History Main / FiveStagesOfGrief

%% This page has been alphabetized. Please add new examples in the correct order. Thanks!

#[[JustIgnoreIt Denial]]: This isn't happening; this is nothing. I'll just pretend [[InTheDreamingStageOfGrief I dreamed it up]] and it'll go away. / He's not dead, HesJustHiding!
#[[RageAgainstTheHeavens Anger]]: This isn't right! I DON'T DESERVE THIS! / HowDareYouDieOnMe
#{{Bargain|WithHeaven}}ing: God, if you're up there, I promise to do everything I can to make this world better for the rest of my life. / God, if you're up there, is there anything you could do to bring them back for me? I'll owe you one if you do.
#[[DespairEventHorizon Depression]]: (''Ultra-depressed crying'').
#[[FaceDeathWithDignity Acceptance]]: Well, everybody dies someday. I guess the only way to be able to live while I'm here is to accept it. / Wherever he may be, I'm sure he's in a better place.

* Realistically shown in the television adaptation of ''Series/{{Mahabharata}}''. Different characters are exhibiting different stages.

** Parodied in [[https://ozyandmillie.org/2001/08/28/ozy-and-millie-744/ this strip]] when Millie goes through the stages of having-to-go-back-to-school grief while waiting for the bus.
** [[https://ozyandmillie.org/comic/ozy-and-millie-1154/ This strip]] has Millie go through the five stages after losing a class spelling bee.

* In the Franchise/StarTrekExpandedUniverse novel ''Literature/{{IQ}}'', the ''entire universe'' goes through these stages just prior to the supposed "Big Crunch". Subverted in that [[spoiler:Q's unwillingness to accept the end of the universe convinces its creator to keep it going.]]
** Also subverted because [[spoiler: None of it really happened; the realms representing each stage that the main characters pass through were set up by the Continuum to keep Q occupied, so he ''wouldn't'' try to stop it.]]

* ''Literature/HarryPotter'' goes through the Five Stages of Grief after [[spoiler: Sirius dies]] at the end of [[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheOrderOfThePhoenix Book Five]]. Later on, when [[spoiler:Dumbledore is killed]] in [[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheHalfBloodPrince Book Six]], he goes through Denial and Anger for much of [[Literature/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows Book Seven]], Bargaining when he seeks to destroy all remaining Horcruxes (made more evident when he asks the spirit of the daughter of Rowena Ravenclaw for information about one of them), and Depression alongside Acceptance when he discovers that [[spoiler:he has to temporarily die as well to get rid of the Horcrux that is inside his body]]. Harry becomes a fully realized character by the time he and Voldemort settle their definitive battle.
* ''Literature/{{MARZENA}}'' Transhuman Ambrosia gives us the Five Stages of Grief according to [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%C3%B6vheim_cube_of_emotion Lövheim's Cube]] (+1): 1. Fear (Pure Dopamine), 2. Rage (Dopamine + Noradrenaline), 3. Shame (Nothing), 4. Angst (Pure Noradrenaline), 5. Contempt (Pure Serotonin), 6. Secret Bonus Backdoor Joy (Dopamine + Serotonin)

** Anger: Thus he waged a War in Heaven and got kicked out

** Depression: Upon arrival on Eden he angsts painfully on how even though he had literally escaped Hell, the true Hell is the misery and rejection he constantly brings with him.

* Pufftail in ''Literature/{{Stray}}'' goes through the stages after [[spoiler:his mate Tammy]] is killed by a car. He goes into denial about her death and then runs off and gets into a fight right after her death. Later, he begs to the moon that he can see her again, before falling into a long period of depression and apathy. When he returned to her town on Christmas Eve, he finally felt acceptance after seeing [[spoiler:his daughter Tabitha (who looks exactly like Tammy) living with her new humans]].

* One [[Website/ThatGuyWithTheGlasses Little Miss Gamer]] video demonstrated these (in puppet form) when discovering that your favorite Xbox Live game has been canceled. [[spoiler:The fifth stage turns out to be "Obsession Brain Melt Gurrrrrr".]]

* Franchise/{{Batman}} still hasn't reached the "Acceptance" stage, even decades after his parents' deaths. It's likely he never will.

* A side-story in ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'' (during the ''ComicBook/BrandNewDay'' era) dealt with [[JerkJock Flash]] [[CharacterDevelopment Thompson]] coping with the loss of his legs. When he becomes depressed, he goes through the stages in the opposite of the conventional order. He eventually arrives at what Peter terms "stage 0: grace".

#[[JustIgnoreIt Denial]]: This isn't happening; this is nothing. I'll just pretend [[InTheDreamingStageOfGrief I dreamed it up]] and it'll go away. / He's not dead, he's JustHiding!

#[[RageAgainstTheHeavens Anger]]: This isn't right! I DON'T DESERVE THIS! / [[HowDareYouDieOnMe]]

Dr. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, a famed Swiss psychiatrist, noticed that many of her patients who were terminally ill exhibited as many as five stages of grief. This became well-known in pop culture as the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kubler-Ross_model Kübler-Ross model,]]. Although the idea that grieving or dying people go through these stages is now known to be untrue, it still often appears in pop culture.

#[[JustIgnoreIt Denial]]: This isn't happening; this is nothing. I'll just pretend [[InTheDreamingStageOfGrief I dreamed it up]] and it'll go away.
#[[RageAgainstTheHeavens Anger]]: This isn't right! I DON'T DESERVE THIS!
#{{Bargain|WithHeaven}}ing: God, if you're up there, I promise to do everything I can to make this world better for the rest of my life.

#[[FaceDeathWithDignity Acceptance]]: Well, everybody dies someday. I guess the only way to be able to live while I'm here is to accept it.

* ''Anime/ComicalPsychosomaticMedicine'' lists only four stages in episode 14: denial, anger, giving up and acceptance (yes, those are combined into one stage), and hope. Never mind they're explaining this to OdaNobunaga in Asuna's [[AllJustADream dream sequence]].

* Music/{{Queen}}'s [[Music/ANightAtTheOpera "Bohemian Rhapsody"]], narrated from the perspective of a killer awaiting execution. The intro starts off "Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy?"; the narrator is going through Denial. The part where the narrator talks about "Any way the wind blows, doesn't really matter" is the narrator going through Despair. The opera part, especially the "Will you let me go?", is the narrator Bargaining. The hard rock section is, of course, Anger. In the final, gentle-sounding stage, the narrator shifts back into Despair before finally settling on Acceptance.

-->'''Denial:''' "Is it really the end, not some crazy dream?"
-->'''Anger:''' "If there is a God, why does he let me go?"
-->'''Bargaining:''' "Can it be this is some sort of error?"
-->'''Depression:''' "Tears fall, but why am I crying?"
-->'''Acceptance:''' "Catch my soul, it's willing to fly away!" "Life is just illusion."
* Music/BuckOwens: A real-life example, after the 1974 death of his closest friend, Don Rich, in a motorcycle accident. Rich's death had a profound effect on Buck's music, career and personal life for many years, as he was stuck in Denial, Anger and Depression for many years; it was said that even his work on ''Series/HeeHaw'' suffered. Only when Buck met up with Music/DwightYoakam, whom idolized him in his youth, did he begin to accept that Rich had passed on but also that his legacy was worth carrying on.

'''Walker:''' (''fearful'') You're not real. This is all in my head.\\

'''Walker:''' (''angry'') No. Everything, all this, it was ''your'' fault!\\

'''Walker:''' (''tearfully'') I... I didn't mean to hurt anybody...\\

* Parodied in [[http://www.terrorisland.net/strips/158.html this]] ''Webcomic/TerrorIsland'' strip: "The stages of grief don't work when you're trying to rush them." While in ''Webcomic/BobTheAngryFlower'' his doctor [[http://www.angryflower.com/bravel.gif advises him]], "Well, if I were you, I'd skip directly to the 'acceptance' stage."
* ''Webcomic/SluggyFreelance''
** Parodied in [[http://www.sluggy.com/daily.php?date=971207 "Sluggy of the Living Freelance"]], with Torg going through similar phases[[note]]shock, denial, guilt, rage, sorrow, acceptance[[/note]] during a zombie attack and as a result behaving wholly inappropriately for the circumstances. Also, it turns out he's actually grieving over beer running out, not the zombies as such.
** Also parodied in "The Circle" when Sylvia realises [[spoiler: the last remaining other vampire of her circle, whom she's gone through great trouble to resurrect, is not Queen Lysinda but the infuriating idiot Sam.]] Every stage before Acceptance, including sub-stages not mentioned on this page, consists of going [[BigNO "NOOOOOOO"]].
* Attempted by Sam in ''Webcomic/{{Freefall}}'' but gets stuck on a repeating loop of anger and denial.
* Referenced, if somewhat indirectly, by Kevyn Anderson, in ''Webcomic/SchlockMercenary'', when talking with Captain Tagon's father after the son was killed.
* Parodied [[http://zebragirl.keenspot.com/d/20001020.html in one page]] of ''Webcomic/ZebraGirl''. The comic then went and expanded on each stage after jumping the shark. One thing is certain though. The acceptance stage wasn't pretty to say the least.
* ''Webcomic/{{Buttersafe}}'' shows us that the five stages can apply to [[http://buttersafe.com/2010/05/20/the-five-stages/ anything]].
* Inverted in the ''Webcomic/BugMartini'' strip [[https://www.bugmartini.com/comic/ode-to-joy/ "The Five Stages of Joy"]].
* ''Webcomic/FlintlockesGuideToAzeroth'' presents: [[http://pc.gamespy.com/flintlockes-guide-to-azeroth/the-five-stages-of-warcraft/599411p1.html The Five Stages of Warcraft]].
* In ''Webcomic/{{Sinfest}}'', [[http://www.sinfest.net/archive_page.php?comicID=3521 Slick goes through four stages of damnation.]] He skips depression. Or perhaps it was subsumed under acceptance, given that it's damnation.
* ''Webcomic/CriticalMiss'' gives us the five stages of grief [[http://www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/comicsandcosplay/comics/critical-miss/9476-Mass-Effect-3-The-Process as they relate to]] ''VideoGame/MassEffect3'''s [[BrokenBase original ending]].
* Recursively parodied in ''Webcomic/SaturdayMorningBreakfastCereal'', [[http://www.smbc-comics.com/index.php?id=3811 here]].
-->'''Denial''': What? No, Nobody would seriously propose that grief comes in distinct stages.\\
'''Anger''': It's just something they made up, and they even say in the original book that it's arbitrary and incomplete!\\
'''Bargaining''': Okay, but if we say it's literature, and not science, then it's an interesting perspective.\\
'''Depression''': People are treating this model like it's a biological fact...\\
'''Acceptance''': Ech, it's not even in the top 100 worst psych theories of the sixties.
* ''Webcomic/{{Blip}}'' has the [[http://rakugakiwall.com/blip/archive/685 stages of grief for a computer virus infection]].
* In ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'', Roy experiences something like this when Belkar tells him [[spoiler:Durkon has been killed and raised as a vampire.]] He assumes Belkar's making it up as a twisted joke, threatens to outright kill him, then tries to find logical holes in his story, then seriously considers abandoning their mission altogether due to the setback. After [[spoiler:getting to "see" Durkon again in an illusion of his ideal happy ending,]] he sort-of arrives at acceptance. [[spoiler:Then "Durkon" joins the team, shifting him back into the denial stage as he ignores Belkar's warnings that this is NOT the same guy.]]
* ''Webcomic/OzyAndMillie''
** Parodied in [[https://ozyandmillie.org/2001/08/28/ozy-and-millie-744/ this strip]] when Millie goes through the stages of having-to-go-back-to-school grief while waiting for the bus.
** [[https://ozyandmillie.org/comic/ozy-and-millie-1154/ This strip]] has Millie go through the five stages after losing a class spelling bee.

--> '''Drew Brees''': When a QB loses in the playoffs, they experience five distinct emotions. #1: denial\\

* During [[LetsPlay/SonicTheHedgehog2006 the Let's Play]] of ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog2006'', LetsPlay/{{pokecapn}} and company can be heard [[SanitySlippage going through all five stages, in order]], over the two hours it took them to struggle through [[ScrappyLevel the game's worst level]], End Of The World. This wasn't lost on pokecapn, who divided the entire ordeal into five videos and subtitled each with one of the five stages.
* One [[Website/ThatGuyWithTheGlasses Little Miss Gamer]] video demonstrated these (in puppet form) when discovering that your favorite Xbox Live game has been canceled. [[spoiler:The fifth stage turns out to be "Obsession Brain Melt Gurrrrrr".]]
* The Five stage of Grief to anyone who can fight according to Killlyou: Punch it, kick it, stab it, shoot it, and kill it, preferably painfully.

* [[spoiler:Scion]] of ''Literature/{{Worm}}'' is in mourning for [[spoiler:Eden]] for most of the story, spending much of it in Denial as he believes all is not lost. After discovering her corpse he descends into full-blown Anger only for his enemies to use her memory to drive him into [[DespairEventHorizon Depression]] and kill him before he can learn to cope with the loss.

* Creator/TessMasazza goes through a variation of this trope in an [[ValentinesDayEpisodes episode]] of the Italian Web Series ''Insopportabilmente donna'' when she spends Valentine's Day alone as a single woman. Emphasis is placed on anger. A lot of anger!

* PlayedForLaughs in ''WesternAnimation/TheGrimAdventuresOfBillyAndMandy'' TV movie ''WesternAnimation/BillyAndMandysBigBoogeyAdventure''. Mandy claims there are seven stages of grief: shock, denial, bargaining, fear, anger, despair, and presumably acceptance. Grim goes through the stages in about 10 seconds...except he gets stuck on anger and never moves on to despair.

'''Mandy:''' He’ll be fine. He’s going through the Seven Stages of Grief. ''Shock''…\\

'''Mandy:''' ''Denial''…\\
'''Grim:''' It’s a mistake. No way this could happen.\\
'''Mandy:''' ''Bargaining''…\\
'''Grim:''' It’s okay… it’s okay… maybe I can fix it.\\
'''Mandy:''' ''Fear''…\\
'''Grim:''' There’s no way I can fix it!\\
'''Mandy:''' ''Anger…''\\

'''Mandy:''' ''Despair''…\\
'''Grim:''' (''still fuming'') And when I’m done with Boogey, I’m coming for ''you little pukes''!\\
'''Mandy:''' …He’s stuck on “Anger”.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheEmperorsNewSchool'' had Kronk go through this as he came to terms with being left in the wild for a project. However, since it's a [[ThreeShorts two-shorts show]], he only goes through three stages (denial, depression and acceptance) and Malina identifies them after he goes through them.
* Parodied in a ''WesternAnimation/RobotChicken'' sketch: A giraffe is stuck in a quicksand pit and experiences the stages in order. When he finally gets to acceptance, he hits bottom...with his head and neck still above ground.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': In "One Fish, Two Fish, Blowfish, Blue Fish", Homer eats bad fugu fish and is told he will likely die; he's told of the model by Dr. Hibbert and goes through all five stages in about 10 seconds.
-->'''Hibbert''': You can expect to go through five stages. The first is denial.\\
'''Homer''': No way, because I'm not dying!\\
'''Hibbert''': Second is anger.\\
'''Homer''': ''Why you little-- [[{{Angrish}} Da—! Guuuuuh! Yaaaaah!]]''\\
'''Hibbert''': After that, comes fear.\\
'''Homer''': (''paranoid'') What's after fear? What's after fear?!\\
'''Hibbert''': Bargaining.\\
'''Homer''': Doc, you've got to get me out of this. I'll make it worth your while!\\
'''Hibbert''': And finally, acceptance.\\
'''Homer''': ''(relaxed smile)'' Well, we've all got to go sometime.\\
'''Hibbert''': Mr. Simpson, your progress astounds me!

* One episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{Recess}}'', where Vince realizes his older brother Chad is a {{Geek}}, has one reference to this, right after Vince is told of the fact, by Gretchen stating "Stage one: denial." But the other stages [[EveryoneIsJesusInPurgatory can be seen as well]]: where Vince runs from the kitchen table after listening to Chad [[SpockSpeak speak geek]] (Anger), where Vince confronts Chad and tries to reason why he can't be a geek (Bargaining), where Vince despairs over whether he will become a geek like Chad (Depression), and where Vince realizes that Chad has his badass moments too (Acceptance).
* ''WesternAnimation/ThePenguinsOfMadagascar'' parodies this in "Miss Understanding", with Skipper (who had been found to be female after taking a DNA test[[note]]In fact, the end of the episode shows that the testing machine malfunctioned due to overcharge, and Skipper is indeed male[[/note]]) quickly going through all five stages as Kowalski lists them off.

* Discussed in the unproduced [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPP4zUDuo4c final episode "Bye Bye Beavers"]] of ''WesternAnimation/TheAngryBeavers'', in which Daggett struggles to accept Norbert's assertion that [[NoFourthWall the show was being cancelled]].
* In ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitansGo'', Cyborg and Beast Boy go through this after Robin gets rid of their couch in "Lazy Sunday". (With Raven narrating the Five Stages of Grief to the audience.)
* Devin from ''WesternAnimation/TotalDramaPresentsTheRidonculousRace'' undergoes this after his girlfriend, Shelly, broke up with him for her tennis instructor.
* The classic National Film Board of Canada animated film ''Why Me'' is a serio-comic depiction of a man going through the five stages when he's told he only has a few minutes to live.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheAmazingWorldOfGumball'' did this with [[ManChild Richard]]'s issues concerning [[DisappearedDad his deadbeat biological father Frankie's abandonment]].
** He spent 42/33 years in '''denial''' about it as revealed in "The Man". In the same episode, his mother, Granny Jojo, is revealed to be [[DecemberDecemberRomance dating again]], prompting him to take most of his '''anger''' out on [[ParentWithNewParamour her new spouse]], Louie.
** Despite accepting Louie as a surrogate father, he refuses to let him marry his mother, setting up the '''bargaining''' stage in "The Signature", where Frankie returns to settle the issue but ends up stealing his son's home. After having a HeelRealization over leaving [[MoralityPet his precious child]], he changes his mind and gives back the house. In return, Richard welcomes him back into his life, still in the bargaining stage, but ends up unintentionally making their rekindled relationship worse throughout "The Outside".
** Finally, in "The Father", Frankie has an attack of guilt from The Vermin Man ceremony and excludes himself from the Wattersons out of remorse, causing Richard to go into '''depression''' from losing his father again. His kids try to cheer him up by having him and Frankie bond to make up for lost time, which only makes Richard lose his patience with his father's old habits and give up on him.
** However, Frankie makes it clear that he still loves his son no matter what and didn't want him to make the same mistakes he did, prompting Richard to finally '''accept''' that Frankie's abandonment made him a better parent and truly reconciles with him.
* In the pilot episode to ''WesternAnimation/RubyGloom,'' Frank and Len believe that Ruby is dying and each time they talk to her, they think that she is going through these stages.

* ''WesternAnimation/AmericanDad'': In "Spelling Bee My Baby", Stan and Roger try to get Hayley to go through the five stages as they want her to umpire their badminton game but she's stuck in Denial over her husband Jeff's AlienAbduction. Roger pushes her into Anger by giving her a front {{Wedgie}} (getting his ass kicked as a result), they don't know what Bargaining means so they skip it and force her into Depression by playing a slide show of photos of Jeff. When Hayley later gets [[ItMakesSenseInContext shot in the neck with a dart by a ninja]], she has an epiphany while unconscious and reaches Acceptance. And then she steals Stan and Roger's shuttlecock because it was their fault that Jeff was abducted in the first place. This causes Roger to go through the five stages in rapid succession, although he then points out that [[TheGreys his species]] has a sixth stage of grief, and then [[GroinAttack kicks Stan in the balls]], but when asked by Stan if that was the sixth stage, simply says "Nope!"
* ''WesternAnimation/KingOfTheHill'': In "Pretty, Pretty Dresses", Bill becomes depressed during the holidays because it's when his wife Lenore left him, and he goes through these stages, albeit out of order:
** Depression: He starts out depressed about not having Lenore in his life.
** Denial: He denies that she's gone forever.
** Bargaining: He gets an iguana he calls Lenore and later starts believing he is Lenore herself.
** Anger: Hank, pretending he's Lenore, shames Bill in order to make him stand up for himself.
** Acceptance: After he tells off "Lenore", Bill accepts that she's gone.
* In ''WesternAnimation/OverTheGardenWall'', it's revealed that [[spoiler: the Woodsman]] is going through this in regards to their missing loved one. [[spoiler: Although ''he'' is the one actually lost, not his daughter.]]
** Denial: They refuse to believe their loved one is dead, just that [[spoiler: her soul is maintained in the lantern]], kept alive by their work. [[spoiler: His daughter's soul is not in the lantern.]]
** Anger: When [[spoiler: the Woodsman]] found out that [[spoiler: the Beast]] had tricked them, the former lashed out against the latter.
** Bargaining: They literally made a DealWithTheDevil to keep [[spoiler: his daughter]] alive.
** Depression: They become heartbroken realizing there is no way to bring [[spoiler: his daughter]] back.
** Acceptance: It is only when [[spoiler: the Woodsman]] accepted the truth and their actions, that they are able to [[spoiler: leave the Unknown and reunite with his daughter.]]

* ''Series/SesameStreet'': What Big Bird goes through in the groundbreaking "Goodbye, Mr. Hooper" segment. First there's innocent denial, thinking Mr. Hooper will be back later; then bargaining, as he asks who will do all the things Mr. Hooper used to do for him; then depression ("It makes me sad"); then anger ("Why does it have to be this way?! Give me one good reason!"); then finally wistful acceptance. In a matter of minutes, Big Bird's emotions run the gamut... and it's so well done.
* ''Series/GrowingPains'': Carol goes through this in two episodes after her boyfriend, Sandy, dies from injuries in a drunk driving accident. Both are at the denial-anger stage:
** "Second Chance," when Mike informs her that Sandy had died. Carol thinks this is a cruel, sick joke (as Mike had made some very cruel jokes about Sandy previously), but as Mike presses on, it is clear that what she said wasn't happening just did. She even cries out about Sandy appearing to be fine and that he would recover.
** "Teach Me," where Carol is set up on a date (by her grandparents)... only for her to behave in a way that makes it clear that she is still deeply grieving Sandy. Jason and Maggie even remark that they thought Carol had gotten past the first stages but it was clear to them they were wrong.
* ''Series/FamilyTies'': "A, My Name Is Alex," where Alex works through his shock and denial that a close friend of his was killed in a tragic car accident. Throughout most of the episode, scenes depicting Alex in the first four stages play out, before Alex eventually comes to terms with his friend's death. Critically this was the Crowning Moment Of Awesome for Michael J. Fox, who played the young man who – while talking with an off-screen grief counselor – wishes he could have been with his friend or at least trade places with him when the accident happened. The episode itself won multiple awards.
* ''Series/TheHoganFamily'': Amplified in "Burned Out," particularly a scene where oldest teenaged son David (Creator/JasonBateman) – as he and the family inspect their fire-damaged home – sees a charred photo on what used to be his nightstand, recognizes it was one of his recently deceased mother, and realizes he's still at Stage 4 (Depression) as he breaks down in deep tears and is hugged by his aunt Sandy.
* ''Series/{{Bonanza}}'': Little Joe repeatedly goes through this throughout the course of the series, but never is it showcased better than in the 14th-season opener "Forever." When newly wed Joe's wife, Alice, dies [[spoiler: – Joe learns only later that she was brutally murdered by a gambler looking to collect her brother's debt –]], the Five Stages kick in, with Depression the longest lasting one; for weeks, he is an aimless drifter, content that things will always be that way. Earlier, he was in Denial, going back to the burned-out shell of his house and breaking down in BrokenTears (along with his father, Ben) and denying that Alice was dead. Eventually, he learns the truth [[spoiler: and captures Alice's killers]] and is able to go into the Acceptance phase. It was said that much of this was a way for Michael Landon (by now the head man of the show) and Lorne Greene to grieve the death of their co-star, Dan Blocker (who died just weeks before this episode was produced).
* ''Series/TheFreshPrinceofBelAir'': Will goes through all five stages in less than 2 minutes at the end of "Papa's Got a Brand New Excuse", after his dead beat father Lou bails on him for the second and seemingly final time. First, he excuses that it might have been better for the planned summer trip to be cancelled (Denial), before he slowly slides into anger, at first saying he shouldn't be mad because at least he said goodbye this time and then recalling all the milestones he accomplished without him before screaming "To Hell with Him". He then laments to Uncle Phil everything he's going to further accomplish without Lou, (Bargaining) before finally asking Phil "How come he don't want me, man?!" (Depression). He then receives a much-needed hug from Uncle Phil as he finally accepts that his father truly is a spineless deadbeat.
* ''Series/{{iCarly}}'': Carly goes through the five stages in "[=iChristmas=]" when she is concerned about Spencer making a magnetic Christmas tree instead of getting a real one, which she initially will not accept. When the tree somehow catches fire and burns all her presents, she angrily wishes Spencer were normal. A Christmas angel named Mitch appears and grants her wish, and she sees what her life would be like if Spencer didn't drop out of law school and became a straight-faced lawyer instead of the goofy artist we know, as well as multiple key changes to her life (Sam is in jail, Freddie dates a mean girl while Nevel ends up as Carly's boyfriend, the webshow didn't exist, etc.). Having seen how horrible her life would be if this happened, she breaks down and wants her old life back. The wish is undone, the present goes back to the way it was, and she happily accepts Spencer for who he truly is.
* In ''Series/{{Smallville}}'', after ''Reckoning'' when [[spoiler:Jonathan dies]]. Clark seems to skip the Denial (since his death has been {{Foreshadowed}} quite a bit), taking out his Anger on superpowered criminals, "Bargains" with Jor-El in a deleted scene, sees his father's spirit due to Depression, and finally Accepting it and moving on.
* The sixth-season premiere of ''Series/{{Frasier}}'' sees him going through the stages after being fired from his famed radio job, each one indicated by the show's signature title cards. He eventually gets stuck at "Depression", forcing the rest of the cast to stage an intervention to get him to finally move on. The episode ends with Niles saying he thinks his divorce is going to go smoothly, [[HereWeGoAgain followed by the title card Denial.]]
* The 5th-season ''Series/{{Scrubs}}'' episode "My Five Stages" has J.D. and Dr. Cox going through the stages over the death of Mrs. Wilk.
* Summer in ''Series/TheOC'' at the beginning of the fourth season.
* In a ''Series/{{Monk}}'' episode, Monk rapidly goes through the stages of grief when his psychiatrist retires. And thanks to his [=OCD=], he goes through them over and over again throughout the episode.
* In ''Series/DeadLikeMe'', George narrates as she goes through the stages after her own death.
* In an episode of ''Series/{{Popular}}'', April Tuna is presumed dead after a car accident. That episode is broken into segments each named after the five stages. However, in the end of "Denial" [[spoiler: April shows up at her own memorial service very much alive. Turns out her car was stolen by a junkie who proceeded to crash it. The "Acceptance" segment ends up being the traditional happy ending.]]
* In one episode ''Series/{{House}}'', being the {{Jerkass}} that he is, criticises and all but mocks [[NaiveEverygirl Cameron]] for becoming overly emotionally invested in a terminally ill patient, writing the five stages on his whiteboard and crossing them off one by one as she goes through them. He even comments on how its usually the ''patient'' going through these stages, not the doctor who's supposed to tell them their diagnosis.
-->'''House''': Remarkable. You just made a near-seamless transition from Anger to Bargaining.
** Specifically, she spends most of the episode in Denial by refusing to accept that the patient is terminally ill (and refusing to do a biopsy, because as Wilson points out that would confirm beyond all doubt), reaches Anger when she yells at House over his refusal to help her with the case, Bargaining when she strikes a deal with him for help (prompting the above line), falls into Depression when she finally does do the biopsy and confirms that the patient really is terminally ill, and then reaches Acceptance and ''does her actual job'' by telling the patient the truth about her conidition.
* Creator/StephenColbert pulled out a Kübler-Ross pamphlet while trying to cope with the end of the 2008 Democratic primary season. "Stage one, Denial, I've ''never'' had that... Stage two, Anger, THERE you go!", screwed up the pamphlet and threw it away. "I am BACK!"
* Parodied in an episode of ''Series/{{Wings}}''. When Lowell refuses to believe that his friend Weeb is dead, Brian notes that he's in denial and lists the rest of the stages he'll go through. Lowell then comes back into the room and expresses each stage one after another, in order, in the space of a few seconds.
-->'''Lowell''': ''I'M ANGRY AS HELL AT WEEB FOR DYING!'' But I'd trade anything to get him back. [crying] Oh, what's the use! It's hopeless! He's gone! [recovering] But what are you gonna do? Life goes on.
* ''Series/StarTrekVoyager'': In "Imperfection"), Seven of Nine goes through the stages when she realises a Borg implant in her head is fatally malfunctioning and can't be replaced.
-->'''Icheb''': Why is she angry at me?\\
'''EMH''': She's not angry at you. She's just... angry.
* Dropped at the end of the second part of the ''Series/GreysAnatomy'' sixth season premiere, ostensibly for [[spoiler:coming to terms with George's death]], but the stages are read off as Chief Webber addresses the staff that [[spoiler:Seattle Grace would be merging with rival hospital Mercy West]].
* In the ''Series/DoctorWho'' story ''The End of Time'', [[spoiler: when Wilf [[ProphecyTwist knocks four times]] to be released from the radiation chamber]], the Doctor, [[spoiler:realizing that he would have to absorb the radiation to free Wilf]], goes through the Five Stages within twenty seconds, [[spoiler:before making his HeroicSacrifice to save Wilf.]]
** He also seems to have gone through all of the stages at least once over the course of the specials since his death was prophesied in "Planet of the Dead".
** In "The Family of Blood", John Smith learns that his life is a lie and must give up everything to become the Doctor again. Also a TearJerker.
** In "Face the Raven" the Doctor and Clara rapidly go through all five stages together when [[spoiler: Clara learns she only has a few minutes to live]]:
*** Denial: The Doctor even says "This isn't happening. It's not happening."
*** Anger: The Doctor enters into a terrifying FreakOut against the woman he holds responsible for this, threatening to "rain hell" upon her for the rest of time. And he even barks at Clara.
*** Bargaining: Clara comes close to pleading to the Doctor, "We can fix this. We always fix it" and the aforementioned freak out against Mayor Me by the Doctor also includes this.
*** Depression: The Doctor enters into HeroicBSOD mode, at one point asking what the point is of being a Doctor if he can't cure Clara.
*** Acceptance: Clara reaches this point. The Doctor doesn't, and since he's promptly sent off to a lonely torture chamber where he has no one to help him through his loss, he ultimately spends the next [[spoiler: 4.5 ''billion'' years]] cycling through Anger, Denial, Depression and ultimately a ''very'' dangerous form of Bargaining in the two episodes that follow, "Heaven Sent" and "Hell Bent". He becomes willing to risk the safety of the entire universe over the chance to [[spoiler: bring her back from the dead]]. He finally has a HeelRealization and reaches the stage of Acceptance; tragically, because he is so psychologically damaged, being able to function as a hero again requires him to not only lose [[spoiler: his beloved Clara]], but also [[spoiler: memories of the things that made him love her in the first place]].
* On ''Series/LawAndOrder'', after Mike Logan's partner is murdered, his grief counsellor Olivet tells him that he's going through the stages (she mentions it as "seven stages of grief", presumably a variation on the model). Worth noting that this one doesn't show a perfect progression: he starts with Denial (in this case, not denying that it ''happened'', but rather that he's ''affected'' by it, as he tries to insist he's already come to terms with the loss), then Anger, then he goes OutOfFocus for the second half of the episode, until the last scene, where he's shown reaching Acceptance. It's not clear exactly what he went through emotionally in the time he was off-camera, but it's reasonable to think that it might have been a more imperfect, realistic iteration.
* The ''Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit'' episode "Collateral Damage" gives a villainous example. When a city official is caught trading child pornography he initially assumes that the cops would back down because of his position (denial). In the interrogation room he starts accusing everyone of being part of a conspiracy to bring him down (anger). Then he tries to avoid prison by making a deal with the prosecutor (bargaining) but he has nothing to offer. He attempts suicide (depression). Then finally pleads guilty and takes his prison sentence (acceptance).

* The two-hour (or two-part, depending) 6th season premiere of ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' is named after stage 3, a direct reference to dealing with Buffy's death in the previous season finale. Specifically, the gang offering the gods a dangerous, painful, BlackMagic sacrifice in exchange for Buffy's life.

* The ''Series/TenaciousD'' series parodies this in the episode "Death Of A Dream." The five stages of losing a rock star dream: Anger, Denial, Door-To-Door Rocking, Temp Job, Acceptance.
* In ''Series/NedsDeclassifiedSchoolSurvivalGuide'', [[CuteBruiser Moze]] (whose backpack - with her diary inside - went missing) goes through these [[PlayedForLaughs very quickly,]] with 'anger' coming up. A lot. And in this case, it's just four stages (he skips the bargaining part).
* An interesting twist in ''Series/{{Blackadder}}'', in which a season 3 episode features suicide pills, which stages are depression, loss of temper, forgetfulness and happiness, in that order. Oh, and before you die you jump in a corner.
** In the final episode of ''Series/BlackadderGoesForth'', Edmund goes through several of these stages, including denial (trying to get out of the big push by pretending to be mad), bargaining (asking Field Marshall Haig to get him out by reminding him that he saved Haig's life in an earlier campaign), anger (if his reaction to Baldricks's poetry is anything to go by), and finally acceptance when he tells his men "good luck, everyone" and decides to FaceDeathWithDignity.
* In the ''Series/That70sShow'' episode "Grandma's Dead", when Red's mother dies, Kitty tells him about the five stages. Red says that he's got two stages: anger and drinking.

* In the [[Recap/SupernaturalS02E01InMyTimeOfDying "In My Time Of Dying"]] episode of ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' these are played with which is even [[LampshadeHanging lampshaded]] by the reaper, who says "Stage three: Bargaining."
* Agron can be seen doing this, though in a different order, in ''Series/SpartacusBloodAndSand'' and its sequels. After his brother is killed, he jumps to Anger by going on a RoaringRampageOfRevenge, and stays that way for most of the series. Towards the end of the show he is crucified, and then enters Denial over the state of his injuries. He falls into Depression when he realizes he can't fight, and then does Bargaining when he finds a way to fight anyway. And then [[spoiler:after they lose the war, and Spartacus dies, he reaches acceptance, when he leaves behind his weapons and leads the survivors to safety and freedom.]]

* ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'':
** "The Loss" is a rare case of it happening without attention being drawn to it in the episode. Troi loses her ability to sense emotions and shortly goes through every stage, only skipping over bargaining. She at first shrugs it off and says the ability will simply come back (denial), then begins to lash out at Dr. Crusher for not finding a cure (anger), breaks down crying in her quarters (depression), then after some words from Riker and Guinan, returns to her work and helps save the day (acceptance). The portrayal is more subtle in that she doesn't suddenly snap from one stage to the other and can be seen sliding between them (while still in denial, she snaps at Riker for being sympathetic before exploding at Beverly; while still angry over the situation, she begins cutting off ties with her friends because she's becoming too depressed to keep going).
** In "Sarek", Ambassador Sarek and his party go through the progression more-or-less in order.
*** Denial: For the first half of the episode, nobody will admit that Sarek has Bendii syndrome, the Vulcan equivalent of Alzheimer's disease, and is beginning to lose his mind. Ki Mendrosan in particular lies his butt off to Picard.
*** Anger: Despite the denials, Sarek is unusually testy, [[HatePlague but most of the anger comes out in the form of violence throughout the]] ''[[HatePlague Enterprise]]''. His confrontation with Picard is basically angry denial.
*** Bargaining: Once the truth comes out, Perrin pleads with Picard to undertake the mind-meld and allow Sarek to complete his final mission.
*** Depression: While channeling Sarek's emotions, Picard expresses both anger and regret over Sarek not telling his loved ones how he feels about them.
*** Acceptance: Sarek returns to Vulcan accepting his fate.
* On the ''Series/NewGirl'' episode "Goldmine", Schmidt goes through the five stages after learning that Cece is thinking of having breast reduction surgery.

(''C.C. mopes'')\\
Sometimes they even have fits of anger.\\
(''She smashes a pot'')\\
And, finally, if they're despondent enough, they might even be driven to acts of violence.\\
(''She stomps on Niles' foot, which had been causing him agony from corns'')\\
[[LampshadeHanging And that concludes today's audio/visual demonstration]].
* Leslie Knope on ''Series/ParksAndRecreation'' went through her own version of the five stages of grief [[spoiler: after getting kicked off of the city council]].

** After [[spoiler:Ozzie's death in the middle of Season 2]], Gina spends most of the next episode in denial, before, as seems to be typical for her, erupting into a rage of combined anger, bargaining, and depression [[spoiler:when Ozzie's fish Abraham, which she's been carrying around with her the whole time, dies in her arms (Well, in his bowl, which is in her arms at the time).]] By the end of the episode, she's moved on enough that she's planning to go back to being a professional therapist.
* ''Series/TheLibrarians2014'': In "And The Eternal Question", Cassandra goes through this as she deals with her brain tumor hitting the terminal stages.
* ''Series/{{Arrow}}''
** In the episode "Canary Cry" following [[spoiler:his daughter Laurel's]] murder, Quentin Lance is initially in denial when he tries to insists she isn't really dead, jumps to bargaining when he talks to Nyssa about finding a way to [[DeathIsCheap bring her back to life]], and reaches grief when he finally breaks down. Whether or not he ever makes it to acceptance is debatable. John Diggle by contrast spends most of the episode firmly locked in ''anger''.
** Sara Lance learns of [[spoiler:her sister's]] death in the Season 1 finale of ''Series/LegendsOfTomorrow''. She quickly enters denial, then anger when she lashes out at Rip (correctly) deducing that he knew this would happen but did not tell anyone. She breaks down crying later (Depression), and looks for a way to resurrect [[spoiler:Laurel]] (Bargaining), despite being told her death is a "Fixed Point in time" and apparently "has" to happen. She doesn't reach Acceptance until the finale of Season 2, where she chooses not to resurrect her. In fact, from that point on ''no one'' ever even suggests doing so (despite multiple opportunities presenting themselves), suggesting they are all in a rather extreme form of Acceptance.
* One of the later episodes of ''Series/{{Eureka}}'' has Fargo take an experimental drug in order to get through the five stages of grief [[spoiler: his girlfriend Holly's death]] at an accelerated rate in order to move on. The drug, however, not only accelerates the process but exaggerates each stage to a ridiculous degree, so much so that he's taken off of the treatment to processes his emotions normally.
* On ''Series/NCISLosAngeles'', Sam Hanna's car [[ICallItVera Charlene]] is stolen. Callen keeps track of the five stages as they come.
* In ''Series/KamenRiderGaim'', [[spoiler: Micchy]] goes through this over the course of the series:
** Denial: [[spoiler: He learns the truth about what's happening, particularly Yuya's fate and Yggdrasil's plans, and tries to hide it from everyone else, believing that everyone will be happier [[IgnoranceIsBliss if they don't know the truth]].]]
** Anger: [[spoiler: Once Kouta starts derailing his plans, he starts to blame him for everyone's unhappiness (despite being responsible for it himself) and starts plotting to kill him.]]
** Bargaining: [[spoiler: Once his plans start falling apart even more, he starts bargaining with villains such as Redyue and Ryoma, who really shouldn't be trusted, culminating in leaving Mai in Ryoma's care, and using the deadly Yomotsuheguri Lockseed against Kouta.]]
** Depression: [[spoiler: After Kouta sacrifices himself to save him from the Yomotsuheguri, and Ryoma predictably backstabs Micchy and kills Mai's physical body for the Forbidden Fruit, he realizes that all his attempts to keep what he had were for naught and enters a depressive breakdown for the rest of the series.]]
** Acceptance: [[spoiler: During epilogue episode, he finally snaps out of his depressive funk in order to fight against a lingering threat, making peace with Kouta and resolving to properly atone for his actions.]]
* ''Series/{{Dexter}}'': In the episode "Hello, Bandit" after [[spoiler: Rita's death]]:
-->'''Dexter''': It's said there are seven stages of grief. I suppose killing someone with my bare hands in a men's room was my way of working through the anger stage. Whatever the other six stages are... I don't have time for them.
* ''Series/CriminalMinds'': "Hanley Waters" has Hotch interviewing the team to see how they are coping with Prentiss' death. Morgan lists off Denial, Bargaining, and Depression, and explains why they don't apply, points out if he was at Acceptance he wouldn't be here, which leaves Anger. Garcia is in Denial, Reid is in Depression, and Rossi alone has reached Acceptance. [[spoiler:Hotch is an interesting case, as he knows Prentiss isn't really dead.]]

* A variation in ''Series/Batwoman2019''. When Kate Kane dies in a plane crash at the start of Season 2, different people are shown experiencing one particular emotion of this trope. Mary is in denial, refusing to believe that Kate is dead, Jacob and Sophie are bargaining (refusing to forsake the hunt for Kate), Alice is angry (albeit over not getting to kill Kate herself), and Luke is despairing, feeling responsible for Kate's fate.
* In the ''Series/FraggleRock'' episode "Gone But Not Forgotten," Wembley goes through four of the stages of grief after his new friend Mudwell the Mudbunny dies. First and foremost he's inconsolably depressed, but he also shows denial, as he admits that he can't believe Mudwell is really gone and almost expects him to reappear at any moment, and anger in response to the World's Oldest Fraggle's jokes about death. It's an especially realistic example, in that the stages are jumbled together and don't occur in the traditional order. In the end, though, he reaches acceptance after he befriends the newborn lizard-like creature that's apparently either Mudwell's offspring or his reincarnation.
* We see Hodgins go through this on ''{{Series/Bones}}'' in a variant with his paralysis. He’s in denial at first working on his therapy in the lab and pushing himself hoping it’ll go away. Then he moves into anger and depression kind of at the same time as he argues with Angela and lashes out at everyone around him. Bargaining was more subtle but he talks to someone he thinks is a doctor who can help him walk again. He is very eager to get the procedure but Angela talks him out of it due to the risks. Acceptance comes when he finds out he’s been talking to Zach all along and stops having leg spasms, losing all the feeling in his legs.

[[folder:Newspaper Comics]]
* Slightly averted in ''ComicStrip/{{Doonesbury}}'' when B.D. lost his leg in Iraq and his doctor was explaining the five steps to his wife.
-->'''Doctor''': There are generally five stages. The first is denial...\\
'''B.D.''': Son of a Bitch!\\
'''Doctor''': Some skip straight to anger...
* ''ComicStrip/{{Dilbert}}'':
** Played with in the strip "[[http://dilbert.com/strips/comic/2003-06-22/ The Seven Stages of a Performance Review]]".
** In another strip, Dogbert is shown responding to Dilbert's death, going through denial, then anger, and finally thrift: "No coffin, just wrap the corpse in newspaper. He would have wanted it that way."
* In the ''[[ComicStrip/BloomCounty Opus]]'' strip [[http://www.salon.com/2008/06/29/opus_53/ seen here]], the five stages are applied not to tragedy, but to having to "go green" and use a hybrid car; Steve makes it to "Acceptance", but shifts back to "Anger" quickly. However, in [[http://www.salon.com/2008/07/06/opus_54/ the next week's strip]], Steve manages to achieve the "rare sixth and final stage", "Smug Satisfaction".

* ''Anime/DoraemonNobitasNewDinosaur'': Nobita goes through the first three stages (Denial, Anger, and Bargaining) upon learning there's nothing he can do - or allowed to do - to save the dinosaurs on the Breeding Diorama Island from the incoming extinction event, ''including'' his new dinosaur pets, Kyu and Myu. Firstly by rejecting what the Time Patrol's rules for maintaining a StableTimeLoop, and then attacking his friends in frustration (even ''Doraemon''!) before finally deciding to steal the [[TimeStandsStill Stop Watch]] to attempt cancelling the inevitable meteor landing on Earth. [[spoiler: Before he can reach Depression, he is informed by Jill and Natalie of the Time Patrol that he can save the dinosaurs on the island after all]].
* ''Manga/HunterXHunter'': Gon [[PlayedWith plays with this]] after [[spoiler:Kite's]] death. Right before this event, he immediately starts getting angry (stage 2), but then Killua [[GetAholdOfYourselfMan makes Gon unconscious]]. When he wakes up he says that [[spoiler:Kite]] [[TemptingFate is alive]] which is his Denial (Stage 1). When Gon sees his unstable body he still is in Denial. Then when he confronts Pitou, he then gets Anger at [[AmbiguousGender her/him]] for killing [[spoiler:Kite]]. Gon Bargains (Stage 3) Pitou to bringing [[spoiler:Kite]] back, but then Pitou says he can't bring his friend back. Then it gets complicated. Gon experiences the first four stages ''in a couple seconds'', most notably Depression (Stage 4). Then he gets '''furious''' at Pitou, so much so that [[spoiler:he sacrificed part of his life just to kill Pitou '''multiple times''']]. He then [[spoiler:gets put into a nen-state coma]], which is most likely Stage 3 as he is at his weakest while waiting to come out of [[spoiler:the coma]]. [[spoiler:However, in a rare case of this trope, where he was at during that particular time ''does'' get him what he needs]]. After that, once Gon confronts [[spoiler:Ging]], he breaks down crying and lists everything he regretted doing since [[spoiler:Kite]] died [[spoiler:and then reincarnated]], which is definitely Stage 4. After [[spoiler:Ging says he should talk to Kite about his regrets]], Gon finally goes through acceptance (Stage 5) as he is fine with [[spoiler:Kite turning into a Chimera Ant]].
* In [[WhamEpisode episodes 18 and 19]] of ''Anime/CodeGeass R2'', Lelouch was going through this when [[spoiler: Nunnally was presumably killed during the FLEIJA explosion]].

** Stage 3: subverted - [[spoiler: Charles and Marianne offering the return of Euphemia as a reason to side with them likely included Nunnally]] in Lelouch's mind, but he flat out refuses because the cost of that return is one he is unwilling to pay.

** Stage 5: likely at the tail end of the timeskip when he decides to [[spoiler: usurp the Imperial Throne]]
* One of the many EpilepticTrees about ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' is that the five EVA pilots were each going through/representing a different stage. Basically take the above numbers and apply them to them by "Child", but switch 3 and 4:
-->'''Rei''': Denial (maybe)\\
'''Asuka''': Anger (yes)\\
'''Shinji''': Despair (''yes'')\\
'''Toji''': Bargaining (yes)\\
'''Kaworu''': Acceptance (sort of)
* ''Manga/OnePiece'': [[spoiler:Luffy]] goes through these after [[spoiler:Ace's death]].
** Denial: He starts questioning where's Ace before lapsing into an AngstComa, which is where he gets treated for his wounds.
** Anger: After waking up from his AngstComa, he begins a destructive rampage around Amazon Lily trying to shake off flashbacks, despite having serious wounds that could open up and kill him.
** Bargaining: Doubting that Ace's death was a dream, he has a brief talk with Jimbei questioning if [[spoiler:Ace is truly dead]].
** Depression: Once he's done doubting whether it was all a dream and finally realizes that Ace is dead, Luffy [[DespairEventHorizon breaks down]] and [[spoiler:nearly considers giving up his journey to become Pirate King]].
** Acceptance: After Jimbei tells him that Ace can never be brought back and that [[spoiler:he still has his crew]], Luffy comes to accept his fate and continue his journey.
* Simon from ''Anime/TengenToppaGurrenLagann'' goes through all of these (except bargaining) after [[spoiler:Kamina]]'s death.

* Momo Hinamori from ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'' goes ''hard'' through the first stage, Denial, after [[spoiler: Aizen stabs her to near death and betrays the Soul Society]], [[BreakTheCutie which completely shatters the poor girl's view of her whole world]].
* In ''Anime/DigimonTamers'', Juri/Jeri Katou goes through this [[spoiler: after her digimon partner was impaled and absorbed/eaten in front of her, which in turn released repressed memories of her mother's death]] which she took a realistic amount of time to go through (a few weeks)[[spoiler: especially considering that she was being continuously MindRaped at the time]].
* Much like the ''Neon Genesis Evangelion'' example above, it can be said that the three main characters of ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'' all represent some stage of grief and how they deal with it, since they've all been through a ridiculous TraumaCongaLine for us to deduce this:
** Guts is '''Anger''', Denial, and Depression.
** Griffith is '''Depression''' and '''Bargaining'''.
** Casca is '''Denial'''.
** None of them have quite grappled with acceptance yet.
* In ''Anime/TigerAndBunny'', [[spoiler: Barnaby]] goes through stages 2 through 4 all at once at the prospect of [[spoiler: Kotetsu's supposed death]]. The former angrily yells at the latter, saying they weren't the kind of person to give up, crying hysterically and bargaining by claiming [[spoiler: Kotetsu]] can't die yet because they haven't tried [[spoiler: Barnaby's fried rice.]]
* Saber of ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'' experiences four stages due to the collapse of her kingdom. At first she denied the kingdom was lost and fought to restore peace, only to be fatally injured. While dying she fell into depression over her failure and made a bargain with [[spoiler:Alaya to become a Counter-Guardian in exchange for changing her decision to become king]]. Shirou's resolve to accept what he has lost and continue living his life convinces Saber to accept her past and abandon the bargain.

* In ''VisualNovel/{{CLANNAD}}'', Kotomi coming to terms with her parents' deaths was a rather mixed-up process which took several years: First, when her parents said they had to go on a business trip, she jumped straight into Anger, accusing them as liars for not wanting to come to her birthday party. Then she got a visit by a strange man who hinted that her parents died in a plane crash, leading her into Denial, shooing off the man and coming to believe that he was a "bad person" because he wanted something of her father's. She then went right into Bargaining, begging to God that she'll study hard, be a good girl and try to decipher what her parents were researching if He'll bring back her parents. But when she saw a report about the plane crash on television, she sunk into Depression, which led to her trying to burn the research paper the man was asking about [[spoiler:which was really a catalogue for teddy bears]] and collapsing in tears as the burning paper set fire to the whole room. She eventually grows up having reached some level of Acceptance, making good of her Bargaining by studying diligently in and out of school, trying to "atone" for what she did that day. But she doesn't reach full Acceptance until the day that the strange man finally comes back, carrying her father's long lost briefcase - inside of which is the teddy bear her parents bought for her birthday.
* Tuka Luna Marceau suffers from this in ''{{Literature/Gate}}''. After a Fire Dragon attacks her village, her father throws her into a well. She ends up being the SoleSurvivor to the attack, and continuously asks for extra food and clothing for someone who she's sure will show up. It isn't until Yao Ducy, in an attempt to get the Japanese Self Defense Forces to help kill said dragon attacking her people's lands, forces the truth on her, which she doesn't take too well and continues to deny her father is dead. Itami is then forced to help her overcome this issue, and help Yao defeat the dragon at the same time.
* ''Manga/ChisSweetHome'': [[spoiler: Chi goes through these when Blackie [[TheMovingExperience moves away]], all in the matter of two manga chapters/anime episodes.]]
* In ''Manga/FairyTail'', Gray goes through this in response to [[spoiler:Juvia's apparent death by HeroicSuicide and then [[HeroicSacrifice giving him a blood transfusion with the last of her strength]],]] in Chapter 499, albeit not in order. He goes through Denial when he's shocked at what he just saw, Bargaining when he [[spoiler:begs for her to wake up, saying that he will take her feelings more seriously if she does]], Anger when he launches into a RoaringRampageOfRevenge against [[spoiler:Invel, the one who forced them to fight one another and kill themselves]], and Depression when he [[spoiler:realizes Juvia's never coming back and stops hitting Invel]]. Currently, he has yet to reach Acceptance [[spoiler:or realize that Juvia is, in fact, still alive]].
* Similar to Simon, ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'' goes through the stages (with the exception of Bargaining) upon hearing [[spoiler: Jiraiya's death at the hands of Pain.]]
* ''Anime/ComicalPsychosomaticMedicine'' lists only four stages in episode 14: denial, anger, giving up and acceptance (yes, those are combined into one stage), and hope. Never mind they're explaining this to OdaNobunaga in Asuna's [[AllJustADream dream sequence]].
* Mallow in ''Anime/PokemonTheSeriesSunAndMoon'' goes through this. She went through both Denial and Anger as a little girl when she realized her DelicateAndSickly mother was going downhill healthwise, not leaving enough time to be with her. She spent the next few years going through Depression, barely even thinking about Bargaining when given the chance to reunite with her spirit due to her PartingWordsRegret. After Mallow's mother forgives her and Shaymin (implied to be a reincarnation of her) comes into her life, she reaches Acceptance at the end of the series as she allows Shaymin to reach Sky Forme and reunite with its friends.
** A smaller version happens earlier when Litten's surrogate guardian Stoutland dies. Litten spends the minutes after its death in Denial looking around for the missing Pokemon, and goes into Depression when it realizes the likely truth. When Ash stays by its side during the night, it reaches Acceptance as it knows that allowing Ash to catch it is what Stoutland would have wanted.

* A side-story in ComicBook/SpiderMan (ComicBook/BrandNewDay era) dealt with [[JerkJock Flash]] [[CharacterDevelopment Thompson]] coping with the loss of his legs. When he becomes depressed, he goes through the stages in the opposite of the conventional order. He eventually arrives at what Peter terms "stage 0: grace".
* In a Donald Duck-story where [[ComicBook/DisneyDucksComicUniverse Scrooge]] loses all his money in a tornado, he starts going through this, with Huey, Dewey and Louie lamp-shading along: "Now he's going through the five stages of loss". Scrooge goes through denial, ("no, the money can't be gone!") anger, (cursing the tornado) bargaining, ("please, please give me my money back!") despair (crying), but just as the nephews says that the final stage is acceptance, Scrooge goes straight back to denial, stating that the money is not lost forever, and that he will find them again.
* In ''ComicBook/AllFallDown'', it's the central theme of the book.
* Played with by ComicBook/LexLuthor in DC's ''ComicBook/TheBlackRing''. When confronting [[DontFearTheReaper Death]] after a particularly messy plane incident, Luthor starts to quickly cycle through the stages. He gets as far as "bargaining" until Death [[LampshadeHanging points out what he's doing]]. He then [[InvokedTrope tries to act depressed to play on Death's sympathies]]. Her response basically amounts to "Nice try, honey, but I wasn't born yesterday." In the end, [[SubvertedTrope Luthor lets her know he's not accepting a damned thing]], and he will "find a way to beat this."
* Franchise/{{Batman}} still hasn't reached the "Acceptance" stage, even decades after his parents' deaths. It's likely he never will.

* This fic, ''[[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4614235/1/Five_Stages Five Stages]]'', shows [[VideoGame/MetalGearSolid4 Old Snake]] reacting to his aging.
* A chapter of ''[[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/7292991/1/Xanatos Xanatos]]'' does this with [[Manga/DeathNote Sayu]], who goes through at least four of the five [[spoiler: [[BreakTheCutie as she's being kidnapped]]]]

--> '''Hobbes''': We're in mid-step two, right?
* The stages are discussed in the ''Franchise/BackToTheFuture'' fic ''[[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/2145294/1/ 4am, This Letter,"]] while Marty spends his first night in Doc Browns house in 1955 and thinks about seeing Doc getting killed in 1985. Marty cannot remember the correct order of the stages, but he vows he will not let himself go through all five of them.
* Yayoi talks about this in ''[=SplitxEnd=]'', one of the stories for ''FanFic/{{Horseshoes and Hand Grenades}}'' in regards to JK. He's split between [[StepfordSmiler depression]] for "that incident" [[spoiler: presumably about his little sister's death]], and denial around Gentaro's death.
* Fai, Sakura, Kurogane and Syaoran embodies various aspects of the stages of grief in ''FanFic/{{Shatterheart}}'':
** Fai and Sakura represent Denial as they refuse to acknowledge Syaoran because doing so forces them to realize the clone's betrayal and the loss of their friend.
** Kurogane represents Anger as he refuses to let himself to feel any sort of sadness and deals with it by getting angry.
** Syaoran represents Depression as he mostly wallows in guilt and despair.
** All of them eventually turn to Acceptance when they realize there's nothing they can change and trying would be too high of a cost.
* In ''Fanfic/TravelsOfTheTrifecta,'' [[spoiler: Paul goes through the Five Stages after finding out that he's terminally ill, with the Anger and Barganing stages directly mentioned at the end of Chapter 13.]]

* Diana in chapter 12 of ''VideoGame/{{League Of Legends}}'' fanfic ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/9868708/13/Daughters-of-the-Sun-and-Moon Daughters of the Sun and Moon]]'' goes through this after finding out that [[spoiler: Leona had read her love letter addressed to her]].
* In chapter 6 of the ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' fanfic ''Fanfic/{{Guppy Love}}'', Applejack goes through all five stages when [[spoiler:Fluttershy and Rainbow confront her about her puppy love crush on the mermaid Rarity, forcing her to face the fact that she’ll have to leave once her tail injury’s healed.]]
* [[VideoGame/DragonAgeII Bethany Hawke]] is shown going through Depression and Anger after a specific plot point in ''Fanfic/BeyondHeroes: Of Sunshine and Red Lyrium''. She skips Denial and Bargaining entirely, mostly because she was present for the event and knows that these aren't going to work. Throughout the remainder of the story (until a certain ''other'' specific plot point), [[CharacterNarrator Varric]] periodically catches her slipping back into Depression, though she manages not to stay there for very long, and Acceptance is largely in force by the time she confronts [[VideoGame/DragonAgeInquisition the Elder One]].
* Subverted in ''Fanfic/FiresideTale''. Anna stops at the first stage: "Denial". She grieves, denies Elsa's death, grieves some more, and goes back into denial. Her denial is so persistent that she's soon deemed insane.
* ''Fanfic/HowTheLightGetsIn'': After [[Series/{{Arrow}} Laurel]] died, [[Series/{{Supernatural}} Dean]] spent the next several hours firmly locked in Denial, sitting by her bedside refusing to talk to anyone or leave her until he was forced to. Torturing her murderer to death checks off Anger, and another flashback shows him screaming HowDareYouDieOnMe (and a few other choice insults) at a hallucination of her. He otherwise spent his months fluctuating between Depression and looking for a way to bring her back (Bargaining). She then ''was'' brought BackFromTheDead by someone else, stopping this altogether.
** The rest of her family meanwhile is firmly locked in Depression, [[spoiler:except for Nyssa and Charlie who were still looking for a way to resurrect her]].
* ''Fanfic/ColosseumOfTheHeart'': Referenced in the narration (as "seven stages of grief") when Kairi feels like she's going through half of them at once since she lost Sora at the end of ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsIII''. "Shock and disbelief. Guilt. Anger. Depression. All were viciously, hideously mixed and intertwined with each other into a swirling vortex of hopelessness."
* ''Fanfic/TwistedSisterAnExtendedEnding'' After the loss of Bunny the Powerpuff Girls go through this. Buttercup goes through anger; she is angry at herself for what she said to Bunny. Bubbles goes through denial and tells herself she can create a new Bunny, but the Professor tells her it won't be the same. Blossom has depression and bargaining; she feels the situation could have been avoided if she had spoken to the Professor about it in the first place and she questions if she's fit to be the leader anymore. They all go through acceptance once they realize that they did what they could, and they can properly have closure with their memorial of Bunny.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Finding Nemo}}'': As it is explained in the video by WebVideo/SuperCarlinBrothers, Marlin goes through the five stages of grief when coming to terms with the death of most of his family and the abduction of his surviving son Nemo. First he acts as though he is fine, since he still has Nemo, and that they are happy when in reality he is sheltering Nemo too much (denial); then he gets angry at Nemo for disobeying him and putting him in a situation where a worst case scenario could happen (anger). After Nemo is captured by the diver, Marlin tells himself that he will find Nemo and goes out to find him, allowing himself to put up with Dory and the dangerous situations they get into together. When Marlin and Dory get stuck inside the mouth of a whale, Marlin gives up hope and sinks to the bottom, defeated (depression). When the whale is about to blow, Marlin doesn’t want to let go of the taste bud to which he's clinging, because he believes that the whale will eat him and Dory, but she convinces him to let go and that just because something bad ''could'' happen doesn’t mean it ''will''; and Marlin lets go, symbolizing him finally letting go of his grief (acceptance). This stage is later shown again twice; when Marlin accepts that Nemo is (presumably) dead, and when Marlin lets Nemo save Dory and the other fish, once again accepting that he cannot continue to hold onto his grief and live in fear of losing Nemo.

* In ''Flatland: The Film'', [[spoiler: A. Sphere's computerized chariot [[AIIsACrapshoot goes berserk]] when he's killed, and name-drops the five stages before ending with "NO ACCEPTANCE, REVENGE!"]]

[[note]]Robert Smigel's ''TV Funhouse'' notes that you can remember the stages with the handy mnemonic "'''D'''rink '''A'''lcohol '''B'''efore '''D'''oing '''A'''nal".[[/note]]

* Referenced (as "seven stages of grief") in ''Film/LookBothWays'' by Meryl, who asks Nick, "What's the point in knowing where you're up to if you've still got to go through it anyway?"

** Cricket goes through the five stages again in "Junk Mountain" when he realizes his childhood friend Hector has become a teenager who cast away almost all his childhood. He refuses to accept he's gotten older, screams against Remy saying he's too old, and willingly chooses to abduct Hector from the teen party he has been invited to, briefly keeping him all to himself. He soon realizes Hector misses his teen friends and feels bad for taking him away, thus he finally accepts the fact that Hector has grown up, lets him return to the party, and hands Hector's original position down to his little sister Lupita.

*** Depression: While channeling Sarek's emotions, Picard expresses both anger and regret over Sarek not telling his loved ones how he fells about them.

* ''Manga/OnePiece'': [[spoiler:Luffy]] goes through these after [[spoiler:Ace's death]]. To Summarize:

* ''Manga/OnePiece'': [[spoiler:Luffy]] goes through these (except bargaining) after [[spoiler:Ace's death]]. After waking up from his AngstComa, he begins a destructive rampage around Amazon Lily trying to shake off flashbacks, despite having serious wounds that could open up and kill him. Once he's done doubting whether it was all a dream and finally realizes that [[spoiler:Ace is dead]], he [[DespairEventHorizon breaks down]] and [[spoiler:nearly considers giving up his journey to become Pirate King]]. Jimbei helps him get to acceptance by reminding him that [[spoiler:he still has his crew]].

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Cars}}'': Lightning [=McQueen=]'s CharacterDevelopment from selfish and arrogant to kind and outgoing is shown by him going though the five stages throughout the movie. When he gets lost in Radiator Springs, he immediately wants to leave (denial), though he is sentenced to fix the road after causing damage the night before; he completely resents this and shows disdain for the residents at first (anger). He decides to face Doc Hudson, the town's judge, in a race at Willy's Butte to see if he can leave only to crash and lose (bargaining). He eventually learns of Doc's DarkAndTroubledPast and how he lost his career for good, and realizes how he's acting after Doc gives him an ArmorPiercingQuestion about caring about someone or something other than himself. When he is found by the press, he breaks down for the first time and is reluctant to leave the townsfolk (depression). During the race, when Chick Hicks forcefully makes The King crash on the last lap, he willingly gives up the Piston Cup and helps him cross the line, and turns down the Dinoco sponsorship, finally realizing what's more important in life and how good it is to have friends that can help him (acceptance).

* Discussed in the unproduced [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPP4zUDuo4c final episode]] of ''WesternAnimation/TheAngryBeavers'', in which Daggett struggles to accept Norbert's assertion that [[NoFourthWall the show was being cancelled]].

* In VideoGame/Mother3, After Flint is told that his wife Hinawa was killed by a Drago, he immediately enters Anger, when he attacks some of the villagers around him and has to be to [[TapOnTheHead Tapped on the Head]] by Lighter. After he gets over it, he then enters Bargaining for the rest of the game, after his son Claus goes missing trying to avenge Hinawa's death, and he subsequently leaves Lucas alone for years, desperate to not lose his oldest son too.