Happily Adopted: Difference between revisions

Line 1:

[[File:~~BlindSideXmas_8198~~.jpg|link=The Blind Side|frame|Scandalous! Wearing [[Discriminate and Switch|periwinkle instead of navy blue]]?!]]

[[File:BlindSideXmas 8198.jpg|link=The Blind Side|frame|Scandalous! Wearing [[Discriminate and Switch|periwinkle instead of navy blue]]?!]]

{{quote|'''Spyro:''' So... you mean I--I'm not your real son?

'''Mom:''' You ''are'' our real son. It's just that you came from somewhere else.|''[[Spyro the Dragon|The Legend Of Spyro]]: A New Beginning''}}

Once upon a time, being an adoptee was a raw deal. Either your adoptive or foster parents were [[Muggle Foster Parents|Muggles]] ~~-- caring~~, but utterly, utterly ~~clueless -- or~~ they were [[Abusive Parents|downright abusive]], presumably because you weren't their "blood." If it wasn't adoptive parents, it was step-parents. Either you went [[Gene Hunting]], found your [[Good Parents|REAL parents]], and were loved for the rest of your life, or you moved out, lived on your own, and promptly forgot about them. Even if your adoptive parents were fairly harmless, if you ever found your ''real'' family, you forgot all about the people who raised you. Blood's thicker and all that, right?

Once upon a time, being an adoptee was a raw deal. Either your adoptive or foster parents were [[Muggle Foster Parents|Muggles]]—caring, but utterly, utterly clueless—or they were [[Abusive Parents|downright abusive]], presumably because you weren't their "blood." If it wasn't adoptive parents, it was step-parents. Either you went [[Gene Hunting]], found your [[Good Parents|REAL parents]], and were loved for the rest of your life, or you moved out, lived on your own, and promptly forgot about them. Even if your adoptive parents were fairly harmless, if you ever found your ''real'' family, you forgot all about the people who raised you. Blood's thicker and all that, right?

Or so it used to be. Recently, the trend has been shying away from this in favor of Happily Adopted.

Because there are some [[Unfortunate Implications]] in implying that adoptive parents are either bad (in the [[Abusive Parents]] variety) or unnecessary/useless (the [[Gene Hunting]] variant), many adoptees in more recent fiction have a better deal. They're adopted. They know they're ~~adopted -- if~~ not [[Oblivious Adoption|right off the bat]], then it gets revealed to them that they are. And their reaction is... not to care. Oh, ~~sure -- maybe~~ they care at first. Maybe they spend some time wondering about their birth parents, their origins, and where they ''really'' come from. But after some thought, they come to one conclusion: No matter who they were born to, they know who cared for them when they were sick, who helped them when they were down, and, most importantly, who loved them. [[The Power of Love|And when love's in play]], the truth becomes obvious: Those who love them are their ''real'' family, blood be damned. Usually the kid will eventually tell the parent that, throw in a hug and a [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming]] is made as their bond grows stronger.

Because there are some [[Unfortunate Implications]] in implying that adoptive parents are either bad (in the [[Abusive Parents]] variety) or unnecessary/useless (the [[Gene Hunting]] variant), many adoptees in more recent fiction have a better deal. They're adopted. They know they're adopted—if not [[Oblivious Adoption|right off the bat]], then it gets revealed to them that they are. And their reaction is... not to care. Oh, sure—maybe they care at first. Maybe they spend some time wondering about their birth parents, their origins, and where they ''really'' come from. But after some thought, they come to one conclusion: No matter who they were born to, they know who cared for them when they were sick, who helped them when they were down, and, most importantly, who loved them. [[The Power of Love|And when love's in play]], the truth becomes obvious: Those who love them are their ''real'' family, blood be damned. Usually the kid will eventually tell the parent that, throw in a hug and a [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming]] is made as their bond grows stronger.

What happens in cases where the child in question is a [[Wonder Child]], and has celestial or other fantastic parentage? While in older works, the [[Muggle Foster Parents]] would [[Changeling Fantasy|frequently be forgotten about,]] in this trope, the child tends to accept both sets of "parents" as being real. If the child is a [[Heartwarming Orphan]] whose "original" parents [[Deceased Parents Are the Best|died]], the same thing may also apply. Thus, this has often become a component of the modern [[Happily Ever After]]: What will happen to the orphan child protagonist? He/she gets adopted by the [[Good Parents|adult good guys]]! Everybody is happy!

Line 18:

== Anime/Manga ==

* Ruu in ''[[Daa! Daa! Daa!]]'' accepts Miyu and Kanata as his "mama" and "papa," so they worry about what will happen when he sees his ''real'' mother and father through a hologram machine for the first time in a long time. {{spoiler|He ends up happily hugging ''all four of them,'' having cheerfully decided that he [[Has Two Mommies]] and Has Two Daddies as well.}}

* Despite them all being supernatural ~~warriors--and~~ two of them trying to ''kill her'' ~~previously--Hotaru~~ of [[Sailor Moon]] is perfectly happy to have the other Outer senshi as her (three) parents when her father dies. Even in the anime, where she's simply taken from him, by all accounts she's fine with her two mamas and one female "papa."

* Despite them all being supernatural warriors—and two of them trying to ''kill her'' previously—Hotaru of [[Sailor Moon]] is perfectly happy to have the other Outer senshi as her (three) parents when her father dies. Even in the anime, where she's simply taken from him, by all accounts she's fine with her two mamas and one female "papa."

* Sana of ''[[Kodomo no Omocha]]'' is very aware she's adopted, and loves her adopted mother. {{spoiler|She does get to meet her birth mother, but the story behind her is decidedly tragic.}}

* Fate in ''[[Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha]]'' readily accepts being adopted by Admiral Lindy after working through her issues with Precia, {{spoiler|her <s>biological mother</s> creator}}.

Line 27:

** It's faster to count the other way: Out of the main characters, I see three kids who live with at least one blood parent: Nanoha, Chrono and {{spoiler|Lutecia}}. Pretty much everybody else is happily adopted.

* Soichiro Arima in ''[[Kare Kano]]''. His real parents caused nothing but trouble for him, but he's very happily living with adoptive parents, who are really his uncle and aunt.

* The title character of ''[[Yotsuba&!]]'' is adopted and very much of a [[Cheerful Child]]. Sure, she only has a father, but with neighbors she treats as extended family (including calling their mother "Mom" ~~-- not~~ to mention treating the daughters as older sisters) and the help of her father's friend Jumbo, she's more worried what this thing in her future called "school" is all about than what sort of family she has.

* The title character of ''[[Yotsuba&!]]'' is adopted and very much of a [[Cheerful Child]]. Sure, she only has a father, but with neighbors she treats as extended family (including calling their mother "Mom"—not to mention treating the daughters as older sisters) and the help of her father's friend Jumbo, she's more worried what this thing in her future called "school" is all about than what sort of family she has.

* Mamoru of ''[[GaoGaiGar]]'' spends a short while being distraught over being an alien from space, but gets over it pretty fast.

* ''[[Hayate the Combat Butler]]'' Hinagiku Katsura loves her parents, even though they abandoned her and her sister over ten years ago, but also loves her adopted parents.

* {{spoiler|Nozomi}} in ''[[Chance Pop Session]]'' {{spoiler|is mad at her adoptive parents when she learns the truth NOT because she was adopted, but because they were afraid she'd stop thinking as them as her parents if she did learn the truth.}}

* In [[Katekyo Hitman Reborn]], the boss of Varia [[Unstoppable Rage|Xanxus]] by any right is suppose to be [[Happily Adopted]] as Ninth Vongola's son however due to he was raised as [[Spoiled Brat]] he became bitter once he found out the truth. Noted it's not part being adopted he was angry about, but the part Vongola blood in essential to succeed boss seat and he is not qualified.SpoiledBrat then evolve to [[Omnicidal Maniac]]

* In [[Katekyo Hitman Reborn]], the boss of Varia [[Unstoppable Rage|Xanxus]] by any right is suppose to be Happily Adopted as Ninth Vongola's son however due to he was raised as [[Spoiled Brat]] he became bitter once he found out the truth. Noted it's not part being adopted he was angry about, but the part Vongola blood in essential to succeed boss seat and he is not qualified.SpoiledBrat then evolve to [[Omnicidal Maniac]]

** Sawada Nana however successful in adopting three mafia children, Futa, Lambo and I-pin. Some fans however still think she is a horrible mother because she belittle her own son.

* Koushiro Izumi of ''[[Digimon Adventure]]'' initially withdraws from his adoptive parents after overhearing them discussing his adopted status, and out of feelings of inadequacy began trying to prove his worth to them by burying himself in the computer sciences. After his adoptive parents open up about it, [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming|they reconcile]] and Koushiro very much puts himself in this category.

Line 39:

* Goku from ''[[Dragon Ball]]'' was happily adopted by an elderly master named Son Gohan as a child. Though unfortunately, [[Conveniently an Orphan|Gohan died in an accident some time before the first chapter]].

** {{spoiler|The accident was named Goku. He doesn't find this out until his late twenties, although his [[True Companions]] worked it out the first time they got caught outside with him on the full moon.}}

* In ''[[Blood Plus]]'', several years before the series started, George lost his wife and biological children in an accident, and was contemplating suicide when the [[Blank Slate|amnesiac]] [[Really Seven Hundred Years Old|"teen"]] [[Our Vampires Are Different|Saya]] entered his life. George adopted Saya, Kai and Riku, and it worked out very happily for all of them, especially George, whose life had meaning once again. This made it all the more heartwrenching when he died trying to protect Saya. The orphaned siblings are devastated, but take solace in the fact that they still have each other. A recurring theme of the series, hinted at by the title, is that blood is relatively unimportant when it comes to family, which is best illustrated by {{spoiler|Saya's [[Evil Twin]] Diva}}, and the epilogue showing {{spoiler|Diva's twins [[Happily Adopted]] by Kai.}}

* In ''[[Blood Plus]]'', several years before the series started, George lost his wife and biological children in an accident, and was contemplating suicide when the [[Blank Slate|amnesiac]] [[Really Seven Hundred Years Old|"teen"]] [[Our Vampires Are Different|Saya]] entered his life. George adopted Saya, Kai and Riku, and it worked out very happily for all of them, especially George, whose life had meaning once again. This made it all the more heartwrenching when he died trying to protect Saya. The orphaned siblings are devastated, but take solace in the fact that they still have each other. A recurring theme of the series, hinted at by the title, is that blood is relatively unimportant when it comes to family, which is best illustrated by {{spoiler|Saya's [[Evil Twin]] Diva}}, and the epilogue showing {{spoiler|Diva's twins Happily Adopted by Kai.}}

* Rin in [[Bunny Drop]].

* Elsie of ''[[The World God Only Knows]]'' has no problem integrating herself into the household of Keima's mom, despite saying that she's the illegitimate daughter of her husband.

Line 46:

* Marin's parentage is part of the mystery in ''[[Brigadoon Marin and Melan]]'', but Marin was still quite happy living with her adopted grandparents.

* Relena in ''[[Gundam Wing]]'' didn't find out until her father was murdered, but what we see showed that she very much loved her adoptive parents, and she prevents her mother from [[Tell Me About My Father|telling her about her birth parents]] by [[Tear Jerker|hugging her and sobbing "Never stop being my mother!"]]

* [[The Hero|Vash]] and [[Big Bad|Knives]] of [[Trigun]] were [[Happily Adopted]] by Rem Saverem for the first year of their life, since bulb-bound plants aren't equipped to raise independent plants like the twins. Rem did pretty well, and both boys were genuinely attached to her.

* [[The Hero|Vash]] and [[Big Bad|Knives]] of [[Trigun]] were Happily Adopted by Rem Saverem for the first year of their life, since bulb-bound plants aren't equipped to raise independent plants like the twins. Rem did pretty well, and both boys were genuinely attached to her.

** Less so in the anime, where there are other crew members awake and Knives' reasons for going [[Axe Crazy]] are less clear-cut and [[Creepy Child]] [[Magnificent Bastard]] type stuff.

*** Rem's last words to Vash in the anime are "Vash, Knives o--" and then she is seen mouthing something drowned out by the pneumatic door. Apparently this was meant to be understood as ''sewa o shimasu''; all translations have the sentence as, "Vash, take care of Knives!"

** On the other hand, manga Rem turns out to have been such a careful mother to them because she's [[The Atoner]]: the last time an independent plant was born in the SEEDS ships, she didn't save her from being experimented on until it killed her. Vash forgives her, after a rocky period. Knives...can't. He was going to save her, though, in both versions, when he killed all the other humans. Except she died that they might live.

** It ''started out'' [[Happily Adopted]], but Knives disrupted it by deciding to [[Kill All Humans]].

** It ''started out'' Happily Adopted, but Knives disrupted it by deciding to [[Kill All Humans]].

* [[Blue Exorcist]] has the Okumura twins raised by Shiro Fujimoto.

* In ''[[Toriko]]'', Melk II was adopted by Melk I after he found her abandoned in a forest as a baby. The one thing that marred their otherwise happy father-daughter bond was a years-long misunderstanding due to Melk I's incredibly quiet voice.

Line 64:

* [[The Authority|Jenny Quantum]] [[Has Two Mommies|loves her daddies]]. And [[A Child Shall Lead Them|leads them too]].

* Sort-of present with Barbara Gordon, the original [[Batgirl]] and later [[Birds of Prey|Oracle]]. She and James Gordon always ('''''Always''''') have a deep and emotional father/daughter bond that has even been seen to help her [[Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?|knock out Brainiac]], but over the years the different writers [[Depending on the Writer|can never seem to remember]] whether she is his biological daughter, his niece who he has raised since childhood, or an adopted daughter. Their relationship is largely the same no matter which way it is written, but sometimes it fits with the trope and sometimes it has nothing to do with the trope at all.

** The Barbara/Jim relationship confusion is played with a bit: at one point, Barbara discovers that Jim may have had an affair with her mother (his brother's wife) around the time that she was conceived. When she has the chance to find out whether or not she's his biological daughter, she turns it ~~down--not~~ because she's ashamed of him for cheating, but because she ''wants it to be true.''

** The Barbara/Jim relationship confusion is played with a bit: at one point, Barbara discovers that Jim may have had an affair with her mother (his brother's wife) around the time that she was conceived. When she has the chance to find out whether or not she's his biological daughter, she turns it down—not because she's ashamed of him for cheating, but because she ''wants it to be true.''

** More consistent is both Bruce's "sons" relationship with him, and Bruce's own relationship with Alfred (which results in some truly touching moments as Alfred hears Bruce call him dad in Bruce's farewell message when he's believed to be dead). Tim, Dick, and Jason may often have problems with Bruce, but they consider each other brothers and are proud to officially be his sons. Cassandra too, as the one ''daughter'' of the group, even though she doesn't hang out with her bros too much.

*** [[Batman and Son|Damian]], however, is Bruce's biological son and not half as well-functioning as the other Robins, largely due to being raised by crazy ninjas. It's quite clear where on the side of nature vs. nurture Batman falls.

Line 85:

* {{spoiler|Will}} is this in 'Shadows Of The Past,' though his 'parents' are still alive; he states he just likes his adoptive ones better.

* Adelle a Hume, is the adopted daughter of Sir Loin, a Seeq in [[The Tainted Grimoire]].

* In the [[Transformers]] [[Things We Don't Tell Humans]], the cast of [[Happily Adopted]] characters includes Prowl, Sideswipe, Sunstreaker, Faust, Hudson, Cobalt, Iris, Aether, and Alchemy.

* In the [[Transformers]] [[Things We Don't Tell Humans]], the cast of Happily Adopted characters includes Prowl, Sideswipe, Sunstreaker, Faust, Hudson, Cobalt, Iris, Aether, and Alchemy.

* The Crystal Tokyo series of [http://www.fanfiction.net/u/56283/Bill_K Bill K] have [[Sailor Moon|Neo Queen Serenity]] adopt orphans over the years she has rule.

* In ''[[The Legend of Korra]]'' [[Flash Fiction|flashfic]] ''[http://avatar-dacia.tumblr.com/post/95488074469/better-off-not-knowing Better Off Not Knowing]'', the following is stated of the implied biological daughter of {{spoiler|[[Unholy Matrimony|Zaheer and P'Li]]}}—occasional curiosity about her [[Huge Schoolgirl|unusual height]] and her distant memories of unseasonable cold aside:

Line 128:

== Literature ==

* James Tock, the protagonist of the [[Dean Koontz]] novel Life Expectancy, is quite [[Happily Adopted]]. Considering that he comes from a family of evil acrobats and insane clowns, this is probably for the best.

* James Tock, the protagonist of the [[Dean Koontz]] novel Life Expectancy, is quite Happily Adopted. Considering that he comes from a family of evil acrobats and insane clowns, this is probably for the best.

* In the children's fantasy novel ''[[Septimus Heap|Magyk]],'' the character Jenna has a bit of a mild crisis when she learns that she's actually an [[Rags to Royalty|adopted princess]]. In a sad state, she remarks to her adopted brother Nickolas how nice it must be to have a mother and father. Her brother promptly tells her to stop being an idiot; she ''has'' a mother and father, and brothers, and her being a Princess won't ever change that.

* [[Oliver Twist]] was adopted by the good Mr. Brownlow, making this [[Older Than Radio]]. Something of a twist (no pun intended) on the trope, however, since Mr. Brownlow turns out to be an old friend of Oliver's family who would have been Oliver's uncle-by-marriage had fate, in the form of the unbelievably complicated backstory, not intervened. (The musical ''[[Oliver!]]'', as part of streamlining the unbelievably complicated backstory, makes him Oliver's biological grandfather.)

Line 145:

* Played with in the ''[[Doctor Who]]'' [[Eighth Doctor Adventures]] novel ''Father Time''. The Doctor adopts an eleven-year-old girl, who, oddly, looks a lot like him and has the same [[Bizarre Alien Biology]]. As he's a [[Ditzy Genius]] who acts like he has [[No Social Skills]], it's not exactly a walk in the park, but they're happy enough. He even gets a job which pays well (he's a contractor who eliminates redundancies in corporate structures; it's implied that he is somehow able to do this without getting people fired). However, he makes things highly awkward when she's around the boy she fancies and [[Parental Obliviousness|has no idea what's going on in her love life]]. And {{spoiler|he lies to her about the fact she's not human, causing her to [[The Runaway|run away from home]] at the age of sixteen and spend three years traveling around on her own. When he finds her again, they get along just fine, though, but she then leaves to become queen of the universe or some crap like that. And it's apparently all water under the bridge by their tearful reunion in a later book, which is years later for both of them. [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming|It's really terribly cute]]... It's also eventually revealed that she's in fact his granddaughter by blood, but [[Timey-Wimey Ball|from the future]]. That's right, this trope is [[Double Subverted]] regarding the "Happily" part and ''also'' subverted as far as "Adopted" goes.}}

* It's mentioned only briefly, but in the [[David Eddings]] ''[[Elenium]]'' trilogy, the sidekick character Kalten was raised by the hero Sparhawk's family after his own parents were killed when he was a boy. The result was that "in some ways, they were closer than brothers."

* Taran, the hero of the [[Prydain Chronicles]] by [[Lloyd Alexander]], is well aware that neither the enchanter Dallben nor the pig-keeper Coll are his real father, and that they raised him from a foundling baby. He loves them both dearly, but it doesn't stop him from trying to find out who his birth parents were. Princess Eilonwy, who comes to live in Caer Dallben at the end of the first book in the series, is essentially [[Happily Adopted]] by Dallben as well.

* Taran, the hero of the [[Prydain Chronicles]] by [[Lloyd Alexander]], is well aware that neither the enchanter Dallben nor the pig-keeper Coll are his real father, and that they raised him from a foundling baby. He loves them both dearly, but it doesn't stop him from trying to find out who his birth parents were. Princess Eilonwy, who comes to live in Caer Dallben at the end of the first book in the series, is essentially Happily Adopted by Dallben as well.

* In the [[American Girl]] ''Samantha'' stories, Samantha's friend Nellie gets sent to an [[Orphanage of Fear]]. Of course, she breaks out and is happily adopted by Sam's extraordinarily wealthy family.

* While [[Harry Potter]] is never officially adopted by the Weasleys, they still consider him a part of the family and he loves them far more than this horrible aunt, uncle, and cousin. {{spoiler|And they end up as his in-laws anyway, so it all works.}}

Line 198:

** There's a [[Crowning Moment of Heartwarming]] in there for the curious: one game depicts a drawing she made as a child, showing young Samus waving happily alongside her Chozo family (it's even the page image for the video game page for CMOH).

* Cheryl from ''[[Silent Hill]]'' is this, as is Heather. The plots of the first and third games have a lot to do with father-daughter bonds, and there's never any question at all that an adopted father is a real father. {{spoiler|This may have to do with the biological family being horrible and crazy.}}

* Adell from ''[[Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories]]'' has known he was adopted pretty much his entire life, but considers his slightly loopy adoptive family to be real enough that he never even ''brings up'' that he was adopted until Rozalin drags the answer out of him. His birth parents, on the other hand, he doesn't have much respect ~~for -- as~~ the fact that he refers to them with quotation marks can attest to.

* Adell from ''[[Disgaea 2: Cursed Memories]]'' has known he was adopted pretty much his entire life, but considers his slightly loopy adoptive family to be real enough that he never even ''brings up'' that he was adopted until Rozalin drags the answer out of him. His birth parents, on the other hand, he doesn't have much respect for—as the fact that he refers to them with quotation marks can attest to.

{{quote|'''Adell:''' ...Oh, that. That is the truth. I'm not related to Mom and Dad by blood. Or to Taro and Hanako, either. ...I was abandoned by my "real" parents when I was still young.

'''Rozalin:''' So, you have been risking your life all this time for people who aren't even your family! And, now you expect me to believe you?

Line 215:

** ''[[Tales of the Abyss]]'' has Luke deliver this trope as an aseop to the King of Kimlasca on behalf of Natalia, its the culmination of an entire arc of the plot.

*** It's played pretty straight with his parents, who embrace him as a second son.

* Perhaps not a straight-up example, as he never referred to him as his father, but Cecil of ''[[Final Fantasy IV]]'' was pretty much [[Happily Adopted]] by the King of Baron, and though at the beginning of the game the king appears to be a horrible man, it turns out that {{spoiler|that's the monster that killed him and is pretending to be him}}, and the good man Cecil remembers as raising him is not a lie. His not calling him a father, which might hint at him not being as happily adopted as we think, is however probably more justified as [[Royal Blood|calling oneself a son of the king]] is more [[Succession Crisis|loaded]] than calling oneself the son of just any man.

* Perhaps not a straight-up example, as he never referred to him as his father, but Cecil of ''[[Final Fantasy IV]]'' was pretty much Happily Adopted by the King of Baron, and though at the beginning of the game the king appears to be a horrible man, it turns out that {{spoiler|that's the monster that killed him and is pretending to be him}}, and the good man Cecil remembers as raising him is not a lie. His not calling him a father, which might hint at him not being as happily adopted as we think, is however probably more justified as [[Royal Blood|calling oneself a son of the king]] is more [[Succession Crisis|loaded]] than calling oneself the son of just any man.

** Actually this is a pretty straight up example. Cecil berates his men in the beginning of the game for having doubts about the King and only really questions the king about his orders in private, well as private as the two can get. The King was also a Dark Knight, like Cecil, and he comes back from the dead as Odin to help Cecil and group. Not the most normal of examples, but Cecil, the King, and Kain seem to be relatively happy.

* ''[[Golden Sun]]'' gives us Ivan, happily ''fostered'' by a merchant and his wife in Kalay. [[Berserk Button|Don't think they're not important to him.]] [[Beware the Nice Ones|Ever.]]

Line 222:

* [[Hello, Insert Name Here|Sieg]] from ''[[Suikoden Tierkreis]]'' was found by Elder Rajim when he was newborn {{spoiler|in the place where the castle is now located}}. He never learns the truth about his real parents, but he is completely happy with the family that raised him.

* In the Compilation of ''[[Final Fantasy VII]]'', Cloud and Tifa adopt Denzel. They are also the primary caregivers of Marlene, Barret's adopted daughter.

* [[Heartwarming Orphan]] Flora Reinhold is [[Happily Adopted]] by [[Professor Layton]] after the events of the first game.

* [[Heartwarming Orphan]] Flora Reinhold is Happily Adopted by [[Professor Layton]] after the events of the first game.

* The title character of ''[[Shantae]]''. The residents of Scuttle Town aren't quite sure what to think of a half-genie, but it's generally agreed that her "uncle" Mimic did a good job of raising ~~her -- and~~ it's obvious that the two are devoted to each other.

* The title character of ''[[Shantae]]''. The residents of Scuttle Town aren't quite sure what to think of a half-genie, but it's generally agreed that her "uncle" Mimic did a good job of raising her—and it's obvious that the two are devoted to each other.

* Ling Ling Johnson in ''[[Guilty Party]]'' was adopted at a scant few days old, and has cheerfully accquired all of her family's trademark [[It Runs in The Family|detective lunacy]] with nary another thought. Bonus points for being the Chinese adopted daughter of a seemingly [[Scary Black Man]] ([[Gentle Giant]], actually) and a [[Little Old Lady Investigates|much tinier, much older white woman]], making them a [[Five-Token Band|very diverse]] big happy family.

* ''[[Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time|Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Echoes of Time]]'' has {{spoiler|the main character, who was raised by his whole village.}}

Line 231:

* In ''[[Threads of Fate]]'', Klaus' family welcomes Prima Doll with open arms. During the epilogue Mint or Rue sees him with Elena, who's overjoyed that she now has a little brother.

* Link in [[Ocarina of Time]] was happily adopted by the forest guardian, the Great Deku Tree (especially in the manga version). He was raised along with the Kokiri children and didn't discover his true origin until he got trapped in the Sacred Realm for seven years, emerging as an adult (Kokiris never grow up).

* [[Pokémon|Togepi]]! They never appear wild, so you either traded for one or got it from an NPC, making you an adopted parent, and Togepi has a base happiness of 70, instead of the 0 most happiness-based Pokemon have. It's literally programmed to be a [[Happily Adopted]] Pokemon!

* [[Pokémon|Togepi]]! They never appear wild, so you either traded for one or got it from an NPC, making you an adopted parent, and Togepi has a base happiness of 70, instead of the 0 most happiness-based Pokemon have. It's literally programmed to be a Happily Adopted Pokemon!

* ''[[Solatorobo]]'' has Red and Chocolat, a brother-sister duo who adopted each other when they were kids at an orphanage. They refer to each other as "my brother/sister" without ever mentioning the fact that they're [[Not Blood Siblings]], and considering Chocolat is still only thirteen, Red may actually have legal custody of her, despite the fact that [[Women Are Wiser|she deals with day-to-day issues like money much better than he does]].

Line 273:

* Megan is adopted by Jack, the team owner in ''[[NASCAR Racers]]''. She's sad about her past, but Jack treats her very well.

* The PBS Kids series ''[[Dinosaur Train]]'' has Buddy, who managed to get into a Pteranodon nest as an egg, and he and his family initially don't know what kind of dinosaur he is. He's accepted immediately as part of the family in spite of this, and even when, in one episode, they learn that he is a T-rex and the other ones they met wonder if he wants to stay in their area, he says he'd much rather be with the parents and siblings that love him. Even the intro song establishes this, with Buddy's confusion at clearly not looking like his siblings, and Mrs. Pteranodon assuring him that she's his mom and that deep down he's still like the rest of his family.

* ''[[Phineas and Ferb]]'' has a variant, where the two title characters (plus their sister Candace) live in a happily blended family where the kids are basically adopted by their step-parents. [[Word of God]] [[Hand Wave~~|Hand Waves~~]] any question about Phineas and Candace's [[Disappeared Dad|missing biological father]] or Ferb's [[Missing Mom|missing biological mother]] as unimportant.

* ''[[Phineas and Ferb]]'' has a variant, where the two title characters (plus their sister Candace) live in a happily blended family where the kids are basically adopted by their step-parents. [[Word of God]] [[Hand Wave]]s any question about Phineas and Candace's [[Disappeared Dad|missing biological father]] or Ferb's [[Missing Mom|missing biological mother]] as unimportant.

* Dragon, Bounce and Shimmer in ''[[Miss Spider's Sunny Patch Friends]]'' and Grace the ladybug later on. Oh, and Miss Spider herself.

* [[Winx Club]] plays this trope straight ''and'' subverts it: Bloom still loves her adoptive parents upon learning that she was adopted, however, she then developed what it could be said an ''insane obssession'' with finding her biological parents.

Line 279:

* In ''[[He-Man and the Masters of the Universe]],'' Teela is Man-At-Arms's adopted daughter and well aware of the fact, though for the most part she doesn't care that she isn't biologically his; she doesn't even think about it much. In the episode ''Teela's Quest'' she goes in search for her real parents, leading to the revelation that {{spoiler|the Sorceress is her mother.}} While Teela for [[Status Quo Is God|unexplained reasons]] isn't allowed to remember her discovery, at the end of the episode she concludes that the man who's raised her from a tiny girl, been there for her all her life, and taught her everything she knows ''is'' her father, biological relation or not.

** In the 2002 reboot, it was hinted that Man-At-Arms actually ''is'' her biological father, but doesn't know it. However, it was ''also'' hinted that Man-At-Arms's brother Fisto might be Teela's real father. The show was cancelled before the viewers could find out which one of these were the truth.

*** And in the proposed series ''He-Ro, Son of He-Man,'' (the bible can be found [http://old.he-man.org/cartoon/exclusivefeatures/exclusive-heroseriesbible-intro.shtml here]), the new protagonist, Dare, would have been the [[Happily Adopted]] son of Adam and Teela, now king and queen of Eternia.

*** And in the proposed series ''He-Ro, Son of He-Man,'' (the bible can be found [http://old.he-man.org/cartoon/exclusivefeatures/exclusive-heroseriesbible-intro.shtml here]), the new protagonist, Dare, would have been the Happily Adopted son of Adam and Teela, now king and queen of Eternia.

* This is at the heart of the Disney series ''[[The Replacements]]'', which is about a brother and sister living in an orphanage. They find a comic book with an ad in the back that will allow them to "replace" any adult with one sent by the company, and order themselves a new set of parents. Thus they end up [[Happily Adopted]] by a gorgeous British superspy and her husband, an Elvis-lookalike stunt driver. It's a weird family, but they're devoted to one another.

* This is at the heart of the Disney series ''[[The Replacements]]'', which is about a brother and sister living in an orphanage. They find a comic book with an ad in the back that will allow them to "replace" any adult with one sent by the company, and order themselves a new set of parents. Thus they end up Happily Adopted by a gorgeous British superspy and her husband, an Elvis-lookalike stunt driver. It's a weird family, but they're devoted to one another.

* As of the end of ''[[Avatar: The Last Airbender]]'', you could say that Zuko has become this, after much [["Well Done, Son" Guy|angsting]] and finally deciding that he's going to [[Parental Substitute|consider Iroh his real father.]] Iroh had already started thinking of Zuko as a son since his own son's death.

* In [[CatDog]]'s big movie about finding their long lost parents, they find out in the end that the parents that raised them as kids had adopted them. And were also a talking frog and a sasquatch. They never find out who their ''biological'' parents are, but are content to reunite with the ones that cared for them.