Anime that teaches how hard life is..

[ArrowSmith]

Another series that sort of flew under the radar, "Neia Under 7". It's about an alien, but that's not really what it's about.

[erneiz_hyde]

How about H2O? You could learn how terrible it is to be "socially dead".

Kimi ga Nozomu Eien teaches you how to "let go" of the past.

Saikano for shits that war brings.

Someone mentioned Niea_7, I'm adding Haibane Renmei

Heck, go with Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei while you're at it.

[Kotohono]

I'll third CLANNAD and Seirei no Moribito.

Also maybe Wandering Son to some extend anyways.

[Sackett]

Honey and Clover

Clannad

Neon Genesis Evangelion

Chrono Crusade

[HasuMasu]

Saikano for shits that war brings.

seconded, this series is such a bitch

[Haak]

I would also have to recommend Colorful, 5 Centimeters Per Second and Oujisan no Lamp.

[Dreams of Destiny]

Hikaru no Go is one of my favorite animes, it doesn't talk much about life but has a lot of dedication and hardwork, not to mention a really good anime.

[Helius]

Binbou Shimai Monogatari and Tokyo Magnitude 8.0. The latter is quite relevant to what's happening at the moment, so you might find it interesting.

Ef: A Fairy Tale of the Two - you'll either love or hate. Personally I think it's one of the best shows that deals with love/loss and it might just be the kind of bittersweet show that makes your fancy.

[oompa loompa]

Originally Posted by foxnaught

Spoiler:

... life's a bitch, and then you die

Spoiler for nas :

thats why we get high, cos you never know when you gonna go

second to grave of the fireflies.. be warned, it is not for the faint hearted.

[Niji]

Originally Posted by Helius

Binbou Shimai Monogatari

Agreed it fits somewhat, but it is quite cute, and heartwarming. If that is what the OP searches, all is good

[coderlan]

Too many is too many, thanks guys.

[kitten320]

Rainbow: Nisha Rokubou no Shichinin is a must, I'm on episode 18 and so far almost each episode was about something unjustful happening to characters, some are taken to extreme.

[BlankVoid]

Originally Posted by erneiz_hyde

Kimi ga Nozomu Eien teaches you how to "let go" of the past.
.

Here we go again...You only considered the guy and the girl here. Do not forget the other girl had to "let go" of her future to get to be with the person she loved as well as losing half of her friends along the way. The list goes on, but people always inadvertently forget or maybe even intentionally neglect the person who had to undergo MOST of the mental and physical pain in that show.

I will second this, however not for your reason. To the OP, I would not recommend this anime because it will probably bore you to death if you are not into the "hardcore" romance stuff/you hate asian dramas.

[ArrowSmith]

BTW - was Kimi ga Nozomu Eien: OVA ever licensed?

[BlankVoid]

^ According to the Animesuki DB, it isn't: http://www.animesuki.com/series.php/1145.html.

[exekute15]

Mobile Suit Gundam SEED

[erneiz_hyde]

Spoiler:

Originally Posted by BlankVoid

Here we go again...You only considered the guy and the girl here. Do not forget the other girl had to "let go" of her future to get to be with the person she loved as well as losing half of her friends along the way. The list goes on, but people always inadvertently forget or maybe even intentionally neglect the person who had to undergo MOST of the mental and physical pain in that show.

I will second this, however not for your reason. To the OP, I would not recommend this anime because it will probably bore you to death if you are not into the "hardcore" romance stuff/you hate asian dramas.

Spoiler:

Yes, I understand what you mean, but at least she IS with the person she loved, no? Their child even reads Haruka's picture book (in the game). To me, the most striking scene was when it was revealed what "the gift of Mayauri" was so the "let go" part left more lasting impression to me

Anyways, it seems the OP is quite satisfied with too much list so let's just leave it at that.

[BlankVoid]

Originally Posted by erneiz_hyde

Spoiler:

Spoiler:

Yes, I understand what you mean, but at least she IS with the person she loved, no? Their child even reads Haruka's picture book (in the game). To me, the most striking scene was when it was revealed what "the gift of Mayauri" was so the "let go" part left more lasting impression to me

Anyways, it seems the OP is quite satisfied with too much list so let's just leave it at that.

Spoiler:

I am pretty sure the happy ending followed Haruka's route. The OVA also does, doesn't it? Imo, the story would just be another "cinderella" fairytale if it followed her route and there's enough of those around as is...it's called the shoujo genre. I loved KgNE because it was as "realistic" as anime got. There's a lot of suspense/thriller/mystery based anime as well which one can argue is "realistic", but KgNE was certainly down to earth compared to everything else. Something that can happen to anyone and certainly something many can relate to.

The book did make me crack a tear, but only because it wasn't Haruka's story. If it were, it'd evoke an entirely different emotion. I don't know what exactly happens at the end in Haruka's story, and I plan to keep it that way. KgNE has been my favorite anime since 2000's, and if I followed the ending then I think I would come to like some crappy ecchi franchise like ToLoveRu more.

It all comes down to preference I guess. I think most people would sympathize with you since this isn't the first time I've had to go through with this discussion.

[Jeffry2009]

Tiger & Bunny. Does it even count?

[SeijiSensei]

I'll add House of Five Leaves to the list. Life is difficult when you're an unemployed ronin as the samurai period comes to an end.

Usagi Drop provides some good insights into the difficulties of being a single parent.