the original black and white The Addams Family is extremely wholesome. There's an absolutely lovely family dynamic and the parents are extremely loving to the children and each other. I highly recommend it!
this post was submitted on 27 Oct 2025
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The Incredibles and Inside Out both portray realistic, flawed, loving family dynamics. As a parent, they're hard and beautiful to watch.
Nichijou! It's wacky, funny, and out-of-the ordinary slice of life anime. Anyone can watch it.
Film: Mitchell's vs the Machines.
TV: The Great North
Barakamon (2014)
After torpedoing his career, a young, lonely calligrapher gets sent to a remote island community where he befriends the local townsfolk and a precocious child. Its quite lovely and I think you’ll like it a lot.
And it looks like someone has put the entire series, with English subtitles, up on YouTube:
There's an animated and a live action series. Which would you recommend more?
I’ve only seen the animated series, so that.
Figure 17
Loving dad. And what if you suddenly had an identical twin that's trying to better you and helps you get out of your shell?
- Digimon Adventure (1998) -- Contains: Divorced parents who deeply love their children and are willing to put their differences aside for their sake, adopted son learning that his parents really love him and that he really loves them, cool older brother who tells overly-pressured kid to stop trying to meet expectations and go do what makes him happy. (also -- Kaiju fights, of course) -- Plus, christmas miracle, ALL the family members are alive at the end!
If you're willing to tank a whole heap of tragedy around the wholesomeness --
Fullmetal Alchemist: Brothehood (and the Manga. Actually I prefer the Manga) is a classic about a pair of brothers who face many difficulties together. It's really sweet how much they protect each other. Shout out also to their not-sister-childhood-friend for being an honorary third sibling. Then there's their father, absentee for most of the show, but once he appears he's fully ready to sacrifice himself for their sake and all that.
For something new you could try Alma-chan Wants to Be a Family.
Steven Universe, from beginning to the end. The last (fifth?) season was called Steven Universe Future; it's a timeskip several years into the future.
Future is a separate show, set after the movie, not another season of the first show. It's tonally very different.
Sid the Science Kid
Addams family (Movies)
Malcolm in the Middle(dysfunctional, but deep down concern)
The Mummy (movies)
The Paddington movies are absolutely delightful.
since all commenters here are missing out on the best family shows and films i'll add to the collective knowledge
Astrid Lindgren's
• Ronja Rövardotter
• Saltkråkan
• Bullerbyn
Tove Johansson's
• 1972 Mumin
overall swedish cartoons
• Alfons Åberg
• Långa Farbrorn
• Creepschool (highlights and helps alot of trauma and social issues of children in every episodes, i can attest)
but if you want only american... i don't have a family drama, but a found family feelgood
• 1985 Freaks of Science
ask me for clarifications or so
Uncle Buck
Wrote this in another thread but I love the found family trope and Spy x Family totally fits that bill. I wrote a few other examples below.
Movies
- Logan
- Ice Age
- Wild Robot
- Up
- Despicable Me
Shows
- The Last of Us
- The Mandalorian
- The Witcher
- Daddy Buddy (this one is an anime on Crunchyroll. I highly recommend this if you liked Spy x Family. Revolves around 2 assassins who accidentally wind up with a 4 year old)
I'm hesitant to count The Last of Us as an answer to OPs question. That show is not wholesome at all lol.
Fair. I'd say the bond between Joel and Ellie is wholesome in a world that everything and everyone is out to get them.
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Wild Robot!
I cried so hard watching it. Told a friend, they lightly made fun of me but accepted the suggestion. They cried the whole movie too.
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Long Story Short - it's not all rainbows and butterflies, but a realistic family working to get by.
Modern Family - Antics of an extended family. Since it's a comedy it's usually pretty wholesome and each family unit brings something different to the table.
While there are definitely more out there, I figured these would be good suggestions as they really focus on family dynamics.
It's kinda mainstream, but I've enjoyed Modern Family quite a bit. Sure, there is some friction, but it all works out in the end, so perhaps that fits what you're looking for.
Kakushigoto is really good.
It is the story of a single-parent manga artist who is ashamed of his work and goes to great lengths to keep it from his young daughter.
The story begins when the girl, now older, discovers her Father's job, and is told through flashbacks to her growing up and life with her father who was always trying his best for her.
I can't find the official trailer with subtitles but it gives you the idea. Trailer.
Really heartwarming, and bittersweet at times, and other things I won't spoil.
Usagi Drop is an anime about an unwanted orphan being adopted by someone with a big heart and no experience. https://anilist.co/anime/10162/Usagi-Drop/
Watch out though, because while the TV anime ends on a sweet note, and you should probably stop there, the manga ends with time-skipping forwards 10 years to when they start a romantic relationship together.
For a movie I got “Instant Family”. This one’s focus is entirely about adoption, and it’s a great ride.
A show that I think is very unknown is “Parenthood”. It also does the huge family thing like “Modern Family” which I love. The stories about parenting are more diverse here tho: you’ve got the classic parenting teens, dealing with autism, and adoption, all in one show.
Plus the actors are all great, I mean who could say no to Craig T Nelson as patriarch and Holly Genero from Die Hard as matriarch?
Parenthood is good stuff.
Anime: Bleach has a good family dynamic. It’s probably not cry worthy but is good
A show I forgot from my prior post because it's so new is Joe Cappa's Haha You Clowns on Adult Swim. It's very loosely modeled after the classic sitcom My Three Sons and follows the loving and earnest adventures of 3 beefy Chad teens and their love for their equally beefcake father who recently became a Widower as they lovingly try to fill his broken heart with love. The sincerity rounds the bend to being absurd and funny, but the relationships on display are all loving and healthy.
I watched the first episode of this having no idea what it was... Pretty funny
Nope. Doesn't exist. It's all sex, drugs and violence.
(I like Lucky Star and Azumanga Diaoh. I want stuff more like those.)
Itnhas it's moments, but it's one of those preschool tylr cartoons: Franklin.
No matter what ends up happening, you at least know the main character's parents are there for him in that wholesome manner you always see in shows of that type. No fighting, no whining, etcetera.
Though, for specific episodes of TV shows, one of my favorites is the KND episode where numbuh 1's dad gets dadnapped on a father son trip and it ends with numbuh 1 in a sousaphone battle to save his dad, who is absolutely having an amazing time despite being hung upsidedown.
Edit:
Looked up the scene. Operation O.O.M.P.P.A.H. is the episode and it looks like it's an episode that goes from numbuh 1 not wanting to be there to saving his dad and starting to get into thay wholesome space just as the end of the episode approaches.
Medalist is an anime about figure skating and the relationship between the young skater and her coach is wholesome as fuck. Not a parent per se but similar vibes. I particularly like how they both help each other; adults have problems too and kids are smarter than we adults often give them credit for, and the show captures that very well. If you like the dynamic in Spy X Family you'll probably like it.
Also the skating is beautifully animated and the sports anime structure keeps the plot moving along. One of my favorite shows of all time.
It's a bit older, but I think Adventures of the Gummi Bears has a wholesome family dynamic, even if the family doesn't seem to be related. If I remeber correctly, the King (Calla's father) is also shown to be a very loving father.
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