History Main / TragicBromance

* In Irish mythology, 'Literature/TheCattleRaidOfCooley'', the tragedy of a war that divided Ireland against itself, the tragic bromance is that of Cu Chullain and Ferdia [[note]]your spelling may vary[[/note]], inseparable friends and closer than brothers who inevitably find themselves on opposing sides in a battle. And fight each other to the death.

# The two cannot just be friends or acquaintances. They have to be [[HeterosexualLifePartners REALLY close]]; and

[[folder:Film]]

** Reuenthal and Mittermeier. They were [[OddCouple unlikely friends]] who nevertheless became very close, and very loyal and attached to each other; eventually their friendship and military prowess earned them the nickname "The Twin Stars of the Empire". As the years went by and Reuenthal's already dark psyche became even darker and more conflicted, Mittermeier became [[LivingEmotionalCrutch the only one anchoring him and keeping him in line as much as possible]]. In the end due to circumstances and Reuenthal's darker thoughts getting the better of him, he betrays Reinhard, and in a cruel twist Mittermeier is ordered to subdue him, breaking his heart. To further twist the knife, Reuenthal was always associated with Tristan (the name of his flagship), and his death has ''Literature/TristanAndIsolde'' parallels as he's clinging on to life hoping to see Mittermeier one last time. Their Tragic Bromance ends on a bittersweet note: Mittermeier adopts Reuenthal's orphaned infant son, giving him the loving family that his friend never had.)

* In ''Film/TopGun'' the death of Maverick's GuyInBack and volleyball partner Goose is a major turning point in the characters life.

* ''Anime/LegendOfGalacticHeroes'' has two of these, both of epic proportions:

** ''ComicBook/RobinSeries'': While there was something of a cumulative effect going on given just how many of Tim Drake's loved ones died that year his best friend Kon-El's death was the tipping point at which his character changed his costume and irrevocably turned more violent, serious and broody. Kon did return a couple years later and while they remained best friends Tim never returned to the more carefree personality he'd had before.

** After Chapter One, a strong bromance is formed by the resident SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan, Shuichi Saihara and Kaito Momota. Whilst Kaito himself is inept as an investigator, his role as a BigBrotherMentor to Shuichi inspires him to not be afraid to uncover the truth regardless of how unpleasant it might be. There are early warning signs that things will take a turn for the tragic when it transpires that Kaito is an IllBoy with an IncurableCoughOfDeath. This trope finally hits in Chapter Five, as Kaito commits a HeroicSacrifice.

* Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker share this fate throughout the ''StarWars'' saga, though their tragedy isn't either one's literal death, but that Anakin is [[MetaphoricallyTrue "killed by Darth Vader"]] (and eventually kills Obi-Wan).

** Reuenthal and Mittermeier. They were [[OddCouple unlikely friends]] who nevertheless became very close, and very loyal and attached to each other; eventually their friendship and military prowess earned them the nickname "The Twin Stars of the Empire". As the years went by and Reuenthal's already dark psyche became even darker and more conflicted, Mittermeier became [[LivingEmotionalCrutch the only one anchoring him and keeping him in line as much as possible]]. In the end due to circumstances and Reuenthal's darker thoughts getting the better of him, he betrays Reinhard, and in a cruel twist Mittermeier is ordered to subdue him, breaking his heart. To further twist the knife, Reuenthal was always associated with Tristan (the name of his flagship), and his death has ''Literature/TristanAndIsolde'' parallels as he's clinging on to life hoping to see Mittermeier one last time. Their TragicBromance ends on a bittersweet note: Mittermeier adopts Reuenthal's orphaned infant son, giving him the loving family that his friend never had.)

* ''Manga/BungouStrayDogs'' has [[NamedAfterSomeoneFamous Dazai Osamu and Oda Sakunosuke]]. Oda is the first and only one who truly understands Dazai, yet he dies shortly after he has his [[PreciousPhoto last photo]] taken with [[PowerTrio Buraiha]] as friends. His last words lead to Dazai's [[MistreatmentInducedBetrayal betrayal of the mafia]] and [[HeelFaceTurn gradual turn into a somewhat better person]] (that says, [[BlueAndOrangeMorality still far from "good"]]).

* ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyVII'': Cloud and Zack. [[note]] It's elaborated in ''LastOrderFinalFantasyVII'' OVA, the ''AdventChildren'' movie and '''specially''' in ''CrisisCore'', where Zack [[HeroOfAnotherStory is the protagonist]].[[/note]] [[spoiler: They met in SOLDIER, became best friends, were part of the horrifying tragedy in Cloud's DoomedHometown, were captured and experimented on, and after Zack managed to escape he took a comatose and traumatised Cloud with him. Zack died at the end of ''Crisis Core'', right as Cloud wakes up from the coma, and his actions '''deeply''' mark Cloud for the rest of his life.]]

* In the Literature/BooksOfSamuel in ''Literature/TheBible'', David and Jonathan. David comes to prominence after he slays the giant Goliath, and immediately, Jonathan becomes one of his most steadfast friends, even defying his father over Saul's command to kill David. But they inevitably must part ways so that David can be kept safe from Saul, even though they meet again a few times over the remainder of the book. Eventually, however, Jonathan, along with his brothers and father, is slain by the Philistine army, causing David to mourn heavily for the loss of his friend and devote all of his efforts into making peace with Saul's family by reaching out to Jonathan's son Mephibosheth. After Jonathan's death, David even laments "Your love to me was [[HoYay more wonderful than the love of women."]]

** There is an OddFriendship between [[ClassRepresentative hall monitor]] Kiyotaka Ishimaru and [[JapaneseDelinquents biker gang leader]] Mondo Oowada. They have a fierce rivalry at first and only [[FireForgedFriends become friends]] a few days before Mondo is [[SympatheticMurderer pegged as the murderer]] for the second trial. After Oowada's execution, Ishimaru falls far into a [[DespairEventHorizon despair-induced]] HeroicBSOD and never recovers.

** Then there are Eren and Armin, whose relationship was far closer and more intense in the manga than in the anime. Armin, brilliant but physically weak, often doubted his self-worth in his DoomedHometown and in the physically-demanding soldier training he and Eren both went through. Eren saw his friend for the genius he was, and constantly put himself in harm's way to protect Armin - to the point of jumping into a Titan's mouth to save Armin, sacrificing his life in the process. Of course, he got better, but that moment where he watched helplessly as his best friend died for him changed Armin forever. From then on, he started volunteering to come up with crazy strategies that had a habit of working; he saved the world far more effectively than even Eren did, just by trusting in his own strength like Eren had. But the truly tragic part of this friendship happens much later in the manga, when [[spoiler: Armin ([[NotQuiteDead briefly]]) gives up his own life so that Eren can defeat the Colossal Titan. He just saved the world, changing everyone's lives irrevocably...but the look on Eren's face shows just how shocked and heartbroken he is to lose his oldest and closest friend. It becomes even more tragic after the four year TimeSkip, with Eren’s more radical and extremist actions conflicting with Armin’s desire for a peaceful resolution, eventually leading to Eren brutally beating Armin after an attempt of conversation. When Eren finally reveals his intent to completely destroy the outside world, Armin comes to accept the fact that killing him may be the only way to stop him. The last interaction the two ever have in the series is them in Colossal Titan forms, fighting for the fate of the outside world]].

** Then there are Eren and Armin, whose relationship was far closer and more intense in the manga than in the anime. Armin, brilliant but physically weak, often doubted his self-worth in his DoomedHometown and in the physically-demanding soldier training he and Eren both went through. Eren saw his friend for the genius he was, and constantly put himself in harm's way to protect Armin - to the point of jumping into a Titan's mouth to save Armin, sacrificing his life in the process. Of course, he got better, but that moment where he watched helplessly as his best friend died for him changed Armin forever. From then on, he started volunteering to come up with crazy strategies that had a habit of working; he saved the world far more effectively than even Eren did, just by trusting in his own strength like Eren had. But the truly tragic part of this friendship happens much later in the manga, when [[spoiler: Armin ([[NotQuiteDead briefly]]) gives up his own life so that Eren can defeat the Colossal Titan. He just saved the world, changing everyone's lives irrevocably...but the look on Eren's face shows just how shocked and heartbroken he is to lose his oldest and closest friend]].

* In [[FightingIrish Irish]] mythology, 'Literature/TheCattleRaidOfCooley'', the tragedy of a war that divided Ireland against itself, the tragic bromance is that of Cu Chullain and Ferdia [[note]]your spelling may vary[[/note]], inseparable friends and closer than brothers who inevitably find themselves on opposing sides in a battle. And fight each other to the death.

!As a DeathTrope, many if not all spoilers will be unmarked ahead. Beware.

* In [[FightingIrish Irish]] mythology, 'Literature/TainBoCuailnge'', the tragedy of a war that divided Ireland against itself, the tragic bromance is that of Cu Chullain and Ferdia [[note]]your spelling may vary[[/note]], inseparable friends and closer than brothers who inevitably find themselves on opposing sides in a battle. And fight each other to the death.

* ''Manga/VigilanteMyHeroAcademiaIllegals'' gives us a flashback to [[TheCowl Aizawa's]] and [[MakeMeWannaShout Present Mic's]] past friendship with another UA student named Shirakumo. Despite Aizawa's gloomy demeanor and lack of confidence in his [[AntiMagic "boring"]] Quirk, Shirakumo was a bright, cheerful influence on him. But in the middle of a fight with a huge, powerful villain, the other heroes are knocked out of commission or so busy protecting civilians that Aizawa is the only one left. Thanks to words of inspiration from Shirakumo, Aizawa finds the confidence to figure out how to defeat the villain... but not really. After the fight is over, he finds out that Shirakumo died protecting others from falling rubble, and the voice he heard was just in his own mind. From this moment on, Aizawa becomes more driven and focused on perfecting the skills he needs to be the pro hero Eraser Head, but to the exclusion of almost everything else in his life.

%%** ''ComicBook/{{Hitman}}'': Tommy and Ringo, Tommy and Pat, and Hacken and Ringo. A case could be made for Tommy and Bob as well.

# The two cannot just be friends or acquaintances. They have to be [[HeterosexualLifePartners REALLY close]]' and

-> ''"Oh, how the might have fallen in battle!\\

It's important to note that
# The two cannot just be friends or acquaintances. They have to be [[HeterosexualLifePartners REALLY close]], and