Ask John: Why are Anime Characters so Young?

Question:
A lot of the anime I’ve encountered has the main characters being young teenagers. In shows like Sailor Moon, I find this understandable, but even in more serious anime that seems more aimed towards adults, the characters are still young. In Gundam Wing, the pilots are all 15. In Evangelion, the pilots are 14. Lain is 13. Is there any particular reason for this?

Answer:
I honestly can’t provide a scientific answer to your question. All that I can do is provide my own highly subjective impressions on the question. First of all, as you’ve stated, teen-age characters are neither the rule nor the exception in anime, but many, many shows, such as the examples you’ve provided, do feature young protagonists. My best guess at an explanation would be this. It’s easier to identify and empathize with someone younger than yourself than someone older. When a viewer watches a movie or television show and sees a character older than him or herself, the viewer can wonder what he or she would do in that situation when he/she gets there in the future. If an on-screen character is younger than the viewer, the viewer can think, “I remember being that age and thinking that/feeling that way/doing that.” The reflection on personal experience allows for greater, more personalized characterization, in some ways. It allows the writer to base characters on his/her own previous experiences, and it allows the viewer to imbue characters with personal significance.

Allow me to add a few other explanations or possible related causes. Anime is, after all, mainly intended for children, teens and young adults, so it’s naturally easier to capture a target audience by integrating with the target age group. You specifically mentioned anime series seemingly created for older viewers, though, so I won’t dwell on this possible explanation. One other reason why anime shows may often feature young protagonists is because it’s simply easier to believe that young people would be involved in such physical, fantastic, highly technological adventures. Simply because young people are still in their development stages and are both literally and mentally more flexible than adults, it’s easier to believe in a 15 year old piloting a giant robot than a 35 year old. It’s easier to imagine and accept the fantasy of the 15 year old Lina Inverse arbitrarily hurling fireballs than a woman old enough to be your mother casting a dragon slave.