Every generation deserves a quintessential emerging-adult sitcom: Gen X had Friends (1994-2004) and for millennials it was Girls (2012-2017). It’s a rite of passage to have a defining TV show that perfectly reflects the absurdities, anxieties and relationships – however messy or heartbreaking they may be – that coincide with that stage of life. As the oldest members of Gen Z, raised on the internet and recession pop, approach 30, they still haven’t claimed their rightful 20-something sitcom. 

But then, on May 28, 2025, FX released Adults. 

Created by Ben Kronengold and Rebecca Shaw, Adults is a comedic whirlwind that follows a diverse friend group of five twenty-somethings and the trials and tribulations they go through. Samir (Malik Elassal), Issa (Amita Rao), Anton (Owen Thiele), Billie (Lucy Freyer) and Paul Baker (Jack Innanen) live in Samir’s childhood home in Queens as they deal with lost jobs, failed relationships and personal insecurities, all while maintaining the most important thing in their lives: their friendship. 

Kronengold and Shaw both previously worked as writers on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, but Adults is their first scripted series. FX released Season 2 this year on Aug. 27 to widespread critical acclaim, with Hulu and Disney+ viewership increasing by 40% from Season 1 in the first 12 days of its release.

Season 2 continued the absurdist comedy the show is known for, while building on many of the previous season’s plot points, such as Issa and Paul Baker’s relationship as they navigated her narcissistic tendencies and his sexual fluidity, and Billie’s relentless pursuit of self-discovery and career success. 

Part of Adults’ appeal stems from the humor and camaraderie of the friend group, making them feel entirely lived-in. From the beginning, the viewer is immediately thrust into their traditions and inside jokes, such as their customary “House Rules,” where each member has a task to complete (Samir to get a job and Anton to break his dry spell, for example) and their phrase “mind wipe” (code for “pretend I never said this”). As in Friends, each character brings something unique to the group, typically in the form of their individual comedy styles or hilariously idiotic decisions. However, their differences don’t stand in the way of their heartwarming chemistry that makes viewers root for their friendships no matter what ridiculous situation they’ve gotten themselves into, from getting a raccoon out of the house to dealing with the local stabber Anton somehow befriended. 

Another one of the show’s many strengths is its ability to capitalize on the current pop culture landscape and build comedy through references that appeal to its Gen Z viewership. Adults features cameos from celebrities crucial to the Gen Z canon, including comedy podcaster and viral sensation Jake Shane, it-girl Julia Fox (playing herself, of course) and Girls actress Zosia Mamet, a subtle tribute to the hit 2010s sitcom. The show also includes other hallmarks of Gen Z comedy and culture, as seen through Paul Baker’s borderline-performative male persona (wired headphones and all) or the group’s seemingly ritual dance to the “find my iPhone” tone. 

But beyond merely understanding the hallmarks of Gen Z humor, like any good generation-defining sitcom, Adults effectively encapsulates the reality of growing up and joining the real world at this precise moment. At a time when the digital era threatens human connection and political polarization divides more people than ever, it would be easy for the writers to overlook these issues in favor of a less-intense world for these characters to live in. Instead, Adults embraces these truths, incorporating them in ways that feel reflective of what it means to grow up in 2026, while still remaining relatively uplifting. 

In Season 1, Episode 8, the friend group briefly hosts a teenage girl, Annabelle (Lilah Guaragna), while she gets an abortion, since the practice is outlawed in her unspecified home state. Rather than dwelling on the depressing nature of Annabelle’s circumstances and the harsh reality of a post-Dobbs America, Adults’ absurdist comedy turns the plotline into some of the show’s most humorous and wholesome moments. 

It’s cackle-inducing to watch Annabelle tear Anton and Paul Baker to shreds with her incessant questions and insults, asking them why they’re the “least interesting gays” she’s ever met and calling out Anton for claiming his sweater is vintage, when really it’s from Target. It’s equally laughable to see the fan-favorite duo attempt to befriend a teenage girl who would much rather live out her Sex and the City-esque New Yorker dreams than go get pizza with them.

The episode also introduces Anton and Paul Baker as a pair for the first time all season, with both Annabelle and viewers growing increasingly aware of their undeniable romantic attraction. Throughout both seasons, the show addresses other intense topics, including workplace dynamics, healthcare and what it means to seek human connection in the digital era, circumstances that likely feel authentic and familiar to audiences. 

Adults thrives because it’s willing to embrace the harsh realities of joining the real world in 2026. In embracing the cynicism and silliness of Gen Z’s emerging adulthood, it offers a perspective that feels inherently optimistic yet truthful to the experiences of an entire generation.