History TearJerker / DragonBallSuper

* Merus' HeroicSacrifice. After assisting Goku with defeating Moro, due to him breaching the "meddling with mortal affairs" law, he is subsequently erased. Luckiliy, he's brought back at the end of the chapter, but as a consequence for his actions, he loses his immortality along with all of his other Angel abilities.

Despite it being a more lighthearted series, than its predecessor, ''Dragon Ball Super'' has plenty of emotional and tearjerking moments, and one story arc is called to be ''the '' darkest here, period.

** Sadder as you see [[AdultFear Chi-Chi hugging Goten, Android 18 holding Marron, Trunks holding Vegeta's hand,]] and Gohan hugging Videl.

*** It's coming to the realization that Goku is not the little boy we saw in Dragon Ball anymore or the young man we saw in Z. By now, he's in his mid 40s and it's very possible for age is starting to take its toll on his body, particularly considering the amount of strain he always puts himself through during all his battles and adventures. Sure Senzu Beans and healing tanks can recover your wounds but not how your body gradually goes as you go up in age. Goku is getting older, so is Vegeta, and this is especially true for Krillin and the others like Bulma and Yamcha; there's a reminder that there may come when he can't fight and protect his friends and Earth due to his body no longer being able to handle it.

** It's even more heartwrenching in the English dub as Sean Schemmel adds to Goku's frustration what sounds like the starts of him ''crying''.

** Cocoa Amaguri is already insecure about her own self-worth and her career. When [[jerkass Barry]] is formulating his plan to destroy Gohan's marriage by making it look like Gohan is having an affair with Cocoa, he blackmails Cocoa into taking part by threatening to destroy her career. She breaks down in front of Gohan while confessing her insecurities.

** On a similar note, this scene also give us a brief hint of how Yamcha and Chiaotzu must have felt when they quit fighting after the Cell Games, since he too is now forced into the sidelines and rarely gets to help in protecting Earth since the role went to the Saiyans like Goku, Vegeta, and Gohan.

[[caption-width-right:350:[[spoiler: ''"I failed, Gohan. I failed you. I couldn't save them."'']]

[[caption-width-right:350:[[spoiler: ''"Gohan... I couldn't protect the world."'']][[labelnote:English dub]][[spoiler: ''"I failed, Gohan. I failed you. I couldn't save them."''[[/labelnote]]]]]]

[[folder:Meta]]
* Chris Ayres had to step down part way through the Resurrection 'F' saga due to end-stage COPD Emphysema, necessitating a double lung transplant, and even then his prognosis wasn't good. Though he has a capable voice double in Damien Mills, this made things rough for awhile, especially since it seemed to negate a planned meta-Heartwarming moment regarding Frieza interacting with Frost, voiced by Chris's brother Greg. Fortunately, Chris has recovered just in time for both the upcoming movie, ''and'' the Tournament of Power.
* On the Japanese side, Creator/HiromiTsuru, the voice of Bulma, [[https://kotaku.com/1820533763 died]] on November 15, 2017 due to [[https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/aortic-dissection/basics/definition/con-20032930 aortic dissection]]. She was only 57 years old. May her soul rest in peace.
** Her last lines in ''Super''? "We're counting on you, everyone." It's as if she was not only saying goodbye to [=U7=] team, but to the fans, too.
** Both heartwarming and tearjerking, the fans at her funeral brought in a full set of 7 Dragon Balls. Masako Nozawa, the voice actor for Goku and his sons, mentioned in the eulogy that everyone in the room only had one wish. If only they had a real Eternal Dragon within them...
* Tetsuo Gota, the Japanese voice actor of Gowasu [[https://comicbook.com/anime/2018/11/08/dragon-ball-one-piece-anime-actor-death-tetsuo-goto/ passed away]] on November 6th, 2018, almost a year after Tsuru's death. His cause of death was of esophageal cancer. May he rest in peace.
* Unforntunately, the Latin American Spanish side wasn't spared of sad news; on May 15, 2018, the narrator of the Latin American Spanish dub of the series Creator/JoseLavat died at the age of 69 while working on the dub of the Universe Survival Saga. While he had a very prolific career in dubbing (being the recurring voice actor of Creator/RobertDeNiro, Creator/HarrisonFord, Creator/MichaelCaine, Creator/IanMcKellen and Creator/AlPacino, among others), for a generation of anime fans who grew up with his work on the ''Dragon Ball'' franchise, his role telling the adventures of Goku and his friends was still his best known role, and the news ''crushed'' the hearts of fans region-wide.
* The announcement of ''Dragon Ball Super'' going on an indefinite hiatus and possibly concluding was given with only eight episodes remaining before its finale. For longtime fans of the series, or newcomers who were just getting into the franchise, it was a sudden and saddening hit to hear the series would be leaving so soon. While apparently it may yet return or there will be something beyond ''Super'', it was still a blow, especially so close on the heels of Tsuru's death, Ayres' struggles and anxiety about the health of the rest of the cast. Turned to joy when it was revealed that ''Super'' is coming back after all, and only on a hiatus for the movie and the manga to catch up.
[[/folder]]

* Tetsuo Gota, the voice actor of Gowasu [[https://comicbook.com/anime/2018/11/08/dragon-ball-one-piece-anime-actor-death-tetsuo-goto/ passed away]] on November 6th, 2018, almost a year after Tsuru's death. His cause of death was of esophageal cancer. May he rest in peace.

* Chris Ayres had to step down part way through the Resurrection 'F' saga due to end-stage COPD Emphysema, necessitating a double lung transplant, and even then his prognosis wasn't good. Though he had a capable voice double in Damien Mills, this made things rough for awhile, especially since it seemed to negate a planned meta-Heartwarming moment regarding Frieza interacting with Frost, voiced by Chris's brother Greg. Fortunately, Chris has recovered just in time for both the upcoming movie, ''and'' the Tournament of Power.

* On the Japanese side, Creator/HiromiTsuru, the voice of Bulma, [[https://kotaku.com/1820533763 passed away]] on November 15, 2017 due to [[https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/aortic-dissection/basics/definition/con-20032930 aortic dissection]]. She was only 57 years old. May her soul rest in peace.

* The announcement of ''Dragon Ball Super'' going on an indefinite hiatus and possibly concluding was given with only eight episodes remaining before its finale. For longtime fans of the series, or newcomers who were just getting into the franchise, it was a sudden and saddening hit to hear the series would be leaving so soon. While apparently it may yet return or there will be something beyond ''Super'', it was still a blow, especially so close on the heels of Tsuru's passing, Ayres' struggles and anxiety about the health of the rest of the cast. Turned to joy when it was revealed that ''Super'' is coming back after all, and only on a hiatus for the movie and the manga to catch up.

* The announcement of ''Dragon Ball Super'' going on an indefinite hiatus and possibly concluding was given with only eight episodes remaining before its finale. For longtime fans of the series, or newcomers who were just getting into the franchise, it was a sudden and saddening hit to hear the series would be leaving so soon. While apparently it may yet return or there will be something beyond ''Super'', it was still a blow, especially so close on the heels of Tsuru's passing, Ayres' struggles and anxiety about the health of the rest of the cast. Turned to joy when it was revealed that Super is coming back after all, and only on a hiatus for the movie and the manga to catch up.

* Chris Ayres having to step down part way through the Resurrection 'F' saga due to end-stage COPD Emphysema, necessitating a double lung transplant... and even then, his prognosis wasn't good. This is especially rough, given how it negates a planned meta-Heartwarming moment with Frieza interacting with Frost, voiced by Chris's brother Greg.

** Both heartwarming and tearjerking, the fans at her funeral brought in a full set of 7 Dragon Balls. Masako Nozawa, the voice actor for Goku and his sons, mentioned in the eulogy that everyone in the room only had one wish. If only the balls were real...

* Although it's also somewhat in the Funny category, Vegeta's bingo dance. While it's absolutely hilarious at first glance, for longtime viewers it's painful to watch. This is a Saiyan who's ''defining'' trait is his pride, his will to never bow down to anyone. And the proud Saiyan Prince, Goku's rival and one of the most powerful people in the universe, is reduced to doing a silly song and dance so that Beerus won't kill everyone he's come to love and care for.

[[caption-width-right:350:[[spoiler: ''"Gohan... I couldn't protect the world."'']]]][[note]]''"I failed, Gohan. I failed you. I couldn't save them."''[[/note]]

[[caption-width-right:350:[[spoiler: ''"Gohan... I couldn't protect the world."'']]]]

Despite it being a more lighthearted series, than its predecessor, ''Dragon Ball Super'' has plenty of emotional and tearjerking moments.

Let's just get it out of the way up front: the Future Trunks/Goku Black arc of ''Super'' might well be the hardest-hitting story arc, in emotional terms, in the entire history of the ''Dragon Ball'' franchise. Trunks is the page image for a reason, the poor guy.

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zmjqyaITVSQ The segment at the end of Episode 46 and the episode preview for Episode 47]] just shows you how dark and heart-wrenching the saga is going to be. After the world was thought to be in peace after Future Trunks killed Imperfect Cell and the Androids, we see him running in panic from a shadowy threat (possibly Goku Black). Even the music is different ... instead of the upbeat one we usually get, we get a tragic one that really drives the point home. Future Trunks is even shown crying at one point, and Future Bulma is [[FridgeHorror nowhere to be seen in any promotional material for the saga]] ...
** We also see who's presumed to be Future Mai during it, judging how she's just by herself, its heavily implying that in this timeline Pilaf and Shu are dead and she's the only one left. Considering how the three were always together throughout Dragon Ball, that's rather sad to see.
* Episode 47 is just as tragic as expected. [[spoiler: Black Goku ''kills'' Future Bulma right in front of Future Trunks, if obscured by shadows, and shoots Future Mai with a Ki blast... and he doesn't even know she barely survived that]].
** To make it worse for Future Trunks, the person destroying his world and killing his precious few remaining love ones looks exactly like [[spoiler: Goku all way down to his actual voice]]. The person he traveled back in time to save, fight alongside, and even gave his life to protect his world, is now the face of the person killing everyone.
** As bad as that is for Trunks, it has to be far worse for Future Bulma. [[spoiler: Goku and her were extremely close, with Bulma being Goku's first friend since his grandfather died. The Goku of this time is long dead, taken away by a heart virus, and thus couldn't save them when the androids attacked. Bulma built the time machine not only to warn the others in the past about the androids, but also to give Goku the medicine to the virus that will eventually kill him. Although present Goku still dies, he died on his terms. Now, after all these years, when sees her childhood friend alive again, he's a mass-murderer who ends up destroying the world even worse than the androids. It is also the final face she sees as Black Goku kills her]].
** It's arguably even worse in the English dub; Bulma actively ''screams in desperation'' at Trunks to flee [[spoiler:Black]] before [[spoiler:she gets killed]].
** The people of Earth got it just as bad. Keep in mind, these are the same people who survived the androids. They all experienced the terror of being hunted and reduced to playthings by two cyborg punks and managed to survive. Now, just when they are finally moving on from that nightmare and rebuilding their broken world, this horrendous bastard comes out of nowhere and destroys it all, and unlike the androids, he doesn't screw around with it. While the androids were terrible, they kept humanity alive for almost twenty-years since killing humans was a game to them. Humans were allowed to somewhat live since the humans still went to amusement parks, shop, eat decently, and got the news. Even Cell kept himself on the down low since he was eating people to build power. [[spoiler:Black Goku]] doesn't just let his presence be known, he patrols the skies looking for people to kill and rain destruction on cities. Those who do survive can barely find food, and are reduced to eating cat and dog food. The people of Earth survived one nightmare and was plunged into an even worse nightmare. To add even more bitterness, when [[spoiler: Goku Black]] attacked the Earth, we see a city still under repair from the android attack.
* Something must be said if Future Trunks's first thing to do upon waking up in the present timeline is try to beat the living shit out of Goku. Trunks must've been so traumatized by Black that his mind can't even tell the difference between Goku and Black (and it doesn't help that last Future Trunks knew, the real Goku was dead and didn't want to come back). He's immediately haunted by the events of Black [[spoiler: killing Future Bulma and Future Mai]], and everyone (even Beerus and Whis) watched in horror. What makes this sadder is that Goku was initially the first person that Future Trunks befriended ... and even when he was looking for allies (when escaping from Black), he remembered Goku, Gohan, and Vegeta.
* Future Trunks crying when he sees present time Bulma. He literally falls to his knees and is close to tears. After seeing his mother [[spoiler: murdered by Black Goku]], you can understand why he reacts like this. He also feels pain when he sees present time Mai for similar reasons.
* Episode 50 continues to lay the hurt on poor Trunks. After [[spoiler: his time machine is destroyed]], Trunks looks so miserable and whispers that he's failed everyone in his time.
* Episode 51 also lays into us the revelation that [[spoiler: Vegeta also took Future Bulma's death ''hard''. And he is '''[[TranquilFury angry]]''', despite what his poker face displays. It's to the point that he [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge intends to seek out and kill Goku Black in retribution for his inexcusable crime.]]]]
* Episode 52. After meeting Gohan's family, and seeing how happy they are, Trunks lets himself imagine what his life might have been like had Black not come into the picture: a peaceful life with his mother and Mai. It's enough to bring him to tears, since as far as he knows, it's no longer possible in his timeline.
* Trunks realizing how happy Gohan is, and choosing not to disturb his tranquility.
* Episode 57 has Future Mai [[spoiler: sending Goku, Vegeta, and Future Trunks, who are all injured, back to the present timeline with the time machine. Before they depart, Future Trunks gets very worked up as of why Mai is not leaving with them. He does not want to leave her a second time, especially [[CrapsackWorld in the hell]] [[BadFuture that is the future timeline]]]].
* Episode 58 gives us the absolutely crestfallen expressions of the Resistance members once news spreads that [[spoiler:their greatest hope to defeat Black, Trunks and his companions, were defeated handily]], could be hard to bear. Doubly so when even Mai's impassioned RousingSpeech doesn't seem to work on them anymore.
* Episode 59 gives us Gowasu's betrayed and hurt expression when [[spoiler: Whis and the gang expose Zamasu's attempt to murder him for his Time Ring. The elder Kai genuinely believed that Zamasu had changed his stance on mortals and went back to the non-interventionalist ways of the Kai. It only gets worse when Goku tells Zamasu of all the horrible things his future counterpart has done and Zamasu displays no remorse whatsoever, actually expressing ''pride'' in the fact that his genocidal dreams have come to fruition.]]
** In a '''very''' weird way, [[spoiler: Zamasu's subsequent demise at Beerus' hands can also be seen as this. Yes, he was a psychopathic xenophobe and wholeheartedly deserved his fate, but he was still a prodigy Kai who would soon be Gowasu's successor as the Supreme Kai of Universe 10. Had he learned to overcome his hatred of mortals, he probably would have been a great Supreme Kai. It's such a shame to see such potential wasted. The scene is made all the more tragic by the fact that even ''Gowasu'' expresses sorrow over his death despite everything Zamasu had done.]]
* Episode 60 reveals Goku Black's true origin. [[spoiler: He is essentially a Zamasu from another timeline who ultimately resorts to killing Goku after switching bodies. The gravity of this doesn't truly hit until you realize.... there's ANOTHER timeline where Goku died... but unlike where he went out peacefully like with the Heart virus, here, he got viciously obliterated and got to die knowing that this monster is going to kill everyone he knows and loves while wearing his skin.]]
* Confirmed in Episode 61. [[spoiler: When Black and Zamasu cornered Goku, Black taunts him with the fact that after switching bodies, he immediately went to kill Goku in his original body then went to kill ''Chi-Chi and Goten''. Goku was so pissed from the fact that Zamasu had stolen his body and killed them with said body he briefly went berserk, but that wasn't enough to avenge them. It's sadder when we remember the last time he went this berserk, it really didn't do anything]].
** Trunks on the other hand, refused to go down and went to his RageBreakingPoint because [[spoiler: Black and Zamasu]] told him because of his time-traveling that everything was ''his'' fault. He got so pissed that he transformed into a new form of Super Saiyan where his aura bares gold and blue colors all while obtaining pure white eyes.
** [[spoiler: The final moments of the alternate Chichi and Goten were the horrific sight of someone using Goku's body to murder him in cold blood. When Chichi tries to get her son away from Zamasu, we get an obscured scene of Chichi and Goten screaming as Zamasu murders them as well.]]
* Also in Episode 61, [[spoiler: Future Zamasu's reaction to Goku Black killing Gowasu. Sure, Zamasu wanted to eventually kill him, but he looked devastated when he sees his master slain under himself. He might have had his own agenda, but Zamasu did seem to care about Gowasu to an extent]].
* Episode 63. Gowasu seeing [[spoiler: Future Zamasu and Goku Black]], the extent of his student's evil sinking into him for the first time. He outright collapses when the duo tell him that they have [[spoiler: destroyed the Super Dragon Balls]], throwing away any chance of redemption in the process.
* Episode 64. [[spoiler: Future Zamasu]] grabs Bulma by the neck, causing Trunks to mentally relive [[spoiler: the moment of his own mother's death]]. Though it becomes a CrowningMomentOfAwesome when Trunks uses [[spoiler: the Mafuba]] in a rage.
* Episode 65. It's a subtle thing, but the episode reveals that [[spoiler: Kame House survives in the future, and its sole remaining inhabitant is ''Turtle'']]. While this may seem like a heartwaming fact, you now realize that of the original cast of ''Manga/DragonBall'', [[spoiler: Turtle, Yajirobe, and Android 8 are the ''only survivors'' in this timeline.]] On top of that, Turtle [[spoiler: had to live alone without the presence of Master Roshi, his best friend.]]
** [[spoiler: Speaking of future Android 8, the fact that he's by himself implies that poor Snow is likely dead. Though whether she died because of the androids or Black is unknown.]]
** When [[spoiler: Fused Zamasu]] launches a finishing attack on Trunks, [[spoiler: Vegeta throws himself in front of the blast to save his son. A moment that shows how far his CharacterDevelopment has come from when he first met Trunks, let alone his very first appearance.]]
* [[spoiler: Episode 66 brings Zamasu's descent into madness and all-consuming self-righteousness to a head with his own arrogance coming back to bite him and reducing him to exactly what he sought to destroy: a barbaric savage concerned only with destruction. This isn't too bad [[TraumaCongaLine since he had it all coming]], but one brief image adds another aspect to Zamasu's downfall that hasn't ever been seen in any major ''Dragon Ball'' villain: he reflects on everything he's had to do to get this far, and starts to ''cry tears of dismay''. In spite of how elated he was to have achieved almighty power and come to the cusp of winning, Zamasu actually takes a moment to visibly show ''regret'' for everything he's done, showing that he actually ''does'' acknowledge that what he's doing is evil, even if [[IveComeTooFar he wouldn't dare stop]]. In contrast to the slew of shamelessly evil villains that Dragon Ball has had up until now, Zamasu is a KnightTemplar whose own morals have reduced him to a monster. And he knows it. ''And he doesn't like it'']].
* Episode 67. [[spoiler:We have in our hands the first PyrrhicVictory for the heroes. In the end, even though it cost him his very sentience and existence, Zamasu won, and there are no more mortals, and through Future Zen-o's intervention, no more Earth, or Universe, or future timeline. Future Trunks has truly lost everything. The only thing that makes it a BittersweetEnding is that Zamasu is stopped from infecting the present, and possibly other, timelines.]]
** [[spoiler: This is made worse if you remember Future Android 8, and his village were also destroyed. People were happy to see them alive... and now they are dead. Gone.]]
** Even worse. [[spoiler: Remember, afterlife in this franchise is physical. So, it was also destroyed. '''Future Trunks and Mai won't see their friends and loved ones again, even after death.''']]
** [[spoiler: Future Mai's cries of anguish upon learning that everyone she and Trunks had fought to protect from Black's rampage are dead, rendering all their efforts to save what was left of their [[AllForNothing world for naught.]]]]
** By the end of the episode, as [[spoiler:Future Trunks and Future Mai travel to a better future, Trunks catches a glance of Gohan, who arrived to see him off. Trunks then bursts into tears, remembering his timeline's Gohan, and he can't help but to beat himself up over the thought that [[MyGreatestFailure he failed to protect the world his mentor left behind]].]]
* Gowasu lamenting how everything turned out in Episode 67, [[MyGreatestFailure seeing the new Time Ring as his sin]]. The poor man trained his pupil for good, [[spoiler: but only ended destroying an entire timeline]]. He seriously needs a hug.

* It's confirmed that when a universe is destroyed, its angel will survive. Beerus and Shin treat Whis like this is some kind of betrayal, but Champa seems almost heartbroken at how nonchalant Vados is over the deal too.
* In episode 80 it's sad to see Beerus and the Supreme Kai go from hugging each other in glee from the previous episode to blaming each other over their universe being second-weakest.
** And even if Universe 9 has so far been quite the assholes, you have to feel for them when they are ranked the weakest universe ''after learning the losers get erased!''
* Just...think for a second of how much [[IdiotHero Goku]] [[WhatTheHellHero has screwed up.]] Because of his [[BloodKnight desire to just have one last big tournament,]] trillions of people are going to die. The man we grew up with and cheered on to fight the bad guys for so long is going to become the unwitting catalyst to a mass genocide of epic proportions. God knows if he's got a [[TakeAThirdOption contingency plan up his sleeve]] or he (and by extension, Universe 7) is going to have to take on the fallout of this mess. Although this is {{Downplayed}} when it's revealed [[spoiler: Zen'o was going to nuke the eight weakest universes regardless of the tournament. Goku actually gave at least one universe a chance to survive]].
** It [[FromBadToWorse gets worse!]] During episode 81, Goku is in front of a bunch of [[WhatTheHellHero pissed off deities who had just reflected on how]] [[KillEmAll their respective universes are going to be obliterated due to this tournament.]] Even Champa, who tolerated Goku at best, is booing him. Sure, several universes get to live, but what's Goku's reaction to the other doomed universes? [[BloodKnight Nonchalance and a quote that amounts to "Better send your strongest guys here! I'm so excited!"]] Jesus Christ, no wonder [[JerkassHasAPoint Bergamo]] and Toppo were furious at him.
** All the worse when the fact is the one they should be able to blame is Zen'o, since he's the one who decided the ultimate fate of things (well ''before'' Goku proposed the tournament idea). But since publicly defying/disgracing the TopGod is apparently unforgivable (and would probably end with the accuser getting erased on the spot, along with who knows how many others associated with them), they can't even ''try'' outside of proposing different ideas/alterations to pre-existing ideas (which given everyone's fear of him, only a rare few are willing to even ''consider'', let alone try)... and so, most can only turn to the mortal most involved with this tournament ''and blame everything upon him.'' Goku isn't free of fault in the first place, and his flippant attitude isn't helping matters, but he's still semi-unfairly become a scapegoat.
*** If you watch the same episode, you can notice that the Universe 10 was the only Universe, whose gods did not have any speaking role. After everything that happened in the Future Trunks Saga, you would expect Gowasu to vouch for Goku and Universe 7, but instead he stays silent throughout the entire Zen'o Exhibition Match, while other Universes turn against Goku and Universe 7 (despite the fact that Beerus explicitly saved his and indirectly Rumoosh's life). It's possible that Gowasu is utterly speechless (or just REALLY composed). After all, Gowasu still remembers [[Characters/DragonBallZamasu someone else]] who had a callous and boastful attitude to the [[KillEmAll death of trillions of mortals, and his fellow Gods]]. It probably doesn't help that that someone else, or another version of him, took Goku's body, so whether he likes it or not, seeing Goku himself show similar callousness really doesn't help.
* Bra's birth has a subtle yet palpable effect on Vegeta. Despite not making his emotions clear on the surface, you can tell that he's beating himself up over being such a neglectful if not outright abusive bastard to his wife and son (both present and future versions) in the past. It's not too much to say that he probably hates himself even now for it.
* In Episode 84 the fact that Android 18 is the first to really notice that something is wrong with Goku and the subtle changes to his attitude before anyone else hits a little hard, she even looks scared or worried. Also the fact she has known him long enough to even notice those changes is heartwarming.
* In Episode 85, the weight on their respective universes is certainly on everyone's shoulders (to varying degrees), but Toppo is obviously taking it hard. All he can do is muse and sigh as he thinks about Goku's super saiyan blue form and all the rest of what's going on. As leader of a group of superheroes AND knowing that failure in this tournament means the genocide of people you know and love, no wonder he's hit rock bottom inside.
* Episode 86 ends with Android 17 refusing to join Goku's team in the Tournament of Power. After learning of what'll happen should they lose, 17 shows little reaction and is completely resigned to the ill fate of the universe being erased.
* Episode 87: When hearing the villian has a bomb inside him and would detonate it if Goku and 17 didn't let him go, 17 attempts a HeroicSacrifice, asking Goku to take over his job aand to give his regards to his family and 18 before tackling him out of the ship. While it ultimately lead to nothing bad happening, it shows how devoted 17 is to animals if he's that willing to leave his wife and kids behind.
* Although its being played for humor, you gotta feel bad for Yamcha, upon hearing of the tournament he's all excited and waiting for Goku to ask him to take part in it and appears to have done some training for it. However since he's not listed or shown amongst the selected team in the intro and pictures so its a ForegoneConclusion that he's going to be left hanging.
** Just the fact Goku [[spoiler: ''would rather choose Frieza than Yamcha'']] just make this sadder, even if the former is much more powerful.
* Episode 91: We get to see a planet from Universe 9, plus the reactions from Mojito and Sidra. Mojito looks so disappointed to be assigned to a low level universe, while Sidra just shamefully destroys a city with his "Destruction" technique.
* Episode 92: The fighters finally figure out the truth about the Tournament of Power and is very steamed at Goku for lying to them. Worst of all is Krillin, who is upset that his ''best friend'' didn't tell him the truth. Goku admits, though, that he was scared they'd all say "no" because he would be scared to die.
* Episode 93: While it's a YMMV, what pushes Kale over the edge to becoming the [[spoiler: Legendary Super Saiyan]]? Was it pure anger and rage ala Goku, Vegeta, Trunks, and Gohan? Was it the 'tingly sensation'? No, it's because she legitimately believed she was so pathetic, so weak, so worthless compared to the others.
** As Cabba pointed out, it wasn't just that; ''jealousy'' definitely played a hand, because she didn't like how close Caulifla was getting to him (even in the vein of arguing with/yelling at him).
* Episode 94: Vegeta is forced to defend [[spoiler:Frieza's]] presence, after all the latter did to him and his race.
** Before Goku meets with Fortuneteller Baba [[spoiler: to call forth the spirit of Frieza]], he's seen standing on the platform outside her house, and is then seen going through a sparing motion with seemingly no one. However, sharp eyed fans recognized that this is not random acrobatics. He's reenacting, exact motion by motion, the fight between him and the spirit of Grandpa Gohan when he was the Masked Fighter of Baba, in the same arena they fought in. All the way from the original [[Manga/DragonBall Dragon Ball]]. He's not just practicing. ''He's reliving one of the last times he saw his Grandpa Gohan.'' Even after all these years, he still thinks of him.
* Episode 97: A minor one, but Lilbeu feels so disappointed about being the first fighter on her team to be taken out. She calls herself a disgrace and it doesn't help that Rumshi rubs it in her. Thankfully Gowasu encourages her to cheer on Universe 10's team.
** From it, those who are eliminated can't help but now watch helplessly and pray that their team wins in order to save their universe and loved ones.
* One can easily sympathize with Gowasu throughout this saga. After the whole incident with [[spoiler: Goku Black/Zamasu]], Gowasu now has to worry about the Tournament of Power, with the knowledge that he, along with his Universe, will be erased from existence if his team loses the tournament. Not helping the matters is the fact that Rummshi is lazy God of Destruction, who values raw muscle over logic, which is the reason why Universe 10 only has the fifth lowest mortal level and may also be the reason why [[spoiler: Zamasu had negative opinions on gods, which played a major part in Zamasu's StartOfDarkness]]. Furthermore, the fighters that Rummshi selected for the Tournament of Power mostly consist of stereotypical muscleheads and the name of the leader of said fighters can be translated as "hopeless team" in Japanese. [[spoiler: And of course, the Universe 10 is the first universe, whose combatant has fallen off the stage]].
** And as we see in episode 90, Gowasu apparently spent the whole preparation period for the tournament unable to come up with any idea of even what sort of fighter to include in Universe 10's team because he is too afraid of ending up picking someone like [[spoiler: Zamasu]] again... that's right, the whole [[spoiler: Goku Black/Zamasu]] incident affected him to the point he can't even begin to come up with an idea on who could potentially help save their universe. Rumoosh had to pick the entire team for him.
* Episode 98: The first universe to lose is [[spoiler:Universe 9]], and it's appropriately sad. They are eliminated on the spot by the Zen'os. [[spoiler:Roh just has enough time to scream out Zeno's name in absolute fear before he and all the others are gone.]] Then we see their planets, galaxies, and entire universe disappear in a flash of light. There won't be any last minute bargaining or deals once someone wins the tournament. Come the last man standing or end of the match, there will be only one universe out of eight remaining.
** Beerus who is stunned after it happens asks Whis to see what's happened and he looks and sees, nothing. Just empty space, there's nothing there at all. All the fighters, Kais and Gods can only look on in shock at what has just happened as dozens of planets and trillions of lives, gone just like that. Goku himself is stunned and it seems he now realizes what his actions and desire for battle have brought upon innocent lives.
** Bergamo was adamant that 9 would survive and win and despite the struggles did find ten fighters and the previous episode were holding their own and getting eliminations. But in the span of one episode, the entire team is defeated. No doubt the last thoughts before he and his brothers were knocked out by The Final Kamehameha was that they failed.
** The next episode's beginning is dedicated to the reactions around [[spoiler:Universe 9 being erased.]] Sometimes, it's just acknowledgement. Others are shocked and appalled. Even FRIEZA is vexed by the [[BlueAndOrangeMorality behavior of the Zenos.]]
* A bit of a tearjerker as well if you think about it, but outside of the "grudge" that they wanted to settle with Goku, they simply just wanted to survive. A few episodes earlier, Quitela lied to Sidra convincing him that Goku and Team Universe 7 was planning on taking out Universe 9 first. Come to the actual tournament, nobody from Universe 7 was focused on Universe 9, with Goku immediately wanting to fight Toppo and Jiren, Gohan's group focused on defending themselves, and the other members randomly attacking other fighters that they encountered. It's also why Roh and Sidra wanted to immediately take Goku out first, because they felt like without Universe 7, the rest of the tournament would be a cakewalk.
* Sure, it's not the worst thing to happen to him in his life, but guess who's the first of Universe 7 that's knocked out? [[spoiler:Krillin.]] Yep. All he can do is hope everyone picks up the slack after that's over with.
** He's certainly reacting better than the other fighters that get knocked off the stage, whom are either utterly despondent or even crying. After all, they know full well they're about to DIE if they fail...
** He was doing so well too, he had a role in three eliminations but dropped his guard down for one second as he celebrated thus enabling [[spoiler: Frost]] to sneak up and eliminate him.
** And then he's mocked for this by everyone, including his wife.
* Kale's second transformation. First, Napapa and Mechiopu gang up on her and start beating her ''for fun'', making her cry. Then, after she fails to transform and Caulifula starts fighting Goku alone, she feels utterly useless and breaks down crying. She takes Goku's request "not to bother" as if it means she's only a bother for Caulifla.
** And in episode 101, Kale's despair at her own perceived weakness, such that Caulifla has to protect her since she can't do so herself. She even admits that she hates herself.
* In the preview for 103, we see a glimpse of Cus, The Angel of Universe 10, showing her with a saddened and distraught look on her face as she looks on. U10 only has three fighters left in the Tournament and it's looking worse and worse for them. We know what happened with U9 when all ten got eliminated, we maybe seeing it again.
* The erasure of [[spoiler:Universe 10]] is this.
** "Well done, Obni". Gowasu mournfully says this, knowing that his universe was going to be erased. His last words was him congratulating Obni. And when Obni gets knocked out, there's a locket with his family shown. What's worse is that said locket gets erased with Universe 10 ... that's right, not only people and planets leave ... objects leave too, so there is absolutely no trace of that universe left.
*** If that's the case, what does this mean for the assassins from Universe 9? Chances are they no longer exist in any capacity either, despite having died in Universe 7.
** Unlike Mojito, who was actually happy that his universe was erased, Cus is actually sad to let her universe go, with her mourning the loss of Rumsshi.
** A bit of a fridge tearjerker for Gohan, as seeing Obni's locket made him realize that unlike every other opponent he had to fight, Obni wasn't a murderous maniac. He's not some intergalactic monster hell bent on destroying all that Gohan had loved, he is simply a man trying to protect his family. And Gohan was forced to end his life and that of his universe.
*** When we see the photo inside the locket, we see that the child is young, no older than Pan most likely. Everything will be erased without a second thought, down to the youngest child. Imagine Gohan's dire situation just like Obni's when everything, including the lives of his family, is on the line.
* After Goku and Hit almost take Dyspo out and take Kunshi out, we see how the Tournament of Power have seriously strained and impacted Toppo's views of his "justice". We see a battered Dyspo talk about taking revenge on Hit for justice, when Toppo tells him to cut that act. It's quite sad knowing that a team of heroes now has to resort to a view of fighting for survival now, especially with the fact that of the surviving universes, they have the least warriors and are the closest to erasure. The Tournament of Power has broken Toppo, and it's only a matter of time what it'll do to other universes as well.
* Master Roshi's near-death experience. He's already weak from using the Mafuba and his battle with Ganos is pushing his limits. He knows his time is up and he puts everything into one last Kamehameha while telling Goku and Krillin that they are now ready to pass on the Kame Style to others. He knocks Ganos out, but the attack ''kills him''. The only thing saving him is Goku desperately using a ki blast as a MagicalDefibrillator before pouring some of his ki into him, the warrior clutching onto him in panicked joy as he comes to.
* Episode 106: The treatment of Dr.Rota is sad. He gets knocked out by Hamira and Prum before he gets to fight Gohan and Piccolo, and spends the majority of the episode unconscious. When he recovers, he goes after Prum to get his revenge, and tries to form an Enemy mine against him with Goku and Vegeta, only for Vegeta to refuse his help, tell him to shut up, and ring them both out. The poor guy never even gets the chance to fight. He twice mentions a special technique, but both times, he gets interrupted before he can say what it is. With all of the focus the other members of Team Universe 6 have gotten, and Saonel and Pirina being Namekians and likely to end up facing Piccolo later on, Rota will end up being by far the most forgettable member of Universe 6. All the other members will have their fans and be remembered, but he will just be remembered as the doctor pig guy.
* Jimizu´s elimination, he is ringed out by Frieza after getting ''brutally'' pummeled by Frieza to near-death. The yardat was a bit arrogant, but ultimately a decent guy who just wanted his universe to survive, he didn´t deserve such a nasty beating. Fortunately, at least Jimizu is not scolded for his defeat.
* To an extent, [[spoiler: Frost]] 's erasure. Sure he was hardly a sympathetic guy, and he was extremely [[CombatPragmatist pragmatic]] while fighting others, but during the tournament itself [[spoiler:Frost]] hadn't violated any rules, and he did genuinely fight for the sake of his universe. It gets a bit easier to feel some sympathy for him when one takes into account he had genuinely grown to look up to [[spoiler: Frieza]] for his power, and getting betrayed and then [[PretenderDiss insulted]] by his new idol must have been pretty harsh (although one could argue it also qualifies as ATasteOfTheirOwnMedicine).
* In 110, when Goku is thought to be vaporized by his own Spirit Bomb, everyone on the stands go on how Goku couldn't be possibly defeated or even ''dead''. During this, a shot drags to show Beerus barely holding a grip, as if he not just lost a WorthyOpponent, but a friend. Even when he clashes with Goku over petty or serious matters, it shows how much Beerus cares about a mere mortal who became a god a few months back.
* In 111, Ribrianne gets overpowered by Vegeta and has to be saved by Rozie, who takes her to safety. Ribrianne despairs and tells Rozie that she highly doubts that U2 can win. Even if she is kind of a petty jerk, you cannot avoid to feel a little sorry for her and her universe, as this really puts into perspective how the weaker universes must be feeling after witnessing how ungodly powerful Jiren is and seeing that their chances of survival are very slim. It's almost similar to Toppo's breakdown as well ...
* After the end of Episode 112, everyone who fought for Universe 6 in the Champa Saga is now benched out ... one by Gohan, one by Jiren, one by Vegeta, and two by Frieza. The only other member to currently be benched was a ButtMonkey fighter ... slowly but surely, this could be a death sentence for Universe 6 ... hopefully Caulifla and Kale can recover fast enough.
** This is worse as Cabba was among the very few fighters on the Tournament to want to wish for another universe to be revived. Remember that every other fighter shown thus far (Ribrianne, Frieza, and Goku) wants it either for a selfish reason or doesn't know what to do with it.
** It's made even ''worse'' by it being a cheap shot. Even though Frieza is almost certainly stronger than Cabba, he still made a point of facing the saiyan when he was badly beaten and almost totally out of Ki. As a result the fight is completely one sided, something Cabba didn't deserve.
* After [[spoiler:Kefla's]] defeat, Universe 6's last warriors are [[spoiler:the Namekians Saonel and Pirina]]. That itself isn't the tearjerker, but it's who's fighting against them: Gohan and Piccolo. These two were also the same exact ones who fought Rubalt and Obni, the last warriors of Universe 10 as well. This effectively means that somehow, Gohan (and maybe Piccolo) will (considering that an upcoming episode [[spoiler:outright mentions another universe being erased]]) could be responsible for erasing another universe, and considering Gohan's reaction to Obni's defeat ...
* Gohan and Piccolo clearly are uncomfortable fighting the two Namekians; Piccolo having just reconciled with his own species while Gohan had the most experience interacting with them. Picocolo is very visibly shaken up during the entire event, to the point of uncharacteristically freezing up during the match, while Gohan, although more composed, is clearly just barely holding himself together and trying to distancing himself from the fact that they're basically fighting people they would have considered friends in another life (or just in different circumstances).
* Also, after getting eliminated, while [[spoiler:Caulifla]] is upset at the loss, [[spoiler:Kale]] apologizes for being defeated in the verge of tears. Even after the huge strides in overcoming her confidence issues she'd taken in a very short time, and fighting bravely alongside [[spoiler: Caulifla]], and even [[spoiler:fusing]] with her, still amounted to a loss. The poor girl must be feeling useless after that.
* After Universes [[spoiler: 2 and 6]] are stated to be erased. Everyone in both universes take the loss in stride and try to cheer on their universes and friends. [[spoiler: Beerus]] tries to not look at [[spoiler: his brother, Champa]] before he gets erased showing that [[spoiler: despite their sibling squabbles and all that they at least cared about each other in all seriousness but are too proud to show it.]]
** [[spoiler:After Universe 6 gets erased, Beerus looks away from the camera and says "Say something." He could either be talking to himself about how he should have said something to Champa before he was erased or berating Champa for wasting his goodbye on a silly gesture, but it's clearly somber either way.]]
*** Some have interpreted it as a bizarre but still sad moment of BreakingTheFourthWall: [[spoiler:Beerus may be addressing the narrator, asking him to break the silence, because Beerus doesn't know what to say now. In fact, the narrator start talking soon after.]]
** A blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment when [[spoiler: you can see Vados bowing to Champa as he ceases to exist. Even if she's TheGadfly, she has the decency to bow to him in respect for years of service she's spent with him]].
** [[spoiler:Universe 6's erasure in particular may be one of the harder ones to see go as we spent quite a bit of time with them during the course of Super.]]
** [[spoiler:Even the Universe 7 warriors show their regards to the losing Universes, 17 and 18 agree that Universe 2's fighters were pretty cool in the end, and obviously Vegeta's not too happy about losing Universe 6's Saiyans, even though he knew it was inevitable.]]
* [[spoiler: Saonel and Pirina reveals that they are made up of the fusions of many Nameks, not just two as Piccolo had thought. Unlike normal fusion, Namek fusion merges the soul and one personality overrides the others, and there's no way to undo this (Nameks can split, but the resulting Nameks are not the ones that fused into it). Win or lose, these warriors are permanently lost. All to save their universe from erasure...and it wasn't enough. Not even close.]]
* Piccolo fighting Pirina and Saonel. [[spoiler: He was already somewhat uneasy knowing that he has to fight his own people, and be indirectly responsible for their erasure, but when he hears that the U6 Namek went so far as to fuse dozens, if not hundreds, of Nameks into Saonel and Pirina just to stand a chance in the tournament, he's very noticably shaken since he can no longer deny the fact that he's going to doom his own kind. The grim face of Kami and Nail showing up as he's unconscious says it all; all three of them despise the situation they're put in, but have to do so to save their own people and friends, even if it means dooming their alternate-universe kin.]]
* The erasure of Universe 4. Though they were quite unsympathetic, their perfomance being a case of wasted opportunities and their God of Destruction was a major {{Jerkass}}, it's still sad.
* At the end of Episode 120, [[spoiler: Paparoni, facing the threat of being eliminated and [[CessationOfExistence him and Universe 3 being erased]] begins to use some sort of DangerousForbiddenTechnique and swears to defeat Universe 7 even if it costs him his life. Considering that the rules explicitly prevent any opponents from being killed by one another but nothing about a fighter dying because of their own actions (as we nearly saw earlier with Roshi), it can only mean that whatever he's about to do might actually end up risking his life. The man is so determined to win and save his Universe that he is willing to personally sacrifice himself just so that everyone else from his Universe can live. Sadly, even that amounts to nothing: Android 17 manages to destroy Anilaza's power source and ring out the powerful fusion, thus resulting in Universe 3's erasure.]]
* Episode 125: Toppo (and Jiren) refer to his decision to [[spoiler: finally become a God of Destruction]] as him "making up [his] mind". The implication is that it's a step that he's been resistant to in the past, possibly because of the duties that it would entail. It's rather sad to see how the tournament has pushed him to finally abandon those principles and reservations for the sake of survival (not helped by how, just prior to doing it, he declares that justice is now worthless).
** Before that, Frieza going all-out to KickTheDog by taunting, mocking and torturing Toppo before going for the finishing blow. It's possible that the threat of elimination would have pushed him to do the same anyway, but Frieza's behavior at very least helped it.
* Episode 126 turns Toppo into a JerkassWoobie. He decided to finally leave aside his ideals of justice for the sake of survival, even turning in a God of Destruction. The result? ''[[WhatTheHellhero Vegeta calls him out for this]]''. Toppo, who has been shown from the beginning of the arc to be stressed and nervous about the Tournament, even losing most of his comrades because of bad leadership, decides to go loose... and still loses. The twist? ''Jiren'' calls him pathetic too for leaving said ideals for the sake of power.
** FridgeBrilliance kicks in when you remember Vegeta is talking from ''experience'', as he did the same thing in the Majin Buu saga. That's why he told Toppo he doesn't cast anyone aside ''anymore''.
** The moment Vegeta decides to sacrifice himself in order to take Toppo out. [[spoiler: He does it, and manages to survive.]]
* Episode 127 gives us dual Tear Jerkers:
** The first is Jiren's origin, in which he was the SoleSurvivor of his village, who was wiped out by a mysterious evil. He was taken in by a warrior and made his teacher and the two and his students hunted down the evil and all but Jiren were killed leaving Jiren the SoleSurvivor ''again''. This lead to his transformation into the mortal stronger than a God of Destruction.
*** Worse, there are presumably no [[MakeAWish Dragon]] [[DeathIsCheap Balls]] in Universe 11. Therefore, the deaths are permanent...unless Jiren gets the Super Dragon Balls. Making his reason to get them all the more tear-jerking.
*** What makes it sadder is how Jiren responded to it, by becoming obsessed with power under the belief that it will bring him peace. He tries to deny it, but his anger at Belmod’s re-telling of his past and 17’s prodding makes it clear he can’t move on past his family and friends’ deaths and the desertion of his fellow former peers. Instead he uses that goal of strength and mindset of might makes right to cover up a wound that clearly never healed.
*** It also puts Jiren's reaction to Toppo's elimination under a new light: casting everything aside in order to get stronger is what Jiren did, so his words toward Toppo most likely show that, despite everything, he despises what he has become.
** [[spoiler: Android #17's apparent HeroicSacrifice. Jiren's ready to finish off Goku and Vegeta when 17 jumps in with a series of barriers. As they start failing, he envelops the Saiyans in barriers and defiantly takes the blast, appearing to blow himself up in order to negate it. There is seemingly nothing left of 17 as Goku and Vegeta vow to avenge the fallen Android. 18's response is downplayed but she's shaking and very evidently trying not to cry. It's worse when you remember this is the second time she's had to watch her brother die and couldn't do anything to stop it. Fortunately, in episode 130, it is revealed that 17 actually survived. [[GambitRoulette It was still a gamble though]].]]
* Episode 128 also has a big one: [[spoiler: Vegeta's final stand against Jiren. He's hopelessly outclassed, out of energy (He used it all on the Final Explosion against Toppo two episodes earlier), has no chance of winning, and yet he goes to fight Jiren anyway. Naturally, it doesn't work, and Vegeta ends up eliminated for his troubles. It even has Vegeta going through memories with Bulma and Cabba as he desperately tries to keep fighting Jiren. His last thoughts as he's taken out of the ring describe it best, and he even tears up himself as this happens.]]
--> [[spoiler: '''Vegeta:''']] [[spoiler:I couldn't keep my promise. I'm a damn fool. I'm sorry... Bulma... Cabba...]]
* At the end of episode 130, [[spoiler:Goku being taken down by the toll mastered Ultra Instinct took on his body. Even Jiren expresses shock and sadness at their battle ending like that]].
* Grand Priest seemed rough (all other universes) or indifferent (Universe 4) whenever he announced the erasures of the erased universes, but when Universe 11 was about to get erased, he actually sounded a bit sad in regards to it. [[spoiler:Considering that they weren't erased for long, it's still quite a contrast to how he sounded when announcing the other universes that were gone]].

** [[spoiler: Android #17's HeroicSacrifice. Jiren's ready to finish off Goku and Vegeta when 17 jumps in with a series of barriers. As they start failing, he envelops the Saiyans in barriers and defiantly takes the blast, blowing himself up in order to negate it. There is seemingly nothing left of 17 as Goku and Vegeta vow to avenge the fallen Android.]]
*** [[spoiler:18's response is downplayed but she's shaking and very evidently trying not to cry. It's worse when you remember this is the second time she's had to watch her brother die and couldn't do anything to stop it.]]
*** [[spoiler:Slightly subverted in that in episode 130, it is revealed that 17 actually survived. [[GambitRoulette It was still a gamble though]].]]

--> [[spoiler: '''Vegeta''':]] [[spoiler:I couldn't keep my promise. I'm a damn fool. I'm sorry... Bulma... Cabba...]]