5 Anime That Have Made Me Cry

Man, this is going to be a very hard post to write. I cry all the time. I cry at everything. It could be something happy and yet I cry.

What an easier post would be is “5 Anime That Didn’t Make Me Cry” because there are a lot fewer anime that I haven’t cried at, that’s for sure. I’m just a big crybaby,  what can I say? So, for the sake of this list, we’ll go with ‘absolutely bawled my eyes out’ as a measure rather than ‘a teardrop fell down my cheek’.

Now, because I cry at literally everything, some of these, I feel, are probably predictable. Some others? Probably not. But I certainly have my reasons for all of them. Let’s start off with a couple of the more predictable ones.

Firstly, Anohana. Oh, god. Where to begin with this one? I know I’ve featured Anohana on here a couple of times already, but it’s just one of those shows. It deserves all the praise! It follows the story of Jintan Yadomi – a recluse that would rather play video games all day than go to school. One day, his childhood friend Menma appears and pesters him to grant her a forgotten wish. Despite ignoring her at first, Jintan soon realizes that he and his childhood friends could soon reunite and rebuild their friendships and sets off on a mission to ensure Menma’s wish is granted.

Now, like I said in a previous post, the thing that gets me the most is the ED. I haven’t watched Anohana in a very long time now, but I still want to cry when I hear the ED. As you watch the series, you really do associate the story with the music. The ED captures every single emotion in this series perfectly. It must do, considering I cried for three hours straight after watching the movie. Whew.

Your Lie in April is another show where the ED reminds me of the emotions I had whilst watching the show. In particular, I’m talking about the second ED. It reminds me to take advantage of the fact that I am still young – to go out and explore, to try new things. Of course, this is a theme that is relevant too. The series follows Kousei Arima who, after the death of his mother, avoids playing the piano, leaving behind his admirers and rivals, and lives a colorless life alongside his friends Tsubaki Sawabe and Ryouta Watari. That is until he meets Kaori Miyazono, who stirs up his world and sets him on a journey to face music again.

Your Lie in April really is a show I can somewhat relate to. I’ve been in similar positions to Kousei before now. I’ve been absolutely passionate about playing instruments to then just suddenly fall out of love with it and never play them again. (Ironically, two of them being the piano and violin…) Of course, I realize that mine and Kousei’s situations are also completely different but the anime still resonated with me and the emotional journey that the anime takes the viewer on really did make an impact on me. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to play my own instruments as an after-effect of the series, but I have been itching to start again recently, so… who knows? Maybe someday soon.

For a movie choice, I will undoubtedly go for In This Corner of the World. Sure, I cry at most movies I watch anyway, but there was something special about this one. I always say it needs more love as well, so why not give it another shoutout on here? The film is set in 1944 and tells the story of Suzu Urano, a young girl who loves to paint, as she moves to the town of Kure to marry Shuusaku Houjou – a young clerk who works at the local naval base. In 1945, intense bombings by the US military finally reach Kure with devastating effects on the townsfolk and their way of life.

The inevitable disaster shown in the movie really makes an impact because of the pacing of the movie. Like I said in my own review of it from August 2017:

Some may argue that the pacing of this film is incredibly slow. Personally, I would argue that, although it is quite slow, it is a necessary pace. It builds up the story to the point where the climax is incredible. It adds to the dramatic trauma. It highlights just how real this all was for the people of Japan.

The movie shows the happy-go-lucky daily life of rural Japan and then, quite literally, bang. Everything changes. It really does make for an emotional viewing, especially in a very dark cinema like my viewing of it was. It was clear from the start that I was going to weep a little.

Although it’s not exactly classed as a movie, on a similar front is Asagao to Kase-san., an hour-long OVA which follows two girls, Kase and Yamada, not long after they start dating. We see some high points and some low points, but most importantly we see how the two girls continuously develop as people as they learn the importance of being in a relationship and being in love. It’s a simple idea, but that’s the reason why this OVA made me weep. Although, please note, these were definitely happy tears and not sad tears.

Its simplicity makes it more realistic. Like I’ve said previously, there was no over the top drama, no confusing nonsense – it is purely two people in love having their relationship bloom into something wonderful. Because of its realistic portrayal, I was moved so much. I was happy for the characters. Not only that, but I was so glad that someone had written such a beautiful story in the first place and that Zexcs animated and produced it so brilliantly. I cried because it was such a little masterpiece and it remains one of my favorites to this day. It’s a little treasure that brings me joy whenever I think of it and I’m certainly glad that I somehow discovered it for myself.

And, finally, here’s perhaps an unconventional one. Interviews with Monster Girls. That’s right, folks, ya girl here cried at Demi-chan. Even I can’t believe this one because, quite frankly, there’s absolutely nothing to cry at in the show. It’s extremely happy-go-lucky. Its main genre is comedy and although I disagree with how funny the show actually is, you shouldn’t really be crying at such a show. But hey, here we are. I cried at Demi-chan and let me get a little bit deep into my personal feelings to explain why.

I am an absolute sucker for character development. The more we find out about characters, in my opinion, the better because then I’ll be more inclined to empathize with them and root for them et cetera, et cetera. Demi-chan gave us so much character development, which I was so happy about as I’ve mentioned already, but that also meant that I became attached to the characters. As I was watching Demi-chan, I was between training to be an ESL teacher and being a newly qualified ESL teacher so teaching was all I had been focusing on for the past two years. Although in the show he’s a biology teacher, watching Demi-chan made me cry because I was wanting to be a teacher like Takahashi. He reminded me of my own high school teachers who were very similar and he reminded me of the kind of teacher I wanted to be. I was completely touched by Hikari and the others’ appreciation for him and I was yearning for my own students to appreciate me in the same way.  I was crying out of inspiration, motivation, and happiness.

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So, there you have it. Five of the many anime that have made me cry over the years. Like I previously mentioned, there are so many more out there, so maybe I’ll do another post like this in the future. Who knows? We’ll see.

That being said, which anime has made you cry? Any ‘unconventional’ ones? Let me know in the comments below!

Until next time!

– Amelia x