In an era built for on shows as content, anime like Daemons of the Shadow Realm and Mao are reviving the slow‑burn magic that made anime feel timeless in the first place
At a guess? Because the techniques they used were more labour-intensive and are no longer used.
The original GitS movie came out in 1995, and used a mixture of cel and computer animation. Cowboy Bebop first aired in spring of 1998, and likely used cel-like techniques for most character artwork even if physical cels weren’t involved (I can’t find a specific reference), because those were the methods they knew and could make work with the limited computer equipment of the day.
Since then, animators have figured out many ways to use computers to cut corners and still create “good enough” product. They used to do that with cels too, it’s just that the set of cheap tricks available was different. Since ultimately, anime is meant to make money for the studio, they use every cheap trick they think they can get away with.
For reference, the last major anime production done entirely on cels was supposedly Jin Roh: The Wolf Brigade (1999) (and even that had a few effects superimposed in postproduction). Since then, that animation style has been gradually dying out.
What about retro anime animation?..why can’t we have anime that looks like ghost in the shell or Cowboy Bebop?
At a guess? Because the techniques they used were more labour-intensive and are no longer used.
The original GitS movie came out in 1995, and used a mixture of cel and computer animation. Cowboy Bebop first aired in spring of 1998, and likely used cel-like techniques for most character artwork even if physical cels weren’t involved (I can’t find a specific reference), because those were the methods they knew and could make work with the limited computer equipment of the day.
Since then, animators have figured out many ways to use computers to cut corners and still create “good enough” product. They used to do that with cels too, it’s just that the set of cheap tricks available was different. Since ultimately, anime is meant to make money for the studio, they use every cheap trick they think they can get away with.
For reference, the last major anime production done entirely on cels was supposedly Jin Roh: The Wolf Brigade (1999) (and even that had a few effects superimposed in postproduction). Since then, that animation style has been gradually dying out.