Elfen Lied has a lengthy history of controversy due to its edgy portrayal of death and nudity. The anime, which debuted in the early 2000s and featured the toughest plot imaginable, also included amazing animation and a wonderful soundtrack. Elfen Lied is a difficult anime to watch. Even without the graphic content, the anime is upsetting and emotionally damaging. Simply put, the way these words encircle you and serve as a somber reminder of the cruelty in the world. We see random shots of cherry blossoms or a calm sea in every scene that follows. It almost seems like the anime is trying to continually point out how lovely the planet is but how ugly the rest of the world is.
1. “Everyone in this place is unhappy. And since they’re unhappy, they’re probably looking for someone worse off than they are.” –Lucy
In episode 8, her childhood life of Lucy is shown. Lucy was a silent girl, but she was bullied by 3 boys. When she lost hope in her life, she found a dog which became a reason for her to live. The boys found her weakness through a common friend of Lucy. They bullied and killed the dog which she loved in front of her. These lines were said by Lucy when they were trying to kill it. Everyone in this world is unhappy. People are just living their life. We all are unhappy because of one reason or another. And since people are unhappy, they find the ones who are worse. The people who are more depressed in life are targeted by the less depressed and sad people. They are targeted because they are already miserable. People tend to target weak people.
2. “When you are miserable, you need something that is even more miserable than you to feel good about yourself.” –Lucy
And when we are miserable, we need something motivating in our life. To motivate ourselves, there are many ways. Some people do their hobbies like going out or listening to songs or even talking with their close ones. But some people tend to find people who are already miserable and make fun of them so that they can feel good. When people go through bad times, there’s so much bad they do console themselves. They make themselves believe that there’s someone worse off than they are. Humans are shrewd in nature, and they show it through their actions.
3. “All this time, I’ve lived in the hope of telling you how sorry I am, I’ve fought armies just to have this chance, but now, there’s nothing I can say… That’s good enough.” –Lucy
Apologizing is a tough job. We could be earnestly waiting to do so, but when the time comes, we could be equally speechless. When it’s time to apologize, we often hesitate while doing it. Either we feel embarrassed, or we feel regret. Sometimes, we long wait for enough just to apologize to that one person to whom we want to convey our apology. But when the time comes, either we are short on words, or we fail it convey our feelings, or either it’s too late for that.
4. “Aren’t we all monsters inside?” –Lucy
This quote from Lucy clicked very hard. When we are depressed, we tend to believe that everyone else is bad. A person who has been betrayed by their family, friends, and loved ones who they trusted, loses their trust and hope in people. They become isolated and prefer to live alone with fewer contacts with the outer world. We can see throughout the series Lucy lives to prefer alone. There is darkness in everyone. Everyone is trying hard not to let it out in front of everyone. But from the inside, we know our darkness. Some people tend to hide their darkness from themselves also. But within us, there are parts we all know are dark.
5. “Regret is the domain of those who have earned the right to look back at the past. All I have is a shame.” –Kurama
In episode 5, Kurama was ordered by the director to kill Nana after she was disfigured by Lucy. And in the fight with Lucy, Nana lost her legs and arms. Diclonius are dangerous creations of humans who are harmful to the civilization of human beings. They are being ordered to kill instantly after their birth. Kurama says this because he is not regretted to make this decision. Rather he is shameful of his act. Regret is for people who can look back on the past and can figure out what went wrong. For Kurama, it was shameful to look back at his own acts. He can’t bear to look at his mistakes and regret them. When you are shameful of your acts, you rather try to get over it.
6. “I envy you just for having someone who’s worried about you.” –Mayu
Mayu had never had anyone who cared and worried about her. Even her own mother didn’t worry about her. Mayu left home because she was molested by her stepfather. Her mother never cared to even find her when she fled from home. She didn’t even file a missing police report. When Kouta and others worried about her, she was quite surprised. She was envious of the people who had someone to worry about.
7. “The ones who aren’t human… the ones who aren’t people… are actually YOU!” –Lucy
In episode 8, the 3 boys were beating the dog, which Lucy admired and loved. Her only hope after every bully was the dog that she fed with her lunch. Looking back into her past of Lucy made us realize why she became ruthless. She kills people without flinching and hurts them heartlessly. And she became like this because of the series of events that occurred with her that triggered her to become what she was in the present. While watching her dog die in the hands of the boys, she claims that they are not human or even people. They were bullying an innocent dog which is an animal that is seen as inhuman in nature.
8. “If I ever end up killing a lot of people… Kouta… Then please kill me.” –Lucy
While their past of Lucy was shown in the episode, it was revealed that Lucy liked Kouta. They met in childhood and became friends, which were forgotten by Kouta. After telling Lucy about his departure, they spend the whole day together. At the end of the day, while Lucy was fighting inside her alter ego, she ended up choking Kouta. She told him to kill her if she started killing more people. And she was afraid that she would hurt many people in the future if she alter ego came into play. She knows how dangerous she can become if this goes on. Kouta was her weak side, so he told her about doing that. So, she knows she can’t harm Kouta and chooses him to kill her when the time comes.
9. “Warmth, love, and affection. These are the things I have taken away from you.” –Kurama
Kurama said these lines to Mariko. Mariko was his only daughter. As her father, he should have given her proper childhood. The love, warmth, and affection that a child would deserve from a father. Her mother was dead after she was born. She only had her father, but that father also made her stay inside a locked facility. She had spent her entire childhood without the warmth and affection that she should receive. This is the saddest quote that a regretful father is telling his daughter.
10. “I was going to let you go. After all, there aren’t many of us out there, but you’re just such a pain in the a$$.” –Lucy
Lucy was never planning to harm Nana. In the starting also, she made her go back home when she came to get her. She never intended to hurt her because she was her own type. She was also a diclonius. Lucy knew there weren’t many diclonius left as they were either killed or used as a test object by the scientist. There are times when we want to let go of the situation, but if we find ourselves in a tight spot, then we seem to fight back. All Lucy wanted was to be left alone.
11. “You were a happy dream in a life that’s been nothing but a hellish nightmare.” –Lucy
Lucy calls Kouta her happy dream. What does a happy dream feel like? A happy dream is one that makes you smile after you woke up and have a happy mood all day long. Whenever we have a happy dream, our day begins with a smile which is often motivating in nature. While quoting Kouta as her happy dream, she calls her life a hellish nightmare. These two are contrasting in nature… A nightmare makes us feel depressed and sad. Her life was sad, with a depressing back story of his childhood. She was a diclonius who was targeted because she was dangerous in nature.
12. “It was my sin from the beginning. But you will have to pay.” –Kurama
Kurama was a terrible man through the instances. He suffered because of the sins which he did. Along with him, Lucy, Nana, and Mariko have to pay for the sins which he conducted from the beginning. The person who suffered most of the consequences was his only daughter Mariko. She lost her childhood and her father’s love, care, and affection because of the sins of Kurama. In this quote, Kurama was accepting his sins which he had done. He agreed that along with him, they also have to pay for it.
13. “You suddenly appeared in front of me in this hell. The day that I would get to meet you, I always wanted to apologize to you. I only endured because of that! So I kept on living.” -Lucy
Sometimes when we set ourselves goals, we decide to do whatever it takes to achieve them. The purpose for which Lucy endured the institution and all the suffering she experienced there was to apologise to Kouta.
14. “I hate these horns.” –Lucy
At times I wonder if Lucy hated being a Diclonius just as much.
15. “If I ever end up killing a lot of people… Kouta… Then please, kill me.” – Lucy
The power that will eradicate humanity was destined to be Lucy. Whatever she wanted to do, she would do it when the time came. Even for Lucy, having a violent side was inevitable. Since she also doesn’t want to hurt anyone, it’s almost terrible to see her beg to be slain.
What is the Elfen Lied special about?
The plot of Elfen Lied centres on how people and the Diclonii, a mutant species with two horns on their heads and “vectors,” transparent telekinetically controlled limbs with the ability to manipulate and cut objects, communicate, perceive the world, feel, and vary from one another.
Why is Elfen Lied called that?
The name is derived from a German ballad called “Elfen Lied,” which is first performed by a manga-exclusive character named Nozomi and then taught to Nyu. Unconsciously picking up on the tune, Kaede sings it while defending Kouta at the lighthouse.