Whether justified or not, isekai has a reputation for producing low-budget series lacking in production value or much in the way of artistic merit. Each season has a few otherworldly stories that suffer from static animation, uninspired art direction, or are just unpleasant to look at. While the genre’s bottom-of-the-barrel releases tend to be very rough,beautiful isekai animeare not unheard of, and a couple of shows have genuinely top-tier animation that compares favorably to anything else on the market.
To be clear, pretty visuals are not the be-all, end-all. Plenty offantastic shows have modest animationor only serviceable art, and isekai is no exception. However, anime is ultimately a visual medium, and a great presentation or an eye-catching style can be a difference maker. Consequently, let’s highlight thebest-looking isekai animeof all time.
As movies naturally come with bigger budgets, only anime series will be highlighted.
Honorable Mentions
Honestly, mostgood-to-great isekai animehave above-average animation, even if they might not be spectacular or extremely consistent. The following shows are all pleasing enough to the eye to warrant honorable mentions.
The Vision of Escaflowneis inescapably a'90s anime, and that is by no means a criticism. The art style and animation are dated by today’s standards, but this very aspect is what gives the visuals their charm. While there is a notable dip in quality during the second half of the series, at its best,The Vision of Escaflowneranks among Sunrise’s most beautiful shows of the decade, which is by no means an easy feat.
The anime delivers stunning vistas, detailed mecha designs, and smooth fight sequences, blending sci-fi and fantasy to create something that represents both genres well. Vibrant colors contrast with harsh reds and solid blacks to create a sense of depth, all the while maintaining an impressive sense of scale throughout most of the series.
A few infamous exceptions aside, Madhouse is generally reliable when it comes to animation, and the studio was on fire during the mid-2010s. Debuting before isekai had started to overstay its welcome,No Game, No Lifewas a massive success, to the point of warranting the creation of a movie prequel. Not everything about the show has stood the test of time perfectly, but the animation and art styles still put to shame most modern isekai series.
Compared to the many, many generic medieval worlds that dominate the theme, Disboard is a visual delight that pops off the screen with bold and aggressive colors. The environments are pretty great, and they are matched by fantastic character designs that are immediately unforgettable.
At a glance,That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slimemight not seem to be particularly special, at least visually. For the most part,TenSuralooks like nearly every other (above-average) isekai anime; however, what separates it from the crowd is consistency.
While most shows just about manage to keep things together for a single cour, 8bit has maintained a respectable standard forthree seasons and more than 70 episodes, with almost no dips in quality along the way. Even if it might not reach the highest highs seen by the genre,TenSuraalways has clean art, good animation, and fairly solid action sequences. The character designs are also among the best in the isekai theme, even if they are relatively traditional.
A slow-burner in nearly every way,The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trashgrew in popularity during its Winter 2024 run, eventually cementing itself as one of thebest isekai anime of the 2020s. Built around an endearing and sympathetic protagonist, the anime starts fairly dark but eventually settles into a slow-life routine that follows Ivy as she tries to find her place in a fantasy world that would rather kill her. While the story takes a few episodes to find its rhythm, the same cannot be said for the visuals, which start as movie quality and never let up.
Considering Ivy spends most of her time in the wilderness and in relative isolation,The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trashneeded to create immersive environments with enough personality and variety to keep things interesting. Every other shot is beautiful enough to work as a desktop wallpaper, and the anime is not front-loaded with better-looking episodes.
AlongsideRe:Zero,Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnationis probably the most polarizing “great” isekai anime. That reputation islargely due to Rudeus, who is either the best or worst isekai protagonist, depending on the viewer. The story also takes a few turns that lead to ambitious but potentially frustrating arcs, although the writing is generally consistently good.
While the values of various elements in the show are up for debate,Mushoku Tensei’s technical achievements are beyond question. The anime is simply beautiful, delivering best-in-class backdrops, reliably great character designs, and stunning architecture. Despite being set in a somewhat traditional fantasy world,Mushoku Tensei’s world looks and feels different from anything else in the isekai genre, and a lot of that comes down to Studio Bind’s art.
