I’ve always been partial to the men’s choir acapella version.
Comment on When was the first time you cried over an anime?
mindbleach@sh.itjust.works 1 day ago
Quite possibly Elfen Lied, but not for anything in the show itself. It’s kind of an edgelord relic for violating every taboo it can get away with.
But the fucking gorgeous OVA, “Lilium,” has an extended version… which I did not realize I was listening to. So when the choral section continued past where the Gustav Klimt references would have ended at two minutes, I was not prepared. Admittedly this video also continues into the much-less-effective instrumental and music-box versions. The web is an archive the way a grocery store is a food museum.
If we’re counting anything short of outright weeping… yeah, Eva-01 going feral. A wave slapping against a van, and whats-her-name covering her face.
Tb0n3@sh.itjust.works 1 day ago
lvxferre@mander.xyz 1 day ago
Lilium has an even bigger impact if you contrast the lyrics with the manga - because unlike the anime, the manga shows themes like: “what’s even a human being?”, “does evil come from nature or nurture?”, “is redemption even possible?”.
…and the lyrics are basically a prayer for redemption, I’ll coarsely translate them here:
It fits perfectly once you identify Lucy with the sinner: she knows she’s guilty, and she’s asking God for redemption. With Kouta intervening in her favour, always showing compassion, much like the Virgin Mary would do in Christianity.
mindbleach@sh.itjust.works 1 day ago
I was not aware there was a manga.
lvxferre@mander.xyz 1 day ago
Yup. I actually recommend it; it still shows gore as the anime, but since it’s contextualised it doesn’t feel so edgy.
Another good series from the same mangaka is Gokukoku no Brynhildr / Brynhildr in the Darkness.