Not all anime end with a “happily ever after.” Some opt for a dark, tragic or downright disturbing ending that remains etched in fans' memories. These endings, far from being forgotten, become part of the identity of the series and, in many cases, the reason why they continue to be remembered decades later. Below we review The 10 Most Disturbing Anime Endings of All Time.
Shiki: when vampire hunting becomes inhumane
What begins as a classic horror story ends in a bloodbath where the villagers sink into paranoia and hatred. The ending shows the humans as monstrous as the vampires themselves, leaving a bitter feeling: no one wins and Sotoba is devastated.
Space Runaway Ideon: the total apocalypse
Known as “Kill 'Em All Tomino,” the creator of gundam took tragedy to the extreme with this anime. The climax annihilates both humanity and its alien enemies. Its impact was such that it inspired Hideaki Anno in the conception of Neon Genesis Evangelion.
Berserk (1997): the Eclipse
The anime adapts the Golden Age Arcwhich makes its closing, the Eclipse, even more devastating. Griffith sacrifices his companions to be reborn as Femto, and Guts and Casca suffer irreparable trauma. An ending so disturbing that it still defines the franchise.
The Grave of the Fireflies: tragedy in war
Studio Ghibli surprised with this story without magic or hope. Seita and Setsuko's futile struggle to survive the war ends in absolute tragedy. A story that torments any viewer and, at the same time, a denunciation of the human cost of war conflicts.
Texhnolyze: absolute nihilism
This anime is a spiral of hopelessness from the beginning, but its ending takes it to the limit: Lux is destroyed and most of the characters die, including Ichise. It is a crude closing that functions as a philosophical reflection on human self-destruction.
Devilman Crybaby: the destruction of the world
Masaaki Yuasa's reinterpretation gave life to the most faithfully devastating outcome of Go Nagai's manga. The world is destroyed, Akira dies at the hands of his best friend turned Satan, and the last scene shows a desperate Ryo realizing what he has done.
The End of Evangelion: humanity reduced to nothing
If the original series left doubts, the film offered a brutal ending: Humanity merges into a single being during the Instrumentalization Project, leaving only Shinji and Asuka in a ruined world. An apocalyptic closure for a series that marked an entire generation.
Saikano: condemned love
Chise, turned into a weapon of destruction, loses what was left of her humanity. The ending wipes out the entire world, leaving Shuji alive only to condemn him to a lonely agony. One of the cruelest tragedies remembered in anime romance.
School Days: from romance to massacre
What seemed like a school romance anime became synonymous with a bloody ending. The love rivalry ends in a multiple murder that left many viewers traumatized and turned School Days in an “infamous classic”.
Midori (Shojo Tsubaki): the forbidden horror
This dark cult film shows the life of Midori, a girl trapped in a circus of abuse and cruelty. Its outcome, marked by despair and psychological collapse, sealed the work's fame as one of the most disturbing of all time, banned in several countries.
Which of these endings do you think was the most disturbing? Or would you add another anime to the list that has left you marked?
