An optical design for a reflective LCD with a thicker cell gap that can have relatively higher productivity was examined theoretically. The proposed LCD was characterized by the optical axes of a half-wave retardation film, quarter-wave retardation film, and LC layer, which are 15 degrees, -15 degrees and 75 degrees with the transmission axis of the polarizer, respectively. The LCs at the dark state lie down on the surface to produce half-wave retardation, whereas they rise up to produce quarter-wave retardation under an electric field in the white state. The proposed optical structure for the reflective LCD shows good dispersion characteristics at both the dark and white states.