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{{trope}}
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* Mamoru Shimesu in ''[[Phantom Quest Corp]]''. He actually runs the company, the contacts, the finances, etc. while his boss Ayaka spends their funds on booze. He has a very stressful job.
* Though he's 13 (and then 14), Riku from ''[[Blood Plus]]'' looks younger. He also acts much older, too.
* Hitsugaya Toshirou of ''[[
* Jim Hawkings in ''[[Outlaw Star]]'', who is clearly the more mature of the group between him and his "aniki" Gene.
* ''[[Angel Sanctuary]]'' has Metatron as this. Yes, [[The Bible
* Naota from ''[[FLCL]]'', an entire ''series'' based around him trying to act adult (to be a good [[Replacement Goldfish]] for his big brother) and being mocked for lapsing into childish behavior.
* Shingo Tsukino from ''[[Sailor Moon]]'' is like this (when he's not slipping into [[Annoying Younger Sibling]] mode). He's highly intelligent, more mature than his sister, and manages to charm quite a few ladies over the course of the series (both older and younger than him).
* Czeslaw Meyer of ''[[Baccano
* In ''[[D.N.Angel]]'', there's the main character, Daisuke, and his rival, [[Troubled but Cute]] Satoshi. Daisuke acts closer to the typical version, whereas Satoshi is a [[Wise Beyond Their Years|Wise Beyond His Years]] college graduate (despite being only 14).
* ''[[Revolutionary Girl Utena|Revolutionary Girl Utena's]]'' Mitsuru Tsuwabuki, who is constantly bending to Nanami's every whim and taking care of her business, takes the desire to be treated like an adult to extremes - {{spoiler|his rants during the Mikage Seminar and his duel with Utena border on the [[Ax Crazy]]. "I want to become an adult and wreck the whole world! Wreck it!" "You become an adult by destroying other adults!" Or something to that effect.}}
* 13-year-old Wataru from ''[[
** If Hayate wasn't just a bit too old to qualify, he would probably be the poster-child of this trope. The levels of [[Moe]] that boy radiates are ''staggering''.
* Usso Evin in ''[[Mobile Suit Victory Gundam
* Mokuba Kaiba from the (second) ''[[Yu-Gi-Oh!]]'' anime. A clear case of [[Bowdlerization]], since in the original manga he qualifies more as an [[Enfant Terrible]] (but responsible, for that). His big sister is a big brother.
* Boo from ''[[Now and Then Here
* ''[[Sayonara Zetsubo Sensei]]'' has Majiru, Nozomu's nephew, who looks to be around 7-9 and sorta looks like a mini version of Nozomu. A bit snarky/mouthy, but still cute. He's not actually responsible for anything, but he acts very mature and sophisticated for his age. And he & [[Hikikomori|Kiri Komori]] seem to be developing [[Shotacon|feelings for each other]].
* Shippo in ''[[
* ''[[Black Butler]]'': Ciel Phantomhive is a more dark take on the trope. The reason he acts serious and mature is the trauma he endured through losing his parents, and being kidnapped and tortured by cultists. He's now a driven, if jaded, Earl and owner of his own toy and candy company while he searches for the culprits in said torture.
* Sui Takishima, from [[Special A]]. Seeing as his big brother is basically perfect, it takes some persuasion by Hikari before Sui decides to actually do something. Once he ''does'', however, he's almost as stuck up as Kei.
* ''[[
* Makoto from ''[[Wandering Son]]'' is only around 9 at the start of the story but is remarkably mature for his age, even compared to the other characters.
* 11-year old Takashi from ''[[
== [[Film]] ==
* ''[[
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* The trope goes at least as far back to the detective novels of Edogawa Rampo (1894-1965, real name Hirai Tarou), whose protagonist Kogoro Akechi was frequently aided by the "junior detective" Yoshio Kobayashi; this makes it [[Older Than Television]]. According to Wikipedia: "Kobayashi was written as a perfect young teenager who, some might say, had a [[Ho Yay|strong 'dependency']] on Mr. Akechi. Every time he appeared, he was either worried about Akechi's well-being or helping Akechi set the trap for criminals. On the numerous occasions that the boy was captured, Akechi swooped in for a timely rescue."
* Rare Western literature example - Eoin Colfer's book ''The Supernaturalists'' involved a 'kid' called Ditto who was [[Really Seven Hundred Years Old]] - okay, in his early twenties - but as he was a naturally-immature adult he occasionally cracked.
** Eoin Colfer also brings us [[
* Markl from the movie of ''[[Film/Howls Moving Castle|Howls Moving Castle]]''. He's generally more mature than his mentor, Howl, and yet still young enough to freak when a girl threatens to clean his room.
** Better yet, {{spoiler|Howl's child disguise}} in the new sequel, ''House of Many Ways'', fits this trope to a tee, as ''not only'' does he speak with an exaggerated lisp, but also is described to be [[Cheerful Child|ultimately cherubic with golden curls, adorable puppy-fat, and a lot of lace]]. It's even more ridiculous when {{spoiler|his reasoning for adopting a jailbait disguise is simply because he had a horrid childhood (or so he says, Sophie immediately denounces him as a liar) and he has every right to relive being six years old... only prettier.}} But {{spoiler|because it is only a ruse}}, he manages to surprise the main character, Charmain, into speechlessness when he drops all pretenses and acts very adult and down-to-business.
* Olver from ''[[
* Otto in ''[[Someone Else's War
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== [[Video Games]] ==
* ''[[
** Taro of ''[[
** There's also Emizel in ''[[
* Ken Amada from ''[[Persona 3]]'' seems like a typical one of these at first. He acts unusually mature and serious, and isn't taken all that seriously by the older party members. However, it's later revealed that {{spoiler|he joined SEES so he could exact revenge on his mother's killer}}.
* Culotte of ''[[
* Jr. from the ''[[
* ''[[Fire Emblem]]'':
** Rolf from ''[[Fire Emblem]]'' certainly qualifies often putting a tough front despite being very sensitive and sweet.
** Sothe qualifies once we learn his backstory: he's been looking after and protect Micaih for years despite being younger than her.
* Genis from ''[[
* The professor's boy assistant Luke Triton from ''[[Professor Layton]].'' Acts mature? Check. Isn't always taken seriously? Check. Played for cute? So very much check.
* Shinra from ''[[
* Pierre from ''[[Harvest Moon]]'' would be an almost archetypal example, between his cute, childish appearance, and his mature, sophisticated behavior... Except for that fact that no-one ever fails to take him seriously, even though he looks younger than every other character that's ''not'' explicitly a small child. Making this weirder, he's also an [[Expy]] for an especially grotesque [[Gonk]].
* Alfred, the adorable younger brother to Maya and a member of the rival gang of Drifters in ''[[
* Hope of ''[[
* Riku from ''[[Kingdom Hearts]]'' was extremely perceptive and insightful at five years old, able to immediately spot an off-worlder and give Sora outstanding advice about a complicated issue.
* Bugsy from [[
* Another adorable and confusing nerd is Rief from ''[[
** Though [[They Wasted a Perfectly Good Character|she didn't get much screentime or character development]], [[Token Mini-Moe|Himi]] probably also qualifies due to her precognitive powers giving her a wealth of knowledge to draw from, and she's expressly described as "not much older" than the little kids playing in her hometown.
** Thirty years prior to them in ''[[
* Caillou from [[Recettear]] is a good example of this trope. He's a powerful mage, running a serious investigation, but inside he's still just a kid who can't resist candy.
== [[Western Animation]] ==
* Brainiac 5 in the ''[[Legion of Super
* Tricks from ''[[Scruff]]'' is a [[Talking Animal]] version of this trope, being a young Border Collie pup with an easygoing, smart, modest but playful personality.
* The titular character of ''[[Hey Arnold]]'' OWNS this trope. Acts as if he's preocupied with responsiblity, once had a crush on an older girl (well, she was only two grades ahead), and one of the most adorable kids on the show.
* Flip Chan in ''[[The Amazing Chan and The Chan Clan]]''. He acts responsible for Mimi, Nancy and Scooter when they're out on the case, and is quite a cute kid.
** Mimi and Scooter are no slouches in the cute department, either. Mimi usually pushes her authority on Scooter, who wants to launch head on into the episode's unsolved crime.
* Yugo from ''[[
* Most of the male KND Operatives in ''[[Codename
* The titular characters of ''[[
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