Continuing my current focus on the isekai corner of the anime fandom I present four shots from four isekai anime series that is currently still airing with new seasons. All started out strong and gaining new fans.
Some have pointed out that the quality in later seasons have dipped for some, but those who invested their time to watch these series have stuck with the four series. With the dearth of mid to bad isekai series coming out year after year it’s just due time for the genre to go out with a whimper, but until that happens…“Isekai is dead! Long live the isekai!”
Overlord (Ōbārōdo) by Kugane Maruyama
The Rising of the Shield Hero (Tate no Yūsha no Nariagari) by Aneko Yusagi
That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime (Tensei Shitara Suraimu Datta Ken) by Fuse
The Eminence in Shadow (Kage no Jitsuryokusha ni Naritakute!) by Daisuke Aizawa
My latest pick for AMV of the Day comes courtesy of creator WarLuxAMVs with his editing work using scenes from the isekai series Gate: Thus the Japanese Self-Defense Force Fought… (a series that was profiled years ago as an anime recommendation).
It focuses heavily on the character Rory Mercury who, despite her appearance, turns out to be the most powerful character in the whole series and is also the source of much hijinks involving the main protagonist, Yoji Itami. As the videos shows, she’s quite bloodthirsty in equal amounts to being the gothic lolita type. She’s also quite adept at wielding her massive halberd with ease.
WarLuxAMVs does a very good job in syncing up the action scenes with the WattWhite song “Eye of the Storm” and if there’s one description that fits Rory Mercury when she’s going about her apostle duties then being the “eye of the storm” fits her like a black satin and lace glove.
Song: Eye of the Storm by WattWhite
Anime: Gate: Thus the Japanese Self-Defense Force Fought…
The last anime I recommended was the mature and very dark MONSTER. It’s time to lighten and chill things down a bit with my next recommendation. This series is one of my recent favorites that I’ve re-watched several times since the 12-episode season came out January 2024. The series I am talking about is Farming Life In Another World (Isekai Nonbiri Nouka).
The series is quite light-hearted and almost a fantasy version of farming life sims like Stardew Valley. Like many isekai (trans. another world), Farming Life In Another World is about a random person (usually from Japan) who has been transported to another world either through the mistake of some multiversal god/goddess or through the machinations of a certain truck-kun.
What or who is a truck-kun? Well, I’m glad you asked. Truck-kun is literally a truck that has become the go-to implement in sending a poor person from our would and into another by running them over while they are not looking. If there was ever a perfect example of why we should always look both ways before crossing the street it is that truck-kun is always out there lurking, waiting for the right time to pounce and claim another victim. Except, truck-kun wasn’t the culprit this time around but health problems from literally being overworked to death that sends out protagonist reincarnating to another world.
So, back to Farming Life In Another World, our protagonist has been accidentally taken to another world by God and apologizes to our main character for the unfortunate turn his life had taken by sending him to this new world. God’s generosity he asks Hikaru for one wish to make his life easier on this new world and Hikaru, in his past-life as an overworked, middle-aged office worker from Japan, asks for long-life and a chance to live a quiet and arboreal life this second time around. With his new found abilities and the Omnipotent Farming Tool to help fulfill Hikaru’s wish, God sends him off to this new world, dropping him off in the Forest of Death where Farming Life In Another World begins in earnest.
This anime is definitely one of the lighthearted ones with a bit of the fan-service thrown in to add to the comedic aspect of the story being told. Farming Life In Another World was adapted from the light novel of the same name by author Kinosuke Naito. The source material made more use of Hiraku’s endless stamina courtesy of God by having him literally sleep with every female that joins the village he ends up building in the middle of the Forest of Death. The anime lightens up on this aspect of the light novel and turns it into a running joke in that he gets nervous and tries to forget the fact that every female (from vampires, killer angels to all types of elves) want to have sex with him. The anime adaptation is the PG-version of what was a very raunchy light novel.
Yet, despite the apparent change in tone with the anime adaptation compared to the light novel source material, Farming Life In Another World does actually work as a slice-of-life comedy isekai. Fans of the light novel may cry that the changes from the sex comedy that was the light novel was too much of a change for fans who have never read the light novel will not miss anything. What they will get instead is a lighthearted series that eases new fans to anime into a new genre of the medium that has dominated the industry for the past decade or so.
Just like any adaptation of a written source material there will always be those who complain that the adaptation should be slavishly faithful to the original material. Yet, I always say that even if the adaptation has made drastic changes to the source material it doesn’t change the fact that the original still exists to be enjoyed. Sure, the ecchi and heavy fanservice of the light novel has been changed to be more PG-rated but it doesn’t detract from the fun and chill vibes of the anime version.
Farming Life In Another World works, in my opinion, because it does minimize the more raunchier side of the story to concentrate on the day-to-day and slice-of-life tone of the source material. The anime focuses on the world building and comedy side of Hiraku’s journey with his companions as they build what amounts to as an advanced and powerful village in the middle of what his new world considers the most dangerous area in the world. He does this with the help from Rurushi Ru (vampire mage) and Tia (angel aka the Annihilation Angel) who start off as frenemies but turn into close friends and friendly rivals (the show hinted at Hiraku marrying both which is a compromise the show makes to the source material).
Isekai is a genre in anime that has been very prevalent each new season for the past decade or so. Some would say that this genre has been the bane of the anime industry since we see knock-offs after knock-offs every year with most being bad (though some I would consider bad but enjoyable enough to be guilty pleasures). Yet, the genre has produced some of the best series in that same time frame. They’re not the majority, but they’re there enough in number to wash the taste of the awful ones.
Does Farming Life In Another World count as one of the best in genre? I say no, but it doesn’t have to be one of the best. It just had to be the best in what it had to be and that’s a slice-of-life comedy with some clever world building that would make any one who is a fan of sims games giddy. While we don’t get the raunchy and fanservice heavy anime adaptation of the light novel (if one wanted to know what such a version would look like I suggest they watch 1980’s sex comedies like Porky’s or Revenge of the Nerds).
Through the Shattered Lens 