Why are Colors in modern animes so bright? (Minimal spoilers for JJBA)
I am total and utterly inexperienced with general graphic design, so bare with me if i don't use the terminology correctly and feel free to explain some of them that i could have made great use of here.
I have watched a bit of the content of the OVA version of JJBA and one thing that i noticed is that the colors are way more, for a lack of a better word, "subtle" compared to the anime version on netflix. You can see this most clearly with Kakyoin and his stand, but the others also have less bright colors. On top of that, in the OVA, the colors react more to the specific light in the given situation. I noticed that in particular with a chasing scene towards the end of the story on a highway where the orange light from the Street Lamps does almost negate the green tone of hirophant green in the OVA, which you dont see in the Anime.
I am not saying one is objectively better than the other, because thats almost always context dependent, but in many modern animes, it seems like the colors of the given characters overshadow any atmosphere that the given scene normally should emit by its nature. Every character is always almost comically visible even in situations where that just doesnt make sense given the surrounding light. As dumb as it sounds, but I sort of wanna see a bit more stuff that looks more like that OVA. It has a specific ascetic that I really like.
Sometimes I imagine, for example, some scenes with Pokemon like that. Imagine an Absol or a Lucario starring down from the top of an building like a Batman who does his night shift. I know this is a slightly weird comparison, but i just want to see stuff that is generally a bit more... subtle, overall.
I have watched a bit of the content of the OVA version of JJBA and one thing that i noticed is that the colors are way more, for a lack of a better word, "subtle" compared to the anime version on netflix. You can see this most clearly with Kakyoin and his stand, but the others also have less bright colors. On top of that, in the OVA, the colors react more to the specific light in the given situation. I noticed that in particular with a chasing scene towards the end of the story on a highway where the orange light from the Street Lamps does almost negate the green tone of hirophant green in the OVA, which you dont see in the Anime.
I am not saying one is objectively better than the other, because thats almost always context dependent, but in many modern animes, it seems like the colors of the given characters overshadow any atmosphere that the given scene normally should emit by its nature. Every character is always almost comically visible even in situations where that just doesnt make sense given the surrounding light. As dumb as it sounds, but I sort of wanna see a bit more stuff that looks more like that OVA. It has a specific ascetic that I really like.
Sometimes I imagine, for example, some scenes with Pokemon like that. Imagine an Absol or a Lucario starring down from the top of an building like a Batman who does his night shift. I know this is a slightly weird comparison, but i just want to see stuff that is generally a bit more... subtle, overall.
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Today's flat, glowing style prioritizes visual impact over atmospheric depth, though the restrained aesthetic you prefer remains a charming choice...
You also have to take into consideration that cel degradation and old video quality takes a hit on the actual color of these old shows, even this very old jojo ova shows [very different colors](https://imgur.com/a/6MlSTOP) from dvd quality uploads compared to cel scans
one is colored by acrylic paint on their painting desk at animation studios.
the other, Clip Studio Paint on pc.
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElXRkfVBIp0](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ElXRkfVBIp0)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1Xjq9oeYt8](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1Xjq9oeYt8)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1m-k7T9SWVg](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1m-k7T9SWVg)
As of December 2025, Over the past 25 years anime have trended toward romcoms and cute girls rather than action or serious stories. This led to the “cuteness priority” trend in manga and anime. Anything cute gets pushed ahead of reality. That can be fine…....but it’s also kind of a problem. To keep the cute factor, darkness is toned down. You can’t really see her face in the dark, can you? Huh. And when you draw or generate anime girls , and compare it to pro artists, you’ll notice that a lot of Japanese illustrations try to keep the girl’s face lit and clear no matter what, because that’s the most important part of the image. It doesn’t really make sense, but…....well, that’s just how it is. Dumb as it may sound.
Answer C
Caucasian eyes see darkness better than Japanese eyes and maybe this applies to other Asians too. That could explain why, overall, anime and video games have brighter screens, shadows aren’t that dark, or easily to see distinct characters. Japanese gamers often crank up the gamma all the way when playing horror or darker games. It might also relate to why Caucasians wear sunglasses more at the beach, while Asians generally don’t. No. I’m not making this up. FRFR