Summary
Isekai anime has what fans need if they feel the itch for adventure and cool visuals, but it also has a lot of great character development, and especially, cool heroes to look up to. Nevertheless, there are strange cases where forgotten isekai heroestend to become popular again, and when they resurface, the debates aboutwho’s the best main character or side characterspread like wildfire.
This topic contains five forgotten isekai heroes who could dethrone the current fan favorites if they had a chance to be rebooted (or renewed for another season). From a responsible and strong-willed teenage boy to a schoolgirl thrown into a war between two princes with absolutely opposing personalities.
Haruhiro’s name, which is composed of the kanji Haru (light, sun, spring) and Hiro (generous, tolerant), is the most suitable for the true hero ofGrimgar Of Ash And Fantasy(original title), but a seemingly forgotten one at that. When fans of Grimgar discuss who’s the best character in the series they often talk about Yuri, Merry, or even Setora. Haruhiro seems lacking in comparison to the fan-favorite female leads, but the truth is that he’s the true star of the show.
Without Haruhiro’s resolve, none of the isekai’d teen group would be alive, even before the untimely and tragic death of their leader Manato while he was trying to save them from an ambush. After that, the younglings accept their fate and start to crumble, but it is the light of bravery sparked by Haruhiro’s resolve that glues the broken pieces together and forces them to cooperate once more. Embracing the sacrifice of Manato as a banner, they reforge bonds, they start to work together toward a sole goal: survival. Haruhiro is the perfect example of a forgotten and often underrated hero of an isekai anime.Plus points for character developmentin this show, since these are rarely seen in the genre.
When the upright and serious Makoto Mizuhara is suddenly isekai’d into the world ofEl-Hazardhis life changes for good. He is not endowed with some broken cheat skill nor an incredibly overpowered weapon, but he can, for some reason, communicate with ancient devices of the lost civilization, and that makes him certainly a standard isekai MC.
But, perhaps what draws more attention to Makoto’s story, is that he is forced to cross-dress, pretending to be the missing princess Fatora. Reluctantly, he kind of goes with the flow, and ends up in the middle of a political struggle for power, in the hopes of making it close enough to the powerful Eye of God, an artifact that could potentially return him and his classmates to Japan. Makoto’s acting and leadership talents turn him into a hero, sadly, forgotten by fans. The truth is thatEl-Hazardis an underrated anime, despite its great worldbuilding and character development.
It would be criminal not to mention Saito fromFamiliar of Zero.A good guy who fell in love with the entitled little noble lady who summoned him to another world, and couldn’t help himself but lay out everything he had to protect her. Saito had no grandiose powers, except for the mark of Gandalvr, which allowed him to wield (and drive) any weapon with certain prowess.
Using his hard-earned combat skills, viewers see Saito progressing through the plot like no other harem protagonist, constantly rejecting the advances of the many heroines, and always returning to the side of his dearest Louise. But, here’s where things take a twist. Saito is alsoone of the few isekai heroeswho actually dies protecting the kingdom and the woman he loves. He is ultimately brought back (at a high cost for him) but he did lay down his life to protect his beloved and the isekai world where he was summoned to.
A classic isekai anime that explores cultural differences and classism like no other, with a deep and powerful message, strong worldbuilding, and overall great characters. But above all else, one of the best heroines in the isekai genre history: Yoko Nakajima. This girl was plucked from a seemingly unhappy life in Japan, and thrown into a merciless world where the fight for survival is a matter of every day. That means she went from bad to worse with the help of the isekai trope.
Arriving in the world of the Twelve Kingdoms changed Yoko greatly, not only in appearance, but she also started to comprehend the language of this brave new world. Turns out that the Twelve Kingdoms is an alternate reality with a combination of cultures between China and Japan of yore. Yoko and her friends become fugitives the second they arrive, and as their story progresses, she discovers she is the heir of one of the Twelve Kingdoms, and reluctantly takes on the position of ruler. She’s tough as nails and has a deep and powerful character development. It’s a shame that she and her story have been forgotten by fans.
The life of the schoolgirl Hitomi changes forever one fateful night after she’s drawn to a mysterious portal from which a Dragon emerges and tries to eat her. But after the Dragon comes a strange swordsman who kills the beast and presents himself as Van Fanel, a prince of a fallen kingdom andrider of the dragonheart-empowered mecha, Escaflowne.
Hitomi is the prime example of how a seemingly useless (at the beginning) character becomes a true savior. She is not only able to stop Van from falling to the dark side but also helps him become a better person, and to overcome the bitterness that the fight with his estranged brother Folken has caused in his heart. Ultimately, the bond they develop transcends cultural differences and shows a war-ridden kingdom that love is more powerful than any weapon made by man, or draconian, in this case. It’s also a great anime, with one of the best openings ever made.
