Original Video Animation: Difference between revisions

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While the terms "direct-to-video" and "direct-to-DVD" have negative overtones, essentially being synonyms for shovelware in the United States, "OVA" has almost exactly the opposite connotation. This partially arises from the view that Western "direct-to-video" releases are not good enough (or too explicit) for theaters; OVAs, on the other hand, are seen as a step up from regular television production. Because the production house need not adhere to the rapid-fire schedule or constrained budget of a TV series or feature-length film, more effort and care can be applied to an OVA, resulting in a much higher level of quality.
 
Additionally, since OVAs aren't aired to the public, [[Getting Crap Past the Radar]] is a moot point, which allows shows for [[Seinen|older]] [[Josei|audiences]] to avoid ducking more mature subject matter. (On the flip side, the vast majority of [[Hentai]] series are produced and released as OVAs, just like much live-action pornography is released directly to video or disc formats.) Given the general lack of a clear-cut production schedule, the running time of an OVA is rather varied—somevaried; some are 26 minutes long, while others are 60–80 minutes. The idea of an OVA being up to two hours long is uncommon; that's usually seen as a movie, taking another step up in production quality.
 
There are some caveats to the increased freedom, though. OVAs are often produced "on speculation", with no guarantee that the story they tell will ever be completed—and many are not. At least one OVA series ends with a plaintive plea for more money so the creators can continue making the show. However, even this is not always a guarantee - the ''[[Hellsing]]'' OVA series is going on{{when}} as strong as ever.