History TearJerker / ThePhantomOfTheOpera

** One part in particular, the DarkReprise of "Masquerade", which dissolves some people into InelegantBlubbering until the end. It doesn't help that the stage Phantoms often keep repeating "I love you!" brokenly after they sang it, some shouting it into Christine's veil, clinging to it pitifully because it's the only thing they have left of her.

** When Christine and Raoul sing, they request that each other "Say you ''need'' me with you here, beside you." When the Phantom sings to Christine after "The Point of No Return", he changes it: "Say you ''want'' me with you..." He has given up all hope of being needed and simply wishes to be wanted by ''someone,'' anyone.

* In "Stranger Than You Dreamt It", when Christine accidentally unmasks the Phantom. We don't see his face, but she does and is horrified. He CRAWLS towards her, understanding that she's repulsed, but still pleading for even a hint of affection, and she gently hands his mask back to him.

** The way Sierra's Christine looks at the Phantom after returning the ring - she wants to help him, but she can't. He just can't be saved. She starts to leave but turns back with tears in her eyes and all the Phantom can do is sadly nod, encouraging her to go.

** One part in particular, the DarkReprise of Masquerade, which dissolves some people into InelegantBlubbering until the end. It doesn't help that the stage Phantoms often keep repeating "I love you!" brokenly after they sang it, some shouting it into Christine's veil, clinging to it pitifully because it's the only thing they have left of her.

** When Christine and Raoul sing, they request that each other "Say you ''need'' me with you here, beside you." When the Phantom sings to Christine after Point of No Return, he changes it: "Say you ''want'' me with you..." He has given up all hope of being needed and simply wishes to be wanted by ''someone,'' anyone.

* Howard [=Mcgillin's=] Music of the Night. Holding out that last note, looking at Christine so lovingly, as if she was his EVERYTHING

* During the first incarnation of All I Ask Of You, as it nears the end and you can see him on the angel above the stage listening to the lovers... Leading up to his declaration ("you will curse the day you did not do..."), over the last few lines that the lovers sing you could see him shaking, putting his hands over his ears and thrashing back and forth, very clearly just trying to make it all stop, go away, anything at all just to not have to hear it... It was ridiculously effective at displaying his torment.

* The 25th Anniversary performance on DVD, with Ramin Karimloo as The Phantom. It's kind of hard to find any single Tearjerker moment for the Phantom, but the end was really striking. During the "Point of no Return" trio, the Phantom himself is even ''crying''. And then during the reprise of Masquerade, when he mimics the action of the toy and smiles like a comforted child. Oh, and then when Christine returns the ring, and when she goes to leave, she looks back at him and he gives a tiny encouraging nod, as though to let her know that she's completely free and he won't pursue her.

** Karimloo's face when Christine screams 'Tears of HATE!' is heartbreaking, like he ''knows'' he's messed up forever and has crossed the MoralEventHorizon.

** This gets a bit more screentime in the 2004 film version; even as the theater starts to burn down, she's crying over his corpse. It might be the saddest moment in the film. With a bit of thought, this whole business makes sense: Piangi is a bit of a jerk, but he doesn't do anything to warrant being killed by the Phantom except be in the way of an onstage reunion with Christine. Moreover, he genuinely cares for Carlotta as a person, and the feeling is clearly mutual. And this relationship gets sacrificed on the altar of one that isn't possible.
* The end credits of the 2004 film adaptation gives us the heartbreakingly beautiful song "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgCK5uL7ts8 Learn to Be Lonely]]". What adds a bit of awesome/heartwarming to it is that the person singing is Minnie Driver, who, believe it or not, ''played Carlotta''.
* Raoul during Final Lair (especially as played by Hadley Fraser) deserves his own entry. He was the one who thought of the plot to use Christine as bait for Erik and coaxed her into doing it out of worry for her wellbeing and their relationship. Final Lair was his MyGodWhatHaveIDone moment - this is yet another part where he truly shows his concern for Christine. He tried his best to get Christine to think for herself and flee ("Don't throw your life away for my sake!"/"For either way you choose he has to win!") and, failing that, tried to provoke Erik into killing him so that she could run ("Why make her lie to you to save me?"). His line of "I tried too hard to free you," implies that he did not want to involve her in the plot, but views it as a necessary evil that he now regrets because he sees how much it is tearing Christine apart to choose between them. ("Christine, Christine, don't think that I don't care...") In sum, a man who was so confident, so sure of his ability to save his loved one is here being put into a helpless, vulnerable position, with his life at stake, while realizing that all the risks he took were all for nothing.

* The Phantom pleading with Christine at the end of "Point of No Return," even singing a reprise of her love duet with Raoul. In spite of all the horrible things he's done, he just sounds so desperately ''alone'', and is practically ''begging'' her to let him be in her life. Oh, Erik...

!! The [[Series/ThePhantomOfTheOpera MiniSeries]]
* Christine faints after seeing Erik's face, after repeatedly assuring him that she loves him too much to care how he looks. He lets out an agonizing howl of anguish, '''"WHY?!"''' and breaks down sobbing.
* This gets a MeaningfulEcho at the end, when he's dying. She removes his mask over his feeble protests and kisses him gently, showing that as she said before, she loves him too much to care about his appearance. This time, he utters a tearful, grateful, "Oh, Christine. . ."---and dies in his father's arms.
* Carriere tells Christine the story of Erik's birth and reveals he is Erik's father. It's shown how Erik's mother died in child birth and Carriere never showed her Erik's face, letting her die thinking she had given birth to a beautiful boy. Carriere thus raised Erik, letting him think he was "some sort of uncle."
** Later on, Carriere tries to talk Erik out of his homicidal plans by revealing himself as his father. Erik simply smiles that he wondered when Carriere was going to say it.
-->'''Erik''': My eyes are the only part of my face I can look at in a mirror without wanting to break the glass. But they're not her eyes...they're ''yours''.
* Richard White's performance as Erik in the musical version of this series (a decent bootleg of which can be found on Website/YouTube) is especially heartbreaking. Though the show mostly follows the same plot as the series, some soul-crushing changes include:
** Christine does not faint after seeing Erik's face in this version, but rather is overcome by horrified revulsion and runs away in terror, unable to stand the sight. When she screams Erik collapses and desperately tries to block out the sound, then breaks down completely; screaming in agony, destroying the painted forest he had created, and finally curling in on himself while sobbing. The song which follows this (called 'My Mother Bore Me') is terribly sad in its own right.
** Unlike the Charles Dance version, in which Erik appears to be dying of some unknown illness, here he is shot by one of the soldiers in the chaos which follows his grief-stricken rampage. He looks and sounds so believably pained during the conversation in which Gerard reveals himself as Erik's father, and even more so later when he begs Gerard to shoot him.
** As in the miniseries, Erik begs Christine not to take off his mask as he dies. She does so anyway, singing to him and kissing his forehead as he expires.
** In the 2004 Takarazuka Revue Cosmos Troupe production of this musical, Christine kisses Erik's deformed cheek as he dies in her arms and the way he smiles at her in overwhelmed adoration and gratitude in the following moments is enough to bring tears to anyone's eyes.

* ''Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again.''

** Thanks to Website/YouTube, the show's longevity, and its numerous versions, there are countless versions of this scene--there are even Website/YouTube clips outright titled "Phantom Comparison" to allow us multiple views of this and other signature scenes. Sometimes Christine runs off before he even finishes the line. Other times, he holds onto her and tries to prevent her from leaving, often offering her the ring again. Gentler versions even have her trying to offer him some measure of reciprocation--giving him the ring ''after'' he declares his love for her, kissing his hand, touching his face. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDzpAh4Je5s One particular favorite has her kissing him a THIRD time.]] But however it's done, it never fails to make your heart break for him, and sometimes even for ''her'', as there are times when it's obvious that she's genuinely sorry that she can't return his feelings.

** As well as that final line, "You alone can make my song take flight. ''It's over now'', the music of the night." If you weren't crying already, most actor's delivery will put you over the top.

* The Phantom pleading with Christine at the end of "Point of No Return," even singing a repriese of her love duet with Raoul. In spite of all the horrible things he's done, he just sounds so desperately ''alone'', and is practically ''begging'' her to let him be in her life. Oh, Erik...

-->'''Erik''': My eyes are the only part of my face I can look at in a mirror without wanting to break the glass. But they're not her eyes...they're yours.

** During the reprise of "All I Ask of You" the Phantom hears Christine and Roul proclaiming their love, and the Phantom just covers his ears like child trying to put as much distance between himself and the bad things as possible.

!! The Miniseries

** The way Sierra's Christine looks at the Phantom after returning the ring - she wants to help him, but she can't. He just can't be saved.

** Thanks to Website/YouTube, the show's longevity, and its numerous versions, there are countless versions of this scene--there are even YouTube clips outright titled "Phantom Comparison" to allow us multiple views of this and other signature scenes. Sometimes Christine runs off before he even finishes the line. Other times, he holds onto her and tries to prevent her from leaving, often offering her the ring again. Gentler versions even have her trying to offer him some measure of reciprocation--giving him the ring ''after'' he declares his love for her, kissing his hand, touching his face. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rDzpAh4Je5s One particular favorite has her kissing him a THIRD time.]] But however it's done, it never fails to make your heart break for him, and sometimes even for ''her'', as there are times when it's obvious that she's genuinely sorry that she can't return his feelings.

* Richard White's performance as Erik in the musical version of this series (a decent bootleg of which can be found on YouTube) is especially heartbreaking. Though the show mostly follows the same plot as the series, some soul-crushing changes include:

** Oh god this. Seeing the broken mess of a man left on stage after Christine and Raoul depart is... Just heart-rending.

* ''Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again.'' Must ... have ... hankies.

* During the first incarnation of All I Ask Of You, as it nears the end and you can see him on the angel above the stage listening to the lovers... Leading up to his declaration ("you will curse the day you did not do..."), over the last few lines that the lovers sing you could see him shaking, putting his hands over his ears and thrashing back and forth, very clearly just trying to make it all stop, go away, anything at all just to not have to hear it... It was ridiculously effective at displaying his torment

** Karimloo's Phantom is just the most heartbreaking thing ''ever''. The closeup on his face as Christine is kissing him, flailing around with his hands like he can't believe it, then just ''melting'' against her, holding her hand to his cheek with the most quiet tender desperation... ''oh my God''.

** Made even worse, in this troper's opinion, by the fact that unlike in the Broadway staging, Raoul isn't being held back by a gate. The Phantom is literally choking Christine when Raoul gets closer, and he's forced to stay put and watch helplessly as the girl he promised to protect is being hurt.

* It's hard not to feel any sympathy for the Phantom, he is such a Woobie. Even though he can be a DracoInLeatherPants according to [[MisaimedFandom misguided fans]], the fact is he a tragic character. The fact that he lets Christine go at the end is what allows him to retain his status as a woobie. This is what LND misses the boat on, he let her go, and sacrifices his own happiness.

** Don't forget "Down once more to the dungeon of my black despair. Down we plunge to the prison of my mind. Down that path into darkness deep as HELL!!!" Done right, the line is bonechillingly [[NightmareFuel scary]] and [[TearJerker heartbreaking]] all rolled into one.

** In the 2004 movie, he's sitting there alone, crying, and looks up to see Christine. She takes a few steps toward him, and when the camera moves back to him [[http://youtu.be/lNwe3H8tvWI?t=2m59s his open mouth moves into the slightest hint of a smile.]] He actually thinks that Christine has decided to stay with him, and then she has to silently take off the ring he gave her destroy his hopes again. After he tells her that he loves her, she looks ''so'' sad, because she wants nothing more than to comfort him but there's absolutely nothing she can do.

-->'''Erik''': My eyes are the only part of my face I can bear to look at. But they're not her eyes...they're yours.
* This gets a MeaningfulEcho at the end, when he's dying. She removes his mask over his feeble protests and kisses him gently, showing that as she said before, she loves him too much to care about his appearance. This time, he utters a tearful, grateful, "Oh, Christine. . ."---and dies in his father's arms.