Japan is known for its lack of concern when it comes to mental health and psychological problems in its residents.
The stigma around mental health is quite tremendous in this country, with the problem of Hikikomori (social recluses and shut-ins) being rampant. But regardless, anime once again comes to the saving!
The world of anime has come out with various storylines and characters who deal with depression and multiple other mental illnesses.
These depressed anime girls and boys are many and depict the lives of those who suffer from this debilitating mental illness and how it affects their personal lives, social lives, and the lives of the others around them.
Since a lot of viewers can relate to these characters and anime, you will keep finding depressed anime quotes, GIFs, and wallpapers throughout the internet.
In this article, I will be taking you through some of the most prominent depressed anime boys, and how they have made a major impact in breaking the stigma surrounding mental health in Japan.
So hurry up and get ready to be acquainted with some of the most well-known depressed anime boys who are doing heaps in shattering the walls around psychological illnesses in this conservative country!
Contents
List of Top 9 Depressed Anime Boys
Yuki Yoshida from Given
Although a side character, Yuki Yoshida evoked a lot of emotions in the hearts of the fans, ever since he made an appearance in the show. Yuki appears in one of the main characters, Mafuyu’s past, as his childhood friend and lover.
However, this depressed anime boy’s story is really tragic, as he’s shown to have killed himself before the series even started.
Yuki was really impulsive (according to his mom who reveals this in the Given manga) and shown to be obsessed with Mafuyu and vice versa. He killed himself in a drunken frenzy, following a heated fight with Mafuyu, as seen from the latter’s flashbacks.
This traumatic incident caused Mafuyu to lose his voice and become unable to express himself to others. He keeps appearing in Mafuyu’s dreams time and again and lives through his memories and flashbacks.
Kakeru Naruse from Orange
This depressed anime boy is the main protagonist of the depressed anime Orange. The series revolves around him and his fate, while the other characters try their best to save his life according to the advice given by the letters from the future.
He was shown to be introverted and quiet, keeping to himself and unable to open up about his true feelings.
Kakeru seemed to be extremely depressed over his mother’s suicide, and he blamed himself for it. He showed signs of suicidal ideation throughout the series and in an alternate timeline he ends up losing his life in a bicycle accident. However, in the main timeline, he could finally heal from his depression and go on to live a happy life with Naho, his lover.
Shoya Ishida from A Silent Voice
This depressed anime character features in the popular depression anime movie Koe no Katachi or A Silent Voice.
Shoya initially seemed to be a bit of a loner, going on adventures by himself and playing a lot, although once Nishimiya transferred to their school, he started bullying her badly for her speech and hearing disability.
However, he got stood up to by all his classmates who isolated him and thus he started growing introverted and depressed.
He regretted his actions towards Nishimiya and grew contemptuous of others. However, the only person he hated the most was himself, for having such resentful thoughts towards his classmates. His crippling depression even made him try to commit suicide in the movie.
Shinji Ikari from Neon Genesis Evangelion
He is probably one of the most well-known depressed anime boys in the history of anime. Shinji Ikari seems to be passive and laidback with massive father issues.
His depression and anxiety root from losing his mother at a very young age and his father leaving him in his youth. This causes him to develop really bad abandonment issues and emotional complexities regarding his self-worth.
Shinji is shown to be disconnected from the physical reality due to no developing inter-personal relationships in his childhood. He also has a great deal of social anxiety and his relationships with other people in his adulthood turn out to be unstable and volatile due to his inability to let go of the past.
He is shown to escape reality through music and cope with his disorganized emotions. He was also bullied as a child.
Kaneki Ken from Tokyo Ghoul
One of the most popular depressed anime boys, Kaneki Ken is the main protagonist of the hit series Tokyo Ghoul by Sui Ishida. Kaneki Ken is portrayed to be an introverted character who spends most of his free time reading.
He initially comes off as kind and compassionate although later it is revealed that his timid and submissive attitude is a result of being physically abused by his mother during childhood.
After turning into a ghoul and going to rigorous torture at the hands of Jason, there is a dramatic shit in Kaneki’s personality which turns him into a cold and violent being.
It is understandable that his childhood trauma together with the trauma from the torture gave him some significant depression and other mental problems. He was also bullied and taken advantage of in multiple situations due to his low self-esteem issues initially.
Seita Yokokawa from Grave of the Fireflies
Seita is one of the main characters of the sad anime movie, Grave of the Fireflies, created by Studio Ghibli. At the beginning of the film, he comes off as a diligent and modest schoolboy, but everything changes after his mother die in a bombing incident by the American troops and he is rendered homeless, burdened with the responsibility of his little sister Setsuko.
Seita doesn’t lose hope and even tries to cheer up his sister, although just witnessing his mother succumbing to her injuries and losing her life, moments prior.
By the end of the movie, he becomes extremely hopeless after losing his sister and gives in to hunger and starvation.
Ash Lynx from Banana Fish
Ash Lynx from Banana Fish has the most traumatic background out of all depressed anime boys. When he was just a child, he was sexually assaulted and abused by a trusted adult whom he shot to death after the abuse became unbearable.
Afterward, when his father tried to send him away to live with his aunt, he runs away. He is soon captured by harmful men and trafficked into prostitution. He ends up at a child sex trafficking ring operated by Mafia Don Dino Golzine. There he is raped multiple times by “customers” and Golzine himself.
He was also recorded while being sexually abused and the video is put up on the dark web.
Ash Lynx’s horrible childhood causes significant trauma and makes him resilient to pain, both mental and physical.
He obviously suffers from depression, and a range of other mental illnesses throughout the series despite coming off as strong, tough, and charismatic. It was only Eiji who could see Ash’s vulnerable side and gave him a safe space to open up.
Arima Kousei from Your Lie In April
The anime movie ‘Your Lie In April’ is quite famous for its story that will surely make you teary-eyed by the end of it.
All the characters written in the story are so well written, and they all make their audience cry, both joyfully and sadly. The main component of the plot is its emotions, and they are all quite intense.
The character who is the most responsible in the anime is Arima Kousei; he is the main character of the story. Arima can easily be considered as one of the most depressed male characters in the world of Anime.
After having a tough childhood, Arima one day is unable to hear the sound of his keyboard.
Even though in the end, he has a significant character growth thanks to a character named Kaori. However, it takes Arima a lot of time, and we spend a lot of time with him as he struggles with his depression throughout the show.
Aoyagi Ritsuka from Loveless
Aoyagi Ritsuka, from the anime Loveless, faces a tough family life because her mother is suffering from mental illness, and his brother Seimei Seimei has been murdered by someone.
If this wasn’t tragic enough, the situation gets even more complicated when he meets with a character who goes by the name of Agatsumi Soubi. The meeting with Soubi completely changes Aoyagi’s view towards his existence in the world.
Loveless is a world full of sacrifices and fighters which sees two people who have the same name as they battle as one “fighter” fights, and the “sacrifice” protects.
In the event that it gets direr, Ritsuka also discovers that Soubi had once known his brother from the past and had fought with his brother before.
They both shared an identical name ‘Beloved’. Both Beloved and Ritsuka discovered that Soubi has knowledge of the death of his brother.
Also read
Final Thoughts
Anime is known for portraying sad and depressed characters although more often than not (except a few instances) they cannot capture it properly.
Sure, anime depicts depressed anime boys and girls all the time and shows characters dealing with mental illness, but most of the time, they only represent a stereotypical view of the mental illness mostly from the point of view of an outsider instead of the actual survivor perspective.
I believe, anime can do a lot better in this regard, given Japan’s reputation of dealing with mental illness and behavioral disorders.
Which depressed anime boy inspired you through your tough times? Let us know in the comments!
