The Classic series is for children, no matter what age WE are. its not made for any one generation. Its for little kids of ANY generation.
And I really fail to see how 7 and 8 are "cute".
DETAILED, would be a better word. the 32 bit artstyle in 8 wasnt "cute" (although Roll looked cute in her new outfit, but that's a different kind of cute) it was able to show more detail in both backgrounds and characters. I for one, LOVED the Shop/Save menu dual layer background that looked like circuitry and gears. The stages themselves, were trippy, if anything. ESPECIALLY Astroman's stage. I liked the subtle touches like the Mettaur on the jumbotron in Frostman's second half, or the more hidden "W"'s in the Fortress. And the character sprites were real good too. The bosses looked awesome. Handsome guy looked even more handsome in 32 bit than in the currently being made 8 bit version.
And, like Hypershell mentioned before, the genius Idea of a Rush jet Bossfight. (the fact that Rush jet was only in certain segments and not a special weapon was cool, cause you could use other special weapons. AND the Mega buster.)
Forgive me; I recently replayed Megaman 8. Just finished it in fact. The Anime cutscenes... Overrated? maybe, but they fit Classic far better than the X series to be honest. X series belongs more with Day of Sigma style animation. I didnt find 8's cutscenes to be "cute" either. In fact, I felt they quite accurately depicted what Megaman always has an should look like.
I dont see how its "uber cute" or anything... In fact, I found it to be darker than most, with the "Evil energy" (which while cheesy, is still this malignant entity) Wily himself was portrayed as a lot eviler than usual as well. (though that may be merely because of the ability to actually show more of him via cutscenes and better in-game representation.)