Sayonara, Zetsubou-Sensei / The Power of Negative Thinking / Koji Kumeta

Nozomu Itoshiki is a high school teacher who views everything in life in the most negative way possible. Even his name reflects his personality: if the Japanese characters are written horizontally, they spell out ‘despair.’ One day during one of Nozomu’s many suicide attempts an incredibly optimistic young girl named Kafka Fura rushes to save him from hanging on a sakura tree. Nozumu later finds out that Kafka is a student in his new class! In fact Nozomu’s new class seems to be made up entirely of strange, troubled individuals who constantly foil his attempts to end his life.