wasn't one of those "your a pussy if you cry" kind of people and comforted me. Unfortunately... she had only ever seen me as nothing more then a friend anyway. Oh well. And then... there's Ushio.
Ushio is Tomoya's and Nagisa's daughter, but shortly after giving birth to her, Nagisa dies in a way that is already a Tearjerker on its own. Tomoya doesn't even start to raise Ushio until Sanae puts them on a trip that leads Tomoya into meeting his grandmother and realizing the sacrifices his father made for him. Ushio is as sweet as Nina and as frail as Misuzu and, unfortunately for Tomoya, the Visual Key kill-you sickness also strikes her. Knowing her death is coming on, Ushio wants to take a trip with Tomoya back to the flower field. But instead she just walks towards her death and ends up falling in her father's arms. The fact a little child is dying is tearjerking enough, but then her last words are, "Papa... I love you." ... ... ... WHHHHHHHHHHY?!
And just those two aren't the end of it. I don't want to go into any more detail as I would like for anyone here who hasn't seen these two powerful animes to go watch them. You will not regret it. If anything, I have to go see Kanon one day if has any chance of being as good as Air or Clannad. This concludes my Top 10 Tearjerking Deaths list. I hope I didn't make too many people cry and I appologize if I did so.
