Oh yeah, I went there.
The notion of someone crying during The Lion King has become a meme/joke in its own right. I remember it was mentioned in this comedy called 'Family Matters' years ago when Jaleel White mentioned it. I am sure there are countless other examples but on the top of my head, I can't recall.
Personally, I don't recall shedding a tear. It's not that I am cold hearted. I do remember getting anxiety evertime I watched it. It's no doubt one of the most dramatic scenes in animated history. It is one of the most powerful and emotionally gripping moments in animated cinema. I did not cry. Don't get me wrong, it was horrible what happened to Simba and it demonstrated to me what an unrepentant and manipulative psycho Scar was really was. As far as I can recall I never shed a tear, but I confess I did bawl when I first watched "Last Lions" which ironically enough had Jeremy Irons, but that is another topic for another time. Here are possible reasons why I don't think it got to me. Anyone else please feel free to share!
1. I watched Bambi quite often during my pre-LK days. We never saw Bambi's mother get killed but it did not make it any less tragic.
2. Land Before Time-I don't know how many people have heard of this one as we have a lot of 90s born kids here. This was a Universal/Don Bluth film that came out in '88 (A good six years before TLK and five years before Jurassic Park). It's about this group of little dinosaurs that had to find The Great Valley. Not long after the beginning, the mother of the protagonist Little Foot who is a brontosaurus dies after sustaining injuries from a T-Rex attack. If it came out today, I have no doubt that parents groups would complain. I would say that her death was a little bit more violent than Mufasa's. I guess this and Bambi kind of made me 'numb'.
3. The trailers pretty much gave away what would happen. If I recall correctly, it was strongly implied.
Anyone else?