Animation (and Comics) after 30
Rules:
- While this is a community for animation and comic fans over 30 years of age, younger visitors are welcome to participate too on the condition that they identify themselves as "under 30" in all posts and comments.
- Be kind. Recognize that not everyone will share your taste in media. If you're going to be mean or snarky about a series you dislike, explain what you didn't like about it (one man's trash is another man's masterpiece).
- NSFW is allowed, but NO PORN please! This isn't a community for that kind of "mature" animation...
Are you:
- At least 30 years old?
- A fan of animation (eastern or western)?
- A fan of comics (eastern or western, print or web)?
- Looking for more series that appeal to an older demographic?
Do you feel like high school dramas and edgelord power fantasies just don't provide you with the same entertainment value they did when you were younger? Are you skeeved out by panty shots and lewd angles of girls young enough to be your daughter? Perhaps you're bored by the "will they won't they" of a bunch of kids freaking out over their first kiss. Maybe everything is starting to feel like a slurry of tired old tropes. But if despite all this you still enjoy the drawn medium, even after aging out of its key demographic, welcome!
Let's help each other find some animation/comics that are a bit more age-appropriate (or at least that don't make you go "hey, isn't this just a repackaged version of [series from 20 years ago]?"). Reviews, recommendations, requests, laments, memes all welcome.
Other communities of relevance:
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I'd consider anything that falls under the category of "you haven't watched X!? You really should, it's excellent and/or a cultural touchstone" to be in the "must-watch for the general public" list. On Netflix right now I think The Good Place is a must-watch, Glass Onion is almost a must-watch (because has there been another movie made that better encapsulated the 2020 experience?), Blazing Saddles is a classic that aged surprisingly well, Arrested Development's classic seasons are fantastic comedy, and Key & Peele is solid sketch comedy. On the animated side, Bojack Horseman is brilliant (and a must-watch for anyone interested in western animation), and many aspects of Arcane are straight-up exemplary (especially starting with episode 3). Beyond that I think it comes down to taste; for instance I thought Tuca & Bertie was pretty good and definitely unique, but not something I'd recommend to anyone and everyone. On the anime side Neon Genesis Evangelion is basically required watching for anime fans (it and Cowboy Bebop have remained classics for over 25 years for good reason).
I don't know what to recommend for hard sci-fi shows, partly because I prefer soft sci-fi, and partly because I don't think there are a lot of hard sci-fi shows out there (afaik they usually don't get much harder than Altered Carbon). Although I'm a bit fuzzy on where to draw the line on hard vs soft...
Arcane is one I was thinking to post here; I was trying to decide if it fits! I feel like the ending is supposed to be this dramatic moment, and it is; but I was mostly feeling like these poor kids (young adults) have lost all their role models and anyone from the older generation who might help them...
My go-to hard sci-fi recommendation is always The Expanse! I'm still catching up past the second season (read the full series), but I've really liked what I've seen so far!
FWIW I think Arcane fits this community just fine. Yes many of the characters are on the young side, but the story doesn't focus on teenage cliches, at least not after episode 3 (much of the plot has to do with navigating the world of politics, class warfare, morality in terrorism, etc).
For the purposes of this community, I think the only deciding factors are: 1) is it animated? and 2) are you over 30 and enjoyed it, and think other over-30s would enjoy it too?