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Adult anime characters who look like kids are a very common trope in the medium, particularly in shonen. This is mostly due to Japanese culture and their interpretation of humor, but it is something that fans all over the world are now used to. This is so prevalent a trope, that when talking about their favorite series, most fans can come up with one or two adult anime characters who look like kids.
Here, we take a look at ten such characters from anime.
Disclaimer: This article contains spoilers for the series on this list.
Meliodas and nine other adult anime characters that resemble kids
1. Biscuit Krueger (Hunter X Hunter)
Biscuit is one of the most notorious examples of this trope in modern anime. She is a veteran Hunter who completed the exam 40 years ago and has kept herself young through her own Nen abilities, which is often used as comic relief in the series when Killua Zoldyck calls her “old hag” to nag her.
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She meets Gon Freecs and Killua during the Greed Island arc and proves to be quite helpful in teaching them more about the uses of Nen in the series, which is something she does once again during the Chimera Ants arc.
Her real physical form is that of a tall, muscular woman, but she is ashamed of that and tries to keep it a secret in Hunter X Hunter.
2. Jotaro Kujo (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure)
This might be an exception to the rule because Jotaro never looks like a kid in the series, but his case is still worth pointing out. Back when he first made his debut as a 17-year-old as the protagonist of the third part in JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, titled Stardust Crusaders, Jotaro Kujo had the looks and body of an adult. Additionally, in the sixth part, Stone Ocean, he has the looks of a teenager but he is in his 40s.
Jotaro’s aging has been a topic of discussion among fans of the series, mostly for comedic purposes, but it is a very interesting case, nonetheless. It is probably due to the evolution of author Hirohiko Araki as an artist.
Jotaro is the most prominent character in the franchise, having featured in four parts and playing a key role in three of them.
3. Meliodas (The Seven Deadly Sins)
When thinking about adult anime characters that look like kids, Meliodas, the protagonist of The Seven Deadly Sins, is one of the best examples. He is a man who has been cursed with immortality - every time he dies, he comes alive once more, but with his emotions slowly slipping away.
Meliodas looks like a kid that is slowly entering puberty while he is more than 3,000 years old, which is a very good example of this trope in the genre.
4. Toshiro Hitsugaya (Bleach)
Toshiro Hitsugaya is one of the Captains in the Gotei 13 in Soul Society and one of the biggest prodigies among the Soul Reapers, despite the fact that he looks like one of those adult anime characters who resemble children. In fact, Toshiro’s looks are often the cause for comic relief.
Soul Reapers in Bleach have a longer lifespan because they are now spirits living in the afterlife, which is why Toshiro looks like a kid, but he is actually over 100 years old. However, that doesn’t stop him from being one of the most powerful ice users in the entire series.
5. Koenma (Yu Yu Hakusho)
There are adult anime characters that look like kids and then there is Koenma from Yu Yu Hakusho. He is the prince of Spirit World and is the one in charge of running it in his father’s name, giving protagonist Yusuke Urameshi a second chance at life and the opportunity to become the Spirit Detective.
Koenma, who is one of the most important characters in the series, is also over 700 years old and looks like a baby, which is something he is mocked for. This becomes such a prominent part of his character that he eventually creates an adult form to stop people from annoying him.
6. C.C. (Code Geass)
C.C. does look more like a teenager but still fits within the trope of adult anime characters that look like kids. She is the one who grants protagonist Lelouch the Geass eye in Code Geass and is always supporting him in his mission to take down the Britannia Empire.
She received the Geass of Immortality back during medieval times, which caused her to stop aging when she was around 16 years old. However, she is actually over 500 years old and is one of the oldest characters in the entire series.
7. Kinue Hayase (Masamune-kun's Revenge)
There are a lot of adult anime characters that look like kids but Kinue Hayase of Masamune-kun’s Revenge fame could be the prime example of this. While she is a mother of two in her forties, she actually resembles a 12-year-old, which has often been a cause for discomfort in the series.
She is a very upbeat lady with a flirtatious personality, which often leads to her embarrassing her kids in the process.
8. Tsukuyomi Komoe (A Certain Magical Index)
There are very few examples of childish looking adult anime characters that are as appropriate as Tsukuyomi Komoe from A Certain Magical Index. She doesn’t look older than a ten-year-old, but is actually a homeroom teacher for Class 7 in the series, which shows that she is a lot older than she looks.
Tsukuyomi’s age is never mentioned in the series, so it is not clear how old she is, but considering that she is working as a school teacher, she must be at least in her early twenties.
9. Najimi Ajimu (Medaka Box)
Najimi from Medaka Box definitely takes the award for adult anime characters that look like kids. Not only does she look like a high schooler, she also happens to be 3,402,193,822,311 years old!
Besides that, Najimi is one of the most powerful characters in the medium in terms of powers, as she can time travel, see what other people are watching, nullify abilities, switch abilities, and do a lot more. She is a figure covered in mystery in the series and her age alone is enough evidence of that.
10. Kanata Izumi (Lucky Star)
Kanata Izumi from Lucky Star represents this trope of adult anime characters that look like kids. While she seems like a 12-year-old girl, she has kids and has been married, which goes to show how old she really is.
It has to be mentioned that Kanata’s age has never been stated in the series, but she is, at least, in her twenties, which is saying a lot when one takes into consideration how she looks.
Final thoughts
Adult anime characters that look like kids are a trope that has become quite common in the medium over the years and, as this list shows, there is a variety of genres and storytelling involving these examples.
It is something that is connected with Japanese culture and while that might not be understood in other places, it is an element that is now fairly common within the anime genre.
