Top 20 Saddest Anime Series of All Time – Hey guys!. In this post, I’ll be discussing a list of Top 20 Saddest Anime Series of All Time. Anime are usually supposed to bring you joy and give you that entertainment you crave. It helps in taking your mind off the usual day to day tasks and helps you in recharging yourself.
But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t any anime that can’t make your heart cry out. There are loads of them and it’s certainly not a bad thing. So let us take a look at some of the saddest anime series of all time.
20. Chrono Crusade
Chrono Crusade tells a story of the 1920s when dangerous demons started causing rampage across America. In order to tackle this matter, the Order of Magdalene was formed with various branches across the country. Our focus will be on the New York branch of this organization where two characters named Rosette and Chrono reside.
They have both made a name for themselves by doing an excellent job in terminating demons. But both of them have a dark past which drives them and they are fated to battle the demon called Aion who took away Rosette’s brother, Joshua.
19. True Tears
It’s perfectly fitting that one of the most saddest anime has tears in its title. One of the main characters in this story is Shinichirou Nakagami and he has been living with one of the brightest students in his class, Hiromi Yuasa.
But the problem is Hiromi hasn’t been herself after the death of her mother which is very concerning to Shinichirou. So when he comes across Noe Isurugi and finds out that she can’t shed tears he wants her to steal the tears of Hiromi so that she can be bright and cheerful once again.
18. Elfen Lied
When any character has got special telekinetic powers along with a pair of horns, you can safely bet that he/she is going to be the subject of experimentation. The character we are talking about in this story is about Lucy who has met the same fate.
She somehow manages to escape leaving behind a trail of blood and develops a split personality. A pair of college students, who also happen to be cousins, come across her and decide to take her back to their place. They had no idea about what they were getting themselves into as a secret government plot began to uncover itself.
17. Looking Up At the Half Moon
Ezaki Yuuichi is suffering from Hepatitis A which leaves him no choice but to remain away from his family in a hospital. He gets bored by spending all day there and sneaks away many times, much to the displeasure of his nurse.
Luckily, he finds another girl named Akiba Rika staying in the same hospital who is also of his age. These two characters slowly start getting closer to each other as a budding teenage romance blossoms beautifully. But with Rika not having much time left, will Ezaki be able to cope with it?
16. Puella Magi Madoka Magica
This sad anime is about two girls studying in middle school named Madoka Kaname and Sayaka Miki. Their lives were very ordinary until one day they met a familiar called Kyuubey. Kyuubey told them that he could make any one of their wishes come true but as a price for that, they will turn into magical girls.
A new transfer student named Homura Akemi who also happens to be a magical girl herself warned them about the hardships of being a magical girl and told them not to accept that offer. But Madoka and Sayaka did not listen to that and the repercussions might be too strong.
15. One Week Friends
Yuuko Hase is a teenager who musters up the last bit of strength to finally ask out his crush, Kaori Fujimiya. She rejects him without a second thought and it’s not so unnatural since she is known to push everyone away.
But Yuuko refuses to give up and goes to the rooftop to meet her every day. Slowly, he comes to know the secret behind Kaori’s introverted behaviour. Kaori suffers from memory loss every single week which is why she refuses to make friends so that she can’t hurt anyone.
14. Air
Our protagonist in this story, Yukito Kunisaki has only one goal in life and that is to find the Winged Maiden. He does puppet shows on the side so that he can continue to earn money and complete his journey.
But when he arrives at a certain small town and meets Misuzu, his journey comes to a pause. Not only does he become close to Misuzu but he also starts helping the residents of that town. Will he ever resume his journey again or will Misuzu turn out to be the Winged Maiden?
13. Haibane Renmei
Haibane is a creature with a halo on top and wings on its side. In this anime, we will follow the story of one such Haibane who has been born from a cocoon. Unfortunately she doesn’t know anything about her past and everything in that world is new to her.
Slowly with the passing day, she gets a better grip on that place. But the rules of that place feel too strict as if they are trying to cover up something. Moreover, when some of its kind suddenly goes missing it starts to unsettle her. What more secrets are the people trying to hide?
12. Nana
This story is about two Nana. One of them is Nana Komatsu who has just reached her 20s and gets easily attached to people. She decides to move out of her place and go to Tokyo in order to be near her boyfriend.
The other one is Nana Osaki who is the vocalist for punk rock music and wishes to be a professional singer. Both of them meet in the same train to Tokyo and end up sharing an apartment at the end. Now it’s up to the two Nanas to support each other as their bond will be tested.
11. March Comes In Like A Lion
March Comes In Like A Lion brings another level of sadness with it. It forces the viewers to get in touch with their emotions themselves. The story is about a Shogi player named Rei Kiriyama.
Due to all the huge pressure on him, he lives on his own in an apartment and takes poor care of himself. Luckily, he has met three girls who live together with their grandfather and are determined to help Rei through his emotions and Shogi career.
10. Steins;gate
It is crazy that one of the most top rated series in anime history is also one of the saddest ones. As we know this anime is about time travelling that will not only make you confused but also emotional.
Rintarou Okabe stars in this anime along with his buddies who run the Future Gadgets Lab together. One day they discover that their Phone Microwave has the ability to send emails to the past which becomes the tipping point for their adventure.
9. Orange
Just like Steins;Gate, Orange also involves time travel in a way. But in this case it involves letters. Just like any other teenager, Naho Takamiya is excited to go to her first day of high school. But she starts off the day on a weird note by getting a letter from herself in the future.
The fact that the content of the letter comes true on the first day itself makes it even more spooky. Will Naho be able to change the course of time and remove her regrets in the current timeline?
8. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
Edward and Alphonse Elric try out an Alchemy experiment to bring their dead mother back to life. But Alchemy follows the law of equivalent exchange and both of them lose their body parts.
Their childhood friend Winry gives them automail to survive on but they know that the only thing that can bring their body parts back is the Philosopher’s Stone. They vow to go on a journey in search of that stone and never look back.
7. Violet Evergarden
Violet Evergarden brings the horrors of the aftereffects of war in front of your eyes. The title of the anime is named after the protagonist of this story, Violet Evergarden whose job was to work on the frontlines of the war.
After it ended she took up a job in Postal Services where she came across an Auto Memory Doll. Fascinated by the concept, she decided to work on her own Auto Memory Doll that will not only help with her clients but also lead her to the path of self discovery.
6. Plastic Memories
Plastic Memories is all about Giftias. They are human-like androids and you can rarely spot any difference between the two. Our main character, Tsukasa Mizugaki works in SAI Corp whose job is to collect Giftias after they have passed their expiry date.
Tsukasa gets partnered with Isla who is a Giftia herself. The two grow close to each other that becomes life changing for both of them. Isla as a Giftia may just from some feelings for the first time after working closely with Tsukasa.
5. Tokyo Magnitude 8.0
Just like Violet Evergarden shows us the after effects of war, this anime will show you the devastating effects of an earthquake. Our focus will be on a kid named Mirai who isn’t exactly satisfied with her family situation and wishes for a dangerous thing.
The universe listens to her wish and when she visits a robot exhibition with her brother, a huge earthquake shakes everything up. Luckily, the duo comes across a motorcyclist and a single mother who offer help to them. The journey back to their home is going to be a long and hard one.
4. Angel Beats
Angel Beats will pluck on your heartstrings and tear them apart. If you think the others were devastating, then you will be in for a bumpy ride in this anime. The story is about Otonashi who has died and is currently in the afterlife.
Unfortunately he has no memories of his previous life. The key to his memories likely resides within Tenshi. So even though the Afterlife BattleFront considers her as their enemy, he decides to get close to her and try to recover his memory.
3. Your lie in April
Your Lie In April will take you on a musical fiesta. So get your tissues ready and follow prodigious pianist, Kousei Arima. The death of his mother has hit him strongly and now he is unable to listen to his own piano playing.
His only medicine – Kaori Miyazono, a beautiful violinist. Her enchanting music helps Kousei to be true to his own feelings and face them head on. But how much time is left for Kaori?
2. Anohana
Jinta is enjoying his time in the summer by relaxing at home when suddenly out of nowhere Menma appears and tells him to fulfill one wish of hers. This is a crazy situation because Menma passed away many years ago.
Jinta slowly realises that Menma’s spirit may still be wandering for some reason and decides to get the old band back together. This will not only allow the successful departure of Menma’s spirit but also help the group of friends to move on. The old bond that they had together as kids may just be rekindled again.
- Clannad
Tomoya Okazaki leads his life as a delinquent and doesn’t really care for anything else in the world. This was until he met Nagisa on the way to his school one day. Nagisa left quite an impression on him and he ultimately agrees to help her restore the drama club in their school.
Will this one incident change the way Tomoya looks at life? Watch Clannad to find out. The only thing that is certain is you are going to cry your eyes out after watching this anime. And the second season is more heartbreaking than the first one.
That is it from today’s post on Top 20 Saddest Anime Series of All Time. If you do not agree with the points in the post and have some of your own opinions, share them with us in the comments section down below. Keep visiting Animesoulking for more information about Anime and Manga.
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