Over the past few decades with the advancement of technology, animated shows have become more advanced and numerous. It is now easier than ever to make quality content with award-winninganimationas the technology makes the impossible possible. Between the creation of new adultanimated series likeInside Joband the never-ending release of advanced animated films likeRaya and the Last Dragon, animation is carving its own spot in the media.
While animated shows have picked up quite a bit of traction, there is one aspect to these shows that has some people frustrated: aging. It’s a bit of an unwritten rule that, in animated shows, the characters don’t age, and therefore their physical appearances remain the same — just like how the charactersnever change clothes. The biggest reason for this is to make it easier on the animators to maintain the look of the characters without having to worry about changing their design. That being said, there are some exceptions to the rule. Here are 6 animated shows where the characters actually do age.
6Dragon Ball
Dragon Ballis the original animated series that introduced Goku and the characters that would later become iconic inthe anime community. As one of the first anime to bring the genre to the mainstream,Dragon Ballrevolves around a young Goku and Bulma as they venture off to find seven Dragon Balls to summon the dragon Shenron. As the series progresses, the characters get visibly older, which, in turn, affects their actions. This show would later spawn the even more popularDragon Ball Z, which follows Goku as an adult. Needless to say, theDragon Ballfranchise is a fan of the realistic aspect of aging their characters.
Related:Every Avatar in the Animated Franchise We’ve Been Introduced to (So Far), Ranked
An overlooked and underrated animated show isReBoot, a Canadian animated series that follows Guardian Non and his companions, Dot and her little brother Enzo, as they keep the Mainframe safe from viruses. The series was profoundly unique, which earned it a hearty four-season run. One of the best aspects of the series was that when the characters “upgraded,” they got more mature and advanced. These upgrades can be equated to the aging process as each time Enzo upgraded, he got physically and emotionally more mature. Eventually, the young boy Enzo winds up turning into a muscular hunk of a man.
4Attack on Titan
Arguably one of the most popular animes to ever hit the screens isAttack on Titan. When the wall surrounding the humans' safe-zone is torn down by a Titan, soldier Eren witnesses his mother get killed before his very eyes. This trauma prompts him to make a vow that he will kill every Titan, enlisting a number of survivors, including Armin, Mikasa, and Levi, to help him save humanity from extinction. At the beginning of the series, Eren was 10 years old when the Wall was breached, and as the seasons progress, the years float by, and by the time the fourth season comes around, Eren was 19 years old.
3Avatar: The Last Airbender
Avatar: The Last Airbendertells the story of Aang, the long-lost Avatar, who can control all four elements, and his journey to protect their world from domination from the Fire Nation. While the series only ran for three seasons, its popularity earned it its own live-action feature film and spawned the creation of a sequel series and, now, three moreanimated projects in productionat Paramount. One of the reasonsThe Last Airbenderstands out so much is because, over the course of the three seasons, every main character ages, with Aang aging up from age 12 to 13, showing both physical and emotional differences. Considering that this is the standard, Paramount seemed to make it clear that they’re going to maintain this aging in the new content.
Related:Avatar: The Last Airbender: 15 Quintessential Episodes to Watch, Ranked
2Naruto: Shippuden
As one of the most popular anime to ever come into existence,Narutohas truly made a name for itself. Revolving around Naruto Uzumaki, a ninja in training who is determined to hone his skills alongside his colleagues Sasuke and Sakura. With the help of his mentor Kakashi,Narutostands out in the mass of anime on the market.Naruto: Shippudenis a sequel series to the originalNarutoand shows the characters physically aged from how they originally appeared. While it’s not uncommon for anime to show characters getting physically older,Narutoapproached the aging process with grace, showing how the relationships between the characters have evolved as they’ve gotten older, showing both the physical and emotional maturing process.
1King of the Hill
King of the Hillwas an animated sitcom that ran for a total of 13 seasons. The series revolved around Hank, Peggy, and Bobby Hill, a stereotypical Texan family that functions within an ever-changing world. The series targeted a number of mundane aspects of life that often are neglected in the media, including political correctness and puberty. Puberty was shown through Bobby’s friend and neighbor Joseph, who physically changes as the series progresses, going through puberty as Joseph begins to get facial hair and view girls in a different light. While Joseph may have been the only character to show real differences in the show, it’s clear that some time has passed, making each character on the show older.
