Understanding the cycle of life and death inanimecan be pretty complex and confusing, depending on the show. Some characters die and come back to life. Others die permanently but live on through their friends and family. They can be part of the overall series for a brief time or make it near the end. Either way, the series must continue.
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It’s tough for anyanimeto go on after a protagonist dies, but the remaining characters know their fallen comrades would want them to continue. A few of them might come back to life later on, but their deaths still had a serious impact on everyone around them.
Spoilers will be unavoidable.
10Nagisa Furukawa From Clannad
Nagisa was a pretty frail girl to begin with and her health didn’t get any better asClannadprogressed. It seems like she’s okay, but her illness is a cloud that hangs over her and Tomoya’s heads. At the end of the first season, she and Tomoya are in a relationship and they are both very happy. This is short-lived inClannad After Story, the show’s second season. Nagisa and Tomoya are married and expecting a daughter. Both of them are excited at the thought of being parents and decide to name their daughter Ushio.
Tragically, Nagisa dies shortly after due to her illness and the strain of childbirth. Her death sends Tomoya into a depressive state. He was unable to properly care for their daughter and Nagisa’s parents took over in caring for her. Just as Tomoya pulled himself together, he and Nagisa’s parents learn that Ushio has the same illness as Nagisa.
9Jonathan Joestar From JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure
InJoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood, it seemed like Jonathan Joestar was going to get his happy ending with Erina after defeating Dio, but it wasn’t meant to be. Turns out Dio was still alive and wanted revenge against him. Dio ambushed Jonathan while he was on his honeymoon with Erina and managed to kill him. The spirit of Jonathan lived on through his grandson Joseph Joestar and great-grandson Jotaro Kujo. What made his death very tragic was that Dio succeeded in taking over Jonathan’s body and uses it throughout most of the series.
Even after his death, the Joestar family lived on for a long time.Jotaro Kujo was the oneto defeat Dio once and for all inJojo Bizarre Adventure: Stardust Crusaders.
8Hilda From Outlaw Star
Her time on the show was brief but memorable. It seemed like Hilda was poised to be the female protagonist of the show. She wasa strong and smart womanthat intimidated most people around her. It was shocking to see her death near the beginning of the series. Realizing her team won’t be able to save her, Hilda manages to hold onto an enemy trying to kill them. She detonates a bomb she keeps in her mouth, killing herself and the enemy to save her team.
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While Suzuka, Melfina, and Aisha were great female protagonists in different ways, they didn’t quite live up to Hilda’s strength. Gene still remembers her fondly and all of the wisdom she gave him during their short time together.
7L From Death Note
One of the main protagonists (and an antagonist/anti-hero of sorts) ofDeath Note, L was a detective that wanted to put an end to Light/Kira’s reign of terror. He was the person that Light considered an equal to him in intellect. The psychological games he and Light played were interesting to watch and left many fans on the edge of their seats to see who would win.
Tragically, L died halfway through the series and lost to Light. His legacy would live on in potential successors, Mello and Near. However, the series wasn’t the same after L’s death. It didn’t feel like Light had the same battle of the wits with other characters like he did with L. Near may have been the one to succeed in bringing Light down, but it was clear L left a lasting impression. This was apparent when he appeared before Light as he was dying.
6Yusuke Urameshi From Yu Yu Hakusho
The whole series starts with Yusuke dying. After saving a boy from a car that looked like it was about to hit him, Yusuke dies on impact. His ghost is hovering above the scene and this is where he meets Botan, a grim reaper for the Spirit World. After informing him that his death was pointless (the car would’ve actually missed the kid), Yusuke is given the chance to return to the living world. After meeting the conditions, Yusuke is then made into a Spirit Detective for the Spirit World and is sent on missions to stop demons from terrorizing the world.
Yusuke dies again during the Chapter Black Saga at the hands of former Spirit Detective, Shinobu Sensui. Luckily for everyone, Yusuke comes back to life, but he’s a little different this time around. Turns out he’s the descendant of Raizen, one of the Three Kings in the Demon World and one of the most powerful demons to ever have existed. Even after this death, Yusuke’s allies were determined to stop Sensui and continued fighting until Yusuke’s return.
5Goku From Dragon Ball Z
The heroes in theDragon Ballseries don’t seem to stay dead for too long, but the beginning ofDragon Ball Zdefinitely shocked fans. As things were relatively peaceful in the world, it seemed like Goku was done fighting. This all changed when Raditz, Goku’s older brother, came to Earth and kidnapped Gohan. Goku teamed up with his former/rival Piccolo to stop him and get Gohan back.
Even after being weakened by Gohan’s headbutt, Raditz still seemed unstoppable. Goku manages to sneak up and immobilize him. This gives Piccolo enough time to power up his Special Beam Cannon and use it to kill Raditz. Goku is killed in the process and left many fans flabbergasted at what happened. Thankfully, Goku doesn’t stay dead for too long and is brought back by the Dragon Balls, but it was pretty shocking to see him die.
4Asuka Langley Sohryu From The End Of Evangelion
Poor Asuka had one of the brutal deaths to ever happen in an anime. Asuka sets off to fight multiple Evas by herself. She manages to take out a good number and it seems like she’ll make it out of the battle alive. Unfortunately, she runs out of power and the Evas have an engine that allows them to remain functional after being damaged. The Evas attack and mutilate her Unit-02 which causes Asuka herself to suffer the wounds inflicted on it.
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After feeling Unit-02 get torn to shreds, Asuka manages to raise her and Unit-02’s arm and vow to kill her enemies. Sadly, she doesn’t get to keep this vow and dies after the Evas unleash a rain of spears on her.
3Every Pilot For Zearth In Bokurano
A different twist in the mecha genre.Bokuranohas multiple protagonists that are all connected to each other. A group of middle-school students unwittingly enter a contract to fight for Earth against parallel worlds. The mecha they use runs on life force so for every battle won, the pilot dies. Every episode starts off with background information on the next pilot and their motivations for fighting. From just wanting to keep the world to personal reasons, each pilot has a different reason to fight.
The anime has manydifferences from the manga. In the manga, every student dies, but the anime adaptation lets one live. Kana Ushiro is the sole survivor of the group thanks to her brother/second cousin Jun Ushiro and Yoko Machi preventing her from becoming a pilot.
2Masaru Kato From Gantz
One of thetwo main protagonists from the series. Masaru Kato gained a reputation for fighting bullies and protecting the weak. Plus, he protected his younger brother from their aunt after she started abusing him and moved out to give him a safe environment. Masaru tries to be a pacifist, but he usually chooses violence as his way of handling things. Between him and Kei Kurono, the other protagonist, Masaru is the more likable one. He managed to live through season one and most of season two.
Masaru’s final fight would be against a green alien. It seemed like he’d won the battle after cutting off its arms and head, but this victory was short-lived. As a final act, the alien’s decapitated body flicked its sharpened tail and stabbed Masaru in the chest. As he lay dying, Masaru only thought about his younger brother and wished him to be strong.
1Kamina From Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann
Kamina had all the things that made him the protagonist of the show. Loud, boisterous, and very determined to make the world a better place. Kamina was the leader of Dai-Gurren and the one responsible forputting the team together. Sadly, Kamina doesn’t make it to the halfway point of the series and dies in battle against the beastmen. Though his comrades miss him dearly, Kamina’s actions leave a great influence on them throughout the rest of the series.
Kamina’s death left his comrades grief-stricken (especially Simon), but they eventually pulled themselves together and continued fighting. Simon became the strong warrior that Kamina always knew he would be and the leader of Dai-Gurren.
