by In anime, episodes that mark a turning point in the story are sometimes played with a different ending song or video than usual.
No matter how emotional the episode is, if the ending is the same as usual, the story will somehow fall apart. It feels lonely as if your emotions have been left behind, but the “special ending” created with love by the production team greatly amplifies the lingering feeling of the work. This time, I would like to introduce three carefully selected “special endings” famous for making you cry.
Episode 19, “Hinokami,” which became a hot topic
First of all, there is the TV anime “Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba Kamado Tanjiro Risshi Hen” that was broadcast in 2019. It is a masterpiece that has become a well-known social phenomenon, and it depicts the main character, Tanjiro Kamado, joining the Demon Slayer Corps and completing a mission to return his sister, who has become a demon, to her original human form.
It will be done. Tanjiro is ordered to assist in the battle at Mt. Nadagumo, where he confronts Go and Yu, the lower half of the Twelve Kizuki. Tanjiro finds himself in a predicament in the face of overwhelming strength, but one scene comes to mind like a flash of light. It is his father, Tanjuro, dancing Kagura to ward off evil spirits, passed down through the Kamado family for generations. Applying this breathing method, Tanjiro dances “Hinokami Kagura” in battle.
This impressive episode is the 19th episode of the anime “Hinokami.” Meanwhile, her younger sister Nezuko sees a vision of her late mother, Aoi, and can use her blood demon technique, “Bakuketsu.” The particular ending, which depicts family flashbacks and battles with Nami Nakagawa’s “Kamado Tanjiro no Uta” as the background music, was a tear-jerking production that felt the bonds of family.
In addition, in the “Swordsmith’s Village” broadcast in April 2023, “Kamamon Nezuko no Uta” was played as the insert song for episode 11. Although this is not the ending, the melody that pairs well with “Kamado Tanjiro no Uta” and the flashbacks that make you feel the brotherly love between Tanjiro and Nezuko brought tears to my eyes.
A special ending that plays after the death of a friend that you can’t watch without crying.
Among anime based on girls’ manga, “Fushigi Yuugi” also had an episode with such a special ending. The anime, which aired in 1995 and was based on the manga of the same name by Yuu Watase, continues to have heavy plot twists despite being based on a girls’ manga, with the main characters losing their lives one after another in the middle of their dreams.
This work is an adventure story in which the main character, a junior high school girl named Mishu Yushiro, gets stuck in a book called Shijin Tenchisho and goes on a journey to find her friends who have birthmarks on their bodies as Suzaku’s shrine maiden. Be. However, while gathering her friends and summoning Suzaku, she loses her life one by one.
The first victim was Noriko, a dependable older sister who usually dresses as a woman. When she was left alone in Yanagijuku, she was attacked by an enemy from behind and received a fatal wound, but with the last of her strength left, she used her final strength to fight off the large rock and escape into the cold, snowy mountains. I run out of energy. In episode 33, “Yanagiyuku’s Eternal Separation,” Yanagishuku leaves Mihu with warm words for the last time before she dies and is looked after by her friends.
The ending of this episode is that Mishu, who was unable to accept the death of her friend at first, agrees with the fact and buries Yanagisuku in the snowy mountains. The special ending song used in episode 33 is the character song “Melody of the Wind” by Chinatsu Sakamoto, who was the voice actress for Yanagijuku.
The lyrics are reminiscent of Yanagisuku’s life, and with the song in the background, the song shows his friends’ sadness at losing Yanagisuku and their attempts to move forward despite this.
At the end of the song, Yanagishuku closes her eyes and smiles, and the credits appear at the end: “Yanagiyuku Chinatsu Sakamoto.” The ending made me feel respect for the characters. Special endings are often used in episodes where essential characters die.
The same goes for the anime “Fafner in the Azure,” which has been broadcast since 2004. The ending theme for this episode is “Separation” by Angela, but only in episodes 6, 9, 21, and 24 is a different arrangement of “Separation” played. What they all have in common is that they are episodes in which someone disappears.
The second verse of the lyrics is used in the special ending because the first verse is sung from the perspective of “those left behind,” and the second verse is sung from the perspective of “those who have passed away.”
This song is called the “memorial ending” among fans, and the production here is also quite stylish. Special endings that will make you cry can be found in many other works. Isn’t there a unique ending that everyone will never forget?
