Summary

  • Anti-heroes are on the rise in isekai anime, adding a darker twist to the power fantasy trope.
  • Protagonists are often scorned or pushed to the edge before awakening their true power.
  • Unique stories and characters bring a fresh take to the isekai genre, offering intense drama or light-hearted comedy.

As the isekai genre becomes increasingly cemented in the anime community, the stories told in these anime become more unique. Usually, ordinary, everyday people get transported or reincarnated to another world where they receive tremendous power or a second chance at life and must save their new world to maintain their new way of living. Recently, the variety of the main characters has shifted as not-so-pure and not-so-wholesome circumstances push them to a more sinister point of view. Anti-heroes, or just complete villains, have been popping up more and more as the isekai genre expands, and have added a fresh take to this power fantasy trope.

Cain Von Silford, Reiji Saeki and Rimuru Tempest
Most Overpowered God Blessings Given To Protagonists In Isekai Anime & Manga

Isekai protagonists are almost always given a powerful ability when they are reincarnated, and these abilities are some of the strongest in the genre.

Failure Frame is one such anime that follows Memori, a below-average high school student abused by his classmates. Things take an interesting turn when a goddess summons him and his entire class to become heroes. While each student gains extraordinary abilities, Mimori is criticized for his weak magical potency. The goddess banishes Memori to a dungeon for his uselessness, which sparks a flame of vengeance in his heart, and he awakens his true power. As Failure Frame ramps up with newly released episodes, there are other series to watch to pass the time that matche Failure Frame's energy. Here are some of the best isekai anime like Failure Frame.

8 Re:Zero

A Dark Focus On The Main Story

Subaru holding a knife
Re:Zero -Starting Life in Another World-
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Studio
White Fox
Creator
Tappei Nagatsuki
Number of Episodes
65
Streaming Service(s)
Crunchyroll

Re:Zero has become an enormously popular isekai anime that twists the concept of being teleported to another world into a dark adventure to obtain the perfect ending. Subaru is ripped from his own world and dropped in the middle of a foreign land.

Best Isekai Anime Like No Longer Allowed In Another World
6 Best Isekai Anime Like No Longer Allowed In Another World

These series each bring a unique twist to the isekai genre, offering everything from intense psychological drama to light-hearted comedy.

Bandits immediately attack him and, shortly after that, murder him. But Subura reawakens, starting over from the beginning without a scratch on him. What Subaru thinks is a gift slowly turns into a curse as he drives himself to the edge to make the right choices and save all of his new friends, and pulls the plug on himself if he messes up.

7 Overlord

The Main Characters' Lives Change, But Not For The Better

Overlord Ainz Ooal Gown
Overlord
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Studio
Madhouse
Creator
Kugane Maruyama
Number of Episodes
52
Streaming Service(s)
Crunchyroll, Netflix

Overlord transports an MMO junkie into a game-like fantasy world where he has been transformed into his character avatar, an undead sorcerer, with all powers intact and his extremely powerful guild base filled with loyal allies. Not sure what to make of it, he takes up the name Ainz Owl Gown and quickly rushes to explore the new land.

Exploration soon becomes a declaration of war, as Lord Ainz decides to shape this world into a paradise for those he holds dear. As his ambition grows, Ainz makes an enemy of the world and struggles with his past humanity and his current existence as an undead Lich.

6 The Saga Of Tanya The Evil

Main Characters Who Have No Concern For The Safety Of Others

tanya the evil anime
Saga of Tanya the Evil
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Studio
Nut
Number of Episodes
12
Streaming Service(s)
Crunchyroll

A cynical businessman on his daily commute meets his end as he's pushed into an oncoming train. Thus begins the start of The Saga of Tanya the Evi l. As the man dies, he curses God, who appears and, out of spite, allows him to reincarnate into a war-torn country as a young girl.

Pettiness fuels the man's new lease on life, as he decides to throw caution to the wind and challenge the so-called God by thrusting himself head first into the chaotic war, dispupting that God is useful or real. However, in this new world, magic and technology go hand in hand, and beating God at his own game may be more complicated than initially planned.

5 The Rising Of The Shield Hero

Scorned Main Characters Who Turn Against The Way Of The Hero

The Rising of the Shield Hero - Naofumi and his party looking off screen
The Rising of The Shield Hero
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Studio
Kinema Citrus, DR Movie
Creator
Aneko Yusagi
Number of Episodes
50
Streaming Service(s)
Crunchyroll

Naofumi is summoned to another world alongside three other young men and charged with being the heroes to save the kingdom from approaching chaos waves of unstoppable monsters that ravage the land. While the first three heroes are met with honor and respect, Naofumi learns quickly that, by inheriting the Shield hero title, he has been outcast and shunned before even getting started.

Naofumi grows spiteful and decides to don the role of the villain, only letting a select few close friends know his true self. Try as he might, Naofumi always arrives to save the day when needed, no matter how much the world's people treat him poorly or think him a criminal.

4 I Gained A Cheat Skill In Another World And Became Unrivaled In Both

The Main Character Receives A Broken, All-Powerful Ability

I Got a Cheat Skill In Another World And Became Unrivaled In The Real World, Too
I Got a Cheat Skill in Another World and Became Unrivaled in the Real World, Too
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On one of the worst days of his life, Yuuya loses the only person who cares about him. Being stuck in a world where he is constantly taken for granted, he finds his way through a portal to another world, where he acquires powerful skills that make him nearly unstoppable.

Yuuya uses these skills to explore and take on evil in this new world, but he also takes his powers back to the real world, where he quickly becomes the talk of the town. Yuuya earns the admiration and respect he has always wanted and even wins the hearts of the girls he likes.

3 Tsukimichi

Destined Heroes Slighted By The Gods

Makoto Tsukimichi Moonlight Fantasy
Tsukimichi - Moonlit Fantasy
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Studio
C2C (Season 1), J.C.Staff (Season 2)
Creator
Kei Azumi
Number of Episodes
37
Streaming Service(s)
Crunchyroll

Makoto's own feelings were sacrificed early in his life after his parents promised him to a beautiful goddess who was to turn him into the hero of her fantasy world. Unfortunately, displeased by his appearance, the goddess cast Makoto out and barred him from interacting with other humans to avoid ruining her plans.

Hitting the lowest of lows, Makoto finds a way to survive in the world by befriending the local monsters and mystical races. Thanks to the heroic blood in his veins, his power continued to increase, and he became one of the most powerful beings in this fantasy world. While building a new life for himself, Makoto still tries to break the curse placed on him and converse with his own kind.

2 The Eminence In Shadow

A Main Character With Vendettas Against The World

Eminence In Shadow
The Eminence in Shadow
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Studio
Nexus
Creator
Daisuke Aizawa
Number of Episodes
32
Streaming Service(s)
HIDIVE, Hulu

In The Eminence In Shadow, Cid lost his life fighting against thugs in his world. By chance, he found himself awake in a new world quite different from his own, with magic being the most powerful force in the land. Unfortunately, Cid brought his past emotions and personality with him, and quickly decided to gain control of this new world and rule it all from the shadows.

best anime like suicide squad isekai-1
5 Best Isekai Anime To Watch If You Like Suicide Squad Isekai

Wit Studio's Suicide Squad Isekai is a lot of fun, and anyone who wants something similar should check out these isekai anime.

In a short time, Cid became unimaginably powerful and created a secret organization that manipulated entire kingdoms with fear or brute strength. Try as they might, heroes and nobles alike attempt to oppose him but don't stand a chance as he destroys anything foolish enough to stand in his path.

1 Arifureta

Main Characters Pushed To The Edge

Arifureta: From Commonplace to World's strongest anime characters
Arifureta: From Commonplace To World's Strongest
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Studio
Asread, White Fox, Studio Mother
Creator
Ryo Shirakome
Number of Episodes
42
Streaming Service(s)
Crunchyroll

Hajime is transported to another world with his entire class, a land that desperately needs soldiers to combat growing threats of destruction. While most of his classmates obtain powerful skills, Hajime is quite average and looked down on. Hajime is betrayed during a dungeon fight and left for dead by those he trusts.

Seiya, from Cautious Hero, Subaru Re Zero, Kaifuku Redo of Healer
10 Best Isekai Anime & Manga With Time Travel

Isekai and time travel seem like a perfect match, but it's a strangely underused set-up, something these great anime and manga are helping to change.

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Hajime crawls out of the dungeon out of a sheer need for vengeance, feasting on the monsters he encounters to stay strong. During this time, his power evolves, and he becomes incredibly strong. Now a new man, Hajime and his few friends decide to band together and find him a way home as he leaves his former allies behind and turns his back on being a hero.

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Failure Frame: I Became the Strongest and Annihilated Everything with Low-Level Spells
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Release Date
2024 - 2024
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Studio
Seven Arcs
Number of Episodes
12
Streaming Service(s)
Crunchyroll