Go Out with a Smile: Difference between revisions

* [[Key Visual Arts]] loves this stuff.

** {{spoiler|Misuzu Kamio}} of ''[[AIR]]''. Her final smile {{spoiler|for her true mother Haruko}} is so full of love and so darned ''adorable''.

*** It also occurs in the [[Kyo Ani]] adaptation, only subtler.

** {{spoiler|Makoto}} in ''[[Kanon]]'', as well as {{spoiler|Ayu}}, although the latter was [[Not Quite Dead]] after all.

* {{spoiler|Ryoko Asakura}} of ''[[Haruhi Suzumiya]]'', who despite her {{spoiler|evil intentions of slicing Kyon to bits with a knife}} maintains a smile throughout most of her battle with Yuki and even keeps a smiling face as she is being dissolved by Yuki. That just makes her ''more'' frightening.

** Actually, she doesn't really see the importance of death. In her [[Image Song]], she even states that ''heartbeats are nothing more than trivial, wave-like patterns''.

* Done brutally in ''[[Alive: The Final Evolution]]'', when victims of the 'suicide virus' gleefully kill themselves, sometimes relenting long enough to do something important to them or encourage others to do the same. Those who are infected with the virus but have yet to succumb to it, and witness the suicides aren't sure whether to be terrified or be jealous.

* {{spoiler|Princess Emeraude}} in the finale of the first season of ''[[Magic Knight Rayearth]]''. {{spoiler|She}} even gets to ''thank'' the Knights for killing {{spoiler|her}}, which means {{spoiler|she's free from the curse that her life as the [[Barrier Maiden|Pillar]] was}}.

** If you want to get literal, GN Rei in [[End of Evangelion]] does this.

** {{spoiler|Rei 2}} as well in the series. Just as {{spoiler|her Eva}} is about to detonate, she hallucinates a smiling Gendo and tearfully smiles back before the kaboom.

* Misty Honey from ''[[Cutey Honey]]'' does after delivering a cheering speech to the main heroine

* Keisei in ''[[Shikabane Hime]]''; if he didn't, he'd have turned into an undead monster.

* In ''[[Higurashi no Naku Koro ni]]'', this is both played straight and subverted. {{spoiler|Shion smiles (a sad one albeit) in Meakashi-hen when she is falling to her death and mentally promising to not repeat her mistakes; however, it quickly turned into shock when she neared the ground.}} Played straight with {{spoiler|Rena in Onikakushi-hen. She tries to give a delusional and paranoid Keiichi a [[Cooldown Hug|hug]], but is beaten to death.}}

* ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh (anime)|Yu-Gi-Oh]]'': Following her [[Heroic Sacrifice]], Kisara smiles as she [[Died in Your Arms Tonight|is cradled in Seto's arms]] and reaches up to tenderly touch his face, just before falling limp.

** {{spoiler|Bruno isn't so lucky. Having declared that the loser of his duel against Yusei will disappear, he pushes his Delta Eagle to its limits just to get Yusei out the Black Hole they're in and back to the Arc Cradle. While Yusei calls out to him and reaches out, Bruno just smiles in the last shot we get of him.}}

* In Rukia's flashback in ''[[Bleach]]'', {{spoiler|Kaien smiles in her arms after being {{spoiler|run through by her sword}}, saying that he's [[Tear Jerker|glad that he can leave his heart there with her.]]}}

 

== Film - Live Action ==

{{quote|'''[http://www.empireonline.com/features/movie-finishing-moves/default.asp?m{{=}}12 Empire Magazine]''': There can't be too many gentlemen of a heterosexual persuasion who, if asked how they'd want to die, wouldn't tick the box marked 'crushed to death between Famke Janssen's thighs'.}}

* In ''[[Sin City]]'', while Kevin is being cut up and fed, he's still smiling. That's not a tear jerker, though, that's just ''intensely fucking creepy''.

** Of course, he lives through this.

* [[Redemption Equals Death|Sydney Carton]] from [[Charles Dickens]]'s ''[[A Tale of Two Cities]]'': "I am the resurrection and the life, saith the Lord?"

* In ''[[Dracula (novel)|Dracula]]'', every vampire that gets killed leaves a smiling corpse, with the implication that their vampiric nature was a curse they're glad to be free of. (Even Dracula himself, in the moment between his death and his body crumbling to dust.) Van Helsing stated that this was the main reason he was able to keep executing the helpless brides—because he was saving their souls by doing so. {{spoiler|Quincy Morris died this way as well after taking down Dracula and saving Mina's soul from his taint.}}

{{quote|{{spoiler|"And, to our bitter grief, with a smile and in silence, he died, a gallant gentleman."}}}}

* Just before being [[Ret-Gone|erased out of existence]], [[The King of Fighters|Ash Crimson]] smiles one last time for his childhood friend Elizabeth.

* Although he doesn't die, [[Dawn of War|Sergeant Cyrus]] believes in this. As he knows that he will die one day in battle, regardless of his skill or experience, he's come to realize that death is not exactly the best thing to do. When Sergeant Thaddeus asks him, Cyrus merely tells him to save some of the victory feelings he gets when he has beaten a very tough opponent, so that when the end does come, you can remember the feeling you got when you won and not have bad things to consider.

* After an [[Best Boss Ever|epic battle]] with his pupil [[Asura's Wrath]], {{spoiler|[[Old Master|Aug]][[Blood Knight|us]] dies smiling, content that his last battle was as exhilarating as he had hoped, even [[Graceful Loser|giving Asura his blessing]]}}.

** {{spoiler|Yasha dies smiling after his last battle with Asura, in hope that the now powered up Asura can save the world.}}