“Why is the best landscaping in a neighborhood always in a cemetery? Everybody’s dead.”
This is too beautiful a day to have to bury someone.
Weather has always been used symbolically when it comes to death. When characters die it's often a perfect day outside, with nary a cloud in the sky. There are several reasons for using the dichotomy between the bright, cheerful, cloudless sky as a counterpoint to the sadness of death. Ironic contrast, perhaps, or to show that, even in the midst of our grief life does go on. Maybe it's just to give the resident Deadpan Snarker something to gripe about, or maybe the sunny day is an excuse for the characters to feel that much worse about the death of a loved one. Sometimes it's too sunny and the heat just exhausts everyone physically, to compliment the mental exhaustion. Sometimes the funeral just takes place in a relatively sunny area.
This trope is usually part of a Meaningful Funeral scene.
If you're thinking about putting an aversion or a subversion on this page, why not put it on It Always Rains at Funerals instead, where your Subversion or Aversion can be a straight example.
As a Death Trope, all Spoilers will be unmarked ahead. Beware.
Examples:
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Anime & Manga
- Fullmetal Alchemist has a big sunny sky during Hughes's funeral, but has Roy touchingly claiming it rained to excuse his tears. It's also a callback to Riza's observation that "You're useless when it's raining"; Person of Mass Destruction or not, he still couldn't save his best friend.
- It was also sunny during Trisha's funeral.
- Occurs in Black Butler. It's a beautiful, sunny day without a drop of rain during Madam Red's funeral. When Ciel visits Mary Kelly's grave it's sunset, but probably because the funeral finished up not too long ago.
- Setsuko's cremation in Grave of the Fireflies. The man who sells Seita the charcoal even comments "In spite of everything, it's a beautiful day."
Comic Books
- In All Fall Down, both funerals are held on bright, sunny days.
Fan Works
- Justified in the Johanna Gaiden of Pokémon Reset Bloodlines. Johanna muses that her parents are being buried on an unusually dry day. As it turns out, the funeral service included Pokémon that could use Sunny Day (which she didn't know about at the time, otherwise she would've refused to save money).
- In The Horsewomen Of Las Vegas
, it's nice and sunny for the funerals of police officer Naomi McCray, and police detective Alexa Bliss.
- Light Lost: Lampshaded by Nico, who thinks that it's too sunny for such a sad event like burying your girlfriend.
Film
- Spider-Man Trilogy:
- It's bright and sunny during Harry's funeral in the third film.
- At Norman Osborn's funeral. It's cold and autumnal, but it's sunny.
- The funeral in Jumpin' Jack Flash is also on a clear day.
- It was mostly sunny with only a few clouds at the funeral for Jonathan Kent in Superman: The Movie.
- It's very sunny and hot at Quatermain's Meaningful Funeral in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. Justified, given the geographical climate.
- In Serenity the funeral scene for Mr. Universe, Wash, and Book is a sunny day.
- This is the case for Neto's funeral in The Elite Squad.
- The opening scene of the Israeli film Shiv'a.
- The funeral of Pope Celestinus X in Angels & Demons is happening on a bright, sunny day. Of course, it's happening in spring in Italy, so it might just be that.
- Hereditary: The sun is shining bright during Charlie's funeral.
- In Cheaper by the Dozen (2003), it's bright and sunny during the funeral for Mark's pet frog Beans.
Literature
- In Harry Potter, it was bright and sunny for the funeral of Albus Dumbledore.
- Meursault's maman in The Stranger is buried on not only a very sunny day but a very hot one as well. This is actually an important plot point, and it is given a Call-Back when he shoots the Arab at the end of part one.
- In the Doctor Who Expanded Universe novel Touched By An Angel, a character, sent back in time by a Weeping Angel, has the opportunity to revisit his wife's funeral. He's surprised that it's a sunny day since he remembers it as being overcast to match his mood.
- In The Tiger Rising, it's sunny at both Rob's mother's, and the tiger's, funerals.
- In Seeds of Yesterday, Cathy is bewildered at the beautiful weather on the day of Christopher's funeral—"A day for picnics and going to the beach, and they put my Christopher into the ground".
- Harmonic Feedback: Naomi's funeral takes place on a beautiful day, with singing birds and the sun breaking through the clouds.
Live-Action TV
- When the Friends gang goes to the gravesite services of Monica and Ross's grandmother, Phoebe instantly sticks her foot in her mouth by saying "It's such a great day!" Dark glances from the others. "Weatherwise!"
- It was a bright, sunny, hot Louisiana day that made you feel sorry for everyone wearing black for the funeral of Grandmother Stackhouse in True Blood.
- Kate Todd's funeral in NCIS is accompanied by a bright sun. Though the funeral itself is sad, on the way home, Abby plays some jazz in true New Orleans fashion. This is a part of Empathic Environment. It was constantly raining as the team hunted for her killer, and Gibbs blamed himself for her death. By the time of the funeral, her killer is dead and Gibbs no longer blames himself.
- Anya's meltdown about the death of Joyce Summers on Buffy the Vampire Slayer is contrasted with the obviously beautiful day outside of her window. She was buried on a sunny and clear day. She died on one also: birds were chirping and children were heard playing.
- Scrubs had at least two funerals take place on sunny days. First was Ben, and then there was Laverne. In fact, to add to the contrast, J.D. sings "It's a Beautiful Morning" until he remembers he's at a funeral.
- Despite the variable weather on the island, every funeral on Lost has been under a clear, sunny sky.
- Haley's funeral in Criminal Minds, as well as Prentiss'. Although, Prentiss was only Faking the Dead for the last part of season six.
- Six Feet Under: Funerals almost invariably occur on beautiful, sunny days, since this is, after all, LA.
- Dexter: Rita's funeral is held on a sunny and hot day. She lived in Miami, Florida.
- The Arbitrator holds his mock-funeral on a sunny day.
- Leverage: Sophie...uh, Katherine's Faking the Dead funeral is held on a bright, sunny day in "The Two Live Crew Job."
- Zig-Zagged in the Get Smart episode "The Mess of Adrian Listenger": while it's hardly a gloomy day (the sun is clearly shining in the scene), it is also pouring rain.
Music
- LCD Soundsystem make a similar observation in "Someone Great", a Grief Song for James Murphy's therapist.
The worst is all the lovely weather
I'm stunned it's not raining - "Why" by Rascal Flatts
Now the oak trees are swayin' in the early autumn breeze
A golden sun is shining on my face
Theater
- Occurs in RENT; Angel's funeral is sunny (but still cold, being NYC in late October), probably a symbol in and of itself that even death can't dampen his/her Manic Pixie Dream Girl -ness.
Video Games
- Guy's funeral in Lufia & The Fortress of Doom gets some rather depressing music, but it is sunny throughout the scene (short though it may have been).
- Jenon's death in Blaze Union is accompanied by lovely weather, as highlighted by the Scenery Porn in the accompanying CG.
- Chloe's funeral in Life Is Strange. Justified as you chose not to save her in order to avoid the storm happening.
Webcomics
- We don't actually see alt-Zoe's funeral in Sluggy Freelance, but the scenes we do see on the same day are bright and sunny. Makes the whole event even more bittersweet, since to the rest of the world it's a day of celebration because the Demons are gone.
- Hoh's funeral in Tower of God, completing Bam's introduction to the concept of death.
Western Animation
- Played straight and inverted when Superman seemingly dies in the Justice League episode "Hereafter." Immediately after his "death" it starts raining like there's no tomorrow, but the funeral itself is held in clear weather.
- In the Galaxy Rangers episode "New Frontier," the sun is clear and bright over BETA Mountain at Eliza's Meaningful Funeral, but the clear weather also symbolizes a new day - the Series 5 team has been formed and proven themselves the new hope of the galaxy.
- In Recess, when the school has their funeral for Speedy, the class hamster, it's beautiful outside.
- The weather in the Smurf Village is nice during the funeral of Smurfette's pet mouse Squeaky in The Smurfs (1981) episode of the same name.
- In The Crumpets episode "A Grave Affair", the funeral for Granny (who is alive in a death-like state) is under a sunny sky.
- In The Simpsons episode Bart The Fink, Krusty's funeral is held during a day with a clear blue sky.
