I absolutely adore the sunlight in Frieren and its medieval-inspired fantasy color palette, so I’m eager to experience something like that again. Are there any other anime with beautiful artwork that could move me? (Since I’m using DeepL, the English might sound unnatural…)
I never imagined so many people would recommend such amazing anime to me—thank you so much! I’m Japanese and not very good at English, so I’m using DeepL here. Please excuse any unnatural English that might result.
大丈夫だよ
皆さん本当に優しくて助かってます！（Everyone is so kind and helpful!）
日本語は得意じゃないけど、ちょっと分かるから頑張ってみようと思います。
なるほど、DeepLでしたね。いまさっきRemedultさんの他のコメントを読んでいるうちに、これはAIかなと思っていました。
もう一つのアニメをすすめたいけど、「京騒戯画」と呼ばれています。どれよりも僕の気に入ったアニメなんで何回みても、色がめっちゃすぶらしい〜！と思えざるをえないんです。全くフリーレンと違っているけど、ほんの少しでもお気になったらぜひ見てください。
Your Japanese is amazing! I looked up 京騒戯画—it’s an anime with distinctive colors and artwork. Sounds interesting, I’ll give it a watch! おかしな英語でごめんなさい、僕のために日本語で教えてくれてありがとうございます！
to say it’s absolutely amazing! And I’d totally written off Abyss as just another dark anime set in the depths—turns out I was wrong. As for Miyazaki’s work, I’ve seen plenty of Ghibli films, so I get it—his handling of light is incredible, like I felt watching Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea. I didn’t know he made anime too, but I’ll check them out. Thanks!
Future Boy Conan is from my favorite era of Miyazaki’s work. You’ll see ideas that he would later use in Lupin III: Cagliostro’s Castle and Nausicaa
Watch out for Made In Abyss. It starts off really cheery and gets super fuckin dark. I couldn’t make it past the first season.
Ah, I figured. I’ve heard about it a lot since it’s famous in Japan too, but I hesitated because I thought it might be scary if it was a grotesque story. But I guess I’m still curious.
Violet Evergarden.
It is absolutely lovely both in terms of animation and story.
After looking into it, I found out the theme is love and emotions, which made me even more interested!
Mushoku Tensei
Yeah but it is absolute dogshit in the character department
I’ve heard that name before. This work is indeed beautiful and captivating—I think it’s almost perfect! Is there something wrong with the character others have mentioned? Either way, I’ll give it a try! Thanks!
The main character Rudy is more or less an “ugly bastard” sort of character before reincarnation. After reincarnation for quite awhile he’s a weird little creep of a child but he grows out of it and the people who love him love him genuinely. Dude is seriously weird for awhile though. He matures very well, especially in the upcoming season
I’ve seen other anime where the main character is a jerk at first, and I enjoyed those too, so I’m sure I’ll be able to watch this one just fine! I’m definitely going to see it.
I don’t know if it’s like Frieren (haven’t seen it) but Aria has my favorite light and colour. Especially when golden hour hits… I also hear Frieren is supposedly a slow show. If you like slow, serene and emotional with scoops of aware no mono then Aria is peak. Here is a video with some moving shots without spoilers to gauge the vibe: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQXviHhK44U
This is my first time seeing this work. The shot around 2:06 in the video is absolutely stunning the way the light streams in from above and the water is rendered is breathtaking!
王様ランキング Ranking of the Kings. This anime has very colorful and unique looking art style.
I immediately dismissed it as something I didn’t want because of the simple character design, but looking closer, the background is indeed beautiful and refined. Thank you!
Ruri Rocks.
I’ve actually seen this a few times at bookstores. The background art is truly beautiful!
Ruri Rocks… rocks.
Second Ruri Rocks, it’s amazing. Also you’ll learn a bunch!
Many good recommendations here already.
I can also list some that have some good scenes:
- appocalypse hotel specifically episode 11
- most Makoto Shinkai works are very pretty i.e. Suzume no Tojimari
- people have already called out Kyoto Animation studios and they consistently deliver some of the most visually captivating shows
- I’ll also call out Soushimin series it’s more understated than Hyouka and Frieren but something about it is always pleasant. The aspect ratio contributes a lot.
- Chainsaw man, Reze movie specifically. The fireworks. The pool. The explosions. Much more cinematic than Frieren’s fantasy pallette but the color work is perfection.
You’re a genius! I just watched the preview for Episode 11 of Apocalypse Hotel, and this is exactly my thing! It’s not really related to the whole “light” discussion anymore, but I absolutely love that slightly chic, decayed city vibe—like in Tarkov or NieR: Automata. But there just aren’t many beautiful works set in places like that, you know? That’s what I’d been thinking! And about the light—man, it’s perfect. The scene where the sun is tilted in the evening sky, casting warm autumn-like light on the brownish trees, and the scene where someone is looking up at moonlight filtering through the branches—both are absolutely amazing! Some other people have mentioned syoushimin too, and I thought that sounded good as well. Hyouka looks promising too. I saw some images for Chainsaw Man, and it looks beautiful! It’s super popular in Japan too, so I knew the name but hadn’t watched it. I wonder if I could enjoy it even if I just watched the movie first? Either way, I think the Apocalypse Hotel is the best! Thanks!
Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2632044/
The depiction of the harbor feels incredibly refined. The vast sea and blue sky are beautifully rendered—truly wonderful. Thank you for sharing this!
Completely different Genre, but Dusk Maiden of Amnesia has beautiful artwork and a very moving story
The lighting is great, of course, but the way the shadows are drawn is what really makes this piece stand out. The shading is unique and really cool. Thanks!
Grimgar of fantasy and ash
Thank you. This looks like a watercolor painting, and the light is beautiful too!
I really wish another season will be made, such a refreshing and mature take on isekai.
Makeine has some great light and shadows, it’s a beautifully directed show. Not fantasy but really well written as well.
Slice of life is the best too! The setting seems to be mainly Japanese summer, and the sky and clouds are truly beautiful! (Plus, the sun-kissed girl are adorable)
Anything by director Naoko Yamada is amazing.
Apothecary Diaries has gorgeous looking moments too.
I watched the first season of this anime! This artist’s work really does have an amazing art style. Thanks!
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Kimi No Na Wa
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Shigatsu Wa Kimi No Uso
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Mahoutsukai No Yome
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Sora Yori Mo Tooi Basho
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Tanaka-kun Wa Itsumo Kedaruge
Igirisu kara konnichiwa!
Thanks for taking the trouble to introduce five of them in Japanese! The lighting effects in Mahoutsukai No Yome (The Ancient Magus’ Bride) are hard to put into words, but they’re close to what I imagined and really great. Also, personally, I was really drawn to the atmosphere of Tanaka-kun Wa Itsumo Kedaruge (Tanaka-kun Is Always Listless). I’ll definitely watch it! ありがとうございます！（Arigatou gozaimasu!）
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I wasn’t a huge fan of the story, but Garden of Words is worth watching just for the scenery art.
Shinkai’s work is truly beautiful! Thank you!
