A good story—whether it's a book, movie, manga or TV show—can really draw us in.
We can get invested in the story to the point we begin to have real feelings about the characters.
That's why having a favorite character die can cause real grief.
Redditor Iridescent126 asked:
"What was the saddest fictional character death for you?"
Spock
"Spock, in Wrath of Khan."
- Lisa_Anns_Ass
"'I have been, and always shall be, your friend'.”
- MadMacs77
"'Of all the souls I have encountered in my travels, his was the most... human'."
- bozoconnors
GiphyStoick the Vast
"Stoick the Vast How to train your dragon"
"Dude literally just reunited with his wife after over 15 years of being gone and spends a total of about 15 minutes with her. Cause of death: basically took a bullet in the chest to protect his son."
- 24Nitro-gamer
"I saw it in theatres and a bunch of kids started to cry. Not like sniffing but out loud wailing. It added to the atmosphere."
- ThePurpleMister
"I cried, 20-something y.o. dude just ugly crying"
- leotushex
The Iron Giant
"The Iron Giant will ALWAYS have me ugly crying when he goes up to stop the missle"
- muhfckinuhhh
GiphyWhere The Red Fern Grows
"The dogs in 'Where the Red Fern Grows'."
- johnny*mseed
"Came here to say this. This book destroyed me in grade five but also really demonstrated grief in such a profound way."
- such_sweet_nothing
Bubba
"Bubba in Forrest Gump. That whole scene had me wrecked."
"From Bubba's weak, 'I wanna go home,' to Forrest's narration saying he died by that river in Vietnam while showing him holding Bubba....."
"God damn, I'm crying just thinking about it."
- ChuckZombie
GiphySaving Private Ryan
"Saving Private Ryan has two of the saddest, most brutally gut wrenching deaths I’ve ever seen on screen in Wade and Mellish."
"Wade trying to talk the guys through his injury that goes from panic and terror to acceptance of his own death as he cries out for his mother and says 'I want to go home'? Jesus Christ."
"Mellish is brutal for all the more uncomfortable and raw reasons you’d imagine. War is horrific. Young men are sent off to die, and their lives are cut short for no reason."
"It’s tragic and heartbreaking, and this is one of the only movies to really nail that feeling"
- Tuna-No-Crust
Ellie From Up
"Ellie from 'UP' gets me everytime"
- MaterialScientist420
"Sometimes I wonder how movies ever took off when the first ones were short with no sound."
"Then I remember the time a 10 minute animation with no dialogue absolutely wrecked me. It's a god-damned masterpiece and I hate it."
- cycloptian_tit
GiphyM*A*S*H Had A Few
"Henry Blake. MAS*H. The scene in the operating room. The actors weren’t told about it, just called back for one last scene shoot and Radar walks in and tells them. The silence is amplified by the sounds of instruments still working. Haunting"
- Salami_sub
"Piggy backing off this, the guy they tried to keep alive so his kids wouldn't remember Christmas as the day their dad died. That one gets me just thinking about it."
- GaussfaceKilla
"I just saw that one like a month ago! That was totally heartbreaking. Hawkeye spins the clock forward to twelve o five December twenty sixth and they all conspire to forge his death certificate"
- The_Dynasty_Group
My Girl
"'He can’t see without his glasses'"
- peesherman42
"What made this especially shocking/sad is that the entire movie was a huge bait-and-switch, but in a really effective way."
"At the time, 11-year old me thought -- based on the trailers and the marketing -- that I was about to watch a lighthearted coming-of-age movie."
"And while it does have some of that, boy did it have a macabre edge to it."
- Geekboxing
Littlefoot's Mom
"Littlefoot’s mother’s death"
- 2-DMan
"My son fell in love with this movie when he was 3 or 4, and every time that part would come on I would have to leave the room because no matter what age I am, I will always get emotional. Something about the music and the overall vibe that really just punches me in the gut."
- isurfnude4foods
"The music plus the quote 'Let your heart guide you. It whispers, so listen closely'. It's so beautiful and tragic."
- fiofo
GiphyThe sign of a great story is how it can touch our hearts and sometimes break it.
So what was the saddest character death for you?
- People Confess Which Fictional Death Hit Them The Hardest ›
- People Break Down The All-Time Saddest Deaths In Television History ›
- The Most Heartbreaking TV Character Deaths - TV Guide ›
- The Saddest Literary Deaths We're Still Crying About - Dictionary.com ›
- The Saddest TV Character Deaths Of All Time ›
- 11 Deaths In Books That Left Us Emotionally Devastated ›
- Saddest Movie Character Deaths ›
- 31 fictional character deaths we still can't get over - It's a Southern ... ›
- 27 Character Deaths That We Still Feel To This Very Day ›
- 68 Fictional Character Deaths We'll Never Get Over - E! Online ›
- These Are the 50 Saddest Movie Deaths of All Time — Best Life ›
- 23 Character Deaths That Make People Cry Every Time ›
For those who've thought outside the box and put together a delicious concoction, Redditor wildwoodflower_ asked:
"What's a food combo you love that people think you're weird for?"
People slapped two ingredients together to come up with quick and easy masterpieces.
Jamming Out
"Not me but a close friend: fried eggs with strawberry jam"
– Temporary-Patient-47
Crunchy And A-Peel-ing
"One of my grandmothers used to like stuffing a few pretzel sticks down a banana. Salt and the crunch with the banana is a surprisingly decent mix of texture and flavor. She called it 'Bananas with bones.'"
– EffyewMoney
A Potent Combo
"I used to eat tuna and spicy v8 like every day my first year in college. It gave me some paint peeling gas that almost killed my roommate. 20 years later, I still get sh*t for that."
– TrickyXT
Pacific Northwest Delight
"Seattle dogs are my jam, hotdog with cream cheese and caramelized onions"
– giggles________
These basic ingredients can be the perfect foundation for anything cheap and delectable.
Quintessential Ingredient
"So the general consensus here is peanut butter + anything."
– Lonely_Custard_5838
British Savory Condiment
"Being British you can divide the country with Marmite with anything."
– oldhandnewmind
It's A Wrap!
"I like making PB&J with tortillas, I spread it on then roll it up, it reminds me of those Smuckers uncrustables but better."
– Dude_Baby
Try Not To Sneeze
"Cottage cheese with a sh*t ton of ground black pepper mixed in, used as a dip for potato chips."
"Mmm it’s been too long since I’ve had this."
– Quirky_Word
It's Their Jam
"Sausage McMuffin with hash brown and grape jelly."
"I assumed this was pretty common, but I have never come across another person who does this. most people think it's gross."
– run66
Two different snacks came together and delighted the palates of these Redditors.
Sweet And Savory
"Chili with a cinnamon roll."
– MrDover2112
Tasty And Tangy
"Brownies with orange juice."
"Also havarti cheese and corn (I was high when I discovered this)"
– cookiedux
As a kid, my husband liked to eat sandwiches consisting of bologna and peanut butter together.
I winced, but he swears by it.
I just have to believe him because that combo doesn't make any sense to me at all.
But hey, to each their own.
"Living or dead, who do you think has been the most powerful sex symbol the world has ever seen?"
The One Responsible For Starting It All
"Sigmund Freud's mother."- dreamwarrior22
Top Of The Liszt
"Franz Liszt, a 19th century Hungarian classical pianist and composer."
"Everything you've heard about obsessed fans of rockstars like Elvis or The Beatles was happening to perhaps an even greater degree a century earlier."
"People's obsession with him was so intense and so widespread that it was called Lisztomania and it was considered a genuine mental disorder."
"They threw underwear on the stage, they fainted just seeing him, they collected any scrap of anything he touched (some even wore his cigar butts as jewelry), and his shows caused full on riots."
"Both men and women were obsessed, common people as well as royalty, truly everyone."
"I remember hearing something about him playing for a Catholic mass at a cathedral in Rome, and got kicked out for making the nuns too horny."- paraworldblue
He Could Resist Anything, Except Temptation...
"How has no one said Oscar Wilde yet?"
"His grave was literally covered in lipstick kiss marks until they had to protect it."- LanceAlgoriddim
Age Could Not Wither Her
"Well, it's been about two thousand years and we're still talking about Cleopatra and her lovers, so I'm enclined to give her that."- emissaryofwinds
Eternal Beauty
"I’m going to say whom ever inspired those Paleolithic Venus figurines."- Tricky-Engineering59
Extinction Be Damned!
"The turtle who single-handedly brought his species out of endangerment by having a f*ckton of sex."- abitsussy
Marine Life Swimming GIF by Nature on PBSGiphyNothing Is Sexier Thank Kindness
"Paul Newman because of 'all profits to charity', $600 million so far."- tracyinge
Sexy, Or Sexist?
"Victor Hugo."
"Supposedly all the brothels in Paris closed on the day of his funeral."
"The prostitutes attended by the hundreds and draped their privates with black cloths as a sign of mourning."
"His sexy exploits include:"
"Having sex 83 times in the 4 months before he died at age 83."
"Having sex with over 200 women in 2 years."
"It was not unusual for him to have 3-4 different lovers in a day."
"For seven years he had a mistress he kept secret from his wife and a second mistress he kept secret from his first mistress."
"Had sex 9 times with his wife on their wedding night."
"She got pregnant 5 times in 8 years."
"He was married to his wife for 48 years til her death."
"Both had lovers outside the marriage."
"One of his mistresses was his unpaid 'secretary' and traveled with him for 50 years."
"He seduced his son's lover."
"His son said he didn't blame her for it."- heimdahl81
Victor Hugo Pamela Chougne GIFGiphyThe Face That Launched A Thousand Ships
"Helen of Troy."- destro23
They Always Love The Drummer...
"Roger Taylor in Queen's 'I want to break free' video."- vickinga
Snakes Medusa GIF by PBS Digital StudiosEveryone Could Just Eat Her Right Up...
"The green m&m."- Plenty-Row4359
No Matter What Name He Was Using...
"Prince."
"He will steal your girl, then steal her clothes, then steal someone else's girl in your girl's clothes."- LeChefK_Tang
Sexiness is in the eye of the beholder.
Though, anyone who doesn't think Paul Newman was the sexiest man that ever lived may need to get their eyes checked...
Redditor JeffLaRue wanted to hear how people would react without the possibility of sex, so they asked:
"What would you do if you couldn't have sex anymore due to a physical or mental issue?"
I personally wouldn't be thrilled.
But I'd find a way.
The New Me
Sad Sponge Bob GIF by SpongeBob SquarePantsGiphy"I do actually (endometriosis). It's sometimes really sad, but you do other things with your partner, and try again to see if there's any improvement."
"I used to have a high sex drive, but due to the pain not anymore. My partner understands that and his one preoccupation is my health."
Nansya
Likely be ok?
"My husband has stage 4 metastatic melanoma. He’s ok and will likely be ok but chemo/immunotherapy f**ked with his mojo. I’m good. We’ve found our intimacy in other ways like coffee together and just laughing in our car, our tv shows, etc.. I’d much rather have him with me than sex."
Dawnydiesel
"Let's take a moment to appreciate that 'likely be ok' and 'stage 4 metastatic melanoma' can coexist in one sentence. Science, man."
Sixmonths_Newaccount
Sucks, really...
"I was hit by a car and paralyzed from the chest down. I no longer have any sensation down there. Sucks, really. In some ways I think it is easier to get over not being able to walk, than losing sexual function. Unfortunately there isn't anything to do about it."
krunchytacos
"I’m glad you’ve made it this far. I agree with you. My vehicle was rear-ended at a red light. I learned to walk again (so I’m doing amazing really!) but I can’t feel most of my bits, peeing is weird or doesn’t work, same with poo, one foot is constantly weakening, numbness, pins and needles, bolts of pain, constant throbbing, changes with the weather and activities, and really just keeps getting worse. Can’t work a full time job anymore. But the thing that’s the hardest to deal with is the neurogenic sexual dysfunction. It’s difficult as hell."
jessibrarian
All Gone
"The real question is, what would your SO do? We have been in this exact predicament for over 3 years now... It's like living with your best friend but every single day you watch a piece of your relationship die."
"Sorry for the over sharing. This one hits hard. Prostate cancer under 50 is considered rare."
"Although if caught early its very treatable. What they don't tell you is the cancer is transplanted into your relationship. For over 30yrs we had an amazing intimate sexual chemistry that was built around if one of us isn't into it then we won't do it. No fake orgasms, no birthday sex, no wearing each other down or giving in... just raw vulnerability and trust. All gone!"
New_Shoes_999
Meh
Awkward John Krasinski GIF by Saturday Night LiveGiphy"I would definitely miss it, but I'd manage."
SexyChronicPain
Some people really don't care but did address the lack of intimacy.
A Mental No
No No No GIFGiphy"Honestly I’d be devastated. Not being able to connect in that intimate way with my partner would leave a huge gap in my mental well being. I know it’s not technically essential but it’s a massive part of a relationship and without that I would feel incompetent as a partner."
whiskerbiscuit2
Quality Time
"I'd try other things to feel intimate with my partner. Like naked, but not sexual, snuggling. Or start up a hobby night where we spend quality time together. Maybe buy them a quality toy so they don't feel like they're missing out because of me 🤷♀️ But other than that? I'd just continue getting on with life!"
BinkiesForLife_05
The Struggle
"Been dealing with an inflammatory skin issue that has prevented me from having sex with my partner for the last two months. It’s been a struggle, feels like my sex life is in shambles, and it’s driven me back into depression."
"Luckily my partner is incredibly understanding, but it has put a huge strain on the relationship. Trying to explore other forms of intimacy but she has a hard time receiving touch without it being a mutual experience.
"If this becomes a long term problem I don’t know how I’ll cope."
Merp_the_People
Downgrade
"I'm going to buck the trend and say that my life would be significantly degraded. I had a fairly low sex drive through periods of my life due to mental illness. Now, I am at my sexual peak and it's as if I'm seeing in color for the first time: I know how my body works, and what it likes, and I feel powerful and sexy."
"At this point, my sense of self and identity are linked to my ability to have sex. I felt very ugly and like I was only a mother for a while, and I feel much more like a woman and a normal person now. I could live without sex... but it would take me building myself up all over again and accepting who I am without that."
PralineOwl
Inadequacy...
"It would probably devastate me, honestly. I was super overweight had very poor luck with women in my teens and twenties. I took control of my life, lost over 100 pounds and met my wife at 28. 8 years later we still have a very healthy sex life. She would understand but I feel as though it would bring up the feeling of inadequacy again."
Kingjerm731
Sex isn't everything, but it's important to many.
Hopefully everyone finds peace if this is a life issue being faced.