One of the places people meet their lifelong best friends is in high school. Therefore, many anime series use high schools as their primary setting. Some of these stories are centered on the slice-of-life genre, while others may be romantic comedies or even feature a dash of magic.
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Graduations are a natural consequence of completing high school. A common storytelling technique in television involves following characters from their first year in school through their senior year. Keeping this in mind, some series have crafted their finales to coincide with their characters' high school graduations.
5Angel Beats!
Angel Beats!focuses on students who cannot move on to the afterlife because theyhave things on Earth they did not accomplish or complete. Its plot revolves around Yuzuru Otonashi, a young guy who has no memory of his past. When he first enters this world, Yuri Nakamura welcomes him and persuades him to take up the fight against God and an enigmatic girl called Angel. He joins the organization centered around this goal, the SSS. Together, they plan on defeating Angel, so they can be the ones who control the lives they live.
After Yuri’s exploits, everyone else had moved on, leaving only the original five. They went ahead and planned their own commencement exercises. Otonashi gives the commencement speech, as is customary at high school graduations, and the ceremony ends after that. Since the remaining five members ofAngel Beats!have to process their feelings and move on, the graduation ceremony is very touching.
4K-On!
K-On!is a musical anime that centers on the Light Music Club of a high school. In this club are five girls: Ritsu, Tsumugi, Mio, Azusa, and Yui. Initially, Yui was convinced that she could not join the club due to her failure to play simple instruments, since she thought that was what the club was about. However, the club needs a new member or they face disbandment. After different attempts at convincing Yui, she joins, and their Light Music Club journey begins.
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Yui, Mio, Mugi, and Ritsu all said their final goodbyes and graduated from high school in themusical anime’s heartbreaking final episode. It was a touching story that addressed many concerns about the girls' future, as well as brilliantly showing the uncertainty that most graduates face in the real world. Fans are all too aware of the girls' interactions, the depth of their bond, and how they grew as friends, so the graduation episode ofK-On!is especially heartfelt.
3Assassination Classroom
The protagonist ofAssassination Classroomis an octopus-like creature with the profession of a middle school teacher. His students are hellbent on eliminating him to prevent a global catastrophe. His class, 3-E, meets in a separate building since its members are viewed as “misfits” at their “regular” school. However, regardless of being labeled as misfits, these students are talented in many areas. Using a unique method of teaching, Koro-sensei is able to draw out the best in his students.
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The student’s relationship with Koro-sensei, their homeroom teacher, was one ofgenuine warmth and caring. To pass the course, they had to eliminate the instructor. As the series progressed, it became increasingly difficult to kill Koro-sensei due to his superior intelligence and quick reflexes. Despite their eventual success, they found it difficult to leave their instructor. Graduation in theAssassination Classroomanime was one of the nicest because of the students' fond memories of their teacher.
2Love Live! School Idol Project
Otonokizaka High School is about to shut down once its current set of graduates leaves due to its small number of students. However, Honoka Kousaka plans to prevent that from happening. Nine students at Otonokizaka High School form the idol group μ’s (pronounced “Muse”) to keep their school from being shut down. The student council vehemently opposes its creation, but these girls do not allow that to bring them down. They believe in winning the Love Live! School Idol competition that recognizes thebest school idol groupwould bring awareness to the school and increase its attendance.
Despite having won theLove Live! School Idol Competition, the group has decided to disband because its three third-year members, Nico, Eli, and Nozomi, are graduating. They’ve grown close during the tough times and don’t want to break up or recruit new members. As the three third-year graduations loomed closer, the nine of them made a difficult decision: they would rather disband as a group with all nine members than lose members one by one every year or allow anyone else to join.
1School-Live!
School-Live!followsthe lives of four high school girls in Japan. A zombie epidemic broke out, and these girls are the only ones left in the school after surviving the outbreak. Additionally, they are friends because they share a dorm and a club. With all four girls being members of the School Living Club, there is one thing protagonist Yuki Takeya looks forward to, and that is the club. Every day, Yuki’s three friends work together to protect her because they still live amid a zombie epidemic.
The anime’s closing episodes made the girls' graduation more than a “formality,” as the undead entered their safe haven and their teacher and pet were revealed to be zombies. Yuuki in particular was starting to accept the idea that she was merely dreaming and that life at the School Living Club was primarily about surviving.
