18 Years Ago, School Days Dropped an Even More Controversial Ending Than Game of Thrones

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While the ending of Game of Thrones disappointed many, the anime School Days is often considered to have a far more shocking and controversial finale. It’s notorious for being one of the most divisive endings in anime history.

Similar to the controversial ending of Game of Thrones, the anime School Days took a big risk that didn’t succeed, leaving fans feeling shocked and disappointed. Both stories completely overturned expectations in a negative way, and despite being different genres, School Days now shares a reputation with Game of Thrones as a once-promising series that ultimately disappointed. Adding to the negative attention surrounding School Days, a real-life tragic crime in Japan further damaged its public image.

School Days’ Harem Deconstruction Ends With a More Shocking Finale Than GOT

It’s become common for shows to try and surprise audiences by defying typical tropes, but simply breaking expectations doesn’t automatically make for a good story. To be effective, an anime needs a meaningful reason to subvert those expectations – to deliver a compelling narrative or offer a new perspective on the genre or characters. Unfortunately, School Days misses the mark. Relying on shock value is a clumsy way to gain attention and can easily backfire, creating a negative reputation. In this case, the show’s infamous ending stems from misguided creative decisions.

The attempt to subvert the typical harem genre in School Days doesn’t work, ultimately leading to a shockingly bad outcome instead of a satisfying resolution. While harem stories can often be excessive, they can still be done well, as seen in series like The Quintessential Quintuplets or Nisekoi. A genre as inherently over-the-top as a harem seems perfect for a critical take, but School Days takes things too far, simply swapping one issue for another. The anime starts by frustrating viewers with Makoto Ito, a thoroughly unpleasant protagonist who pursues girls at school. It then spirals out of control, culminating in an ending that exemplifies this failed deconstruction.

Released in the 2000s, the anime School Days is notorious for its shocking ending, which many modern viewers might find disturbing. The story starts with a seemingly innocent harem setup, but quickly descends into a dark love triangle involving Makoto, Kotonoha Katsura, and Sekai Saionji. Driven by jealousy, Sekai kills Makoto, and Kotonoha retaliates by killing Sekai. The anime concludes with a disturbing and iconic scene: Kotonoha is shown on a boat with Makoto’s severed head, showcasing her obsessive and violent ‘yandere’ personality as she affectionately holds onto what remains of him.

The ending of School Days is widely considered one of the most disturbing and pointless finales in manga and anime. Unlike the impactful darkness found in series like Berserk or Vinland Saga, it feels gratuitous and lacks any real purpose. The series seems to have deconstructed the harem genre simply for shock value, and it ultimately fails to deliver a satisfying conclusion. It doesn’t offer any meaningful commentary on harems, flawed characters, or teenage relationships. While dark stories can be compelling if they make viewers think – as seen in Happy Sugar Life – the ending of School Days feels unnecessary and exists solely to be shocking.

A Real-Life Crime Still Casts a Dark Shadow on School Days

The anime School Days already faced criticism for its characters’ awful behavior and violent acts. However, it became even more disturbing when a real-life crime in Japan—involving a victim who was also decapitated—happened around the same time the anime aired. The similarities to a particularly gruesome scene in School Days made the anime even more unsettling. While there’s no evidence the anime creators intentionally used the real crime for shock value, the timing and parallels felt inappropriate and in poor taste.

A shocking coincidence occurred in 2007: on September 17th, the same day the anime School Days was scheduled to air its final episode, a teenage girl in Kyoto tragically murdered her father with an axe. Given the violent content of the School Days finale, TV Kanagawa decided to cancel the broadcast out of respect for the real-life tragedy, and most other networks followed suit. AT-X aired the episode later, on September 27th and October 1st. While the networks did the right thing by pausing or delaying the broadcast, the crime unfortunately added to the anime’s already controversial and dark reputation. Though Studio TNK wasn’t at fault, School Days now feels unsettling, and the incident has solidified its place as one of the most infamous anime series ever made.

School Days Has the Most Controversial Anime Ending of All Time

Even with all the conflict and flawed characters in School Days, there was potential for a hopeful or satisfying conclusion that could have made the story work. Instead, the anime doubled down on its bleakness. When a story challenges typical tropes, it usually still includes some positive elements to highlight the impact of those changes. This anime missed that opportunity.

Watching School Days, I was struck by how far the characters were willing to go – their words and actions were really pushing the boundaries of the typical harem story, aiming for a darker, more dramatic feel. But even with that in mind, the final scene on the boat felt excessive. I think a story can explore dark themes without going to such extreme depths. It’s more effective to hint at the darkness, explore it just enough to create impact, and then offer some emotional release and a little bit of hope. School Days was already walking a tightrope with its unlikeable characters and messy plot, and I think it could have been saved by an ending that was either more balanced or at least offered a glimmer of hope, something to make viewers think. Instead, it just doubled down on the darkness, leaving fans confused about who, if anyone, they were supposed to feel sorry for or support in such a bleak story.

Even a sad and thoughtful ending wouldn’t have prevented the final episode of School Days from becoming so infamous. It might have sparked a more productive debate – like the one surrounding Eren Yeager in Attack on Titan – about whether Kotonoha deserved sympathy or a chance at redemption. However, it’s difficult to deny that School Days went too far with its violent conclusion, a fact that’s clear from the continued reaction of fans over the years.

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2025-11-11 05:39