It is safe to say that Isekai anime is a genre that most anime fans, if not all, are familiar with. This genre involves the reincarnation or transportation of the main character into an alternate universe or fantasy world. Most Isekai anime have male protagonists with female supporting characters, but one thing anime creators do is explore different storylines.

What a male character can do, a female character can also do, and vice versa. A genre can predominately be for female lead characters, like the magical girl genre, but best believe there is some magical boy anime out there. Isekai anime is not left behind, as some have female protagonists with males as the supporting characters.

Updated February 22, 2024, by Oluwatokiloba Folami: While many isekai anime may center around male protagonists, there has been a shift away from that. Now, fans can watch plenty of isekai anime with female protagonists. These leading ladies are showing fans that they can go through the same challenges, adventure, change, and growth that the male protagonists go through and come out on top in their new fantasy world. As these female characters wake up or find themselves in either an otome game, a medieval world, or a magic kingdom, they take charge and try to find their balance in this new world. They take fans on an amazing and unique journey as they solve quests to either survive, or return to their previous world.

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10 Spirited Away

Chihiro Ogino

Chihiro is a spoiled girl who gets whatever she wants whenever she wants it, but she is quick to grow up after a stop at an amusement park turns her parents into pigs, and sends her off to the spirit world. This isekai anime beautifully captures Chihiro's growth as she strives to return to the human world and free her parents from captivity.

This protagonist is just ten years old, yet she possesses great bravery and courage as she navigates through a strange world, encountering magic as well as danger.

9 So I’m A Spider, So What?

Kumoko

• Japanese Title: Kumo Desu Ga, Nani Ka?
• Studio: Milepensee
• Number of Episodes: 24

Before the protagonist of this anime became a spider, she was a high school student who died after an unexpected accident at her school, killing her and her classmates. Kumoko wakes up and discovers she has been reincarnated as a nameless spider. In addition to being the weakest and most fragile creature, she is also stuck in a basement and must escape in order not to die.

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So I’m A Spider, So What? would not be the same without Kumoko’s fighting spirit. Even though she finds herself in an unfavorable position, she is still hopeful that her situation will get better and strives to make sure it is by fighting monsters and leveling up. She faces many obstacles that wear her down, but her willpower is admirable.

8 My Next Life As A Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!

Catarina Claes

Caterina reincarnates as the villain of her favorite otome game. As a villain, she is destined for doom. However, she does not quickly regain her memories from her previous life, and is oblivious to the true nature of her new life. This new Caterina is nice and full of love; she is always ready to help people whenever she can.

My Next Life As A Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!'s leading lady is full of kindness, and it is this kindness that lets her dodge her fate. Once she regains her memories and is aware of her true nature and her destiny with doom, she sets out to avoid her fate by avoiding predestined troubles, befriending would-be rivals, and much more. This leading lady does not have or use swords or magic; rather, her weapon is kindness.

7 Didn't I Say To Make My Abilities Average In The Next Life?!

Adele Von Ascham

Being special has its pros and cons, and Misato suffers the cons till she dies. Because she was special and could do more than what her peers could do, she had no friends and lived a very lonely life. After her death, she gets the golden chance to reincarnate into a fantasy world, and as someone who was beyond average in her previous life, Misato’s only wish in this new world is to be average and live a normal life.

This female protagonist receives the shock of her life as average turns out to be exceptional in this new world. Misato is now Adele, born with extraordinary magical abilities. Unlike her previous life, here she has two friends, and she tries to live an ordinary life regardless of her exceptional skills. Conclusively, her new life with her friends, who make a ridiculous combination of personalities while still trying to stay true to the idea of an isekai helps in selling the series.

6 I've Been Killing Slimes For 300 Years And Maxed Out My Level

Aizawa Azusa

Work-life balance is crucial, and one should endeavor to set aside time to rest and recuperate from daily stress and exhaustion. However, the main character of this isekai anime, Azusa, does not understand the importance of rest, and she dies from overworking and lack of rest.

After her death, she reincarnates as an immortal witch. This time around, she decides to live a stress-free and relaxing life. She spends most of her years killing slimes until she realizes she wants more than the peaceful and isolated life she has been living. Irrespective of its generic use of isekai themes, the pacing and non-seriousness of the series serve as one of its strongest points.

5 Tweeny Witches

Arusu

The female main character in this anime, Arusu, is a lover of magic. Arusu believes that magic should be used for fun and happiness, as this is what her father, Jidan, makes her believe. One fateful day, Arusu finds herself in a strange world, the Magical Realm. In this realm, she realizes that witches are the rulers of the land, which excites her so much because she loves witches.

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Her love shatters the moment she realizes that they use their magic for evil rather than good. As a human, Arusu has quite a solid understanding of magic and can perform more than some of the witches in the Magical Realm. They see her as a threat, but that does not faze Arusu, as she is hell-bent on positively changing things in this realm. Conversely, while showcasing an individual's love for magic, the accurate communication of how magic is actually a tool for wars and oppression sends a deeper message to viewers.

4 Mysterious Play

Miaka and Yui

A harmless visit to the National Library changes the lives of Miaka and Yui. These two young girls stumble upon a book, The Universe of the Four Gods, and this book transports them to the strange world of ancient China, where the book takes place.

Almost immediately, the strange light that transports them to this world takes Yui back to the real world, leaving Miaka to face this new and unfamiliar territory alone. As Miaka settles into this world, she soon becomes the Priestess of Suzuku and meets lots of adventures.

Using the Alice in Wonderland idea is, in some way, what sets this series apart from others, and its resolution of events and character developments clearly play a significant role in making it a good watch.

3 Saga Of Tanya The Evil

Tanya Degurechaff

An ordinary Japanese salaryman dies and reincarnates as a ruthless and evil soldier in an alternate setting of Europe during the World War Era. This ruthless and evil soldier is Tanya Degurechaff, a nine-year-old girl. Age is definitely just a number because Tanya is a second lieutenant, controlling and ordering her battalion on and off the battlefield.

The year is 1914, and magic is the order of the day to fight the war and enhance the military weapons already at disposal. The female protagonist, Tanya, is a mage who uses her magical abilities to fight against opposition, and she gets the work done regardless of her age and small stature. She sees herself as the superior one and will use anyone as a stepping stone to get to where she needs to be. Further, while detailing the gruesome emotions associated with the concept of war, the constant battle with Being X, who sent her to this world, is what sets this anime apart from the rest. Battles with the 'god or goddess' responsible for the reincarnation almost never happen in this genre.

2 Ascendance Of A Bookworm

Myne

This Isekai anime follows the reincarnation of Urano Motsou. Urano was an avid lover of books, so much so that she died under a pile of books, and her final thoughts were about books. Luckily for her, her story does not end under those piles of books; instead, she reincarnates as Myne, a five-year-old girl in a medieval world.

This switch in time does not exactly favor Urano, the book lover, as she transits from modern-day Japan, where books are easily accessible, to the city of Ehrenfest in the medieval era, where books are very expensive and accessible to the nobles. But the love and passion Urano has for books pushes her to defy the fragile body of Myne as she decides to make books herself. With its unique approach to focusing on books rather than the cliché isekai storyline, the Ascendance Of A Bookworm is bound to serve as a good watch to viewers who are looking for that quality.

1 The Twelve Kingdoms

Youko Nakajima

This female protagonist starts somewhat sad. She is a high schooler who does everything right. She follows the rules and is even the class president, but she is still lonely and without friends because of the color of her hair.

This redhead protagonist is Youko, and one day, a strange but elegant-looking man appears to her in class. To this man, Youko is his beloved master, and her throne in the Kingdom of Kou awaits her. Their encounter is cut short by monsters, but he is able to transport Youko back to the kingdom. In this magical world, Youko finally fits in and can even understand the native language of the inhabitants and must step up and become their able leader. Because The Twelve Kingdoms starts off so innocently, with the focus being on high school rather than the typical start to most isekai anime when monsters and a different world are involved, it takes it to a different level.

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