![]() | The examples and perspective in this article may not represent a worldwide view of the subject.(September 2021) |
This is a list of adult animated television series before 1990 (including streaming television series); that is, animated programs targeted towards audiences aged 18 and over in mind. Works in this medium could be considered adult for any number of reasons, which include the incorporation of explicit or suggestive sexual content, graphic violence, profane language, dark humour, or other thematic elements inappropriate for children. Works in this genre may explore philosophical, political, or social issues. Some productions are noted for their complex and/or experimental storytelling and animation techniques. Adult animation is typically defined as animation which skews toward adults. [1] [2] [3] [4] It is also described as something that "formative youths should stay far, far away from" [5] or has adult humor [6] [7] and comes in various styles, [8] [9] [10] [11] but especially sitcoms and comedies. [12] These animations can also "appeal to wide swaths of viewers," including those aged 18–34. [13] [14] AdWeek called adult animation "animated projects aimed at grown-ups, not kids." [15]
In North America, there is children's animation, adult animation, and young adult animation, with various mature animations in the United States, especially in television series. This page mainly includes series in North America and Europe, on programming blocks such as Adult Swim, Animation Domination, Adult Swim (in Canada), and others, with other mature animations, including web series and animated films covered on other pages. These series should not be confused with cartoon pornography or hentai.
Title | Genre | Seasons/episodes | Show creator(s) | Original release | Network | Studio | Age rating | Technique | Source |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Flintstones | Sitcom | 6 seasons, 166 episodes | William Hanna | September 30, 1960 – April 1, 1966 | ABC | Hanna-Barbera | TV-G | Traditional | [16] |
Joseph Barbera | |||||||||
Where's Huddles? | Sitcom | 1 season, 10 episodes | William Hanna | July 1, 1970 – September 2, 1970 | CBS | Hanna-Barbera | TV-G | Traditional | [17] |
Joseph Barbera | |||||||||
Wait Till Your Father Gets Home | Sitcom | 3 seasons, 48 episodes | William Hanna | September 12, 1972 – October 8, 1974 | Syndication | Hanna-Barbera | TV-Y7 | Traditional | [18] |
Joseph Barbera | |||||||||
Jokebook | Animated comedy | 1 season, 3 episodes | William Hanna | April 23, 1982 - May 7, 1982 | NBC | Hanna-Barbera | TV-NR | Traditional | [19] |
Joseph Barbera | |||||||||
The Simpsons | Sitcom | 34 seasons, 750 episodes | Matt Groening | December 17, 1989 – present | Fox | Gracie Films | TV-PG | Traditional | [20] |
20th Television Animation | TV-14 [lower-alpha 1] |
Title | Genre | Seasons/episodes | Show creator(s) | Original release | Network | Studio | Source |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Dick Spanner, P.I. | Comedy | 1 season, 22 episodes | Terry Adlam | 1986 – 1987 | Channel 4 | Virgin Group | [21] |
Adult Swim is a prime time and late night programming block broadcast by the American basic cable channel Cartoon Network. The block features stylistically varied animated and live-action series targeting a young adult audience, including original programming, syndicated series, and short films with generally minimal or no editing for content. Adult Swim is programmed by Williams Street, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Television Studios that also produces much of the block's original programming.
Home Movies is an American animated sitcom created by Brendon Small and Loren Bouchard. The show centers on an eight-year-old aspiring filmmaker, also named Brendon Small, who makes homemade film productions in his spare time with his friends Melissa Robbins and Jason Penopolis. He lives with his divorced mother Paula and his adopted baby sister Josie. He develops a skewed father-son-like relationship with his alcoholic, short-tempered soccer coach, John McGuirk.
Space Ghost Coast to Coast is an American adult animated comedy late-night talk show created by Mike Lazzo for Cartoon Network and hosted by a re-imagined version of the 1960s Hanna-Barbera cartoon character Space Ghost. It is the first TV show to be produced by Williams Street, the company to start up Adult Swim in the early 2000s. In contrast to the original 1960s series, Space Ghost, which aired as a standard Hanna-Barbera Saturday-morning superhero cartoon, Space Ghost Coast to Coast is a reboot and sequel of the series intended for teens and adults, reinterpreted as a surreal spoof talk show and animated using the original series' artwork. Early seasons are more of a parody of late-night talk shows, while later seasons rely more on surrealism and non-sequitur humor.
Adult animation, also known as mature animation, and infrequently as adult-oriented animation, is any type of animated motion work that is catered specifically to adult interests, and is mainly targeted and marketed towards adults and adolescents, as opposed to children or all-ages audiences. Works in this medium could be considered adult for any number of reasons, which include the incorporation of nudity, explicit or suggestive sexual content, graphic violence, profanity, dark comedy, or other thematic elements inappropriate for children, and/or any young viewers. Works in this genre may explore philosophical, political, or social issues. Some productions are noted for their complex and/or experimental storytelling and animation techniques. This includes animated films, television series, and web series.
An animated sitcom is a subgenre of the sitcom that is animated instead of live action and is generally made or created for adult audiences in most cases. The Simpsons, South Park, and Family Guy are three of the longest-running animated sitcoms.
Stoopid Buddy Stoodios is an American production company and animation studio, formed by Seth Green, Matthew Senreich, John Harvatine IV, and Eric Towner. It was established in 2011 following the partnership of Stoopid Monkey, which had been founded in 2005, and Buddy Systems Studios. It is one of the producers of the Adult Swim animated television series Robot Chicken and Titan Maximum as well as SuperMansion on the streaming service Crackle and Buddy Thunderstruck on Netflix.
Cartoon Network is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, Cartoonito, Adult Swim, and Toonami under its purview. The channel is headquartered at 1050 Techwood Drive NW in Atlanta, Georgia.
Adult Swim is a Canadian English language discretionary specialty channel owned by Showcase Television, Inc., a subsidiary of Corus Entertainment. The channel primarily airs animated- and live-action comedies targeting a teenage and young adult audience.
Rick and Morty is an American adult animated science fiction sitcom created by Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon for Cartoon Network's nighttime programming block Adult Swim. The series follows the misadventures of Rick Sanchez, a cynical mad scientist, and his good-hearted but fretful grandson Morty Smith, who split their time between domestic life and interdimensional adventures that take place across an infinite number of realities, often traveling to other planets and dimensions through portals and on Rick's flying saucer. The general concept of Rick and Morty relies on two conflicting scenarios: domestic family drama, and a misanthropic grandfather dragging his grandson into hijinks.
Super Drags is a Brazilian adult animated comedy streaming television series created by Anderson Mahanski, Fernando Mendonça and Paulo Lescaut for Netflix.
The Boondocks is an unproduced American adult animated sitcom created by Aaron McGruder and loosely based upon his comic strip of the same name. Produced by Sony Pictures Animation, it was conceived as the second television series based on the comic, following the 2005–2014 TV series that aired on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim programming block for four seasons. The series was set to premiere on HBO Max before development failed to get off the ground.
Cartuna is a Brooklyn-based animation production company that has made animated TV Shows for Syfy, Comedy Central and Facebook Watch. The company has producers, all of which have their own unique style.
In the United States, before the enforcement of the Hays Code, some cartoon shorts contained humor that was aimed at adult audience members rather than children. Following the introduction of the Motion Picture Association of America film rating system, independent animation producers attempted to establish an alternative to mainstream animation. Initially, few animation studios in the United States attempted to produce animation for adult audiences, but later examples of animation produced for adults would gain mainstream attention and success. Adult animation in the United States includes shows with superhero, sci-fi, and fantasy elements. Some of the most prominent animations with these mature themes include The Simpsons, BoJack Horseman, South Park, Futurama, and Archer, along with other adult animated television series, feature films, and animation in other forms which helped the genre expand over the years, beyond animated sitcoms.