Some of the saddest and most heartbreaking moments in anime have stuck with fans for decades. It’s no secret that anime has crafted some of the most unique and engaging stories in recent years. From epic fights between heroes to sweet romances with unlikely love interests, these stories have drawn in fans with varying interests.
However, many fans of the medium believe that the most memorable moments in their favorite series are the ones that broke their hearts. Whether it’s the death of a major character or a bitter farewell between friends, the saddest scenes in a show can end up being remembered for years because of how emotionally impactful they can be.
10 Kiki Can’t Speak to Jiji – Kiki’s Delivery Service
Based on the novel by Eiko Kadono, directed by Hayao Miyazaki & produced by Studio Ghibli
Kicking things off is a scene from one of Hayao Miyazaki’s best films that features the titular witch at the lowest point in her life so far. Kiki has been experiencing serious burnout by this point as she struggles to maintain her delivery service because of exhaustion. This even leads to her beginning to lose her powers including her ability to fly on a broom. However, Kiki’s Delivery Service‘s saddest moment —which actually never happened in the original book — comes when she realizes that she can no longer understand Jiji.
This is a crucial scene because it results in Kiki finding herself alone, this depression leads to her shutting down her delivery service indefinitely. Kiki would eventually find a way to work through her stress and earn her powers back, but this low moment hits hard because it’s difficult to see a girl so motivated to live on her own suddenly feel cut off with no way of reaching out to the people she needs to help her.
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9 Ash Says Goodbye to Butterfree – Pokémon
Season 1, Episode #21, produced by OLM
In perhaps the saddest episode of the original series, Bye Bye Butterfree has gained a reputation among fans for having a heartbreaking ending. The story follows Ash and his friends attempting to help his Butterfree find a mate. After a series of misadventures including Butterfree’s initial rejection and Team Rocket, the time finally comes for Ash to say goodbye.
It’s a sad moment for the two as even he can’t help but share a tear. Butterfree was the first Pokémon he ever caught when it was just a Caterpie, so it’s difficult saying goodbye. However, he still manages to see his friend off knowing he will live a happy life, but not without making fans cry, who decades later appreciated Butterfree’s return in Ash’s farewell to Pokémon.
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8 Sayaka Becomes a Witch – Puella Magi Madoka Magica
Episode #8, original series produced by Shaft and Aniplex.
In this subversive series, two girls named Madoka and Sayaka learn they have been given the golden opportunity to become magical girls. This deal given to them by a strange cat-creature named Kyubey promises a life of adventure and fun as they fend off witches to defend the Earth. However, after realizing just how dangerous a magical girl’s life is, Madoka becomes weary. Sayaka, on the other hand, accepts the offer.
However, her heart slowly gets more corrupted as she grows more depressed. This leads to a heartbreaking transformation as she turns into a witch. Madoka’s reaction to her best friend losing her humanity is perhaps the saddest moment of the show, which is saying a lot since the series has a lot of tricks up its sleeves to catch audiences off-guard with sadness.
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7 Spike’s Final Moments – Cowboy Bebop
Episode #26, original series produced by Sunrise
It’s only fitting that Cowboy Bebop has the perfect ending, considering it’s one of the best animes out there. The whole series revolves around Spike attempting to evade his past and try to make a new life for himself as a bounty hunter. However, his former partner Vicious makes this difficult, leading to an epic final battle between the two in the series finale. However, it comes at a cost. While Spike does kill Vicious, he becomes incredibly wounded.
As he’s surrounded by police, he pulls up a finger gun and proclaims “Bang” before falling to the ground. It’s left ambiguous whether Spike died from his wounds or not, but the fact that he was unable to escape his past and potentially ended up losing his life for it makes this one of the most talked about anime endings of all time because of how heartbreaking it is.
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6 Eren’s Mother’s Death – Attack on Titan
Season 1, Episode #1, produced by Wit Studio and based on the manga by Hajime Isayama
A character’s death is well-handled when a character who’s only in the first 20 minutes of the entire series breaks the heart of any viewer when they die. Eren’s mother in Attack on Titan is the best example of this. Even though she’s only in the series for one episode outside of flashbacks, her death hits all the right notes. From her desperation to get Eren out of town during the Titan attack to Eren’s screams of protest as he sees her get eaten, it’s a scene that has held up as one of Attack on Titan‘s saddest moments.
Eren’s mother may not have been in the show long, but the impact of her death ultimately hits fans the same way it does Eren as he vows to avenge her and kill every Titan he can.
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5 Pochita Saves Denji – Chainsaw Man
Episode #1, produced by MAPPA and based on the manga by Tatsuki Fujimoto
Pochita is a doglike Chainsaw demon that has been the best friend of main character Denji ever since he was a boy. However, Chainsaw Man wasn’t exactly afraid to make viewers love the demon before taking him away. Following a fateful encounter with the yakuza, Denji is left to die in a dumpster. Pochita ends up saving his life by sacrificing himself and becoming Denji’s new heart, turning him into Chainsaw Man.
Not only is this heartbreaking for the viewer, but it’s incredibly upsetting for Denji as well. Pochita was his closest friend during his life in poverty, and now he’ll never be able to hold him again. The powers just aren’t worth it when his best friend is gone forever.
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4 The Chimera – Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
Episode #4, produced by Bones and based on the manga by Hiromu Arakawa
This heartbreaking scene from the second Fullmetal Alchemist series is absolutely notorious among fans of the story. In an apparently average episode where Edward and Alphonse try to find answers to getting their bodies back, they’re introduced to Nina, the daughter of Tucker the Sewing-Life Alchemist, and her dog. The two grow fond of her as they expand their research. However, one day they find Nina and her dog missing, with Tucker revealing his latest chimera to renew his practicing license.
To their shock though, the chimera is actually his daughter and dog, now fused together into a haunting creature. This disturbing moment has upset fans for years and creates anguish whenever they remember it.
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3 Koro-Sensei’s Death – Assassination Classroom
Season 2, Episode #24, produced by Lerche and based on the manga by Yusei Matsui
In a series dedicated to its premise of killing their teacher before he can destroy the Earth, it’s amazing that Assassination Classroom managed to nail the emotion when the time finally came. For the most part, the series was established as a coming-of-age comedy. However, as Koro-Sensei’s dark past came to light, this made his final scene even harder. He lost the woman he loved and was faced with a choice to die or take the Earth out with him. Plus, with his students growing fond of him, seeing them all stab him one by one with tears in their eyes just made the death of this tragic character so much sadder.
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2 Hughes’ Funeral – Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
Episode #10, produced by Bones and based on the manga by Hiromu Arakawa
It looked like no scene would ever top the Chimera for most heartbreaking in Fullmetal Alchemist, but the series did find a way. Hughes was a character that became loved by the fanbase for being a wholesome, lovable inspector who worked alongside Edward and Alphonse. However, his sudden death at the hands of Lust and Envy hit fans hard. What’s even worse though is his funeral. Seeing his daughter crying and not understanding what is happening just makes the scene difficult to watch without crying.
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1 The Entire Ending – Your Lie in April
Episode #22, produced by A-1 pictures and based on the manga by Naoshi Arakawa
Your Lie in April is a series that’s notorious for starting out as a sweet and wholesome romcom only for it to break down into a tearjerker by the end. The story follows a piano prodigy named Kōsei who is unable to continue playing after his mother’s death. He strikes a friendship with a girl named Kaori that inspires him to continue his talent and move forward. However, he soon learns that she’s anemic and hospitalized after collapsing from her health. Kaori ends up dying during Kōsei’s first major performance in years. However, he receives a posthumous note from her saying that she knew him long before they met and wanted to inspire his music because she loved it the first time she heard it years ago.
This one twist to an already sad moment easily makes the ending to Your Lie in April top any other heartbreaking moments in anime because of how well it makes the viewer look back at the series and realize just how impactful her passion for Kōsei’s talent was in his development. Anime is a medium with an uncanny capacity for arousing emotions, and these incredibly sad moments prove it more than anything else.
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