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Article created by: Ilona Baliūnaitė

Let's face it, some characters are crafted so horribly, it's impossible not to laugh at their ridiculous lines and actions. Storytellers mess up too and when they do, we get imaginary people who are just that — not real. Even worse, their unconvincing behavior can break the suspension of disbelief and ruin an otherwise totally sound book, TV show, or movie.

Luckily, that's not always the case and every once in a while, we relate to make-believe folks so much, we can even learn from them and grow as human beings. In fact, we can develop such a strong bond with them that their joys and sorrows start affecting us on a personal level. So we at Bored Panda decided to explore these beautiful connections.

Researching the topic, we came across a couple of Reddit threads (one and two) that we think you'd be interested to go through as well. They both essentially ask the same question: which characters' passing away have scarred you the most? And people's answers along with their explanations provide an interesting insight into our relationship with fiction.

#1

Animated elderly couple holding hands in a hospital room, representing movie and TV characters that crushed hearts when they passed away. Ellie from Up. Up's intro sequence was so beautiful: It told the story of a couple's life together. Real life with all of the difficulty and broken dreams along with it. And it shows the deep and incredible loss Carl felt with her death. This short sequence imbues the film with a deeper sense of meaning, using almost no words at all, and gives Carl a profound gravitas you cannot find in many other films

zaogao_ , Disney Report

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    #2

    Sam(the dog) in, I am legend. Because he was Will smiths friend and he had to put her down.

    DickVanDraeven Report

    #3

    Twin characters from a popular movie, smiling in school uniforms, representing movie and TV characters that crushed hearts. Fred Weasley from Harry Potter. The twins may have annoyed some people with their pranks, but their ultimate goal in life was to have fun and bring joy to their friends. They were generous and brave and clever and pure. To kill Fred and permanently tear them apart was the WORST! Especially when George had already been injured! You didn’t think they could be at risk anymore now that one of them had gotten hurt. They weren’t on my radar during the Battle of Hogwarts. I remember the moment I read it the first time. I was inconsolable

    yojothobodoflo , warnerbros Report

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    #4

    Two movie characters smiling and sitting in a forest, representing iconic movie and TV characters that crushed hearts. Rue from The Hunger Games. Rue getting speared and having Katniss sing to her. The 12-year-old me couldn’t handle that trauma

    Aerialchinook1 , Lionsgate Report

    #5

    That horse in the Never Ending Story

    wineandwings333 Report

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    #6

    Animated dog character lying down with closed eyes, representing movie and TV characters that crushed hearts when they passed away. Seymour the dog from Futurama. I normally skip 'Jurassic Bark' as I know I can't handle it. But upon a recent rewatch from beginning to end, I decided to put on a brave face, knew what I was getting into, braced myself, and watched it along with all the other episodes. I had to stop watching because I couldn't see the TV through my tears.

    LittlestSlipper55 , 20th Television Report

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    #7

    Close-up of a movie character with large eyes, representing iconic TV and movie characters who crushed hearts when passing away. Dobby. I've read the books before and knew he would die but when i saw him dying in the movie.... it just broke my heart. so i cried my eyes out in the cinema (i was ten)

    4ng3l1qu3 , warnerbros Report

    #8

    Close-up of a movie and TV character with a cap, showing emotional expression in a heart-crushing scene of passing away. Bobby Singer....

    cbite , netflix Report

    #9

    Little Foot's mom in The Land Before Time. When I first saw it as a kid it was the first time that I realized that my parents could die. That thought had never even really occured to me at that point. Even now as an adult that scene where he thinks he sees her but it's just his shadow and the narrator says, "Then Little Foot knew for certain he was alone." still gets to me.

    -eDgAR- Report

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    #10

    Young female movie character smiling emotionally while holding onto a rope, representing TV characters that crushed hearts. That girl from the bridge to terabithia. That hit me so hard as an 8 year old

    AdministrationSad226 , Walden Media Report

    #11

    Henry Blake from MASH

    KayBeaux Report

    #12

    Thomas J from My Girl. When Vada is crying at his funeral, screaming about his glasses... that hits different. Gets me every time.

    [deleted] Report

    #13

    Young boy in glasses wearing a Gryffindor scarf holding a white owl, representing movie and TV characters that crushed hearts. Hedwig. Idk, hedwig was there from the start. Ken Miles in Ford v. Ferrari. He never got his full recognition. Although, the nod from Enzo was huge.

    brocalmotion , warnerbros Report

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    #14

    Young man sitting on sand near a palm tree with a yellow labrador dog, illustrating movie characters that crushed hearts. Marley from Marley and Me

    iamabeanburrito , imdb Report

    #15

    Mufasa in “The Lion King”.

    Alii3mk Report

    #16

    Two medical characters in teal scrubs with serious expressions, featured in movie and TV characters that crushed hearts. Bob from Stranger things !!

    skinandearth , netflix Report

    #17

    Tadashi Hamada in big hero 6

    ZaVenom27 Report

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    #18

    Close-up of a movie character with dirt and blood on his face, a poignant moment from a heart-crushing TV death scene. Boromir from The Lord of the Rings. First time I ever cried during a movie.

    vinaigrettchen , New Line Cinema Report

    #19

    Loki in costume with long hair, appearing serious in a dimly lit setting from a popular movie and TV characters list. Loki in Infinity War. Not because of some great affinity for the character but because I was absolutely certain that he was the ONE person who was safe from being offed. Of course, he not only died but he died FIRST.

    IntrovertedAsexual , Marvel Studios Report

    #20

    Young male movie character in vintage school uniform standing outdoors, representing characters that crushed hearts in movies and TV. Cedric Diggory from Harry Potter. This one gets me more now than when I first saw it. Then, as probably a lot of people do on their first read/watch, I looked at it from the perspective of Harry. His friend died needlessly, and it hurt. Now, older and a father, I can’t help but look at it from Cedric’s dad’s perspective: proud and supportive of the man his son is growing into. And it’s all taken away in that horrid moment that they Apparate back

    DontWorryImADr , warnerbros Report

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    #21

    A movie scene showing a couple holding a newborn baby, representing emotional movie characters that touched hearts. Lady Sybil from Downton Abbey. That was absolutely traumatizing.

    APeacefulWarrior Report

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    #22

    Hospital scene with a patient on life support and medical staff in scrubs, depicting TV characters that crushed hearts. George O’Malley from Grey's Anatomy. I gotta mentally prepare myself to rewatch that episode

    simp4tedlasso , ABC Report

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