Animated series and television in general has evolved in drastic ways over the past few decades, and Netflix’s BoJack Horseman is one of the better examples of the levels of pathos and stark sadness that some cartoons can deliver. Animated series still carry a bit of a stigma that they’re meant for a younger audience, but adult animated series are telling some of the most progressive stories on television at the moment.
BoJack Horseman’s confident and acclaimed run is now over, but there are still many other animated series that explore a comparable level of sadness. Sometimes there’s nothing like a good cry, and these cartoons are guaranteed to not disappoint in that department.
10 Tuca & Bertie Explores Female Friendship & Emotional Frailty
Tuca & Bertie comes from Lisa Hanawalt, the production designer and producer of BoJack Horseman, and there’s immediately a lot in common between the two series. There are comparable animation styles and worlds that both feature anthropomorphic animals and objects, but Tuca & Bertie is also an animated series that’s raw and honest. The central characters navigate territories like depression, co-dependence, toxic relationships, and even sexual abuse. Tuca & Bertie’s debut season even feels more fully formed than BoJack’s and thankfully Adult Swim has saved the former Netflix series from cancellation.
9 Moral Orel Features An Entire Community That’s Corrupt & Dysfunctional
It’s become somewhat of a trend for adult animated series to suddenly inject a sobering dose of reality and head in a sad direction. However, Moral Orel wasn’t just incredibly ahead of the curve in this department, but it’s also one of the most depressing series that’s ever been made. The claymation Adult Swim series initially looks like a subversion of Davey and Goliath and other chaste afterschool programming. Moral Orel is so much more, both in terms of its intricate world of flawed figures, and its painful look into a broken marriage and its toxic effects on the family.
8 Layered Storytelling Makes The Venture Bros.’ Characters Feel Real & Raw
Adult Swim recently announced the cancellation of The Venture Bros., and fans are still in shock over the announcement. Venture Bros. is such a staple of the network, and it’s slowly formed such a dense and serialized story that it seems almost disrespectful to prematurely end that journey.
The Venture Bros. is a brilliant deconstruction of superhero tropes and older serialized storytelling, but the revelations around its characters are often highly emotional. The series puts in the work so that the losses are truly felt, and the characters don’t exactly have easy or conventional lives.
7 Lucid Thoughts & Animation Make The Midnight Gospel Hit Like A Sledgehammer
Duncan Trussell’s The Midnight Gospel is a more recent animated series to hit Netflix that’s a psychedelic trip in every sense of the word. There are plenty of reasons to love The Midnight Gospel, and its constantly evolving and chaotic animation style turns every episode into a visual masterpiece. Around these surreal images are genuine and provoking conversations on topics like happiness, death, and the basics of the human condition. There’s a real catharsis that the series generates and Clancy is pushed to some very painful, but necessary, places during his voyages of self-discovery.
6 Futurama Has A Powerful Emotional Core That Occasionally Presents Itself
Futurama has found a rabid and passionate community of fans that have helped the sci-fi series come back to life and have quite the healthy and creative run. Futurama slowly moves from out of the shadow of The Simpsons and some even prefer it because of its more consistent and ambitious run of episodes. Futurama typically leans towards comedy and the absurd, but some of the series’ best episodes are emotional gut punches. The series gets surprisingly poignant and any exploration into Fry’s character yields satisfying results.
5 Adventure Time Honestly Allows Its Characters To Grow & Change
Adventure Time is one of Cartoon Network’s biggest hits, and it may have a younger demographic initially in mind, but there’s no denying that the series evolves into a much more methodical and challenging cartoon.
Jake and Finn’s quests remain a constant element of the show, but the characters actually age, which allows them remarkable foresight into themselves and the paths that life has taken them down. Adventure Time isn’t afraid to ask difficult questions and change its characters in painful, albeit believable, ways. The latest continuations push this energy even more.
4 Rick & Morty Uses Sci-Fi Hijinks As A Coping Mechanism For Human Flaws
Rick and Morty’s priority is definitely to generate laughs or push the limits of structure and storytelling in ways that are as clever as the science within the animated series. Rick and Morty begins as a celebration of science fiction shenanigans through space and alternate universes, but this broad tone makes its emotional beats hit even harder. Rick and Morty has featured more serialization and found ways to make melodrama hit on an emotional level, yet also strengthen the comedy that’s around it. It’s a hilarious series, but one that’s not without its share of heartbreak.
3 Steven Universe Turns Into A Stunning Dissection Of Identity
Steven Universe is another seemingly deceptive animated series that aired on Cartoon Network but tells a story that progressively develops and reaches very emotional and mature places. There's a friendly and action-heavy plot to Steven Universe where Steven works alongside Gems, an ageless race of alien warriors, to fight against the various obstacles that plague their world. The growth of both Steven Universe the series and the character is remarkable, and it explores heavy questions on gender and identity that definitely get an emotional reaction built across the show's five seasons.
2 Solar Opposites’ Wall Storyline Is An Emotional Tour De Force
Solar Opposites comes from some of the creative team behind Rick and Morty, and there are definitely similarities between the shows. However, Solar Opposites finds a successful fish out of water angle that allows its cast to shine. Solar Opposites isn’t averse to dramatic storytelling and sad twists in its main stories, but the background narrative around the community within a wall of shrunken communities oddly becomes Solar Opposites’ emotional center. The Wall storylines are full of heartbreak, betrayal, and mass casualties that culminate in a manner that’s often stronger than the series’ core premise
1 Primal Tells A Beautiful Story Between Man & Beast Without Words
Genndy Tartakovsky is one of the most talented names who is currently working in animation, and the Samurai Jack creator has arguably made his best work yet with Adult Swim’s Primal. Primal is already top-tier television that tells a tender story between a caveman and a dinosaur as they embark on dangerous prehistoric adventures together. The bond between Spear and Fang is so sweet, and it brings major anxiety to any conflict that their union experiences. The most impressive thing about Primal is that the show is done entirely without dialogue, yet Spear and Fang still feel fully formed.
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