There are plenty of cartoons made for adults, but a lot of cartoons back in the day were either ridiculous enough for children and adults (Rocko’s Modern Life, Ren and Stimpy etc). Or, dealt with some serious issues some children might not have been able to comprehend if they weren’t personally going through said issues.

Like Hey Arnold!

The show was groundbreaking, it dealt with some serious shit. It showed life of the working class in the city, people from all different walks of life and other family issues. For instance, Helgas mom dealt with Alcoholism and her father was a narcissist. There was also an episode where her sister becomes quite depressed. Little kid me thought Helga was just some crazy person, but her home life easily explains her behavior. There are plenty of videos online that dive pretty deep into this. Unfortunately the show got canned and they finished it off (before The Jungle Movie) with a fart joke episode.