"You want to talk "cruel," Victoria? How about ripping a child away from her father or bribing a doctor into poisoning every good memory she ever had of him?"
— Emily, Revenge (2011)
"But there are dreams that cannot be, and there are storms we cannot weather...I had a dream my life would be so much more than this hell I'm living. So different now than what it seems. Now life has killed the dream I dreamed."
— Fantine, Les Misérables
"I've got my fix. Happy ending. I've... got... my... fix...."
— Marion, Requiem for a Dream
"But who knows what she spoke to the darkness, alone, in the bitter watches of the night, when all her life seemed shrinking, and the walls of her bower closing in about her, a hutch to trammel some wild thing in?"
— Gandalf on Eowyn, The Lord of the Rings
"Women in the media for so long were always the emotional support, the damsels, the smiling pretty faces, so in the 90's, there was a desperate need to change that. Oh, not by making them unpretty, we wouldn't do that, but we suddenly made them cold, bitter, confrontational, and overly strong, to go out of their way to show that they're not those old emotional stereotypes, and instead make way for new emotional stereotypes. For you see, in every 90's film, the woman behind this strong independent wall that won't let everybody in, [quivering, feminine voice] is a sad little bunny rabbit that will eventually let down her defences and reveal a tragic backstory. [normal voice] So you see, she wasn't a strong, confident worker just because she was a strong, confident worker. [jumps back to the feminine voice] Deep down she just wants to be held like any other fragile woman. Oh, I don't want to think! I just want to be loved!"
"A bird whose wings have been plucked
Will shed all its feathers
And turn back into the beast it was
Before it evolved into a bird."
Will shed all its feathers
And turn back into the beast it was
Before it evolved into a bird."
"Through the woods a girl came sadly,
Something broken in her chest:
She had dared to love another—
Alas, no better than the rest.
Up my path a girl came gladly,
Something opened up my doors.
I longed to stop her bleeding heart
So I drew her to my shores.
Those you trust will hurt you badly—
Something now I'm sure you see...
So drown your tears in me, my dear,
As you drown, my dear... in me."
Something broken in her chest:
She had dared to love another—
Alas, no better than the rest.
Up my path a girl came gladly,
Something opened up my doors.
I longed to stop her bleeding heart
So I drew her to my shores.
Those you trust will hurt you badly—
Something now I'm sure you see...
So drown your tears in me, my dear,
As you drown, my dear... in me."
Erika: So why team up with her? If she didn't have anything you wanted anymore, why burden yourself? Or do you just have a thing for damaged goods?
Samantha: How do we know when we fall in love?
Mrs. Krabappel: Oh, don't you worry. Most of you will never fall in love and marry out of fear of dying alone. [chuckles bitterly]
"She's damaged. She's damaged, because the unicorn didn't come to her as a kid."
— The Nostalgia Chick, making fun of The Last Unicorn
"I want to be alone. If I'm alone, I won't be hurt by anyone. "People can understand each other"... What a live action series-worthy cliché line. In truth, they all only think about themselves. "But I was believing in you!!"... and then, only to be betrayed in the end. I don't want to experience this feeling ever again."
— Kaori Yae, in the first Drama track of her Tokimeki Memorial 2: Blooming Stories CD
"I'm like this cherry tree. Unable to bloom... Just a bothersome being..."
— Kaori Yae, in her storyline's mandatory Event of Tokimeki Memorial 2
"I... I wanted to go to school too. I wanted to play with friends... ride a Ferris wheel. But I couldn't. Because I shouldn't even be alive. I... I'm a woodpecker with the poison beak. I hated and hurt a lot of people. It's the only way I could live. That's why I have to die... I CAN'T FORGIVE MYSELF ANY LONGER! That's why I can't... The truth is... what I want is happiness... but I can't have it!"
— Shiro, Deadman Wonderland
"Do you really expect Minene-sama to act as in a shoujo manga? I've never had a proper childhood... [...] Never. My childhood was filled with blood and strife. I have never needed love. Not then, not now. It's a worthless pastime for girls. This is the world I live in. The dirty world of the adults."
— Minene Uryuu, Future Diary
"There was a time when men were kind
When their voices were soft,
And their words inviting;
There was a time when love was blind,
And the world was a song,
And the song was exciting;
There was a time...
Then it all went wrong..."
When their voices were soft,
And their words inviting;
There was a time when love was blind,
And the world was a song,
And the song was exciting;
There was a time...
Then it all went wrong..."
— Fantine, Les Misérables
"I just didn't want to be a loser anymore..."
— Mitsuko Souma, Battle Royale
"Turns out, you mess with someone's head enough, you can turn a scared little kid into an all-powerful bitch."
— Subject Zero, Mass Effect 2
"... And I'd rather be famous than free."
— Dolface, Twisted Metal
(262): But he's like a baby bird with a broken wing that I want to FUCK.
"If you think wish upon a star would help, think again. Even when you wish, some wishes just won't come true. Shiro, it's no good if you don't stay determined and independent, you know. You won't become a strong person if you keep relying on us."
— Jun Hono, Shiro Kabuto, Great Mazinger
Church: Look, you go and round up everyone I know, just to bring me back, and then you keep us all in the dark? What the hell did you think was gonna happen, Carolina? Of course no one trusts you!
Carolina: Well, I don't trust them, Epsilon. I don't trust anyone anymore.
Church: Oh, why not? Because having friends would ruin the whole 'psychotic loner bitch' thing you've got going on? Because that would be a real shame.
Carolina: It's because I had a team once. A team with the best training, the best equipment - and despite everything that they had that made them the best, they still lied, and stole, and tore each other to pieces! So you tell me: how the hell am I supposed to trust a rag-tag team of idiots, when I couldn't even trust the people that were closest to me?
Church: ...
Carolina: That's what I thought.
"Or maybe, you think you can save me? Will you love me? Take care of me? Heal all my pain? Hm. That's what I thought..."
— Angela Orosco, Silent Hill 2
"I won't depend on anyone anymore..."
— Homura Akemi, shortly after her Cynicism Catalyst, Puella Magi Madoka Magica
Riley: I don’t know what’s happened in your past—
"I don't know what happened on that island, and judging by that look in your eyes, I guess I don't want to know."
"Patience
Is hard to find
Shadows
Seem to fill your life
Don’t be disappointed
Don’t let your heart break
Don’t spend another minute
In this way
It’s okay
Dry your eyes now, baby
Broken wings won’t hold you down
You’ll take flight soon, baby
You’ll be lifted up
And you’ll be there"
Is hard to find
Shadows
Seem to fill your life
Don’t be disappointed
Don’t let your heart break
Don’t spend another minute
In this way
It’s okay
Dry your eyes now, baby
Broken wings won’t hold you down
You’ll take flight soon, baby
You’ll be lifted up
And you’ll be there"
— RWBY, "Wings", a song by Jeff and Casey Lee Williams
“Maybe,” Tattletale mumbled. I could feel her fingernails against the fabric of my suit, at my back. “Fuck this. I hate feeling so dumb. So much shit I don’t know, shit I can’t know. Like fucking Ziz here. Fuck, I’ve barely ever given a crap about anyone except myself and my friends, and now I’m fucking caring what happens to everyone, when I can’t do anything about it.”
— Worm
"I was a flawed person. I knew it. Had someone asked before all this started, I would have admitted it. But one of the places I felt most flawed, one of the least comfortable things for me to admit, was just how weak I was at my core. Some people could turn to the ugly incidents in their past and find a kind of strength there. An anger to drive them forward. When I touched that part of myself, even around the edges, I almost always felt like all the strength went out of me."
— Blake Thorburn, Pact
"You sold your soul to me to save your boyfriend's life. And how does this creep thank you? By running off with some babe. ...He really hurt you, didn't he, Meg?"
— Hades, Hercules
"A sword mirrors its owner."
— Riven, League of Legends
"Think of it, Batman. To never again walk on a summer's day with a hot wind in your face...and a warm hand to hold. Oh, yes...I'd kill for that."
— Mr. Freeze, Batman: The Animated Series
"....I've had to make decisions for the better and, while I let this be known, they were always at my expense! Each and every last sacrifice I've made were for the best and, be this as noted, many of then I wasn't given a choice in, it was either do or die and I chose do because the alternative would be even more unbearable. [...] So, to answer your question, yes, I do know how to make decisions for the best and making decisions for the best doesn't always mean they may be the best course of action, however, it is better than no decision. If you're angry at me, fine, be angry, call me a bitch while your at it, however, I can only hope you'd forgive me for the choices I've made. If you can't, then end my life, act as you see fit, if you think it'll satisfy you."
— Yukari, Gensokyo 20XXV
“Passing the favour forward? Yeah. I’ve been helping Rei since I got here, she was far worse than she is now socially, and then you came along. You were the kid, the one in a million, who chose to become strong instead of break in response to such monumental adversity. But I could see it in your eyes, the tone of your voice in sheltered moments that you still carried the wounds, that you were more fragile than you seemed”
Asuka: What Sensei?
Shinji: The one my father abandoned me with after my mother died in an accident with the Eva! Not that you'd understand that.
Asuka: Me too. [...] My mother... There was an accident with Unit-02... She... died, eventually. My father... didn't mourn very long. [...] So yes, Third Child, I know exactly what that felt like!
Shinji: Your father abandoned you after your mother was gone.
Asuka: You have nightmares all the time about it. The memory keeps coming after you when you try to sleep.
Shinji: [nodding] It's hard to sleep. You feel lonely and cold at night, because no one ever held you after that.
Asuka: You never had many friends before you came here. No on ever wanted to just talk to you for you.
Shinji: Your father never explained or apologized for why he just left you.
Asuka: No one even tried to understand your pain. No one cared.
Shinji: You miss her every day, but don't even have any pictures, barely any memories. No one tells you about her.
Asuka: And there was never any point in talking about it to anyone, because there was no one in the world who could understand what being an Evangelion Pilot was like.
Shinji/Asuka: [in unison] You're just like me.
Shinji: The one my father abandoned me with after my mother died in an accident with the Eva! Not that you'd understand that.
Asuka: Me too. [...] My mother... There was an accident with Unit-02... She... died, eventually. My father... didn't mourn very long. [...] So yes, Third Child, I know exactly what that felt like!
Shinji: Your father abandoned you after your mother was gone.
Asuka: You have nightmares all the time about it. The memory keeps coming after you when you try to sleep.
Shinji: [nodding] It's hard to sleep. You feel lonely and cold at night, because no one ever held you after that.
Asuka: You never had many friends before you came here. No on ever wanted to just talk to you for you.
Shinji: Your father never explained or apologized for why he just left you.
Asuka: No one even tried to understand your pain. No one cared.
Shinji: You miss her every day, but don't even have any pictures, barely any memories. No one tells you about her.
Asuka: And there was never any point in talking about it to anyone, because there was no one in the world who could understand what being an Evangelion Pilot was like.
Shinji/Asuka: [in unison] You're just like me.
Asuka leaned into the kiss. She had lost much and suffered terribly, but from the ashes, she had risen anew.
— HERZ
Asuka: Don't worry Shinji. So far, I've lived on my own, by my own, only for me, only for my own values and my own satisfaction. I don't need you, or anyone else for that matter. I... I don't want to be lonely anymore. If I could... I'd rather be with you then be alone. But it's too late now. And besides... half of your heart is not enough. If I can't have you all to myself, then I'd rather not have you at all...
Shinji: Asuka...
Asuka: It's okay. I can manage on my own.
Shinji: Asuka...
Asuka: It's okay. I can manage on my own.
"We make our own lives, not the lives others want for us." Stop, a part of Asuka screamed as she spoke. Just stop now. Please stop. "If you depend on others, then you are weak, because you can’t live for yourself. It’s always what others want and what they impose on you. Even if it’s your own mother."
"Look at you! The universe tried its best to destroy you and it only made you stronger."
— Supergirl described by an enemy, Red Daughter of Krypton
"And Kara? ... You'll survive this. He just knocked you off your cloud, that's all."
Clark: She spends all of her time in that cape. She's missing out on so much... because I think she's afraid to lose it again.
Lois Lane: Kara's been through a lot of trauma.
Clark: I only want her to be happy.
Lois Lane: Kara's been through a lot of trauma.
Clark: I only want her to be happy.
But she had to be tough. Finding out that so many years of her life were a pre-programmed lie, coming to a strange world, finding only one man of Krypton and then losing him, turning from innocence into grim experience on a planet she never made... she had to be tough, or break.
"See, in the end, you were just too sweet, just too optimistic and happy. I take you from home, I give you a best friend and make her hate you... Nope. No matter what I put you through, you always looked on the bright side. Bah!"
— Mister Mxyzptlk, Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the 8th Grade
"I do not care, Father! A world without her is empty. A LIFE without her is empty."
She used to be so formidable, relentless. There was something majestic about how Blue moved, in long sweeping dresses or her black court robe. Her hair flowed like a veil around her when she wasn't in court, and Yellow found it so pleasant to part it and see her face bared, and those clear blue eyes. That was the woman who had captured Yellow's attention back in university: her regal aura, her calm yet authoritative voice to her peers, and her detachment to most things going around her. She had quickly assembled a group of loyal followers. ...Yellow looked at her now, saw the deep permanent bags underneath her eyes, how sunken her posture had become, but it didn't matter – she was still her Blue.'
Sigma: [from flashback] You can only believe in yourself. That's the kind of girl you really are, aren't you?
Sheila: He's right. I never believed in anything but myself. So when was it that I… When was it... that I changed?
Sheila: He's right. I never believed in anything but myself. So when was it that I… When was it... that I changed?
— Tweeny Witches, "Sheila's Quandary" (subtitles)
I hate when I can't handle my loneliness. This crying's been happening too often. Every other week now. What do normal people do when they get this sad? They reach out to friends or family, I think. That's not an option.
— Elliot Alderson, Mr. Robot
Alternate Fiona: True love didn't get me out of that tower, I did. I saved myself. Don't you get it? It's all just a big fairy tale!
Shrek: Fiona, don't say that, it does exist!
Alternate Fiona: And how would you know? Did you grow up locked away in a dragon's keep? Did you live all alone in a miserable tower? Did you cry yourself to sleep every night waiting for a true love that never came?
Shrek: Fiona, don't say that, it does exist!
Alternate Fiona: And how would you know? Did you grow up locked away in a dragon's keep? Did you live all alone in a miserable tower? Did you cry yourself to sleep every night waiting for a true love that never came?
"It was because of HIM that you became so troubled. When it subsided... the others blamed, hounded, and shunned you. They couldn't see your tragic beauty."
—Clint, TinkerQuarry
"Only thorns left on this rose."
—Dorothea, Fire Emblem: Three Houses
"I'm addicted
To the sorrow
When the buzz ends
By tomorrow
There's another rush of poison flowin' into my veins
Givin' me a dose of pleasure that resides by the pain.
I'm addicted
I'm dependant
Lookin' awesome
Feelin' helpless.
And I know I'm raisin' Cain by every highway in Hell,
Maybe things won't be so terrible inside this hotel?"
To the sorrow
When the buzz ends
By tomorrow
There's another rush of poison flowin' into my veins
Givin' me a dose of pleasure that resides by the pain.
I'm addicted
I'm dependant
Lookin' awesome
Feelin' helpless.
And I know I'm raisin' Cain by every highway in Hell,
Maybe things won't be so terrible inside this hotel?"
Maia started sobbing, gripping her arms as she sat down in an alley. This wasn't her! She was supposed to be strong and brave! She wasn't supposed to break down crying! She was the Queen of Mercenaries! Another voice, one that belonged to her tormentor, told her that she was just a lovely doll just waiting to be used. That she didn't need to think. That she was only made to make others feel good.
My heart is getting heavy from hoping
And it's got a lot of battle scars
I kinda wish somebody had told me
That this was gonna be so hard
And it's got a lot of battle scars
I kinda wish somebody had told me
That this was gonna be so hard
— "Falling Apart" by ARMNHMR and Runn
"Do you remember the book you gave me? The Eagle in the Valley. I read many stories with my mother. After she passed, that one… is all I thought about. I was the eagle in the stormy valley. Lost, alone, abandoned by my own. Too weak to carry myself away from the clouds. When I could, I flew here. But… The clouds followed. I despaired. Cold. Always cold. Until… you."
Shimao Fang, My Time at Sandrock
