Why so many "bad" endings in anime?

[awsam007]

I just finished watching all of Dual! and although I liked it overall I was very disappointed with the ending. It got me thinking, I've seen my fare share of anime and come to think of it, frankly most of them seem to have "bad" (i.e. stupid, rushed, nonsensical, unfulfilling) endings. I know I'm not the only one who feels this way either because I've seen posts all over the internet about how,

"-fill in the blank- anime was great but the ending was horrible"

So my challenge for all you otaku out there is this: where are the *good* endings. You know, the one's that didn't disappoint. The one's that made you glad you spent your lunch money on DVD box sets. The one's that made you get choked up a little (at least until your brother/sister walks in and you pretend it was dust in your eye) or cheer for the heros or even just feel something. With all the anime churned out by the industry each month, I know there just has to be some out there with satisfying endings, right? If you know of any, please help me out by replying to this.

Thanks in advance for your help folks, I know you can do it!

P.S. to start the list off, someone told me that Rahxephon, which personally I've only seen the first 4 eps of, has a worthwhile ending to it. Someone here can verify this I'm sure.

[CDLviking]

Tenchi Universe is kinda the opposite. I felt it was a mediocre anime with a superb ending. I also like the ending to Cowboy Bebop and Now and Then, Here and There.

[Bobtheduck]

Oh, yeah... Cowboy Bebop was ALL about the ending.

I think that the endings of a lot of anime seem bad to us because we don't want them to end... Some of them are bad because they're not the ending (like Nadesico, Captain Tyler.) and some of them... Well, some of them suck for no reason.

Does that help? No? Glad to be of service. Be favorable to me and longevity and prosperity, yo. I've got work to do...

[Rev. Doc]

A large number of series come out while the manga on which they are based are popular in Japan. Seeing that the average series runs 13 to 26 episodes, the anime title will generally run it's course before the manga finishes up. Therefore, many anime that you watch have that feeling of being incomplete because:
1. Those working on the series could only run it to the point where the manga was currently at. An example of this is Fruits Basket. While it had somewhat of a pleasant ending, many fans are wanting more because the manga is still running in Japan. Ranma 1/2 is also a classic example.
2. The production company has run out of money for the series. His and Her Circumstances would fall into this catagory (as well as catagory 1).
3. Many are disapponted in the ending in a show because it has taken a differnet direction then they would have wanted. Kenshin comes to mind. After the Kyoto arc many fans were very displeased the the remaining episodes.
4. We forget that an anime series is produced with the interest of the Japanese population in mind. While a show may have a following over here, it is possible it didn't over there. Therefore, a show may be cut short for lack of interest and we are left with what we are given, such as Big O.

Here are a few I felt had very good endings:
Princess Nine
Tiny Snow Fairy Sugar
Chance Pop Session
Jubei Chan
Maison Ikkoku
Kimagure Orange Road
Cowboy Bebop
Azumanga Daioh

[Bobtheduck]

Ooh... Sailormoon classic had a GREAT ending... Naoko was going to leave that as the ending, but Toei and Nakayoshi (or whatever her manga publisher was) wanted her to make more... The end to SM classic was great. It didn't really look like it was going to continue, but obviously it did for 4 more seasons...

[shooraijin]

> Ranma 1/2 is also a classic example.

What's funny about this is that rather than put the series on hold (because it was way too popular), the anime production group just started writing their own scripts. It's always surprising how much the later Ranma anime diverge from the manga in many respects.

[Debitt]

Escaflowne's ending was nothing short of awesome - and the same goes for Cowboy Bebop.

[CDLviking]

I liked the ending of Kimagure Orange Road's tv series, but the OVAs and movies completely ignored it . I really didn't like anything of it after the tv series ended.

[Gypsy]

I think that the endings of a lot of anime seem bad to us because we don't want them to end...

I agree with you there. I get very, very bummed when I watch the final episode of a series that I love. (I was literally slightly depressed after watching the final episode of Saint Tail - then the next day I watched the end of Snow Fairy Sugar ... I was a very sad Gypsy that week. They both had excellent endings, though.)

However, I have noticed that many of them have very weak endings - same goes for a lot of rpgs. Maybe I'm just expecting too much.

Examples:

Both the Lodoss series felt very epic ... then fizzelled out at the endings.
Both Nadesico and Captain Tyler made me mad (as Bob said, they weren't really endings).
Uh ... I can't think of any more off the top of my head.

[RoyalWing]

I liked the ending of the movie, "Spirited Away" because you didn't know what was going to happen. It made you think. I know it's not a series but I still think it should be mentioned~ (I'm sorry, I'm not familiar with many animation series like all of you are...)

I also like the ending of "Vision of Escaflowne" for the same reason. You wonder what will happen and think up all sorts of things. It gives you a sense that the story can go on!

[CDLviking]

Movies generally wrap up much better because they have a self-contained story.

[Iapetus]

I didn't like the Trigun ending that much - so much had built up to be resolved in half an episode. I can't wait to get past that point in the manga, because I LOVE Trigun, and I can't wait to see more character development on Knives.

I didn't like the ending to Ayashi no Ceres either. ><

I agree that Cowboy Bebop had an awesome ending. It was a bit funny when some fans wanted there to be a sequel, and the other fans were like - how are you supposed to do that?! O_o

I find that manga is a lot like this too. MARS didn't have that great of an ending, and neither did Record of Lodoss War: Grey Witch.
Other not-so-great ending: Miracle Girls - it was too corny. Mermaid Saga - it kind of just stopped. I think if Rumiko Takahashi had continued it, it would have been her best series. I love it so much... <33

Manga with AWESOME endings: Sailor Moon, Corrector Yui, Card Captor Sakura, Saint Tail, Flame of Recca...

...although I think the one that takes the cake would be the Sorcerer Hunters. It has the best ending to any storyline - manga or anime - that I have ever seen. This makes me a very happy person, especially since it is my all-time favorite series. <333

-Iapetus

[Haibane Shadsie]

Myeh. I don't like things to go on forever...

The anime series that stand out in my mind for bad endings are

Hellsing. Well, I only saw a bootleg copy of it someone gave me as a gift, but I could tell what was going on. It ended with so much left unsolved, and... Incognito was a dork. Lame villain. I think the manga continues on with the story, expands upon what's going on with the group that's making the Freaks and all.

Neon Genesis Evangelion. I've only seen the TV ending, and I rather liked the aspect of "the world ended, everyone's dead/enveloped in the Human Instrumentality Project, the end" - but... myeh. It left things unasnwered. Frankly, I'm kind of afraid to watch the movie, "End of Evangelion".

I think Petshop of Horrors needed more episodes. This is the only thing I've seen where I can DEFINITELY say that I like the manga of better. The manga has a lot more stories in it. The anime was only four episodes - it wasn't meant to really be a conventional series with a beginning, ending, and middle - it was episodic, just four stories revolving around Count D, the petshop in Chinatown, and the mythical creatures, but.. yeah... it just needed more eps, especially since the manga stories are so good.


Things I thought ended GOOD -

Haibane Renmei - best ending ever! I think the series could possibly have been longer.. it's a great series (My current favorite), but the ending really was good. It was very moving and beautiful. It leaves the series with a lot of mystery, but that is the tone of the series anyway. A lot of things in Haibane Renmei are big mysteries never meant to be fully revealed, so ending with the mystery works. I don't want to give spoilers for the ending, but... it was beautiful, touching, and left me with a sense of hope.


Azumanga Daioh had a good ending, very sweet. It leaves you with the idea that the girls' adventures as friends will continue, but the ending isn't left lacking at all. The anime was about their experience going through 4 years of high school, and it ended with Graduation, which makes perfect sense. Unlike, say, "Beverly Hills 90210", this high school story didn't try to follow the lives of the high school kids beyond high school, but tastefully left it to viewer's imaginations. This is a good thing.

Cowboy Bebop, of course. It just.. worked, though it was sad.

I, personally, loved the ending to Trigun. It left off a bit ambigous, but, kind of resolved, too. It leaves a lot to the imagination, but that's what fanfics are for.

[inkjet1987]

Hellsing. Well, I only saw a bootleg copy of it someone gave me as a gift, but I could tell what was going on. It ended with so much left unsolved, and... Incognito was a dork. Lame villain. I think the manga continues on with the story, expands upon what's going on with the group that's making the Freaks and all.

Maybe this is just a rumor, but I think they are making a second season of Hellsing. I'm not sure though.

Anyway, a couple good endings I know of are

Cowboy Bebop
Scrapped Princess
GateKeepers 21 (It was only 6 episodes, but it was still good.)
Trigun (It was a good enough ending for me. )

[MasterDias]

I didn't hate the Trigun anime ending but it was a bit too vague for my taste. I agree with Iapetus. It built up for awhile and then just ended rather abruptly.

Ah, well...
I'll read the manga eventually.

[CDLviking]

I agree that Cowboy Bebop had an awesome ending. It was a bit funny when some fans wanted there to be a sequel, and the other fans were like - how are you supposed to do that?! O_o

I've always thought it would be cool if they made a prequel that took place three years earlier, since that seems to be the time that all the events leading up to the characters coming together took place.

[Six]

yeah bebops ending was pretty final... prequels mabye ok but at the same time i would rather see the series untouched from here on out, i love bebop and if the messed up a prequel well... i just dont know what i would do.

as to endings, i liked triguns ending. i hope they make a sequel anime to that... but at the same time i mean the character development for vash was over, some characters gone, mabye more development on knives but i just dont see how a true sequel could improve on the original.