At first, there were genuinely proposals, and the 'adults-only' classification was meant to portray certain cultural aspects or themes that a child or teenager could not process. In fact, erotic content was minimal, sometimes limited to something as simple as the depiction of a 'skin'. It was nowhere near the current level of eroticism, which often feels cringe worthy or designed for self-gratification.
These were anime works with very powerful messages, such as the adaptation of One Thousand and One Nights produced by Osamu Tezuka's studio (Mushi Production near the 70's), or Belladonna of Sadness (from same studio, but directed by Eiichi Yamamoto).
but now in modern anime, this genre is essentially dead, and its fate is even sadder than that of the typical romcoms that have been repeating themselves since the 80's, or the isekai subgenre which, after 2012, seem to follow the exact same formula
What is your opinion?