Adult Anime
This was compiled from recommendations of friends and strangers of various anime series/movies that deal with adult/mature themes beyond the popular Shonen or Shoujo stuff.
The goal was to basically find what could be considered The Sopranos or Mad Men of anime, or at least Breaking Bad.
In retrospect, it was a dumb idea, these are not comparable mediums, which is why live action adaptations of anime fail all the time.
But the suggested names in this list is probably as you would get to, say, Sherlock or Firefly, a well written story with decent production value, told in a way that respects the viewer and aims to not just delight the viewer but also make him think, empathize, and maybe sob a little.
I took the liberty to rank the suggestions based on how much they fit the profile (according to me, an ignorant idiot), the lower a show is, the less it matches the profile. But ultimately they all fit the profile, more than anything else out there.
I've put the movies on the bottom of the list, for no reason in particular, and I've added comments from the suggestors (in bold), with any interesting related material mentioned. I've also commented on the few I've seen from this list (not in bold).
The goal was to basically find what could be considered The Sopranos or Mad Men of anime, or at least Breaking Bad.
In retrospect, it was a dumb idea, these are not comparable mediums, which is why live action adaptations of anime fail all the time.
But the suggested names in this list is probably as you would get to, say, Sherlock or Firefly, a well written story with decent production value, told in a way that respects the viewer and aims to not just delight the viewer but also make him think, empathize, and maybe sob a little.
I took the liberty to rank the suggestions based on how much they fit the profile (according to me, an ignorant idiot), the lower a show is, the less it matches the profile. But ultimately they all fit the profile, more than anything else out there.
I've put the movies on the bottom of the list, for no reason in particular, and I've added comments from the suggestors (in bold), with any interesting related material mentioned. I've also commented on the few I've seen from this list (not in bold).
List activity
18K views
• 155 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
57 titles
- CreatorNaoki UrasawaStarsHidenobu KiuchiLiam O'BrienMamiko NotoTenma, a brilliant neurosurgeon with a promising future, risks his career to save the life of a critically wounded young boy. The boy, now a charismatic young man, reappears 9 years later in the midst of a string of unusual serial murders.My sole contribution to this list, a buddy of mine has been trying to get me to watch it for years, he swears it's the proof that Anime can be as good as any HBO show.
- CreatorShin'ichirô WatanabeStarsKôichi YamaderaUnshô IshizukaMegumi HayashibaraThe futuristic misadventures and tragedies of an easygoing bounty hunter and his partners.
- DirectorMizuho NishikuboMamoru OshiiStarsAtsuko TanakaIemasa KayumiAkio ÔtsukaA cyborg policewoman and her partner hunt a mysterious and powerful hacker called the Puppet Master.and the series: Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (2002)
- StarsYûto NakanoTravis WillinghamKôjun ItôGinko is an expert travelling around to investigate a primeval life-form, the "Mushi," and helping people with Mushi-related supernatural problems.
Ginko is a man, a man who has *seen some 5hit* Mushi are the spiritual basis of all life, and are everywhere, and, like prions, can sometimes really *beep* our humanity to shreds. This anime is a delicate, poisonous flower to watch, and bewitches the more sensitive souls. It primarily stars adults, or children thrust into adult/incomprehensible situations, and tends to quell the unfilled soul.
Sequel: Mushi-Shi: Next Passage (2014) - CreatorHideaki AnnoStarsMegumi OgataMegumi HayashibaraKotono MitsuishiA teenage boy finds himself recruited as a member of an elite team of pilots by his father.
- StarsKôki UchiyamaAaron DismukeMicah SolusodFive ping pong prodigies learn to navigate the harsh climate of competitive sport and the even more frightening realm of self realization.
- StarsMayo SuzukazeJunko IwaoNozomu SasakiIn the era of Japan's Meiji Restoration, an assassin regains his humanity.Sounds outright like a sob story, not exactly a negative thing or a criticism, but if you've seen a couple emotionally-manipulative-movie-or-show you've seen all emotionally-manipulative-movies-or-shows. They all have the same endgame.
Doesn't detract anything from the fact that it's a good anime (according to people, I've not seen it yet). - CreatorShin'ichirô WatanabeStarsKazuya NakaiGinpei SatoAyako KawasumiFuu, a waitress who works in a teahouse, rescues two master swordsmen, Mugen and Jin, from their execution to help her find the "samurai who smells of sunflowers."I've seen this one, it's so unique you can't even imagine it working in any medium other than Anime. It also has, probably, the best use of iphop music in any entertainment content.
- StarsShintarô AsanumaHiroyuki YoshinoRin MizuharaWhen a nameless student at Kyoto University encounters a demigod one night, he asks to relive the past three years in order to win the heart of Ms. Akashi, the object of his affection.Another emotionally-manipulative-story, still could be good.
- StarsAi MaedaRyuji AigaseKelli CousinsYoung world-weary sharpshooter girl Kino and her talking inquisitive motorcycle Hermes travel around her unusual world, visiting various city-states for three days each to learn about their culture, history and ruling philosophy.
Kino travels on a motorcycle to experience nations of radically different cultures for three days each.
Now, that's more like it! - CreatorKentaro MiuraStarsMarc DiraisonNobutoshi CannaCarrie KeranenGuts, a wandering mercenary, joins the Band of the Hawk after being defeated in a duel by Griffith, the group's leader and founder. Together, they dominate every battle, but something menacing lurks in the shadows.
the 1990's series - avoid the newer 5hit like the plague
the guys kept selling me on the manga, I'm more likely to give it a shot before watching the anime. - StarsKengo KawanishiKhoi DaoAi KayanoA 17 year old socially awkward orphaned shogi player, dealing with adult problems like financial difficulties, loneliness, and depression.Whaaat? a highschooler in anime with problems other than a crush on a girl?
I thought these didn't exist. - CreatorShûkô MuraseStarsKôji YusaAkiko YajimaLiam O'BrienIn a post-apocalyptic future humans live in peace with androids in a domed city. However, a strange series of murders has intruded into bored inspector Re-l Mayer's life.
- CreatorYuzuru TachikawaStarsJamie MarchiAlex OrganAsami SetoAfter death, humans go to either heaven or hell. But for some, at the instant of their death, they arrive at the Quindecim, a bar attended by the mysterious white-haired Decim.
Stories about morality and sin.
- CreatorYasuyuki UedaStarsKaori ShimizuBridget HoffmanDan LorgeStrange things start happening when a withdrawn girl named Lain becomes obsessed with an interconnected virtual realm known as "The Wired".
- StarsJun FukuyamaAmi KoshimizuJ. Michael TatumKraft Lawrence goes from town to town to make profits as a travelling merchant, with the help of a wolf deity by the name of Holo.
A merchant/economist travels around with a wolf spirit/economist and solve economic and trade and diplomatic problems in various communities.
- CreatorYasuhiro YoshiuraStarsTomokazu SugitaMiyuki SawashiroJun FukuyamaIn the not too distant future androids have come into common usage. Taking the androids for granted, humans treat them as if they were common everyday tools, while on the other hand, some people empathize with androids due to their human-like appearance (save for a digital ring floating above their heads). This has become a social problem and these people are frowned upon as a result. Rikuo, one who has taken androids for granted for his entire life, one day discovers that Sammy, his home android, has been acting strangely and finds a strange phrase recorded in her activity log. He, along with his friend Masaki, traces Sammy's footsteps and come upon an unusual café.
- StarsKazunari TanakaSatsuki YukinoAi OrikasaAi Tanabe joins the Debris Section of the Technora Corporation as they work to remove the debris left around Earth. As Ai tries to accommodate to space life, she learns more about her crew on the dilapidated 'Toy Box'.
- StarsMamoru MiyanoAsami ImaiKana HanazawaAfter discovering time travel, a university student and his colleagues must use their knowledge of it to stop an evil organization and their diabolical plans.
whether or not you like sci-fi themes, I'm going to have to go ahead and recommend Steins;gate. The premise lies in some advanced college students dealing with time travel and its implications across the multiverse, hopping from timeline to timeline, seeking some sort of resolution to the flaws in their original place and only finding, idk, horror or causality or something. Still. The content is mature in nature.
- CreatorShin'ichirô WatanabeStarsKaito IshikawaSôma SaitôAtsumi TanezakiTokyo has been decimated by a terrorist attack, the only clue to the culprit's identity is a bizarre internet video. Two mysterious children form Sphinx, a clandestine entity determined to pull the trigger on this world.
Story about some terrorists and their motives.
- DirectorYoshiaki KawajiriStarsKôichi YamaderaEmi ShinoharaTakeshi AonoA vagabond swordsman is aided by a kunoichi and a spy in battling a demonic clan of killers - led by a ghost from his past - who are bent on overthrowing the Tokugawa Shogunate.
- StarsEmily NevesGreg AyresDavid WaldIn a post-apocalyptic world set a thousand years after our era, the remaining humans, now with telekinesis, live in a seemingly peaceful society, but dark secrets of the past will soon be discovered by a small group of friends.
a series that was truly endowed with excellent storytelling, From the New World (Shinsekai Yori). Youths born into a society formed well after an apocalyptic epidemic manifest powers. They grow up and realize that the truths of their society are flimsy, and the construction of their reality is spoiled. The process of their various levels of education is so very well-written.
Reminds me a little bit of Wool (short story), which is a good thing (unlike the follow-up short stories of Wool). - CreatorYoshitoshi AbeStarsRyô HirohashiJunko NodaEri MiyajimaA young girl is reborn as an angel-like creature called a haibane, with no memory of who she once was.
People hatch from cocoon eggs and have wings. They live in a small community within a sheltered town and try to come to terms with their beingness and sense of belonging. This description defies the actual contents of the anime. It's actually one of my favorites of all time.
- StarsMamiko NotoMamoru MiyanoDaisuke NamikawaThe story of a man who struggles with relating to humans. The man feels utterly detached from everything that makes one truly human. A truly harrowing portrait of brokenness, made all the more frightening for how relatable it is.
this is only for a master of literary patience and adulthood, Aoi Bungaku, aka Blue Literature. It features six anime-adapted short stories from Japanese literature. The themes encapsulate beauty, narcissism, suicide, terror, murder, and plenty of other adult qualities. It's the kind of literature that my mother would have told me that I couldn't check out from the library when I was 15. It's a slow burn through them, but truly rich.
We don't have a public library so I don't know what he's talking about, but sure, I'll check it out. - StarsRikiya KoyamaKôhei KiyasuSteve StaleyIppo, a teenage boy with a pure heart and unrelenting determination, discovers a passion for boxing after veteran fighter Takamura saves him from bullies.