Hello and welcome to Project Nitsuj. A few years ago, some of you might remember I did a top 11 list naming what I considered the worst isekai anime. Since then, some people have been asking what I consider the best. At the time, I didn’t think a list was necessary seeing as how I planned on reviewing a lot of them, but people have been persisting I make a list and who am I to deny them of such knowledge. There was a time when isekai practically ruled the anime industry. While it’s not as dominant as it once was it still pops up quite a bit in each season of anime and is enjoyed by viewers. Everyone has their good and bad ones, but these 11, no 12 because it’s a special occasion, are what I consider to be the best the genre has to offer. I’m Nitsuj and these are the Top 12 Best Isekai Anime.
#12. Knight’s and Magic
The spiritual successor to Escaflowne that combines the setup of an isekai with mechs. This series is a prime example of don’t judge a book by its cover. On the surface, Knight’s and Magic looks like your generic isekai anime looking to earn a quick check and at first it does but then gets better and more interesting after the first few episodes. While the anime has its big and exciting action climax in the final third, we spend a majority of the show with our MC building and improving mechs and that’s honestly the best part of the anime. You love Ernesti’s passion, the mech designs are pretty cool and unique, and the action is good as well. I love how instead of being lambasted for his ideas, they’re instead embraced by everyone who builds off of those ideas and Ernesti in turn builds off their ideas to make better mechs. Despite being OP, Ernesti isn’t generic and earns his victories through determination and thinking outside the box. Even if you’re not the biggest mecha fan like me, you’ll easily enjoy seeing how the mechs are made because of how fun Ernesti makes it look and because his passion is just so infectious. I really do wish they would have made a second season.
#11. The World’s Finest Assassin Gets Reincarnated in Another World as an Aristocrat
From the author who gave us Redo of Healer comes one of the most interesting and cool isekai stories. Rather than play the hero, our main character is an assassin who has been tasked with killing the hero of this world. However, he has to wait until the hero defeats the demon lord, so until he has prep, build up his skills, and create his own little harem on the side. The story does a good job balancing between action, comedy, and dark situations while continuing to move the story forward and keep us interested in what’s going to happen next with these characters and what are some of the plans and attacks Lugh will use to kill his target. In an overexaggerated market, this anime managed to stand out from the pack by rushing to the final battle and instead letting us see Lugh’s life and his growth before our very eyes. A second season is finally coming out next year and I’m so excited to see what happens next.
#10. The Eminence in Shadow
What happens when a chuuni character dies and gets reincarnated in another world? You get Cid, a boy who lives out his cringeworthy fantasy. Rather than be a hero to the world, Cid prefers fighting behind the scenes and controlling everything from the shadows like a puppeteer or conductor. While his secret organization of all women hang on his every word and wage war against an evil cult, he’s living his chuuni dream like the huge dork he is. He speaks in rhymes and metaphors, uses one liners, and plays out scenarios with other people just to fulfill his chuuni bucket list. It’s silly and stupid in the right way, and despite his delusions, we get a good story told through interesting characters, and a talented MC who is OP but isn’t boring to follow and has the skills to back up his behavior.
#9. Log Horizon and Shangri-La Frontier
Decided to put these two together because they both take place in an MMORPG world. It’s hard to believe that the era of isekai got started thanks in large part to SAO. Log Horizon came in and improved on SAO’s faults and shortcomings by giving us better characters to follow, a story with good twists and turns, and a good balance between action, comedy, and drama. While the world itself seems pretty basic, they get the most out of it by bringing it alive with the game’s lore and NPCs inhabiting said world to give it that political states and intrigue for the characters to work off of. Shangri-La Frontier is your non-traditional isekai, but just like Log Horizon it improved on the shortcomings of SAO. Having a more interesting world to explore with a good number of challenges, a fun MC who is a gamer and enjoys the challenge, the anime is a prime example of what it means to play an MMORPG and doing everything in your power to get every advantage against raid bosses, take them down, and have fun while doing it. Whether it’d be through soloing them or teaming up with other tryhards. While SAO was a power fantasy, Log Horizon and Shangri-La took their time more establishing and exploring their worlds as well as giving us better characters who are relatable and interesting to follow. Log Horizon is more political while Shangri-La is more action and lore base. Between the two I think Shangri-La is better, but Log Horizon still intrigues me with its story and character. SAO crawled so that Log Horizon could walk so that Shangri-La Frontier could run.
#8. Youjo Senki
Our first of the Four Horsemen of Isekai. What happens when a man meets God and outright rejects him? He gets to sent to another world where he’s reincarnated as a little girl and forced to participate in their versions of WWI and WWII. God has a good sense of humor. It’s one of the few isekai animes to make our main character a villain, but she was just so likable and fun to follow that we didn’t care. Aoi Yuuki really goes all out and brings Tanya to life with an awe-inspiring performance that is chilling to watch from beginning to end. It’s just funny, because at the heart of the anime, it’s just God messing around with a stubborn man or in this case, girl, who doesn’t want to acknowledge Him because of her pride. The air combat was a lot of fun to watch and done extremely well in this anime along with Tanya’s facial expressions. The anime also does a fantastic job blending military combat with the supernatural. Even though it’s gotten the least amount of seasons of the Four Horseman it’s the one we all love to talk about and remember the most because of Tanya. With the second season wrapping up and a third season already announced, I’m happy this series is finally getting the attention and seasons it deserves.
#7. No Game No Life
One of the biggest animes to put isekais on the map. At the time there was no anime quite like it. The anime showed us just how fun, creative, clever, and exciting isekai can be. It didn’t have to focus on heroes being summoned to save the world or have a good vs evil scenario, it can just be about fun and getting to know each other through games. The main characters of Sora and Shiro aren’t OP characters, they’re such very smart and clever people who were born in the wrong world. We’ve seen characters like this in the past, but none done in the way like these two. Each episode was fun to watch, visually impressive, and presented a strategic game that was intense and easy to follow. The anime is still talked about passionately to this day, but only has one season when it so desperately deserves a second season to continue its story. Sadly, due to legal issues I don’t think a second season will come, but I’ve been proven wrong and I hope I’m proven wrong here.
#6. That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime
An anime that breathed new life into the isekai genre. When people were starting to believe that there was nothing more that could be done to the formula, Rimuru appeared that more possibilities exist out there. This anime fully embraces its RPG routes by focusing on monsters, demon lords, elves, dwarves, heroes, dragons and everything in between, but put them all in a slice of life setting. At the center of it all is a slime who just wants to live a fun life with the friends he’s made along the way. You relate to Rimuru’s character, you love how he doesn’t take himself too seriously, and you enjoy all the various races and characters we come across in the anime and how they have a personality or character that matches their appearance. While some of the political talks can be boring and take up too much time, when the action gets started and the anime has your attention, you’re in for a treat and excited for what’s to come.
#5. Overlord
The second of the Four Horsemen and the one with the most seasons. This was the first isekai where the main character wasn’t a hero but instead a villain. Ains wasn’t afraid to kill or manipulate others to get what he wanted and those foolish enough to stand in his way wouldn’t live long enough to regret it. Despite being the leader, at his heart, Ains is just a simple worker who doesn’t fully know what being a leader is all about. His facial expressions and reactions are hilarious and he plays the part of an overlord perfectly. Demanding respect, causing fear, and having power to impose his will on others. The anime knows when to make the characters funny, but also show just how dangerous and evil these characters are and how they won’t hesitate to kill in the name of their lord’s ambitions. While there would be other isekai animes that have villains as the main character, Overlord was the first to do it and none have been able to top it.
#4. Konosuba
Often seen as the face of iseaki anime, Konosuba showed us just how funny and comedic isekais can be. The main character didn’t always have to be the chosen hero, they didn’t need an OP ability, they didn’t need the best party members to be interesting characters to follow, and they didn’t need to go on a grand adventure to save the world. They just have to be relatable, funny, and have good chemistry with those around them. We loved it because it didn’t take itself too seriously, had fun at the expense of everyone, and still delivered a well told story that kept us entertained and laughing from start to finish. Seriously, every episode of this anime will get a good laugh out of you and make you feel better after watching it.
#3. Mushoku Tensei
Probably the most polarizing and influential isekai out there because of our main character Rudy and his actions. However, despite that, the storytelling and world-building in this anime is phenomenal. As of right now no isekai has been able to top it in these areas. Whatever your thoughts may be about Rudy, the anime does a good job of making you understand his actions and why he acts the way he acts. We’re not asked to like him, but to instead understand him. Outside of Rudy, the anime is just gorgeous to look at and has a bunch of characters working off each other excellently. No one ever feels fake, all of their actions are realistic and pulls you into the story they’re telling. While the action in this anime is spread thin, when the anime finally does have an action sequence they make it look spectacular and bring the anime to the next level. With the novel having ended, I’m looking forward to seeing how well they bring this gorgeous series to life.
#2. Re:Zero
Just like how Konosuba showed everyone isekais can be fun and comedic, Re:Zero shows us how isekais can be dark and tragic. When Subaru gets transported to another world, he discovers that whenever he dies, he returns to a save point. Why he has this power is unknown, but it has something to do with the witches of sin. The anime takes us on a journey as we battle against monsters and crazed archbishops in a fight for the throne and at the center of it is Subaru doing everything in his power to keep his sanity whenever he uses his ability. The anime is dark and cruel. It’s not afraid to get violent and show just how grotesque some of the deaths in this anime are, how twisted some of the characters are, and how dark and disturbing some endings can get. While isekais are no strangers to violence and dark moments, none have been able to tell and show them quite like Re:Zero and keep our attention wondering what’s going to happen next or how Subaru is going to overcome this situation in front of him. Each season has pushed the series forward in the right direction and shows the growth of Subaru from a loud-mouth hype man in over his head to a strategic mastermind who has found his footing in this world. With the series only halfway over according to the author and given what we’ve seen so far I’m curious where the story will go from here and what other dark scenarios we’ll see.
And number one. . .
#1. Drifters
It’s just not fair! How come this series only has one season!? From the creative mind that gave us Hellsing, Drifters is like a reverse Fate series where some of history’s greatest warriors, tacticians, and leaders battle each other in another world. The anime is like the FMA equivalent of isekai, there’s something here for everyone. Great characters, incredible action, funny moments, dark storytelling, and excellent worldbuilding influenced by the actions of these characters. It takes the concept of an isekai story and pushes them to the limits to give you an incredible story you don’t want to stop watching and want to know what happens next. The isekai genre is full of a lot of great gems, but this forgotten diamond in my opinion is the best of the bunch and deserves way more attention when talking about the best isekai animes out there.
And that’s my list. Do you agree? Let me know in the comments below on what your favorite isekai anime is. Thanks for reading and I’ll see you next time on Project Nitsuj.
