Without a beginning, there would be no end. In the case of these anime, however, the end actually is the beginning that kicks off an unorthodox story. Despite meeting their untimely ends at the start of the story, the main characters have to deal with living in another world, gaining strange powers, or even leaving their past family behind only to be told they now have a new one.

 

Although most series may deal with their “deaths” as a comedy, there are various ways an anime can show how an MC deals with their new life after death — goods and bads included. From laugh-until-your-stomach-cramps series like KONOSUBA -God’s blessing on this wonderful world! to some classics like Yu Yu Hakusho, there’s actually tons of anime where the main character dies to kick it off.

 

KONOSUBA – God’s blessing on this wonderful world!

 

 

KONOSUBA -God’s blessing on this wonderful world! is both the most Isekai and least Isekai anime to ever have been created. The series begins when shut-in Kazuma Satou tries to save a classmate from what he thought was impending death, but instead is a slow-moving truck that poses no harm at all. Kazuma goes on to die from stress and is sent to another world where he becomes an RPG character. Average and pathetic in every way, he somehow assembles a party where every single member is both worlthess and overpowered at the same time.

 

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Although called “worthless” by the very goddess who sends him to the world, Aqua, Kazuma also manages to outsmart her by tricking her into coming to that same world with him. The series is not only a joke about the Isekai genre but basically makes everything into one — even death.

 

Chainsaw Man

 

 

Denji is one unlucky guy. After his father died, he was left to inherit his dad’s debt from the yakuza. With nothing else to lose, he decides to make a contract with the adorable Chainsaw Devil, Pochita, and become a Devil Hunter to attempt to clear his debt. Unfortunately, Denji is betrayed by the yakuza and brutally murdered by the Zombie Devil. He doesn’t stay dead for long though, as Pochita becomes his heart to enact a new contract. All Pochita wants is for Denji to show him his dreams, and thus, Denji becomes the titular devil-human hybrid Chainsaw Man.

 

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Each character in the series has their own interest. Despite how serious some of the tasks are (such as killing the dangerous Gun Devil), Denji does his best to live the life he never could before.

 

Yu Yu Hakusho

 

 

Who said all delinquents are bad? While trying to do a good deed by saving a child from a car, Yusuke Urameshi is struck by a car and dies shortly after. However, because of his good deed, he is instead given a series of tests by the son of the ruler of the Underworld, passes them, and is dubbed “Underworld Detective,” flipping his already extinguished life upside down.

 

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Yusuke deals with his detective work of hunting demons, ghosts and apparations with his somewhat charmingly crude attitude while also staying true to himself before he was killed. Along with his skills in fighitng and honesty, Yusuke is joined by both a colorful cast of characters that both keep him in check and become adversaries.

 

ZOMIE LAND SAGA

 

 

To become an idol — some people state that “their life depends on it.” Well, ZOMBIE LAND SAGA happens to take that idiom quite seriously. The series takes everyone back to 2008, where anime was filled with newly realized cliches. There, aspiring high school idol Sakura Minamoto is killed by a truck and both her life and dreams come to an end. That is, until 10 years pass and Sakura is brought back to life by a man named Kotar Tatsumi and can finally realize her dreams of becoming a star.

 

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But it comes with a twist. Along with other so-called famous girls from other eras of Japan’s history, Sakura Minamoto becomes a zombie six-unit group under the name of Franchouchou that must hide the fact they are zombies to revive the failing idol business. Between hiding their zombie status and trying to become popular idols, the series is rife with hilarity.

 

Re:ZERO -Starting Life in Another World-

 

 

Shut-ins seem to be the perfect characters to get Isekai’d, and Subaru from Re:ZERO is a classic example of that. After he’s summoned to a fantasy world and befriends Emilia, a half-elf girl, he is promptly killed after trying to aid her. After he’s killed, however, he realizes he was sent back in time and is reliving the past few hours up until he’s been summoned.

 

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The entire plot of the series revolves around Subaru being killed repeatedly, with the cause of it being a skill Subaru names “Return by Death.” As long as he “saves” at a certain point, he is able to return back to that time if he dies, all while being the only one who retains those memories. A cruel skill, but one that has saved many at the risk of his sanity.

 

Ascendance of a Bookworm

 

 

Ascendance of a Bookworm is one of the chillest fantasy anime out there, and one that booklovers revere. Urano Motosu was a book-loving college student who was about to become a librarian, but when an earthquake hits, she’s crushed by the very books she adores. She wakes up to discover she’s in the body of a sickly 5-year-old girl, Myne, in a world where books are only reserved for the richest nobles. She doesn’t let that stop her, however, as she does everything in her power to read and figure out the mystery behind her disease.

 

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From learning how to create books from scratch to learning more about the world she was brought to, the series also dives into do-it-yourself work. Myne also learns how to get accustomed to the sudden family she has both gained and lost, as the real Myne is implied to have died once Urano reincarnated into her body. Nonetheless, the story is full of heart.

 

Angel Beats

 

 

Angel Beats takes the meaning of death and imbues if mostly with comedy — but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have its sad moments.Yuzuru Otonashi, the titular protagonist, lost his memories after he died and is sent to the afterlife, which takes the appearance of a high school. There, the residents are in limbo where they must overcome their personal traumas and hardships before they can either move on or be reincarnated to live a new, fulfilling life.

 

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Yuzuru is invited to the Afterlife Battlefront by Yui Nakamura to “fight and rebel against God” for making them suffer. He not onnly meets a colorful cast of people but also befriends them. They fight against the student council president, Kanade Tachibana, who has God-like powers and disciplines those who don’t follow the rules. The series delves into each of the characters’ backstories, their regrets, and blends comedy in a way that impacted many.

 

Excel Saga

 

 

Excel Saga is quite the unique anime in more ways than one. Lord Il Palazzo, the leader of a secret society by the name of ACROSS wants to achieve world domination. However, not all of his subordinates are good at their jobs: namely Excel and Hyatt. Excel fails at every mission she’s given despite the fact that she joins ACROSS straight out of high school. She dies in the first episode (due to her own actions) in unfortunate accidents.

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As a gag comedy, Excel and Hyatt are often both resurrected by something called The Great Will of the Macrocosm — a literal deus ex machina character created to put things back to normal when things get out of hand or when someone dies. 

 

All of these anime are unique in their own way, from death being made cheap to being used as a psychological aspect in their respective shows. But no matter how new or old they are, they all share in the spirit of each other, with some mirroring the plot points and cliches of the other. Go ahead and check some of them out!