Cheerful and happily living feminine characters are considered to be the charm of any anime series as they evoke a wide range of emotions in a viewer. But in a pool of jolly girls, there are certain sad anime girls with depressed personality who face emotional challenges and grapple with their inner demons.

These characters invite viewers to connect with them, allowing for a nuanced exploration of mental health, and fostering empathy and understanding. In this article, we’ll explore a selection of sad anime girls with depressed personality who face hardships throughout their lives. So, without further ado, let’s get started.

10. Rei Ayanami – Neon Genesis Evangelion

The enigmatic and genetically engineered clone, Rei Ayanami is often referred to as a “doll” because of how emotionless she is all the time. A large part of her entire life is dictated by her worth as a mecha pilot, making her expendable and uncertain about her individuality.

Not being able to make meaningful social interactions and express emotions to the ones around her has gradually put her in a vulnerable state over time. Who knows what type of past led Rei to become such a mysterious persona, but one thing is sure she’s one of the most “bitterly unhappy” sad anime girls.

9. Yukari Yukino – The Garden Of Words

People who keep a mask on at all times can be some of the loneliest and most depressed people, and Makoto Shinkai’s Garden of Words portrays the same painful feeling of loneliness through 27-year-old high school teacher, Yukari Yukino who never expresses how she really feels and thinks.

She’s unable to cope with the mental exhaustion caused by the fake affair rumors and divorce, leading her into a miserable spiral of loneliness and shame. Only after Yukari reveals her true emotions and thoughts, she finds it easy to move on with her life and work.

8. Sakura Matou – Fate/Stay Night

Sakura Matou is a key figure in the Fate franchise whose origins are filled with nothing but tragedies. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that her life was extremely messed up since her birth as first she was separated from her twin sister and then abandoned by her own family.

After getting sold to the Matou family, Sakura is fed to special worms and put through an unfathomable degree of torture, all to make her a powerful weapon. Needless to say, being violated and taken advantage of all her life caused Sakura to turn into an emotionless husk.

7. Hotaru Tomoe – Sailor Moon

Revered as the pioneer of the modern magical girl genre, Sailor Moon is very much known for its sparkly and beautiful female cast. However, in a pack of colorful and gorgeous strong women, Hotaru Tomoe comes off as an anomaly because of her complex characterization.

Whether it’s her incapability in the past to save her friends or her mother’s death, Hotaru’s mental turmoil has always got the best of her. It’s no wonder why she ends up like one of the sad anime girls with depressed personality whose only option is to live with the woe.

6. Kikyo – Inuyasha

Inuyasha’s Kikyo represents one of the most emotionally charged and saddest backstories in anime. Even after dying centuries ago her soul never found peace because of the resurrection that burdened her once again with the memories of her past life and the pain of betrayal by the man she loved.

Around every corner of her journey toward forgiveness and acceptance, Kikyo has struggled with her emotions and her complicated relationship with Inuyasha. But, despite her tragic past, Kikyo refuses to be defined by her pain and melancholy.

5. Ai Enma – Hell Girl

Ai Enma’s entire existence is sort of tragic and filled with vengeance. At the mere age of seven, she was feared and shunned by her village after she brought a dead butterfly back to life, leading her to be burned alive by her village folks which was the starting point of everything going down badly.

She returned as an evil spirit and burnt the entire village to a crisp with no remorse or empathy. One thing led to another, and Ai ended up spending her entire afterlife being called the “Hell Girl” as punishment for her crime. There can’t be anything sadder than that but fate took her where she belonged.

4. Haruka Kotoura – Kotoura-san

Many think that anime psychics life is rather fun than problematic, but ironically for Haruka Kotoura, her powers have made her an outcast which leads to her deep sadness and depression. As a child born with the ability to read minds, Haruka found it hard to blend with others.

She would often spill everybody’s thoughts which caused her problems in forming genuine connections with others. As time passed, Haruka isolated herself and became cold towards everyone as she didn’t want to get close to someone, only to get pushed away later.

3. Annie Leonhart – Attack On Titan

Annie Leonhart might not be categorized as one of the sad anime girls in many fan’s eyes but she does have an air of depression around her especially considering how humane she feels. Of course, it’s because of the peer pressure from her hometown and her upbringing that had made her the way she acts.

She views herself as nothing more than a monster but to everyone else, Annie is an intelligent, good-looking, and highly compatible soldier. Her calm demeanor facade is to hide her depressed existence, brought on by years of distress and terrible early life.

2. Violet – Violet Evergarden

In Violet Evergarden, our charming heroine Violet embodies the pain of veterans who don’t know what it’s like to live a life without any struggle to survive. Raised as a child soldier, she lost both of her arms and the only person that ever showed her kindness in a horrible war.

After deciding to become an Auto Memory Doll, she is suddenly exposed to so many emotional and sensitive letters that Violet finds it liable to cry on behalf of her clients. As she helps others, it’s humbling to see how she processes her emotions and finds herself, somber as it may be.

1. Shouko Nishimiya – A Silent Voice

The next character in the sad anime girls list is Shouko Nishimiya who remains a beacon of kindness and forgiveness. When she transferred to a middle school as a young deaf girl, she faced relentless bullying and isolation due to her disability and highly introverted nature.

As a result of all the push around, Shouko never made any friends and developed a very negative view of herself and the world around her. Her quiet resilience and tender-hearted nature despite the painful experiences is what makes Shouko such an empowering personality.

Which one of the following sad anime girls with depressed personality is your favorite? Feel free to comment down your thoughts and make sure to recommend some other characters like the ones listed above, also don’t forget to share this article with your fellow otaku friends.

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