Why do anime characters look European?

Answer 1

"Anime characters are often given facial features which display emotion more easily. As a result, they can often appear to be Caucasian (or, Western) rather than Oriental, even if this is not the intention.
Big , round eyes convey emotion more effectively, so it is believed."

Answer 2

I think.. Because Japan actually is rather fascinated by the western culture and such.

And if you watch close enough, in some anime's, they actually have a bit longer eyes than Europeans have. So I guess that shows a bit that they actually do have Asian looks.

Answer 3

Many of the artists are from a background that was heavily influenced by American Cartoons and although they do not consider Westerners as the ideal models this influence has come to be a standardized 'norm' ; an 'ethnic cleansing' that favors neither the Occident or the Orient . As viewers we tend to project our on predilection for a race upon the art medium . The Moe' style developed by the Mangaka does not favor any race but uses accentuated features to help portray emotion such as the larger eyes as there are many other cues to race besides facial appearance : clothing , behavior , and speech accents also play into the perceived race of a cartoon character . Perhaps if the characters were seen in context , viewers would be better at judging their race .

Answer 4

Because if anime was based only on Asian features all characters would look the same.... there are however some Asian looking anime characters like Brock from Pokemon or Gin from Bleach.