Are There Animated Series Aimed at Adults That Aren't Comedies?

[Vausch]

I can think of several that felt they were more made for people at least in their 20's, not sure if that's "adult" enough for you or not but.

East of Eden. It felt very adult oriented. I didn't think it was all that good by the end of it, but it didn't feel like it was made for kids.

Paranoia Agent. Pretty fucking adult in it's tone and theme. I can't think of any way that you could see it being "for kids".

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. Again, I can't see how one could watch the show and think it was for kids. The subjects are way to adult in nature. The fact that it has silly/cute sounding robots is just an aspect of Japanese culture. They like cute things way more than we do in the US, even into adulthood.

I'm sure there are others but I can't recall anymore right now. Work is being too distracting.

I said no anime. I know there are plenty of those aimed at adults.

See this is more a question of the culture of animation in the west. We don't seem to make animated series aimed at adults that aren't comedies. I'd like to be proven wrong but I'm not seeing any examples.

 

[Vausch]

What about the Spawn cartoon? You probably shouldn't just dismiss anime out of hand there are some really good adult story orientated shows which might be suitable with good storylines, e.g last exile.

To the people bringing up anime:

I'm not dismissing it. I love anime.

However, I'm asking because I wonder if there's a cultural reason we don't seem to make SERIES that are not primarily focused on comedy in an animated form. We make serious stories but we don't seem willing to do so when the medium is animation. Or if we do, it's a serious story or moment taking place within a series that is primarily a comedy.

Is Heavy Metal a comedy? Anyway, the thing is that back in the 80s western culture decided that animation was for kids, and comedies were pretty much the only thing to escape that stigma, and there aren't even many of those.

No films. I know there are animated films aimed at adults, I'm referring specifically to series.

You probably shouldn't just dismiss anime out of hand there are some really good adult story orientated shows which might be suitable with good storylines, e.g last exile.

I think OP is specifically trying to figure out if a non-comedic Western animated series exists (one that is aimed at adults, or at least not aimed at kids). Anime and manga have more ubiquity in Japan than cartoons do in the west, and they tend to have specific demographics (though I have noticed that most anime that gets western exposure is aimed at teenagers).

What OP is highlighting is the idea that animation "can't be taken as seriously" as live-action when it comes to Western markets. Cartoons that address adult themes are either comedic or done in short film format, sometimes feature-length film format too (but that's more common with foreign films). Not to say that family-friendly cartoons can't be deeply serious with mature sensibilities (my favourite film of all time is Fantasia which touches on some very abstract emotions), but you seldom if ever see serialised cartoons aimed at adults that isn't a comedy.

^ This. Thank you.

 

[Vausch]

that are primarily aimed at an adult audience?

Can you define the what constitutes being "aimed an adult audience", as opposed to mixed audiences or non-adult audiences?

Would you consider Roughnecks?

and anime doesn't count.

How about Aeon Flux?

And, there's always Spawn. If it ever gets released...

Aeon Flux and Spawn are odd examples to me.

Aeon Flux in that it seems to be trying to be serious but it really comes across as comedic because of how stupid it gets, and the shorts seemed to arguably be comedic because Aeon was doomed to fail every time. You just had to wait and watch her die due to her own incompetence.

Spawn, despite being originally western, had its animation overlooked and directed by Yoshiaki Kawajiri and has a very heavy influence of Japanese animation overtones.

It's honestly the only example I can see that would count, and even then it's so easy to mistake for an anime.

 

[WonkyWarmaiden]

Batman: The Animated Series has a good many adult themes to it, issues of mental illness and domestic abuse just to name a couple, plus awesome voice acting and crazy good animation.

 

[FPLOON]

At first, I was going to say Wizards, but then you said no movies... Then, I thought about Sym-Bionic Titan, but then you probably say it was more aimed at kids than adults... Finally, I thought about The Boondocks, but that's more of a "dramedy" overall...

*thinks* Fuck! It's like reverse-levity when you see non-comedic moments in a comedic animated series nowadays or something!

EDIT: Was Afro Samurai western? Yes, it had an anime style, but I thought it was kind of like Avatar? I'm really scraping the bottom of the barrel here.

No and yes... The idea was based off the Afro Samurai manga that was animated in Japan, but the dubbing and soundtrack are 100% western-based... In other words, you kinda are, but with good intentions...

 

[Vausch]

Batman: The Animated Series has a good many adult themes to it, issues of mental illness and domestic abuse just to name a couple, plus awesome voice acting and crazy good animation.

Aimed at kids/younger audiences in general.

I'm not saying the series isn't fantastic and does touch on some dark themes that would go over the heads of most younger audiences, but the show is undoubtedly targeted to a wide audiences and had to be family friendly.

I guess a short version of what I'm saying is if it's something you would expect to see on a Saturday Morning Cartoon Block, it doesn't count. I'm talking a series like a western equivalent of Monster or Berserk or an animated equivalent to Law and Order or Breaking Bad.

 

[Charli]

If an animated series is good. Then it's always for adults to me.

Just be more specific about what you want really, do you want to laugh, do you want to cry, do you want tension, action, romance?

What is 'adult' to you? So sadly I can't define it so simplistically for you. Adult to me is 'engaging'. Does it engage the viewer and try to relate to them on a basic level, and then entertain and explore concepts of feeling and problems while creating it's own world and rules, does it convey a message? If it can do all of the above, then it's for me.

Regardless of what marketing departments think.

Batman: The Animated Series has a good many adult themes to it, issues of mental illness and domestic abuse just to name a couple, plus awesome voice acting and crazy good animation.

Aimed at kids/younger audiences in general.

I'm not saying the series isn't fantastic and does touch on some dark themes that would go over the heads of most younger audiences, but the show is undoubtedly targeted to a wide audiences and had to be family friendly.

I guess a short version of what I'm saying is if it's something you would expect to see on a Saturday Morning Cartoon Block, it doesn't count. I'm talking a series like a western equivalent of Monster or Berserk or an animated equivalent to Law and Order or Breaking Bad.

Okay. I'll tell you straight up. No we have nothing like that because the way animation is utilized and marketed in the west is a vastly different beast than our peers in the east. The most you can hope for is stuff in animated movies and themes and ideas not for kids snuck in by the crafty creators ala Steven Universe and Adventure time.

I'm sorry to disappoint you, I live for the day that animation is seen as a truly respected medium on the level that allows stuff like this to get funded and made. But I see no clear path unless some poor animators band together to live in starvation and poverty for 3 years while they make it. (And thats rushing it)

 

[WonkyWarmaiden]

If an animated series is good. Then it's always for adults to me.

Just be more specific about what you want really, do you want to laugh, do you want to cry, do you want tension, action, romance?

What is 'adult' to you? So sadly I can't define it so simplistically for you. Adult to me is 'engaging'. Does it engage the viewer and try to relate to them on a basic level, and then entertain and explore concepts of feeling and problems while creating it's own world and rules, does it convey a message? If it can do all of the above, then it's for me.

Regardless of what marketing departments think.

Batman: The Animated Series has a good many adult themes to it, issues of mental illness and domestic abuse just to name a couple, plus awesome voice acting and crazy good animation.

Aimed at kids/younger audiences in general.

I'm not saying the series isn't fantastic and does touch on some dark themes that would go over the heads of most younger audiences, but the show is undoubtedly targeted to a wide audiences and had to be family friendly.

I guess a short version of what I'm saying is if it's something you would expect to see on a Saturday Morning Cartoon Block, it doesn't count. I'm talking a series like a western equivalent of Monster or Berserk or an animated equivalent to Law and Order or Breaking Bad.

Okay. I'll tell you straight up. No we have nothing like that because the way animation is utilized and marketed in the west is a vastly different beast than our peers in the east. The most you can hope for is stuff in animated movies and themes and ideas not for kids snuck in by the crafty creators ala Steven Universe and Adventure time.

I'm sorry to disappoint you, I live for the day that animation is seen as a truly respected medium on the level that allows stuff like this to get funded and made. But I see no clear path unless some poor animators band together to live in starvation and poverty for 3 years while they make it. (And thats rushing it)

Yeah, it sucks but with western animation you mostly have to look for adult subjects in the soup of kid-friendliness. Most companies don't make adult animated shows because they don't see a market for it. The best you get it some animated movies that are more adult but those are usually pretty hit or miss.

 

[Kontarek]

Yeah, what your asking for doesn't seem to exist.

The closest you'll get are kid shows with mature themes subtly woven into the plot (i.e. Adventure Time, Wakfu, Batman: TAS, etc.) or Avatar and Korra (which seem to be in their own weird teen-focused category as I honestly can't think of any other show like them).

Anime is really the only place you're going to find non-comedy animation targeted at a mature audience. Which is a shame, because animation allows for such limitless scope compared to live-action stuff. Game of Thrones, for example, is a fine show (well it was until last season), but only animation could've really captured the World of Ice and Fire the way it's described in the books. But obviously, a cartoon with that level of maturity would never have been greenlit in the west.

 

[briankoontz]

Is Heavy Metal a comedy? Anyway, the thing is that back in the 80s western culture decided that animation was for kids, and comedies were pretty much the only thing to escape that stigma, and there aren't even many of those.

Hollywood studios and the entire visual mass media machine (including actors and agents) have a lot of power to help control the content of the Hollywood animation that's made, and this has a ripple effect throughout the culture.

We saw what happened when the West adapted Ghost in the Shell. Live action STARRING Scarlet Johannson, who doesn't make millions of dollars per movie for how her voice sounds (except in the future when we already know what she looks like and she doesn't look nearly so appealing).

This is one reason why animals are so prevalent in Western animation, much more so than in anime. Animals don't have their pictures taken constantly with "celebrity scoop" followups, so it doesn't matter whether a media animal is real or animated, and animated ones are much easier to control to the creator's wishes.

Despite this, Western dramatic animation could be developed. But at least so far, these barriers have prevented it.

 

[Vausch]

Yeah, what your asking for doesn't seem to exist.

The closest you'll get are kid shows with mature themes subtly woven into the plot (i.e. Adventure Time, Wakfu, Batman: TAS, etc.) or Avatar and Korra (which seem to be in their own weird teen-focused category as I honestly can't think of any other show like them).

Anime is really the only place you're going to find non-comedy animation targeted at a mature audience. Which is a shame, because animation allows for such limitless scope compared to live-action stuff. Game of Thrones, for example, is a fine show (well it was until last season), but only animation could've really captured the World of Ice and Fire the way it's described in the books. But obviously, a cartoon with that level of maturity would never have been greenlit in the west.

I would have imagined since HBO had some success with Spawn, they might have given it a go.

Though as mentioned prior, Spawn is probably the best (if only) example so far of an adult targeted non-comedy western animation series. Even then it's up in the air given it was being worked on by Yoshiaki Kawajiri.

Though apparently there is another in the works due out April 2016.

 

[crimson5pheonix]

Apparently Watership Down is going to be a series in the UK next year. You can look forward to that

There was a Starship Troopers series. I highly doubt that was for kids or that funny. I don't know if you'd include the Watchmen animated comic, but it's there. Gankutsuou is interesting. It's an anime, but it's a retelling of "The Count of Monte Cristo".

 

[stroopwafel]

Yeah that 90's Spawn cartoon is really good. Espescially season 1 and 2(season 3 is kinda meh). I think I watched season 1 and 2 a buncha times over the years b/c they really are that good. Season 1 is basically a Spawn origin story, and season 2 focuses less on Spawn and more on the depraved shit going on in the city and the events that are spiraling out of control due to Spawn's presence. This is as far away from superhero cartoons as you can imagine. There was news of a new Spawn cartoon for like the last 10+ years or so but unfortunately this never really got off the ground for whatever reason. Probably b/c the action-figure business was more lucrative for McFarlane.

Also a lot of the DC animated stuff is really good. Batman the animated series is a great show for all ages and more recent entries like Dark Knight Returns, Year One, Red Hood etc. are also really good. They translated a lot of the adult-oriented graphic novels into cartoons really well.

 

[Vausch]

Yeah that 90's Spawn cartoon is really good. Espescially season 1 and 2(season 3 is kinda meh). I think I watched season 1 and 2 a buncha times over the years b/c they really are that good. Season 1 is basically a Spawn origin story, and season 2 focuses less on Spawn and more on the depraved shit going on in the city and the events that are spiraling out of control due to Spawn's presence. This is as far away from superhero cartoons as you can imagine. There was news of a new Spawn cartoon for like the last 10+ years or so but unfortunately this never really got off the ground for whatever reason. Probably b/c the action-figure business was more lucrative for McFarlane.

Also a lot of the DC animated stuff is really good. Batman the animated series is a great show for all ages and more recent entries like Dark Knight Returns, Year One, Red Hood etc. are also really good. They translated a lot of the adult-oriented graphic novels into cartoons really well.

Spawn has been the only one that I've seen so far. It's almost anime though. Having Yoshiaki Kawajiri on the art direction and animation didn't help.

Also DC stuff is either all aimed at younger audiences or are movies. When I say "aimed at adults", I don't mean things adults can enjoy but rather stuff you wouldn't see on a Saturday morning cartoon.

 

[Gordon_4_v1legacy]

Spawn the Animated Series from HBO is literally the only thing I can think of if you're excluding anime. I'm not sure if the movie Cool World counts since it's done Roger Rabbit style.

 

[Vausch]

Spawn the Animated Series from HBO is literally the only thing I can think of if you're excluding anime. I'm not sure if the movie Cool World counts since it's done Roger Rabbit style.

No films. There are several examples of single movies, but nothing that's a SERIES.

The reason I exclude anime is because I had the idea that it seems to be a cultural thing that animated series will not appeal to adults in western countries.

Anime was often seen as a unique thing when it was introduced to the US. A teenager sees something and goes "My god, this is a cartoon but there's blood and swearing and fighting and robots" and all the things 14 year olds think makes something mature.

And then there's others like Monster that are rather thrilling murder mysteries, Berserk for a action story that is genuinely scary at times, etc.

We get sparse movies now and again but that seems to have stopped in recent years. Everything animated aimed at adults as a series is a comedy, save for Spawn (see my argument that it's kinda anime in several posts). There are no examples (so far) of an animated crime drama, there's no western equivalent to Berserk, there's no animated zombie apocalypse series, there's no animated Game of Thrones (which arguably could have made it better). The closest we get are serious moments in comedies/comedies with dark and very serious undertones (Rick and Morty) or family shows that handle mature themes very well (Korra, Steven Universe, Gravity Falls).

 

[Gordon_4_v1legacy]

Spawn the Animated Series from HBO is literally the only thing I can think of if you're excluding anime. I'm not sure if the movie Cool World counts since it's done Roger Rabbit style.

No films. There are several examples of single movies, but nothing that's a SERIES.

The reason I exclude anime is because I had the idea that it seems to be a cultural thing that animated series will not appeal to adults in western countries.

Anime was often seen as a unique thing when it was introduced to the US. A teenager sees something and goes "My god, this is a cartoon but there's blood and swearing and fighting and robots" and all the things 14 year olds think makes something mature.

And then there's others like Monster that are rather thrilling murder mysteries, Berserk for a action story that is genuinely scary at times, etc.

We get sparse movies now and again but that seems to have stopped in recent years. Everything animated aimed at adults as a series is a comedy, save for Spawn (see my argument that it's kinda anime in several posts). There are no examples (so far) of an animated crime drama, there's no western equivalent to Berserk, there's no animated zombie apocalypse series, there's no animated Game of Thrones (which arguably could have made it better). The closest we get are serious moments in comedies/comedies with dark and very serious undertones (Rick and Morty) or family shows that handle mature themes very well (Korra, Steven Universe, Gravity Falls).

While I personally think you're reaching to call Spawn an anime, by your now better explained parameters, I can't think of a damn thing that fits your criteria.

 

[happyninja42]

snip

I said no anime. I know there are plenty of those aimed at adults.

See this is more a question of the culture of animation in the west. We don't seem to make animated series aimed at adults that aren't comedies. I'd like to be proven wrong but I'm not seeing any examples.

Ah, yeah you're pretty much hosed. Western culture simply doesn't embrace animation as an art form worthy of adults. Hell I've seen people on this very site state that anything that is animated, and thus a "cartoon", is childish. We're just taught to see cartoons as the realm of children's entertainment, and when you grow up, you put them behind you. I personally think it's shit, as you can make some really awesome things with animated media that you can't with cinema, but that's the sad reality of it in the Western culture, or, I should specifically say US culture. There might be more acceptance of it in Europe or maybe the Latin cultures? *shrugs*

 

[And Man]

It involves hitting the way back machine but The MAXX probably qualifies. It is funny especially at the beginning but damn is that not the part that really sticks with you. Honestly that era of MTV's animated output in general might fit the bill.

More recent stuff I'm not so sure. The second season of Moral Oral is very much not a comedy.

I'd also agree that Moral Orel could fit the bill. It's a dark comedy, but as Cette said, the second and third season are much more dark than comedy.

 

[McElroy]

Animation is poorly suited for drama anyway. Duckman was satirical and not super funny. Here we had a political satire run for several seasons in the 2000s.