History VisualNovel / SchoolDays

** The unmistakable shoutout at the end of the episode, regarding a certain [[MemeticMutation famous]] [[AscendedMeme meme]] associated with this series. See AscendedMeme above.

* SpoiledSweet: Kotonoha, who is WAY sweeter and gentler than Otome and her bitch squad.

*** At the end of ''~Magical Heart Kokoro-chan~'' [[spoiler:where it's spelled out for you on Kokoro's inflatable raft.]] See AscendedMeme.

* BewareTheNiceOnes: Kotonoha is a sweet girl, if shy and withdrawn. Push her too far, however, [[spoiler:and she goes off the deep end, resulting in her murdering Sekai or committing suicide. Outside of the bad endings, she proves herself to be quite capable of manipulation and other underhanded tactics on a level with the girls who bully her, all for the sake of keeping Makoto from leaving her.]]
* BigDamnHeroes: In the game, [[spoiler:Sekai's mother Youko of all people, in the "Bavarois" ending. Because of Kotonoha's manipulation, Sekai goes home crying thinking she'll never forgive Makoto for "cheating" on her. Makoto goes to her home and begs to be forgiven, but Sekai just tells him to leave. Then Youko arrives home with bavarois, noticing that Makoto has been sitting outside for hours thinking there's nothing good about himself. Makoto even refuses to go inside when she asks, so Youko calls him a "stubborn boyfriend" for turning down an invitation from a beautiful woman. That irritates Sekai who insists there's good things about him too... so Youko asks, [[ArmorPiercingQuestion why doesn't Sekai give him the spare bavarois and tell him that]]? That causes Sekai and Makoto to reconcile sobbing that they love each other.]]

* BitchInSheepsClothing - Pretty much every single character. Roka, Yuuki and Setsuna seem to be the least affected, but even they are capable of rather questionable actions in certain routes. At least the local GirlPosse don't bother hiding their nastiness.

* BreastExpansion: Episode 5, one character uses inflatable bikini inserts to give herself large breasts.
* BrotherSisterIncest: In ''Summer Days'', it's revealed that [[spoiler:Shun Hazama is the father of Sekai, Setsuna, the Nijou girls, Inori, and possibly Roka, and that their mothers are all his half sisters (except Natsuhi and Roka's mother). Since Makoto can have sex with Youko in ''Summer Days'', this applies to him as well, since he is also Youko's half-brother.]] A lot of fans don't know this, mainly because, [[NoExportForYou well... the game had a pretty limited release]].
** In the same game and in ''Snow Radish Vacation'' [[spoiler:Tomaru Sawagoe is the father in six consecutive generations, the first one with his half-sister.]] Genetics hooray!
* ButThouMust: No matter how well you try to treat Kotonoha, even if you only make choices that raise her relationship bar the entire way through, the two of you will break up at some point. Interestingly the only way to not break up with her is to cheat on her with Sekai for training.

** [[AnAesop Long story short]], it shows what could happen if a guy really ''[[RealityEnsues did]]'' treat a group of young women that all had feelings for him like your typical H-Game player treats the female characters of a game -- and if some of those women happened to be extremely unstable. ''Most'' real people wouldn't react like that. Some would.

** AND it also deconstructs the female characters from HaremGenre and HGame from the various previous games of OVERFLOW themselves as well. If a girl puts up with THAT much shit solely to be with a guy who's really good in bed, it likely means she has serious mental/emotional problems.
** ''Cross Days'' itself is a deconstruction of a third party who is aware of the situation and tries to help fixing it which can lead to either successful or even worse outcome.
** DeconstructedCharacterArchetype: It begins like a typical HaremAnime, with the [[RidiculouslyAverageGuy average looking protagonist]], suddenly gaining the attention of many cute girls at his high school. However, unlike other shows that play it for laughs, this show gives the viewer a realistic example of what can happen when a boy suddenly starts getting with different girls and the psychological damage that it can cause, from [[spoiler:the protagonist seeing the girls as nothing but sex objects, to the girls that really care about the protagonist getting mentally damaged by his behavior -- so much so that one could be forced to commit murder.]]

* DoubleStandard: [[spoiler:Hanon Nijou]] being a FemmeFatale who [[spoiler:has sex with minors and ReallyGetsAround]] seems to not get as much reaction as Makoto's.

*** Actually, a couple of them ''do'' have murder. Specifically, [[spoiler:if Kotonoha finds out who Yuu is.]]

* EarnYourBadEnding: A counterpoint to "Earn Your Happy Ending" below. Even if you're only [[WatchItForTheMeme playing the game to see the bad endings]], they're actually rather hard to get if you're not trying for them. The exception to this is Kotonoha killing Sekai which it is possible to get from multiple routes in the game. The others are played straight with Sekai killing Kotonoha perhaps being the most difficult ending in the game to get.
* EarnYourHappyEnding: Kotonoha and Sekai's happiest endings can be seen as this. Probably "Two Lovers" as well, where [[spoiler:if you play your cards right, Makoto ends up with both Kotonoha and Sekai as his lovers. They're all on good terms with each other and plan to celebrate Christmas together.]] The "earn" part of the Two Lovers happy ending comes into play because in order to achieve the "Two Lovers" ending, you have to play a path that causes Kotonoha and Sekai to both give Makoto blowjobs and then be forced to pick a girl to actually do it with. And then you have to either let the timer run out on the choice or pick [[spoiler:Sekai]], because picking [[spoiler:Kotonoha]] at that particular point will get Makoto [[spoiler:eventually stabbed in the stomach by Sekai.]]

** Contrast this especially with the equivalent scene in the original visual novel, where he's more despairing than skeptical and is genuinely upset when Sekai almost accidentally breaks the charm by peeking -- and her following question about whether he's taking it seriously is the game's first player decision point, making it an Establishing Character Moment in more ways than one.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Sure, ALL the girls in the 10th grade are spreading like peanut butter for Makoto and each don't mind in the least that they're not the only one… but they '''all''' drew the line at Makoto loudly and publicly abandoning his unborn child, and ''collectively'' dropped him like a sack of shit.

** TangledFamilyTree: Thanks to [[http://i.imgur.com/fsRlPHj.jpg Tomaru's antics]], Makoto is actually the uncle of Sekai, Setsuna and Taisuke among other things.

** In the games, [[spoiler:Kotonoha or Sekai or neither, depending on the player's choices. Kotonoha can end up murdering Sekai with a saw in one ending; in another, Kotonoha first makes Makoto promise to date Kotonoha if Sekai breaks up with him, then she manipulates Sekai into breaking up with Makoto by showing her a cell phone picture of what ''looks'' like Makoto cheating on her with Kotonoha without providing Sekai with the context. Sekai can end up stabbing Makoto with a knife or pushing Kotonoha into the path of a train. Sekai also has one in the anime as well, she's the one who murders Makoto by deliberately misleading him with a cell phone message and then stabbing him in his own home.]]
* FanDisservice: The anime's conclusion is rife with this. [[spoiler:First we have Sekai finally snapping and stabbing Makoto to death with a kitchen knife while sitting on his chest and with her panties being visible almost the entire time.]] And then there's [[spoiler:Sekai's murder at the hands of Kotonoha, who is splattered with Sekai's blood and wearing quite a short skirt as she takes up her saw and ''slices open'' Sekai's stomach to check for a fetus.]]

** In the ''Cross Days'' "Give Up On Everything" route [[spoiler:Hanon, who's one of Kyouichi's lovers, asked Yuki to meet up with Niki. The "meeting" quickly turned into Niki attempted to seduce Yuki by stripping herself which caused him to flee. His sister, Chie, suspected about what happened and asked Otome about this which the latter told her that Kotonoha knew something. Kotonoha then told her about Hanon Nijou's infidelity with Kyouichi who is Nanami's boyfriend. This caused Nanami to break up with him.. and Hikari and Roka "comforts" her by brought Makoto to her, which ultimately foiled any chance of Kotonoha going back to Makoto nor Yuki succeeding with Roka.]]

* GenerationXerox: On further searching for information on this anime/manga/Visual Novel… [[spoiler:It turns out Sekai and Setsuna's dad is Makoto's half older brother, and in one MarryThemAll ending of the visual novel Makoto does the same thing his brother does and gets the girls pregnant. This time though they don't try to kill each other because they both realized they love Makoto but rather both decide to tell Makoto the ''wonderful'' news at the same time.]]
** Goes back even further with Setsuna's [[spoiler:and Sekai's]] grandmother, Hatsuka, [[spoiler:who was involved with Tomaru's numerous affair and "backstabbed" Kagura, her best friend, by becoming sexually involved with him.]] However, depending on paths this maybe subverted, as both Setsuna [[spoiler:and Sekai]] truly want their beloved to be happy.
** Taisuke, like his father Ayumu, [[spoiler:was subjected to RapeAsDrama by Kei Ogata and Asagi Inou respectively in their backstory.]]

* GirlPosse: Otome's friends Minami, Kumi and Natsumi are a ''really'' nasty and cruel version. By the end of the series their AlphaBitch, Otome, ends up as being ''less'' bitchy than them.

* GoodGirlsAvoidAbortion: In the anime, after [[spoiler: Sekai]] tells Makoto she's pregnant, he pressures her to get an abortion simply because [[spoiler:all the other girls he's been sleeping with refuse to have anything to do with him since he abandoned the girl he got pregnant]]. In other words, the concept of an abortion is used to drive home what a total {{Jerkass}} he is.
** Inverted in the Visual Novel. [[spoiler:Sekai]] wants to keep her baby, but is totally fine with lying about [[spoiler:[[TheBabyTrap Makoto being the father, when it might actually be Taisuke's]].]] Makoto, on the other hand, at the very worst is just scared at the possibility of being a father (player has choice of him [[BabiesMakeEverythingBetter being happy]]). Even when he finds out about [[spoiler:not being the father]], [[EasilyForgiven he is willing to stay with]] [[spoiler:Sekai]], if she gets an abortion. He asks her to choose between him and [[spoiler:the child of another man]]. Only when she refuses does he dump her. At this point, [[spoiler:Sekai]] will murder either Makoto ([[spoiler:if you claim that the baby is Taisuke's]]) or [[spoiler:Kotonoha]].
** In Cross Days, no matter which path you take after Yuki gets involved with Ai, the latter will not go through abortion and instead either Yuki takes the responsibility or claims that the baby is Makoto's, [[spoiler:or in the true ending, transfers away to raise the baby on her own and let Yuki and Makoto be happy with their own respective love interests.]]
* {{Gorn}}: In addition to all of the HighPressureBlood in the bad game ends and the end of the anime, the anime had [[spoiler:Kotonoha slice and pry Sekai's stomach open, blood everywhere, with an "inside looking out" camera shot which, aside from some fleshy strands still attached, wasn't ''too'' too bad in the TV broadcast, but then the NauseaFuel gets cranked up even more as the DVD edition did away with the BlackBlood, so you can make out all the textures and stuff.]] ''Seriously nasty''.

* AllThereIsToKnowAboutTheCryingGame : The anime is best known for its "[[MemeticMutation Nice Boat]]" ending: In the final episode, [[spoiler:Sekai goes AxeCrazy in a fairly literal sense, killing Makoto before being killed by Kotonoha in turn]]. By astonishing coincidence, a similar event happened in real life in Tokyo just days before the final episode was set to air, so the networks decided not to air it in order to avoid any [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything unfortunate parallels]]. Instead, they ran a half hour travel documentary that included one section about the [=Fjord1=] ferry. Somebody from 4chan took a screen grab of the boat and labeled it "NICE BOAT".

%% In accordance with the P5 decision regarding underaged content, please do not add material pertaining to the spinoffs Summer Days or Shiny Days to this article or its subpages. Thank you for your cooperation.%%

* BigDamnHeroes: In the game, [[spoiler:Sekai's mother Youko of all people, in the "Bavarois" ending. Because of Kotonoha's manipulation, Sekai goes home crying thinking she'll never forgive Makoto for "cheating" on her. Makoto goes to her home and begs to be forgiven, but Sekai just tells him to leave. Then Youko arrives home with bavarois, noticing that Makoto has been sitting outside for hours thinking there's nothing good about himself. Makoto even refuses to go inside when she asks, so Youko calls him a "stubborn boyfriend" for turning down an invitation from a beautiful woman. That irritates Sekai who insists there's good things about him too… so Youko asks, [[ArmorPiercingQuestion why doesn't Sekai give him the spare bavarois and tell him that]]? That causes Sekai and Makoto to reconcile sobbing that they love each other.]]

* {{Deconstruction}}: Arguably the main point of the series (and infact, the entire Overflow Universe) is to deconstruct the HaremGenre, HGame adaptation dramas, and other {{slice of life}} style romance anime series.

** Goes back even further with Setsuna's [[spoiler:and Sekai's]] grandmother, Hatsuka, [[spoiler:who was involved with Tomaru's numerous affair and "backstabbed" Kagura, her bestfriend, by becoming sexually involved with him.]] However, depending on paths this maybe subverted, as both Setsuna [[spoiler:and Sekai]] truly want their beloved to be happy.

* RealityIsUnrealistic: Many who dislike the show have cited the unlikeable characters and the IdiotPlot as reasons for why they've hated it. Some who enjoy the show have actually cited these things as reasons for ''why'' they like it, as the main character's [[YourCheatingHeart refusal to remain faithful to his girlfriend]] coupled with his ReallyGetsAround nature is something that many men, especially in this day and age, unfortunately do to their partners.

[[quoteright:240:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/schooldaysposter.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:240:This is a HaremSeries... [[{{Yandere}} gone wrong]].]]

Finally, there's also a manga, which is much more family friendly than the anime. Makoto, much less of a JerkAss here, manages to resist Sekai for most of the run; when he finally gives in to temptation, he feels so bad about it that [[TheAtoner he is prepared to break up with her]]... [[DownerEnding until stuff happens]]. Almost more disturbing than the anime, in a subtle way. There's a manga adaptation for ''Cross Days'' as well, which follows Yuuki, the protagonist of the game, and which gets dubious props for somehow making Makoto even more of a jerk than he is in the anime. No, really.

* [[spoiler:ParentalIncest]]: [[http://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/school-days/images/3/37/FamiliesNamed.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20140619155301 (though this version is a bit bigger) look through this family tree then highlight the spoiler.]]

-->'''Kokoro''': "[[JapaneseSiblingTerminology Onee-chan's]] [[spoiler:covered in blood!]]"

The anime is an AnimatedAdaptation of the VisualNovel of the same name. Although only a tiny fraction (4 of 21) of the game's endings being such, it is (in)famous for its violent "Bad Ends", which include such things as Makoto's scorned ex-lovers [[SpurnedIntoSuicide going suicidal]] or [[MurderTheHypotenuse downright murderous]]. The series starts out with a happy innocent mood, but [[CerebusSyndrome gradually becomes much darker]], and by the end plummets deep into the [[DownerEnding pits of despair, angst, and violence]]…

* XMeetsY: ''Film/FatalAttraction'' The {{Anime}}.

[[caption-width-right:240:Don't be deceived. Innocent HaremSeries this is not.]]

''School Days'' is, at first glance, a romantic comedy in which the male protagonist, [[OrdinaryHighSchoolStudent Makoto Itou]], falls in love with [[TheOjou Kotonoha Katsura]], a girl at his high school who happens to travel with the same train he does. Since he is shy about approaching her, he [[PlayingCyrano gets help from Sekai Saionji]], a girl in his class who turns out to be in love with him herself. Naturally, a love triangle ensues, testing the limits of everyone's feelings.

The anime is an AnimatedAdaptation of an animated VisualNovel of the same name. Despite only four of the original game's 21 endings being such, the game is famous (or infamous) for its violent "bad endings", which include such things as Makoto's scorned ex-lovers [[SpurnedIntoSuicide going suicidal]] or [[MurderTheHypotenuse downright murderous]]. The series starts out with a happy, innocent mood, but [[CerebusSyndrome gradually becomes much darker]] and by the end plummets deep into the [[DownerEnding pits of despair, angst and violence]]....

...and laughs, depending on how much you hated the main character by the end. Ultimately, the anime is like watching the worst ending possible on a visual novel.

Sensitive, [[IdiotPlot idiocy-intolerant]] or squeamish viewers, beware!

* A third sequel, ''Island Days'', has been announced for release in Japan on June 26, 2014; it strands Makoto and his fellow classmates on a deserted island and combines the usual visual novel format with survival and TowerDefense game mechanics.

There are also two OVA episodes, ''Valentine Days'' and ''Magical Heart Kokoro-chan'', that exist in [[AlternateContinuity Alternate Continuities]]. Especially in the latter's case, which turns most of the main females into {{Sentai}} and/or {{Magical Girl}}s with liberal amounts of randomness and VisualNovel/SchoolDays-style {{fanservice}} and gore.

Finally, there's also a manga, which is much more family friendly than the anime. Makoto, much less of a JerkAss here, manages to resist Sekai for most of the run; when he finally gives in to temptation, he feels so bad about it that [[TheAtoner he is prepared to break up with her]]... [[DownerEnding until stuff happens.]] Almost more disturbing than the anime, in a subtle way. There's a manga adaptation for ''Cross Days'' as well, which follows Yuuki, the protagonist of the game, and which gets dubious props for somehow making Makoto even more of a jerk than he is in the anime. No, really.

The [[http://schooldays.us/ "remastered"]] edition of the game, School Days HQ, was released in English by JASTUSA on June 28, 2012, and they have also obtained the license for VisualNovel/ShinyDays which was released in a download edition on September 29, 2015. A limited edition physical release was released on October 7, 2015. DiscotekMedia has licensed the anime to be released on June 24, 2014.

* AerithAndBob: The series is known for its unusual names and their spelling way. Compare Kotonoha, Sekai, Kokoro, Roka and Itaru to Makoto, Setsuna, Yuuki, Hikari, Nanami, Taisuke and the rest.

** No such issue in the manga adaptation of ''Cross Days'', where Makoto is back to being a womanizing jerk. Although it still counts as AdaptationDistillation because unlike the Cross Days visual novel, where Makoto can't get a harem ending with Sekai and Kotonoha, [[spoiler:[[MarryThemAll both of them end up with him in the manga]]]].
* AdjectiveNounFred: ''~Magical Heart Kokoro-chan~'' {{OVA}}.
* ADateWithRosiePalms: Being an H-Game, it logically has scenes like this. In the original Kotonoha is seen touching herself in the bath, while Sekai masturbates in her bedroom [[spoiler: while using her cellphone (with a picture of Makoto as its wallpaper) to "please herself"]]

* AdultsAreUseless: Most people's parents don't show up much, and the ones that do don't seem to notice how messed up their children can be. Kotonoha's parents apparently don't notice her descent into complete insanity (though her younger sister does). Sekai's mom, Youko, does offer some helpful advice in some routes, but then in ''Summer Days'' [[spoiler: she has sex with Makoto, who is dating Sekai at that point, and then when Sekai catches them, Youko insists on a threesome]].

* AllThereIsToKnowAboutTheCryingGame : The anime is best known for its "[[MemeticMutation Nice Boat]]" ending: In the final episode, [[spoiler:Sekai goes AxeCrazy in a fairly literal sense, killing Makoto before being killed by Kotonoha in turn]]. A similar event happened in real life in Tokyo just days before, and the networks decided not to air the final episode in order to avoid any [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything unfortunate parallels]]. Instead, they ran a half hour travel documentary that included one section about the [=Fjord1=] ferry. Somebody from 4chan took a screen grab of the boat and labeled it "NICE BOAT".
*** Oddly enough, the last episode ends with Kotonoha hugging Makoto[[spoiler:'s severed head]] on a NICE BOAT.
*** At the end of ''~Magical Heart Kokoro-chan~'' [[spoiler: where it's spelled out for you on Kokoro's inflatable raft]]. See AscendedMeme.

* AnimationBump: [[spoiler:Makoto's death]] is rather well-animated considering the rest of the show, [[TakeThatScrappy all the more to satisfy the audience, obviously.]]

* AscendedMeme: "Nice Boat" started as one [=4chan=] commentator's dry remark following an outpouring of shock due to Episode 12 being replaced with 30 minutes of Norwegian scenery and classical music [[TooSoon following the news of a girl murdering her father with an axe]]. The meme became so widespread 0verflow [[AscendedFanon named their Comiket 73 booth as such]].

* BettyAndVeronica: With Makoto as Archie, Sekai as Betty and Kotonoha as Veronica. [[spoiler: In the games, we have three possible {{Third Option Love Interest}}s: Hikari, Otome and Setsuna.]]
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Kotonoha is a sweet girl, if shy and withdrawn. Push her too far, however, [[spoiler: and she goes off the deep end, resulting in her murdering Sekai or committing suicide. Outside of the bad endings, she proves herself to be quite capable of manipulation and other underhanded tactics on a level with the girls who bully her, all for the sake of keeping Makoto from leaving her.]]
* BigDamnHeroes: In the game, [[spoiler: Sekai's mother Youko of all people, in the "Bavarois" ending. Because of Kotonoha's manipulation, Sekai goes home crying thinking she'll never forgive Makoto for "cheating" on her. Makoto goes to her home and begs to be forgiven, but Sekai just tells him to leave. Then Youko arrives home with bavarois, noticing that Makoto has been sitting outside for hours thinking there's nothing good about himself. Makoto even refuses to go inside when she asks, so Youko calls him a "stubborn boyfriend" for turning down an invitation from a beautiful woman. That irritates Sekai who insists there's good things about him too...so Youko asks, [[ArmorPiercingQuestion why doesn't Sekai give him the spare bavarois and tell him that]]? That causes Sekai and Makoto to reconcile sobbing that they love each other.]]
* BigScrewedUpFamily: Makoto's family line seems to qualify. [[spoiler: And it turns out that Makoto, through his womanizing father and grandfather, is related to almost all of the other cast members, so there's that.]]

* BrotherSisterIncest: In ''Summer Days,'' it's revealed that [[spoiler: Shun Hazama is the father of Sekai, Setsuna, the Nijou girls, Inori and possibly Roka, and that their mothers are all his half sisters (except Natsuhi and Roka's mother). Since Makoto can have sex with Youko in ''Summer Days,'' this applies to him as well, since he is also Youko's half-brother.]] A lot of fans don't know this, mainly because, [[NoExportForYou well...the game had a pretty limited release]].

* CreditsJukebox: Website/AnimeNewsNetwork lists 8 ending themes in a ThirteenEpisodeAnime. All of them come from the original visual novel.
* CrueltyIsTheOnlyOption: In the game, you ''will'' end up breaking someone's heart, period. It's extremely difficult to go through the game without breaking up with Kotonoha at least once. If you try to prolong the inevitable...well, read the rest of this trope page.

* {{Deconstruction}}: Arguably the main point of the series(and infact, the entire Overflow Universe) is to deconstruct the HaremGenre, HGame adaptation dramas, and other {{slice of life}} style romance anime series.
** [[AnAesop Long story short]], it shows what could happen if a guy really ''[[RealityEnsues did]]'' treat a group of young women that all had feelings for him like your typical H-Game player treats the female characters of a game-- and if some of those women happened to be extremely unstable. ''Most'' real people wouldn't react like that. Some would.

** Cross Days itself is a deconstruction of a third party who is aware of the situation and tries to help fixing it which can lead to either successful or even worse outcome.

** The Manga, though fewer people die is still quite the downer. [[spoiler:Although Makoto survives his injuries trying to protect Sekai from Kotonoha, he later learns that during his hospitalization Sekai has killed Kotonoha to be with him...]]

*** Actually, a couple of them ''do'' have murder. Specifically, [[spoiler: if Kotonoha finds out who Yuu is.]]
%%* DutchAngle

* EarnYourHappyEnding: Kotonoha and Sekai's happiest endings can be seen as this. Probably "Two Lovers" as well, where [[spoiler: if you play your cards right, Makoto ends up with both Kotonoha and Sekai as his lovers. They're all on good terms with each other and plan to celebrate Christmas together.]] The "earn" part of the Two Lovers happy ending comes into play because in order to achieve the "Two Lovers" ending, you have to play a path that causes Kotonoha and Sekai to both give Makoto blowjobs and then forced to pick a girl to actually do it with. And then you have to either let the timer run out on the choice or pick [[spoiler: Sekai]], because picking [[spoiler: Kotonoha]] at that particular point will get Makoto [[spoiler: eventually stabbed in the stomach by Sekai.]]
** Also the case in the ''Cross Days'' manga. [[spoiler: Yuki and Roka go through quite a lot of crap, but they end up together, and Yuki realizes that what's going on with Makoto and his girlfriend(s) isn't anything he's ''obligated'' to involve himself in: he has to take care of his own emotional needs, too.]]

* EvenEvilHasStandards: Sure, ALL the girls in the 10th grade are spreading like peanut butter for Makoto and each don't mind in the least that they're not the only one; but they '''all''' drew the line at Makoto loudly and publicly abandoning his unborn child and ''collectively'' dropped him like a sack of shit.

** In the games, [[spoiler: Kotonoha or Sekai or neither, depending on the player's choices. Kotonoha can end up murdering Sekai with a saw in one ending; in another, Kotonoha first makes Makoto promise to date Kotonoha if Sekai breaks up with him, then she manipulates Sekai into breaking up with Makoto by showing her a cell phone picture of what ''looks'' like Makoto cheating on her with Kotonoha without providing Sekai with the context. Sekai can end up stabbing Makoto with a knife or pushing Kotonoha into the path of a train. Sekai also has one in the anime as well, she's the one who murders Makoto by deliberately misleading him with a cell phone message and then stabbing him in his own home.]]
* FanDisservice: The anime's conclusion is rife with this. [[spoiler: First we have Sekai finally snapping and stabbing Makoto to death with a kitchen knife, while sitting on his chest and with her panties being visible almost the entire time.]] And then there's [[spoiler: Sekai's murder at the hands of Kotonoha, who is splattered with Sekai's blood and wearing quite a short skirt as she takes up her saw and ''slices open'' the other girl's stomach to check for a fetus.]]
** The visual game, too. It's hard to enjoy seeing Kotonoha's huge GagBoobs and pretty ZettaiRyouiki-clad [[ShesGotLegs legs]] when [[spoiler: she's getting ''raped'' by Taisuke. (Where's the RapeDiscretionShot when you need it?!)]]

* FanServiceWithASmile: Sekai in her [[ImpossiblyLowNeckline waitress]] [[BareYourMidriff uniform]], complete with detached sleeves. The {{Meido}} uniforms from the SchoolFestival also count for this trope... which often turns into FanDisservice, on account of it being present in even the most horrifying scenes.
* FirstGirlWins: Played with quite a lot. Kotonoha is the first girl the audience sees, Sekai is the first girl who talks to Makoto, and Otome was the first girl Makoto met, chronologically speaking.
* {{Flanderization}}: About half-way through the characters' personalities get flattened into flimsy pancakes. [[GenreDeconstruction Apparently, it's intentional.]]

* GenerationXerox: On further searching for information on this anime/manga/Visual Novel...[[spoiler: It turns out Sekai and Setsuna's dad is Makoto's half older brother, and in one MarryThemAll ending of the visual novel Makoto does the same thing his brother does and gets the girls pregnant. This time though they don't try to kill each other because they both realized they love Makoto but rather both decide to tell Makoto the ''wonderful'' news at the same time.]]

* GoodGirlsAvoidAbortion: In the anime, after [[spoiler: Sekai]] tells Makoto she's pregnant, he pressures her to get an abortion simply because [[spoiler: all the other girls he's been sleeping with refuse to have anything to do with him since he abandoned the girl he got pregnant]]. In other words, the concept of an abortion is used to drive home what a total {{Jerkass}} he is.
** Inverted in the Visual Novel. [[spoiler: Sekai]] wants to keep her baby, but is totally fine with lying about [[spoiler: [[TheBabyTrap Makoto being the father, when it might actually be Taisuke's]]]]. Makoto, on the other hand, at the very worst is just scared at the possibility of being a father (player has choice of him [[BabiesMakeEverythingBetter being happy]]). Even when he finds out about [[spoiler: not being the father]], [[EasilyForgiven he is willing to stay with]] [[spoiler: Sekai]], if she gets an abortion. He asks her to choose between him and [[spoiler: the child of another man]]. Only when she refuses does he dump her. At this point, [[spoiler: Sekai]] will murder either Makoto([[spoiler:if you claim that the baby is Taisuke's]]) [[spoiler:or Kotonoha]].

* {{Gorn}}: In addition to all of the HighPressureBlood in the bad game ends and the end of the anime, the anime had [[spoiler:Kotonoha slice and pry Sekai's stomach open, blood everywhere, with an "inside looking out" camera shot, which, aside from some fleshy strands still attached, wasn't ''too'' too bad in the TV broadcast, but then the NauseaFuel gets cranked up even more as the DVD edition did away with the BlackBlood, so you can make out all the textures and stuff.]] ''Seriously nasty''.
* GratuitousEnglish: The logo has the tagline "In the school, the three guys met. Their relation had been changed in the season, and turned into three love stories."[[labelnote:Better translation]]"Three individuals met in high school. Their relationship has changed in the course of one season. These events are turned into three separate love stories."[[/labelnote]]

* GuideDangIt: The original School Days visual novel, as well as School Days HQ, can be like this. The biggest problem is that because Makoto is indecisive and waffles too much, some of the choices the player makes can be counter-intuitive since Makoto might screw up a choice the player would handle better in real life. Compounding the problem, just like in real life, not everything is under the player's control and the love interests sometimes make bad decisions Makoto has nothing to do with. For both reasons, the player ''has'' to consult a walkthrough/guide for the right choices to make (or ''not'' make; yes, sometimes the "correct" response is to let the "choice timer" run out and have Makoto stammer and say nothing). Some examples of both include:
** Early in the game, after a lunch date with Kotonoha goes poorly since Makoto ended up talking more with Sekai, Sekai persuades Makoto to go apologize to Kotonoha. The player has two options: "I'm sorry" or "Was lunch boring for you?" Most Kotonoha fans would pick "I'm sorry," but if you do that, Makoto just blurts out "I'm sorry, that's all" and leaves, and Kotonoha misunderstands and thinks Makoto was apologizing for even asking her out. That puts Makoto further along the Sekai path. Kotonoha fans should actually pick "Was lunch boring for you?"

** If the player is trying for the "Two Lovers" ending, then eventually Kotonoha and Sekai will corner Makoto on a rooftop and force him to choose which one of them he wants to have sex with. Guide Dang It comes into play because Makoto is one choice away from either ending up with both women as his lovers or [[spoiler: getting murdered.]] And believe it or not, the correct response in this particular scene is to pick [[spoiler: ''Sekai'', despite how sympathetic Kotonoha usually is, because if you're on the path where you can get to "Two Lovers," then the sum total of Makoto's actions [[LoveHurts has actually hurt Sekai worse]] and ''she'' the one who needs reassurance to prevent herself from falling into despair. If you pick Kotonoha in this scene, you'll get "To My Children" where Sekai not only crosses the DespairEventHorizon, but she totally loses it and stabs Makoto with a knife on the beach.]] But there's an unexpected kindness, too: if you let the choice timer run out in this particular scene, Makoto will choose correctly.

** In Shiny Days [[spoiler:Natsuhi is revealed to be quite [[BuxomIsBetter developed]] many years since Summer Radish Vacation yet still two head shorter than Shun.]]

* JerkAss: Makoto, Makoto, Makoto...and oh yeah, MAKOTO! Mostly in the anime, though: he's a far more honorable man in the manga, and in the game, you can take or leave. Otome's GirlPosse, though not Otome herself, take this UpToEleven.

* KarmaHoudini: Otome's "friends" get away with [[spoiler: bullying Kotonoha, sexing up Makoto behind Otome and Sekai's backs ''and'', in the anime, exhibiting a tape that shows Nanami and her boyfriend having sex, ruining her reputation at school]]. Makoto's best friend Taisuke also gets clean away with [[spoiler: raping Kotonoha at the school festival]]. Hell, Minami takes the cake in Cross Days [[spoiler:by taking advantage of the feud between Otome and Kotonoha and making Makoto her boyfriend!]]

* LaserGuidedKarma: [[spoiler: Nanami's, Hikari's and Setsuna's actions in the "All hers" route, to drive Kotonoha away from Makoto to bring him and Sekai together backfire spetacularly, causing Makoto to actually do the exact opposite and sever his bonds with Sekai out of [[WhatTheHellHero sheer disgust for their actions]]]].
** Sekai in Cross Days as well. No matter which route is followed, she never gets to be with Makoto.

* LukeIAmYourFather: [[spoiler: Sekai, you may not know it, but following the game it seems Setsuna is your half-sister. Oh, and Makoto is your uncle. Yes, Makoto's father IS the grandfather of Sekai and Setsuna.]] Oh, and that handsome Shun-san? [[spoiler:He is YOUR father.]]
** Inori from Cross Days gets hit with this too, that woman named [[spoiler:Natsuhi Ebata]] that you keep calling "Adulteress"? [[spoiler:She is your mother.]]

* MamasBabyPapasMaybe: Comes up as a plot point on a certain route in the original game. [[spoiler: Unfortunately, no matter what choices the player makes, this situation is guaranteed to end in blood and tears]].

** [[spoiler: In certain game paths, ''Kotonoha'' can develop into this, too, when [[IHaveBoobsYouMustObey she starts using her body as a way to keep Makoto interested in her.]] In the "Bavarois" and "Carnal Desire" endings, Kotonoha makes Makoto promise to date her if Sekai breaks up with him. Then Kotonoha shows Sekai a picture of what looks like Makoto and Kotonoha cheating on Sekai, without giving Sekai the context in which the picture was taken. In the "Bavarois" ending, Makoto manages to clear things up with Sekai through sheer persistence, while in "Carnal Desire," the manipulation succeeds and Makoto has to reluctantly date Kotonoha.]]

* MarryThemAll: The harem endings in the game. Even when the game and anime seem to be a ''{{Deconstruction}}'' of the concept. The harem endings are the game's way of conceding that it ''is'' possible to pull it off; it's just [[TrialAndErrorGameplay very,]] [[GuideDangIt very]] [[NintendoHard hard]] and one little mistake can equal [[MemeticMutation NICE BOAT]].

*** [[spoiler:[[TwinThreesomeFantasy Kazuha and Futaba]]]]

*** [[spoiler:... and finally Kotonoha, her sister Kokoro, and '''their mother''' Manami, last one being impregnated by Makoto [[YourCheatingHeart secretly]] from the rest of her family. Name of the ending? ''Perfect Targeting Katsura Family''.]]

** Also a pretty severe case with the anime finale: [[spoiler: the final scene before the credits is Kotonoha floating out to sea with Makoto's severed head, having very clearly gone off the deep end. After the credits roll, we hear a repeat of Makoto's internal monologue about his admiration of Kotonoha from the first episode, playing over a montage of all the other students happily going about their days as if three of their classmates hadn't just brutally died.]]

** Reversed in the manga [[spoiler:when Kotonoha tries and fails to kill Sekai, ''Sekai'' is the one who later kills her, even gloating about it in front of a hospitalized Makoto]] and also in some new bad endings from the [=PS2=] version, which involve trains. [[spoiler: One of these endings shows Sekai pushing Kotonoha on the line, but getting hit by the train when Makoto is bailing Kotonoha out. The second features ''Makoto'' getting killed in front of the girls after he saves Sekai from her fall, and the third kills off ''both'' girls in front of Makoto ]]. NICE TRAIN, INDEED.
** The HQ version removes the added [=PS2=] endings, but adds one where [[spoiler:Sekai succeeds. [[DeadHandShot Nice Hand.]]]]
* NoAccountingForTaste: Of the four anime love interests (Kotonoha, Sekai, Otome, & Setsuna), it is only explained why Setsuna likes Makoto, and ironically she is the only girl to sleep with him for reasons other than liking him, curiosity, or lust. Also Hikari, what does she sees in Taisuke anyway?

* NoPeriodsPeriod: Averted, sorta. One of the reasons why [[spoiler: Sekai thinks she's pregnant, aside from suddenly having vomiting fits, is that her period hasn't come on time.]]

* OfficialCoupleOrdealSyndrome: Although it's more like an Official LoveTriangle Ordeal Syndrome, given that while it's hard to make a strong case for which pairing is actually the Official Couple, it's very clear that all three of them end up putting one another through Hell by virtue of the fact that both Sekai and Kotonoha desperately crave the affection of Makoto, who is often (depending on the adaptation) either cripplingly indecisive or just taking advantage of both of them out of his own lust. [[spoiler: The worst endings typically involve one of the girls snapping under the strain and killing either Makoto, her rival, or herself]].

* RapeAsDrama: [[spoiler: Kotonoha's mental and emotional breakdown begins hitting more fully after she's raped by her StalkerWithACrush, Makoto's best friend Taisuke.]]
** Going back to read ''Puremail After'' revealed that [[spoiler:Taisuke suffered one as well from Kei Ogata(one of Makoto's half-brother), the protagonist of the game who was dating his older sister, Miki, and mistook him for her.]]

* SatelliteLoveInterest: Setsuna falls for Makoto because he saved her from bullies; this is something that many people with a sense of basic human decency would do, but there don't seem to be any ''other'' bully hunters at school in this game, so one could almost argue Setsuna fell for Makoto "by default." A similar "by default" argument could be applied in Kotonoha's case: Makoto was the first boy in her life who didn't either drool at her breasts and scare her or make her feel unattractive; when Makoto asks her out she's taken aback that Makoto would think lovingly of just ''her.'' Otome loves Makoto because of the man he ''used'' to be in junior high school. Hikari in the game only falls for Makoto because he turns out to be really good in bed. And finally, Sekai seems to have fallen for Makoto because she repeatedly witnessed his best side, it's not clear whether Sekai anticipated Makoto's flaws in advance. Makoto seems to get female attention mostly because he's the only available male shown that isn't either a [[spoiler: rapist-waiting-to-happen like Taisuke]] or isn't already someone's boyfriend like the good person ([[spoiler:who is actually far WORSE than him]]) Nanami is dating.
** Yuuki, the protagonist of Cross Days, is also a nice person, much nicer than Makoto. But depending on the player's choices in Cross Days, Yuuki can end up with love interests of his own, leaving Makoto as still the only unattached nice guy left to love.

* SecretRelationship: Makoto and Kotonoha's relationship might as well be one most of the time, as Makoto never really talks about it with anyone but her and Sekai and few others are inclined to believe [[TheCassandra Kotonoha's]] protests even when Makoto's ''not'' cheating on her. So much of the plot would have been avoided and/or simplified if Makoto had just told other people that he and Kotonoha were dating. Also, Makoto and Sekai try to maintain one in the anime and most routes of the game, but they're [[EverybodyKnewAlready very bad at hiding it]] from anyone but Kotonoha, who mostly doesn't realize at first because she's in denial.

** In Cross Days, this happened to Hikari and Ruka Imagawa(one of Roka's peer) to Yuuki with the former cause Taisuke to believe that both are dating.

** The unmistakable ShoutOut at the end of the episode, regarding a certain [[MemeticMutation famous]] [[AscendedMeme meme]] associated with this series. See AscendedMeme above.
* ShootTheShaggyDog: [[spoiler: A few of the game's bad endings, and the anime ending in particular.]]

* SoundtrackDissonance: [[spoiler:The ending murders are set to a calm, though still depressing tune that also plays during the credits in the game's bad endings.]]

** Also Setsuna Kiyoura. She ''tried'' to be more discreet than the others ... [[spoiler: until Kotonoha caught her kissing Makoto in his sleep]].
* StockShoujoBullyingTactics: Kotonoha is subjected to several of these. She mostly goes through being cornered and insulted by Otome and Co. in almost all routes and the anime, but in one single route she also has [[spoiler: the lunch she made for Makoto knocked down by Otome's GirlPosse]], is the target of MaliciousSlander from [[spoiler: Nanami and Hikari]] and/or gets cornered and beaten up by [[spoiler: Otome and her group.]] If you have Makoto stop the last round and call the bullies out, [[spoiler: you get one of the happiest Kotonoha endings]]; if you don't, [[spoiler: you get the infamous "Kotonoha horribly snaps and gives Sekai a SlashedThroat in broad daylight" one]].
** To be fair, Otome does HAVE her reason apart from jealousy, [[spoiler:her family is quite a total mess: her father is a womanizer, her mother goes around threaten to kill anyone who cheat with him, making her hate women who was involved with her family and women who she believes are seductress in general like Hanon Nijou]]. Her similar treatment to [[spoiler:Roka also stem from the fact that the latter mother is cheating with her father]].
* SurrogateSoliloquy: In this case, just [[spoiler: [[TalkingToTheDead Talking To The Head]]]]. While there is no exposition on [[spoiler: Kotonoha]]'s part, there is no mistaking to the viewer that she has perhaps [[spoiler: irrevocably gone off the deep end, mental health-wise, on her [[MemeticMutation Nice Boat]]]]. See AlasPoorYorick above.
* TearsOfRemorse: Kotonoha in one of the extended bad endings in the [=PS2=] version. [[spoiler: She has just murdered Sekai in front of Makoto in cold blood and offers herself to him, but Makoto is terrified and rejects her affections. [[MyGodWhatHaveIDone This is enough to make Kotonoha realize that she has just done something terrible]], and she breaks down in tears.]]

* ThereAreNoTherapists: [[spoiler: Nobody but Kotonoha's little sister Kokoro and Sekai notice her fall into insanity.]]
** To be fair, [[spoiler: anime Makoto eventually notices, but only when he happens upon Kotonoha while wandering around alone and becomes horrified by the sight of her standing in front of him rambling about how she wants to be a good girlfriend to him.]]
* ThirdOptionAdaptation: The ending to the anime is a composite of elements from two other endings in the original game. [[spoiler: Specifically, two of the worst endings]].

* TragicHero: Makoto (Manga, outside his Cross Days counterpart, and certain routes in the game only) [[spoiler: He genuinely cares about both Sekai and Kotonoha, but his TragicFlaw of not being able to choose between them and carrying on a simultaneous relationship creates problems he is unable to resolve properly until it's too late (Manga: Kotonoha unintentionally wounds Makoto while trying to attack Sekai and while he was in the hospital Sekai kills Kotonoha.). This, however, is in direct contrast to the [[JerkAss fuckwad]] he is in the Anime and in the Cross Days manga.]]

* UnwittingInstigatorOfDoom: Sekai, [[spoiler: her seducing Makoto is what sets to motion all the events that transpires.]]

** Anime: Sekai sending a message saying "Sorry... [[VisibleSilence ...]] [[NothingIsScarier ...]] ...[[spoiler:goodbye]]" [[spoiler:just before killing him]].

** Sekai: In Episode 12, [[spoiler: Sekai has a vision where Setsuna calls her out for her actions around Makoto, pointing out that she was the catalyst for the love triangle and its tragic consequences.]] Also in ''Cross Days'', Yuuki calls her out for her attempts to break up Makoto and Kotonoha's relationship.

** [[spoiler: Reversed in the manga. Holy crap, Sekai is creepy...]]
*** Given the various possible endings for the game, shall we settle on [[spoiler: both]]?

* {{Deconstruction}}: Arguably the main point of the series(and infact, the entire Overflow Universe) is to deconstruct the HaremGenre, HGame adaptation dramas, and other {{slice of life}} style romance anime series. This is every harem trope going horrifically wrong.

** [[AnAesop Long story short]], it shows what could happen [[RealityEnsues if a guy really ''did'' treat a group of young women that all had feelings for him like your typical H-Game player treats the female characters of a game, if some of those women happened to be extremely unstable. ''Most'' real people wouldn't react like that. Some would]].

The anime is an AnimatedAdaptation of an animated VisualNovel of the same name. Despite only four of the original game's 21 endings being such, the game is infamous for its violent "bad endings", which include such things as Makoto's scorned ex-lovers [[SpurnedIntoSuicide going suicidal]] or [[MurderTheHypotenuse downright murderous]]. The series starts out with a happy, innocent mood, but [[CerebusSyndrome gradually becomes much darker]] and by the end plummets deep into the [[DownerEnding pits of despair, angst and violence]]....

* ADateWithRosiePalms: Being an H-Game, it logically has scenes like this. In the original Kotonoha is seen touching 'self in the bath, while Sekai masturbates in her bedroom [[spoiler: while using her cellphone (with a picture of Makoto as its wallpaper) to "please herself"]]

*** At the end of ''~Magical Heart Kokoro-chan~'' [[spoiler: where it's spelled out for you on Kokoro's inflatable raft]]. See AscendedMeme and MemeticMutation below.

* RelaxOVision: After a particularly nasty RealLife incident in Japan where an AxCrazy schoolgirl murdered her dad, the final episode was deemed TooSoon and replaced by an episode of random peaceful Norwegian scenery, which included a rather nice boat. See the MemeticMutation description above.

* SchmuckBait: [[BaitTheDog Recommend this to anyone]] who has no knowledge of this series. The anime in particular.

** The unmistakable ShoutOut at the end of the episode, regarding a certain [[MemeticMutation famous]] [[AscendedMeme meme]] associated with this series. See MemeticMutation above.

* AllThereIsToKnowAboutTheCryingGame : The anime is best known for its "[[MemeticMutation Nice Boat]]" ending: In the final episode, [[spoiler:Sekai goes AxeCrazy in a fairly literal sense, killing Makoto before being killed by Kotonoha in turn]]. A similar event happened in real life in Tokyo just days before, and the networks decided not to air the final episode in order to avoid any [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything unfortunate parallels]]. Instead, they ran a half hour travel documentary that included one section about the Fjord1 ferry. Somebody from 4chan took a screen grab of the boat and labeled it "NICE BOAT".

** In the first episode of the anime, Makoto exposits on a supposed love charm activated by keeping your crush's picture as you cell phone wallpaper. We hear him think, "What bullshit," in an unpleasant tone right before he tries to delete his picture of Kotonoha.

The Days Series is a continuation from the ''VisualNovel/RadishTrilogy'', a series of game made by Overflow which established many plot elements about the Days characters' backgrouds, as well as a SpiritualSuccessor of ''VisualNovel/PureMail'' with similar tone. The game was followed by two sequels.

* DoubleStandard: [[spoiler:Hanon Nijou]] being FemmeFatale who [[spoiler:have sex with minors and ReallyGetAround]] seems to not get as much reaction as Makoto's.

** In Cross Days "Give Up On Everything" route [[spoiler:Hanon, who's one of Kyouichi's lovers, asked Yuki to meet up with Niki. The "meeting" quickly turned into Niki attempted to seduce Yuki by stripping herself which caused him to flee. His sister, Chie, suspected about what happened and asked Otome about this which the latter told her that Kotonoha knew something. Kotonoha then told her about Hanon Nijou's infidelity with Kyouichi who is Nanami's boyfriend. This caused Nanami to break up with him.. and Hikari and Roka "comforts" her by brought Makoto to her, which ultimately foiled any chance of Kotonoha going back to Makoto nor Yuki succeeding with Roka.]]

* EarnYourBadEnding: A counterpoint to "Earn Your Happy Ending" below. Even if you're only [[WatchItForTheMeme playing the game to see the bad endings]], they're actually rather hard to get if you're not trying for them.