Which anime do you enjoy with a mostly adult cast of characters?

Submitted ⁨⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago⁩ by ⁨ALostInquirer@lemm.ee⁩ to ⁨anime@ani.social⁩

By adult I mean over 18-20 years of age and with adult appearances. Nothing against anime with younger characters, but interested in finding some with older characters.

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earth_walker@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Series

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex Black Lagoon Odd Taxi 86 Moriarty the Patriot Cells at Work: Code Black Cowboy Bebop Trigun (1998) Psycho Pass Aggretsuko Panty & Stocking One Punch Man

Movies

Patlabor Patlabor 2 Ghost in the Shell (1995) Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence Redline Porco Rosso Howl’s Moving Castle Paprika Dead Leaves

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- RightHandOfIkaros@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  +1 for Black Lagoon, W anime pick.
  
  Also for Ghost in the Shell, PatLabor, and Redline.
  
  I will also add on:
  
  Jin-Roh/Jin-Rou (not the Korean live action from 2019), but it does briefly show a child on screen as a supporting character, and I dont remember if Kei was over 18-20 or not
  
  AD Police Files, and its related series Parasite Dolls
  
  Space Dandy (maybe, that anime had like a billion characters and I dont remember if all of them were adults or not, but its not exactly a kid oriented anime)
  
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  - earth_walker@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
    Black Lagoon is one of the most underrated shows. People who have seen it usually love it, but not enough people have seen it.
    
    I need to watch Jin-Roh sometime.
    
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- nevemsenki@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  Patlabor 2 is one of my all-time favorites, but it’s not very well-known. In a way it feels too mature and slow to be a wide hit, I guess.
  
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- Endmaker@ani.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  
  86
  
  The main cast would have grown into adults later on, and based how what’s released of the anime so far, I wouldn’t count it as “mostly” adults.
  
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  - earth_walker@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
    You’re right, I misremembered how old the characters were. I removed it from my post. I must have thought that because it dealt with a lot of mature themes and war kind of forces kids to grow up fast.
    
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Toes@ani.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
In no particular order these come to mind. Most of these are outside what I typically watch, but I did enjoy them.

Monster (Crime Drama) anilist.co/anime/19/Monster/

Mushishi (Psychological Slice of Life) anilist.co/anime/457/Mushishi/

One Punch Man (Comedy Action) anilist.co/anime/21087/One-Punch-Man/

TRIGUN (Action Adventure) anilist.co/anime/6/TRIGUN/

Hellsing (Vampire Action) anilist.co/anime/270/HELLSING/

Overlord (Evil Fantasy) anilist.co/anime/20832/Overlord/

I think a lot of the other answers here are being too generous with your rules and not giving you characters that both look older and are older.

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- RightHandOfIkaros@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  Overlord has Mare and Aura though? Who, ignoring numerical age, have the appearance of a person under 20.
  
  And Victim is a literal fetus, though Victim is only in the show for about 3 frames.
  
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  - BugleFingers@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
    I do believe the criteria was “mostly adult cast” so out of 12ish characters having two not look like adults still fits the criteria. And Victim can probably be ruled out since you’re right, basically 3 frames
    
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Endmaker@ani.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
I’ve completed so many:

Violet Evergarden

Vinland Saga

Odd Taxi

Cherry Magic!

Honorable mentions - depends on how strictly you’d define “mostly”:

Cautious Hero

Frieren

The Apothecary Diaries

Honorable mentions - unique circumstances:

Cells at Work! - Your typical red blood cell lives for about 120 days :( The cells that look like adults do behave like adults though
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- Enkers@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  The only one I’d take issue with here is Spy X Family. I think it’s more of an “all ages” show that focuses heavily on Anya and her classmates antics. All the rest make sense!
  
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- PineRune@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  
  Saga of Tanya the Evil
  
  Uhh, the main character is technically a child, even though they >!have the mind and soul of a middle-aged man!<. I’m not sure I’d include this, but the other characters still work.
  
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  - Endmaker@ani.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
    The rest of the cast appear to be adults though.
    
    One child among many adults satisfy the definition of “mostly adult cast of characters” that OP asked for IMO.
    
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CheeseNoodle@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Ghost in the shell stand alone complex (and 2nd gig) was my first and still favourite anime.

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Unboxious@ani.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
My favorites have been :

Bang Brave Bang Bravern - Big dumb gay robots

Mobile Fighter G Gundam - Big dumb straight robots

Redline - Just some fun racing action. Some of the best animation I’ve ever seen.

Wotakoi - Love story between nerdy office workers

Legend of the Galactic Heroes - The best space opera

One Punch Man - depressed superhero
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- Cyth@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  Redline is unironically one of my favorite movies. It’s just so silly, and I love it. “We’re losing the race, what do we do!?” “What if we pressed the pedal down…harder” And then they go faster.
  
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  - Unboxious@ani.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
    Redline proved to me that you don’t necessarily need a good story to have an excellent movie. You just need a story that isn’t bad, and then if you make everything cool as hell it’ll work out.
    
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arin@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Welcome to NHK, really walks you through the life of a university dropout failed adult.

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Keegen@lemmy.zip ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
I loved Wotakoi. The 4 main characters are 26-28 and employed. It’s in the especially rare category of adult romcoms. It’s a shame the anime never got a second season, but the manga is finished so if you give it a watch and want to find out what happened after, give it a read!

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- wjs018@ani.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  Wotakoi is basically my default answer to when people ask about adult romcom series. Great suggestion.
  
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durfenstein@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Frieren - Beyond journeys end

A real fresh take on fantasy stories imo with a lot of themes I always wanted to be explored in the genre. In my last pen & paper group i played an elvish alchemist specializing in seemingly useless utility potion effects. And when i created the character i had a hard discussion with my dm on how elves actually pervice the world and other races, with them reaching ages of thousands of years and whatnot. And frieren adresses that perfectly. Also that soundtrack is just the best. I have yet to listen to “One last adventure” and not get at leas queazy, if not tearing up a bit.

Were currently watching it a second time, just a week after finishing first time. We’ve never done that with any series.

Highly recommended

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- darakan@lemm.ee ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  Fern and Stark are technically in the 18-20 age range though. And fairly teenage-y. But I agree it does explore a lot of more “mature” themes.
  
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2ugly2live@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Odd Taxi (crime drama) Psychopass (crime drama) Cells at Work: Code Black (… Medical drama?) Death Parade (Death game-ish) Devilman Crybaby (main character is a high schooler, but it’s irrelevant imo. I didn’t remember until I looked it up again. This is a grim series ) Inuyashiki (Action. Old man is a complete Chad) Panty & Stocking (Comedy) Jellyfish Princess (Drama) Saga of Tanya the Terrible (it’s not really a kid, action) Saint Young Men (Comedy) Samurai Champloo (Action) Shiki (Horror/Drama) Monster (Mystery) Rose of Versailles (Very old, but romance/drama) Almost all of Satoshi Kon’s work (including Paranoia Agent) Ruroni Kenshin (Shounen) Yurii on Ice (Romance/drama)

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MelodiousFunk@slrpnk.net ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Loving all of the Odd Taxi mentions.

Planetes (sofa king good)

Hellsing

Area 88

Genshiken (adults but college setting)

Read or Die

Gundam 08th MS Team

Excel Saga (the main cast are all adults, but it’s a comedy and just about everyone is an idiot, so they won’t necessarily act like adults)

Gintama (main character is an adult, his sidekicks are not, but the majority of the cast is adult. Again, comedy, so maybe not “adult” enough lol)

Cowboy Bebop

Way of the Househusband

Gundam Thunderbolt

From my spouse:

Servant x Service

Not sure if it’s considered true anime, but Castlevania on Netflix was excellent.
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hisao@ani.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
New:

Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid

Odd Taxi

Psycho-Pass

Old:

Cowboy Bebop

Black Lagoon

Hellsing

Vampire Hunter D

Ghost in the Shell

Other:

JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure - characters look way more adult than they are
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- Unboxious@ani.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  
  JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure - characters look way more adult than they are
  
  One of my favorite moments was in part 5 when
  
  JJBA Part 5
  a character asks Giornio if he has a driver’s license and he goes, “Nope! I’m 15!”
  
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- BingBong@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  You’ve nailed some good ones here. It’s been a while since I’ve seen it but I believe Speed Grapher also fits the bill.
  
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Reverendender@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Big O

Ninja Scroll

Read or Die

Samurai Champloo

Berserk (OG)

Blue Gender

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TassieTosser@aussie.zone ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Genshiken Bartender Spice and Wolf The Fable Dungeon Meshi Goblin Slayer Saihate no Paladin Shirobako Psycho Pass Wotakoi Zom100 Golden Kamuy My Home Hero Kyokou Suiri Vinland Saga - He’s like 16 in the first half but grows up by the 2nd half. Isekai Ojisan Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Blue Period Megalo Box Samurai Champloo BNA Aria Ishuzoku Reviewers NHK no Youkoso Drifters Trigun Osomatsu-san

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- mo_lave@reddthat.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  That takes the record for the longest LN title /s
  
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  - TassieTosser@aussie.zone ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
    I swear I formatted it properly on mobile.
    
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parrhesia@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
A lot of people already mentioned the ones I know of and mostly I only know of older shows that were geared to an older audience :/

Outlaw Star? Anything made by Satoshi Kon texhnolyze Megalo Box Baccano? Legend of The Galactic Heroes

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apotheotic@beehaw.org ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid was pretty cozy, and features primarily adult characters.

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aeronmelon@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
A recent one I don’t see mentioned often: The Great Pretender

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- ALostInquirer@lemm.ee ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  For anyone else perusing this thread, don’t sleep on this one! It’s a solid recommendation. I’d watched it prior to seeing this comment, and its art style is slick as hell with an interesting story to boot.
  
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- papertowels@lemmy.one ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  A great one!
  
  If heists are your thing, definitely give the first arc a watch. It’s a handful of episodes for a complete standalone storyline.
  
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e0qdk@reddthat.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
A few off the top of my head: Shirobako. Space Dandy. Samurai Champloo. Ghost in the Shell: SAC.

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mo_lave@reddthat.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Shirobako

A Sign of Affection

Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju

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zabadoh@ani.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
(trying not to duplicate other mentions)

Current:

Ramen Akaneko - is a current show with working (adult) cats and a human running a ramen restaurant.

The Fable - is a current show that I classify as Yakuza noir, about a uh… idiot savant assassin? I love Yoko.

Kengan Ashura - Extremely violent bizarre macho underground fighters.

Recent:

Paripi Koumei/Ya Boy Kongming - An absolutely fantastic blast about making it in the music industry. All of the music is sooooo good! All major protagonists work in a bar.

Akiba Maid Sensou/Akiba Maid War - A parody of maid cafes operated like Yakuza gangs.

Brave Bang Bravern - was a pretty good farce of 90s super robot shows with all adult military guys as protagonists.

Glass Of God - was about godlike knowledge of bartending, so obviously no kids or teens there.
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ReluctantZen@feddit.nl ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Wotakoi, Black Lagoon, Baccano (I think?), 91 Days, Akudama Drive, Golden Kamuy, Hakata Tonkotsu Ramens, ID: Invaded, Dragon Maid, Spice and Wolf, Wave Listen To Me! to name a couple

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BreadstickNinja@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
The recent film Blue Giant is great. About a young man who moves to Tokyo from rural Japan to pursue his love of jazz. Great visuals and music.

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nyan@lemmy.cafe ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
A few older series I haven’t seen listed yet:

Ergo Proxy

Heat Guy J

Pumpkin Scissors (note: has Unfinished Manga Syndrome, so the story stops without reaching a proper climax. Still fun.)

Saiyuki (one of the four leads does look like a teen, so skip this one if that bothers you.)
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- Arcanum@midwest.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  Ergo Proxy is one of my favorite shows, period. Very mature, very thoughtful.
  
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Zurgo@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Dungeon meshi is a recent one that comes to mind

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- MentalEdge@sopuli.xyz ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  Obligatory !dungeonmeshi@ani.social
  
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AceFuzzLord@lemm.ee ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Call me a bit old fashioned, but Lupin III. Regardless of which part of movie, I tend to enjoy some of the sometimes wacky antics that occur.

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Enkers@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
I’d tentatively add Berserk to the list. Tentatively because the story does go back to recount the characters’ youths, but that’s really not the main focus.

Another good one with mostly adult cast and a more mature plot is Monster.

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HuntressHimbo@lemm.ee ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
This was harder to answer than I thought, pushing up to 20 eliminates a lot of contenders I think. I would say maybe Vinland Saga? The main character starts as a child, but it also covers a large time span so he hits twenty partway through the second season. Major recurring characters are almost all adults throughout. Its a semi-historical anime set mostly in England and Denmark during a war between the two. It’s a show that deals heavily with violence and trauma, has some very complex characters, and I can’t recommend it strongly enough

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- ALostInquirer@lemm.ee ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  
  This was harder to answer than I thought, pushing up to 20 eliminates a lot of contenders I think.
  
  Maybe so, though that’s why I tried to relax it with 18 and older as well as mostly vs only adults. If there’s some younger characters I don’t mind, but I thought I’d ask about anime with a primary cast of older characters for a little change of pace.
  
  Appreciate the suggestion!
  
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- Enkers@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
  I can’t second this one enough. Vinland Saga was absolutely fantastic.
  
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  - Endmaker@ani.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
    
    how much time it spends on the MC’s youth
    
    The rest of the cast are adults though, which fits the “mostly adult cast” requirement IMO
    
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kandoh@reddthat.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Golden Kamuy comes to mind.

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Vaeril@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
The Great Passage and Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju. The latter of which might start with them as kids but I feel like most of the show was with them being older.

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Restaldt@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
Vinland saga

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anyhow2503@lemmy.world ⁨2⁩ ⁨months⁩ ago
The new Bartender anime was pretty good.

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