Can we all agree that isekai as a plot in anime had been rampant nowadays? Of course it is, some people even considered isekai or transmigration plot as a genre itself. In my own opinion, I’d rather put it as a subgenre of Adventure genre as they shared almost similar key factors.
In my personal experience, watching isekai anime had always been a fun one despite of the fact that its plot became so generic, that sometimes you can’t find any unique trait in each of them. However, there’s always that rare gems in it and most of them were among the best that I’ve seen so far. For people who are not familiar of what isekai is, it is a plot where the characters in the story were transported or reincarnated from one world into another. Then, the main character have to start a journey in that new world for various reasons like invading it, adapting with it, or finding a way to return to his original world.
What is ISEKAI anime?
Isekai (Japanese: 異世界, transl. “different world”) is a genre of light novels, manga, anime and video games that revolve around a normal person from Earth being transported to, reborn or otherwise trapped in a parallel universe, fantasy world or virtual world. [Source: Wikipedia]
To be honest, I am quite picky when it comes to isekai anime series recently, and but it is also among the genre that gives me statement – do not judge a book by its cover. Surprisingly, isekai anime shows amazed me unexpectedly.
Therefore, I would like to share the list of the best isekai anime seriesthat I have seen so far. I wish to spread the love for the genre despite of the mediocre impression of critics on it in general. This list covers various isekai anime series; coming from the adventure-oriented story to a dramatic one, some were psychological ride, and some were just plain romance and fun.
That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime
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| That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime |
Tensei Shitara Suraimu Datta Ken or TenSura– First in my list of recommended isekai anime is 2018’s That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime. Who wouldn’t fell in love with our great Rimuru Tempest, our almighty lord, the great Rimuru Tempest; who gave us a fun and adventurous transmigration journey from a normal office employee into low profile slime. His journey had been truly entertaining so far; he saves Goblins, helps them build a village and eventually built his own nation, along with trusted allies that he had found throughout his journey.
Overlord
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| Lord Ainz Ooal Gown – the Overlord |
Definitely one of the most overwhelming anime characters I’ve seen in recent years, Lord Ainz Ooal Gown and his Tomb of Nazarick could put some iseka anime series in shame with its sheer presence. The popular anime which premiered in 2015 and run for a span of 3 seasons had been one of the standards of isekai story recently. For anime viewers nowadays, you can’t give an isekai anime recommendation list without Overlord in it. If you want an O.P. main character as well as his allies, Overlord is definitely for you. It tells a story of an MMORPG player who got stuck inside an online game, he found himself in a new unknown world together with the NPC from Tomb of Nazarick that comes to life. This is an adventure, a conquest filled with action, and online game’ cliché. We had previously listed Overlord as one of our top 20 anime series of 2018.
Vision of Escaflowne
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| Vision of Escaflowne |
One of the earliest isekai anime from the 90s, this has been an amazing ride for me as a child and when I re-watch it as an adult. Just like your typical isekai anime, Vision of Escaflowne have the action, romance, comedy, and magic in its story; as well as mecha! Yes, we have mecha in this anime and what’s amazing is that the dragon Escaflowne could transform itself into a mecha where our main character Van Slanzar del Fanel pilots it. Unlike any other mecha anime out there, Escaflowne is not just a robot, but it has its own life, oh just like those from the Magic Knight Rayearth. In this anime, we had a normal high school heroine from Earth who got transported into another world and starts a fantastic journey of competing against destiny itself.
Log Horizon
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| Shiroe’s Party |
If you love online games that much, Log Horizon is an interesting isekai for you. This adventure fantasy isekai anime is something that I could recommend for beginners in the genre. It tells the story of Elder Tale’s players who got transported inside the game itself and must find a way to survive their daily living as they also look for the answers of what actually happened to them. Log Horizon revolves around the player Shiroe who is a legendary tactician in the game and his journey of finding people he can trust, whom he can call his family while also facing unexpected challenges in the gaming world which became their new reality.
Inuyasha
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| Inuyasha & Kagome |
And here’s one of my favorite anime of all time and that is Inuyasha which had been an important part of my childhood days as an anime viewer. If you like a historical isekai anime, Inuyasha is on top of my recommendation for that then, it follows the high school student Kagome who travelled in another world where demons exist – it seems like a fantasy supernatural parallel world set in Japan hundreds of years ago. Kagome then meet the half-demon Inuyasha and together, they will embark in an exciting yet hilarious journey filled with danger, actions, and romance while vanquishing forces of evil that threaten humans and demons alike. Furthermore, if you also love historical anime series just like Inuyasha, I would like to recommend to you our list: 10 Historical Anime Series That You Should Watch.
If you like Inuyasha, you might want to check our list of powerful characters from the anime:
The Rising of the Shield Hero
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| The Shield Hero Party |
Tate no Yūsha no Nariagari – Here something that I am sure you guys are familiar, it’s The Rising of the Shield Hero which was listed as one of top 10 best anime series of 2019 in our year-end review in our blog. Naofumi is one of the isekai protagonists that we want to protect at all cost due to various betrayals that he experienced and we had endured that throughout the anime. The Rising of the Shield Hero is a fun, dramatic and action-packed isekai anime with adorable main characters and despicable villains. The main character Naofumi had been transported to another world which resembles a game where he needs to save it against waves of invading forces.
Ascendance of a Bookworm
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| Our lovely and adorable main character – Myne |
Let’s have a paused from action and instead enjoy a relaxing, fun and interesting slice of life isekai – the Ascendance of a Bookworm which follows the story of a bookworm who got reincarnated in a bloody of a child in an alternate fantasy world. The anime thrives in its simplicity but that’s makes it an even fun experience as the story is well-written. Here, our main protagonist lives inside a frail and tiny body of a little girl and in this new world, she ought to change it unknowingly as she seeks to accomplish her desire of reading books. From her desire to read books, her exciting, dramatic and fun journey as a daughter, a friend, a merchant, and a priestess will bring to life various ideas from her previous life which will shock this new world she lives in.
GATE
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| Our main character and his team of otherworldly beings |
One of the reasons why I love this one so much despite how cliché it is because of a certain character and that is Rory Mercury. Overall, Gate is a fantastic political and military isekai anime, and it also serves a somewhat different kind of plot. Normally in isekai anime, it’s the main character that got transmigrated into another world and builds their empire on their own using the knowledge they know as human or the newly acquired power they had. However, things had been quite literal in Gate, where a portal between the human world and an alternate fantasy world appeared. Through that gate, humanity established its own power in the other world with its own might – modern military, science, commerce, and politics.
Cautious Hero: This Hero is Invincible but Overly Cautious
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| Our goddess Ristarte infatuating on our hero Seiya! |
If there’s anything funny or beyond hilarious of any isekai anime that I have seen so far then Cautious Hero will definitely take the crown. While there are considerable amount of action in this anime, Cautious Hero thrives in its ridiculous humor that I could somehow label to be stupidly funny. It’s also amazing that there’s an ounce of drama here despite being heavily loaded with sarcasm and comedy. If you will watch this, please be ready for below the belt jokes.
Magic Knight Rayearth
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| Magic Knight Rayearth |
Here’s one of my childhood anime, it’s the fantastic adventure of magical girls in Magic Knight Rayearth. I have to say this first, Magic Knight Rayearth had some nasty plot twist and I was emotionally heartbroken as a child back then. It has the magical girls plus mecha elements which is quite contradictory but was beautifully blended together. There are romance and some cliché drama, but the actions were quite good and the characters designs were absolutely gorgeous. It was an amazing coming of age story with magical cliché that I believed every female anime viewers out there will enjoy.
My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!
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| Our main character – Catarina Claes |
This one is an anime from spring 2020 lineup and one that surprised me quite a bit. I am not expecting too much from this but Catarina Claes and her isekai cliché did exceed my low expectations. The plot is just like any other isekai anime out there, except that the main protagonist had been transmigrated into the body of a villain instead of a heroine. However, she did change her fate and eventually became someone that everyone adored so much. If you want light humour, cute romance, and some hilarious anime moments, you should add this one in your watchlist.
Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World
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| A smile that we must protect, Rem from Re:Zero! |
Either you hate it or love it, Re:Zero is a well-written isekai anime that will shock you psychologically and emotionally. Most of the time, I always felt frustrated, helpless, fascinated, and confused by how messed up this one is. Re:Zero appeal directly to our mind, which will makes you think beyond the surface and will lead you to question more. The plot twists were good, the drama were heartfelt and heartbreaking, the fight scenes were lit, and the each character embody humanity’s emotions and desires, what we are capable of – both the good and the bad. If you love plot twists and dark-themed anime, Re:Zero is on top of my list for that kind of isekai cliché.
Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash
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| The main crew from Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash |
Here’s another dark isekai anime story that appeal more to me emotionally because of its realistic progress which makes the characters more humane in nature. It’s the kind of story where I felt like putting myself in their shoes in case, I’ve been transmigrated inside an online game and the emotional and mental turmoil that they felt was just realistic and fearsome. If you are looking for emotionally intense psychological isekai experience, Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash is a must-watch for you.
No Game No Life
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| Shiro, Sora, and Jibril as they prepare to fight the Werebeast in a game |
Brilliant like no other, No Game No Life is definite one of the best isekai anime and is one of my top 10 favorite anime of all time and still one that really amazed me in every aspects except for its shameless fanservice. A great tactician and plain genius, Sora and Shiro is fantastic duo that every online gamers out there desire to be. Imagine being transmigrated in a world where everything is settle by games, isn’t that amazing? But what if there’s too much at stake, will you just play it safe or risk everything in it? No Game No Life is an anime with so much boldness and exciting twists. I am also fascinated with its beautiful character designs too especially my favorite Jibril. If you love online games, and smart badass main characters, I’m sure you won’t even think for a second to check this on out. Aschente!
KonoSuba
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| Kazuma and his party |
Oh dear! I don’t even know where to start but this is one of the funniest isekai anime seriesout there. KonoSuba: God’s Blessing on this Wonderful World! Is a fantastic furball of sunshine and beyond, it brings good vibes and also a disaster of obnoxious comedy. Who wouldn’t love Kazuma and his ridiculous cliché, as well as the set of defective women who joined his party? Nonetheless, KonoSuba produced some of the best anime memes out there including notorious memefied characters such as our goddess Aqua, the explosion girl Megumin, the pleasurable knight Darkness, and our pervy master thief Kazuma.
The Saga of Tanya the Evil
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| Our titular evil – Tanya |
I am ending this list with a fantastic military isekai anime and that is The Saga of Tanya the Devil. It’s about an atheist salaryman who got reincarnated inside the body of an orphaned girl Tanya. Then, Tanya enlisted in military and eventually became one of the ruthless officers in it. I am not really fond of the story but almost everything in this anime is perfect. The fight scenes were among my favorite, and I also liked the main character who really give face to the devil. If you want to watch some more isekai anime like GATE, then The Saga of Tanya the Evil is worth-checking out.
While there are plenty of other good isekai anime series out there, I only included here those that truly captivated me and left some great impressions on me in their respective genre. Are there some more titles that would you like to be added here? I am sincerely looking forward to see some more, please let us know by leaving your comment below.
Last Updated on March 8, 2021 by Yu Alexius
KonoSuba and Cautious Hero are amongst my favourites. Great list! Thanks for your submission to #theJCS for July.