Isekai has become one of the most beloved genres in anime. It features characters transported to other worlds, assuming new roles and achieving otherworldly achievements. Over the years, several isekai anime series have achieved massive success, such as Re: Zero, Mushouku Tensei, and The Rising of Shield Hero.
However, not all series hit the mark. Some series have characters that are total snoozefests or unoriginal plots. If you’re looking for an isekai anime that will impress you with fleshed-out characters, amazing worldviews, and clear goals, here are ten series to NOT add to your watch list.
10. ‘I’m Standing on a Million Lives’
This might be a controversial take. I’m Standing on a Million Lives was moderately successful, with an ongoing manga, two seasons of anime, and a novel adaptation. However, isekai fans were less than impressed when the show aired.
One majorly disappointing thing about I’m Standing on a Million Lives are the characters. They all have the potential to be amazing, but their growth is rarely explored. Additionally, the pacing—especially for season one—was incredibly slow, making it hard for people to reach the end.
9. ‘She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wiseman’
She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wiseman is an isekai anime that many consider a major cringefest. If you’re looking for a video game-centered isekai, you might as well just watch Sword Art Online.
The show tells the tale of Sakimori Kagami, who is sucked into the video game Ark Earth Online and taking form of his character’s body—who he shaped to look like a young woman. The anime is adapted from the manga but does a bad job of retelling the events. The loopholes in the anime and the weird characters make this series worth skipping. Also, it is NOT normal for an anime to have that many pee references. IYKYK.
7. ‘The 8th Son? Are You Kidding Me?’
This anime isn’t necessarily horrible, but it isn’t good either. Overall, The 8th Son? Are You Kidding Me? is just another isekai. It brings nothing new to the table, and it can easily be misremembered as another series.
The series shows Shingo Ichinomiya, a normal worker, wake up as the eighth son of the noble Baumeister family, Wendelin von Benno Baumeister. Though in the body of a five-year-old, he soon discovers his potential in magic and hones his abilities throughout the years. The main issue fans have is that it barely feels like an isekai; the main character doesn’t behave as if he came from another world, and despite having the mind of an adult, we see him immediately start acting as if he has always been Wendelin.
6. ‘In the Land of Leadale’
In the Land of Leadale earned the ire of isekai fans because of the bland plot and the overpowered main character. It’s another anime in which the manga is way better at presenting the story, so if you actually wanted to learn the story, it would be better to turn to that.
The main problem fans faced was that the main character, Cayna, was overpowered the moment she entered the game Leadale. This would have been fine if the side characters were interesting, but they were bland and one-dimensional. The world in itself does not stand out compared to other isekais, and the story as a whole was just downright boring.
5. ‘Arifureta: From Commonplace to World’s Strongest’
The light novels of Arifureta: From Commonplace to World’s Strongest received major love from the anime community, leading to high expectations for the anime. However, the anime ultimately failed to reach the standards people had for the show.
Besides trying too hard to be edgy (to the point it just felt cheesy), the pacing was a major problem for Arifureta fans. To cover as many volumes as possible, the team behind Arifureta cut out scenes that fleshed out the personalities and growth of the characters. Because of that, fans don’t have any special attachment to the characters in the series.
4. ‘Kyo Kara Maoh!’
Kyo Kara Maoh! focuses on Yuri Shibuya, a 15-year-old ordinary Japanese boy who is transported to another world, where he becomes the king of demons. As the king of demons, Yuri has to adapt to the very different culture of the Great Demon Kingdom.
The show is not meant to be 100% serious. In fact, the majority of the series focuses on the mishaps Yuri experiences with his new role. The problem with Kyo Kara Maoh! was how they didn’t know how to balance the comedic scenes with the serious ones. The jokes ended up not landing with viewers, and it felt extremely forced.
3. ‘The Fruit of Evolution: Before I Knew It, My Life Had It Made’
The Fruit of Evolution: Before I Knew It, My Life Had It Made is your typical, terrible isekai, but their failure in other aspects has earned the series a negative image in the anime community.
Seiichi Hiiragi starts off as a typical loser: overweight and bullied in high school. However, when he is transported to a video game-like world and eats “the Fruit of Evolution,” he turns into a total hottie, thus beginning his life as a “winner.” Of course, he only attracts people’s attention when he is conventionally attractive (because that’s obviously the message we want to send to people. Duh.) Besides the horrible plot, the humor is forced and the fight scenes are poorly done.
2. ‘Isekai Cheat Magician’
The only redeeming factor of Isekai Cheat Magician is that the opening song was amazing. Other than that, the anime is a total train wreck.
Everything about this anime is bad. The animation is poorly done, the scoring could use some work, the characters are bland and boring, the plot is generic and tired, and the pacing was too fast for you to absorb anything. There is no major twist to hook the viewer, and whatever you’re anticipating is likely the course Isekai Cheat Magician will take.
1. ‘Conception’
Not only is Conception considered one of the worst isekai animes, some believe it is the worst anime series to air ever. It’s an adaptation of a video game with a, er, questionable premise, so it’s not shocking the anime was so bad.
Conception is a harem isekai that focuses more on the girls than the unique world of Gravania. The main character, Itsuki Yuge, is told he can save Gravania from chaos if he meets the Star Maidens and has “Star Children” with all of them. The plot is trashy, annoying, and unwatchable. Spare yourselves and do not watch Conception.
Published: Oct 15, 2024 03:16 pm