Summary
- Reincarnation in anime adds novelty and excitement to the story, allowing characters to adapt to new environments and eras with technological advancements and cultural differences.
- Not all reincarnation stories in anime are isekai; some focus on advancing the plot within the same world, leading to more interesting and focused narratives.
- Reincarnation anime like "Joshikousei Nobunaga-chan!!," "Dimension Movement of Nazca," and "Ya Boy Kongming!" Explore how characters from different time periods adapt to modern-day life, showcasing struggles, eccentricities, and the formation of new bonds.
Reincarnation is a popular and probably overdone concept in the anime medium. Fans are unsurprised when characters are made to die and return inside new bodies and new worlds. The concept provides several possibilities to drive plots forward, adding an authentic feeling of novelty to the story that fans can sense through their screens.
However, not all reincarnation stories are made equal. Several popular ones can be categorized as isekai, while others do not share those distinguishing features. But this doesn’t prevent them from being just as entertaining or thrilling as their isekai counterparts. Here are some reincarnation anime that don’t count as isekai.
Updated September 4, 2023, by Emedo Destiny: Isekai anime may hold the intrigue of watching a character familiarize themselves with new worlds, but such a feeling can also be gotten from regular reincarnation. As reincarnation is a phenomenon that generally occurs after a long period of time, the audience still gets to watch characters acclimatize to new environments. Experiencing different eras with significant technological advancements and vast differences in cultures can also be exciting and help to keep the audience engaged. Besides this, reincarnation set within the same world promises to focus more on advancing the plot without wasting time on worldbuilding. This makes for more interesting stories that are not longer than they need to be.
15 Joshikousei Nobunaga-chan!!
Joshikousei Nobunaga-chan!! Is a comedy anime with short episodes that features Oda Nobunaga as a regular high school girl. The famous war general is forced to adapt to the customs of modern times, and there are multiple scenes where he is featured struggling with that task.
Nonetheless, he characteristically faces his challenges head-on and even proclaims fearlessly at times that he is Oda Nobunaga. Though he possesses an eccentric personality and acts beyond reason, his friends and family do their best to keep up with him and guide him through his new life.
14 Dimension Movement of Nazca
Dimension Movement of Nazca is an anime that deeply explores the concept of intertwined destinies and individuality, as past lives cause conflicting emotions within individuals. The main protagonist Miura Kyoji, is the reincarnation of a warrior who saved the world, but his adversary was also reincarnated, and its soul reincarnated into that of his kendo teacher.
Possessed by the soul’s desire to purify the world by killing millions, his teacher, Masanari, loses control and recruits other people in order to fulfill his goals. Kyoji also enlists the help of those close to him to foil Masanari’s plans, though he constantly has to ask himself if it is his will or that of the soul that resides within him.
13 Ya Boy Kongming!
Ya Boy Kongming! Is an anime featuring a notable historical figure and how he finds his place in modern-day Japan. In his original life, Zhuge Kongming was a master tactician and one of the brightest minds in the Three Kingdom era. Unfortunately, though, during one of his battles, he fell ill and passed away with a wish to be reborn in better times.
Consequently, Kongming wakes up in Tokyo several centuries into the future, looking much younger than he was before his death. Despite being initially shocked by the considerable change in scenery, he meets a young singer named Eiko Tsukimi, and the pair soon form a deep bond. The story tells of how Kongming uses his superior intellect to manage Eiko and carve a path to which she can rise to great heights.
12 The Greatest Demon Lord is Reborn As A Typical Nobody
Demon Lord Varvatos is the protagonist of this story, and despite being a powerful being with no equal, he still has some emptiness in his heart. This is due to being distanced from humans, though he is truly a human himself. Desiring true companionship, he decides to reincarnate thousands of years into the future and reduce his power significantly.
Despite this, he is still much stronger than everyone in this new age, and it doesn’t help that he is not the best at communication either. Even so, he enrolls in Laville National Academy Of Magic and still manages to make some friends while also finding himself in some precarious situations.
11 Oshi No Ko
Oshi no Ko was one of the dark horses of anime in the Spring of 2023, and it’s a very good example of reincarnation done right. Unlike many of its counterparts, the rebirth of its main characters happens relatively quickly, and their lives immediately take a turn for the worse after their mother and idol, Hoshino Ruby, is murdered right in front of them.
This has a considerable effect on both of her reincarnated children, as Hoshino Aquamarine embarks on a quest for vengeance to identify the true circumstances around his mother’s death. Hoshino Ruby, on the other hand, aims to follow in the footsteps of her mother as a successful idol, with her brother also offering support at every step.
10 The Strongest Sage with the Weakest Crest
In this action-adventure anime, Gaius is burdened with the feeling of inadequacy. He’s not happy with his abilities even though he’s the strongest sage. He decides that to get the crest he wants so badly, he must be reincarnated into the future.
In the future, he finally gets the crest he desires as his new self, Mathias Hildesheimer. Unfortunately for him, all the elapsed time has devalued his priced possession. Mathias remains unfazed and begins his journey at the Second Academy and his quest to right the wrongs that have happened in his absence.
9 Angel Sanctuary
Setsuna Mudo struggles a lot in this supernatural anime. He’s only 16 years old and still in high school, but he has to deal with the complications of his romantic feelings for his sister Sara, superhuman powers, and the fact that he’s the Organic Angel Alexiel reincarnated.
Setsuna has to deal with supernatural beings constantly getting drawn to him, and the devastating consequence of waking up Alexial’s soul. Luckily for him, Adam Kadamon helps out and reverses the effect. This anime uses the concept of reincarnation in a familiar but exciting way.
8 Love Story of Cat Spirit
Revenge meets reincarnation in this fantasy and romance anime. With only twenty episodes, Love Story of Cat Spirit tells the story of a cat demon battling a split personality and pain from her previous life.
What begins as a quest for revenge on an old lover develops into a surprising love triangle. This anime, based on the original web novel, is the type that gets viewers interested in the next moment, and how such a complicated situation is bound to unravel. It leaves viewers constantly coming back.
7 Oda Cinnamon Nobunaga
Oda Cinnamon Nobunaga is an adorable ride through the world of fictional Japan. Cinnamon is the dog at the center of the story. He belongs to the Oda household but is really the reincarnation of a former lord of Owari called Nobunaga.
At his death, he thought it would be funny to return as a dog. To his surprise, this actually happens, and he’s joined by other warlords as well. This story is a funny and relaxing one. The episodes are also garnished with short post-credit scenes of real-life dogs.
6 Reborn to Master the Blade: From Hero-King to Extraordinary Squire
In this anime, Inglis gets another chance at life so he can learn a skill. Having lived a noble life in which he helped make his country greater, a goddess called Alistia decided to reward him with a wish.
Inglis, formerly a hero king, is then reborn as the daughter of the Eucus family. Without access to magical powers in this new form, Inglis is free to gain mastery of the sword by squiring her cousin called Rafinha Bilford. The essence of this anime is a determined character who will stop at nothing to become great at a skill she desires.