Highlights
- Not all isekai protagonists have to be overpowered heroes – these unique stories offer fresh and unconventional takes on reincarnation.
- From becoming a slime monster to a vending machine, the diverse reincarnation plots in these anime bring humor and originality to the genre.
- With protagonists ranging from ruthless child soldiers to inanimate objects, these isekai series challenge the typical reincarnation narrative.
Everyone knows how the stereotypical reincarnation isekai goes. An average otaku dies, most likely by getting hit by a truck, gets reincarnated into the fantasy world of his dreams, and becomes ridiculously overpowered. Fans feel this common plotline has been driven into the ground, and it’s time to introduce more unique reincarnation stories.
Fortunately for them, many writers in the genre have taken it upon themselves to introduce new twists and plot elements to keep the stories fresh. These anime take a different approach to the idea of reincarnation or have the protagonist be reincarnated into something other than an overpowered hero.
1 That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime
Reincarnated As A Lowly Slime
That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime features an overpowered, reincarnated protagonist with a twist – he’s a slime monster. Satoru Mikami, a middle-aged office worker, gets reborn as a slime in a fantasy world after a stabbing incident. He finds out he’s able to mimic the appearance and gain the abilities of anything he consumes, and embarks on a journey to build a prosperous society.
The protagonist, known as Rimuru Tempest in his new form, tries to avoid conflict as much as possible. He doesn’t seek power for personal gain; he just wants peaceful co-existence with the world’s creatures.
2 My Next Life As A Villainess: All Routes Lead To Doom!
Reincarnated As A Villainess In An Otome Game
My Next Life As a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! isn’t the first isekai to do the “reincarnated as a villainess” thing, but it’s certainly the most popular, leading to a whole host of other works in this niche little sub-genre. The story centers around a nobleman’s daughter named Catarina Claes, who suddenly recalls her past life as a regular girl playing an otome game called Fortune Lover, and realizes she’s been reincarnated into the game’s world as a villainess.
The series’ success was unexpected, to say the least, with many praising the series for its fresh spin on the isekai genre, its blend of comedy and heartwarming moments, and its self-aware take on both the isekai and otome genres.
3 So I’m A Spider, So What?
Reincarnated As A Low-Level Spider Mook
Many isekai protagonists get reincarnated as overpowered beings, but So I’m a Spider, So What? explores what it’s like to get reincarnated into a world when one is not just underpowered, but the lowest-level enemy in any RPG. The story follows an unnamed high school student as she gets reincarnated into another world along with all the other students in her high school. Unfortunately for her, her schoolmates get reincarnated into cool things like royalty, while she gets reborn as a spider.
So I’m a Spider, So What? has an unconventional protagonist and surprisingly detailed survival aspects, with the protagonist learning to adapt to her arachnid body and using her wit to navigate an RPG-like dungeon.
4 Reborn As A Vending Machine, I Now Wander The Dungeon
Reincarnated As An Inanimate Vending Machine
The reincarnation plot of Reborn as a Vending Machine, I Now Wander the Dungeon is just as hilarious and puzzling as it sounds. The protagonist is a vending machine enthusiast who dies after a beloved vending machine falls on him. He reincarnates into a fantasy world, but instead of becoming a powerful creature, he becomes a sentient vending machine.
Of course, since he cannot move on his own, the protagonist gets carried, literally and figuratively, by a huntress with extraordinary strength named Lammis. The bizarre and unconventional premise alone makes the series stand out in an otherwise oversaturated market.
5 Konosuba: God’s Blessing On This Wonderful World!
Reincarnated As A Low-Level, Undignified Adventurer After An Embarrassing Death
Konosuba: God’s Blessing on this Wonderful World! is a parody of the isekai genre, so one should expect its unusual reincarnation circumstances to be played for comedy. The protagonist, Kazuma Satou, dies after trying to save a girl from a moving tractor, except that the girl was never in any actual danger, and Kazuma just died of an acute stress reaction.
After his anti-climactic death, Kazuma chooses to be reincarnated into a fantasy world and brings along the goddess who greets him in the afterlife. But unlike what one would expect from a typical isekai, he doesn’t gain any special abilities. He’s just an average adventurer who has to learn new skills and work his way up.
6 Reincarnated As A Sword
Reincarnated As A Sentient Weapon
While reincarnating as a sword isn’t as weird as reincarnating as a vending machine, it’s still a unique way to be reborn into another world. It follows the story of a man who gets, as the title would suggest, reincarnated as a sentient sword. He retains his memory of everything in his past life, excluding his name.
Reincarnated as a Sword received mixed to positive reactions from audiences and critics alike, with some liking the relationship between the sword and Fran, the beast girl who wields him. Others felt the series was too derivative of other “reincarnated as an inanimate object” isekai like Reborn as a Vending Machine, I Now Wander the Dungeon.
7 The Saga Of Tanya The Evil
Reincarnated As A Ruthless Child Soldier Of A Different Gender As Punishment
While most isekai protagonists get reincarnated by chance or tragedy, the salaryman protagonist of The Saga of Tanya the Evil gets reincarnated as a little girl as a form of punishment by a powerful entity known as Being X. And she has no intention of playing the hero – she just wants to climb the ranks of the new, WWI-inspired world so she can live comfortably.
Tanya, despite her appearance, keeps all her memories and personality from her previous life. This influences how she navigates the military, and much of the series’ conflict is focused on Tanya’s rivalry with Being X, with no altruism or heroics in sight.
8 Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation
Explores Reincarnation In Its Truest Form, Following The Protagonist From Infancy To Adulthood
Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation popularized many of the tropes in isekai today, although it has a very different take on the concept of reincarnation. It follows a 34-year-old NEET who, after getting killed in a traffic accident, is reincarnated in a fantasy world as Rudeus Grant. He keeps all the memories from his previous life and decides to make the most of his current one.
The narrative follows Rudeus from his birth to adulthood, already making him stand out from the numerous isekai protagonists who enter their new worlds as full-formed teenagers or adults. Rudeus’ growth in magic and combat is also gradually paced.
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