Summary
Despite Isekai’s “bright” fantasy and typically optimistic outlook, various series tell darker stories where the deaths of significant characters occur with wild abandon. These deaths often result in major plot twists, fuel character development, and influence the emotions of world viewers.
These deaths are seldom pleasant and more often unexpected, particularly when they concern important characters on the protagonist’s side. With the deaths of important characters come raised stakes and memorable plots that stick in the minds of viewers long after. For certain fans, these series serve as outliers that keep them on the edge of their seats, as important or even highly favored characters can die at a moment’s notice.
The originalSword Art Onlinehad players involved in a death game, and the deaths of various players influenced Kirito’s development, pushing him to become a lone player and save others. However,Sword Art Onlineisn’t notoriously known for killing off characters, but even so, various characters of importance, whether positive or negative, have been killed off for the progression of the plot.
Characters like Kayaba Akihiko, Eugeo, Quinella, and even Sachi and the various members of the Moonlit Black Cats guild have had deaths that came as a shock and surprise for the many but varied pivotal roles they played.
Strangers sent to a fantasy world with an extremely harsh environment have no recollection of their past lives and are forced to form a party and hunt monsters to survive their new reality. Manato, a charismatic and reliable character,played the role of a priest and leaderof the party, often providing healing and support during battles.
During a mission to hunt goblins, Manato’s party was ambushed, and he, the leader, was shot in his spine but managed to ensure the safety of his party before succumbing to his injuries. Manato’s death devastated the group, making Haruhiro step up as their new leader. Due to the very important role he held as the party’s leader and overall support system, his death was surprising, to say the least.
Mushoku Tensei Jobless Reincarnation
After living a very meaningless life, a 34-year-old NEETdies in an accident and reincarnates, pledging to live his new life with purpose and form deeper connections with those around him, people like his father, Paul Greyrat.
Paul, a caring but clumsy father, inspires Rudeus to become a better man but unfortunately dies during a rescue mission when he and Rudeus face the Manatite Hydra to save his wife and Rudeus’ mom. Although they won, Paul was bifurcated by the hydra and died in a very anti-climactic way that made it even more impactful.
Rimuru Tempest is not one to let his friends die, as seen by his rage at the death of Shion and the lengths to which he resurrects her and his subjects. However, while Rimuru may be all-powerful, even he cannot prevent all deaths.
The death of Shizue Izawa rightly shows this, as Rimuru is left to accept it while preserving her body and moving on. While Rimuru isn’t one to kill or let people die, theThat Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slimeanime series has shown that it’s not above killing off important characters to move the story forward.
Re:Creators
A mix of fictional characters from various fictional worlds gets transported into the real world and are known as creations, whose existences are controlled by human “creators.” Mamika Kirameki is a magical girl from a fictional anime world within theRe: Creatorsuniverse, whose personality portrays kindness and idealism.
Mamika dies in battle against Altair, but not before sending crucial information to the heroes about Altair’splan and abilities to manipulate others. Makima’s death and the information she shares unite the protagonists and help them come up with a strategy against Altair.
When speaking of theIsekai anime series with a melancholy feel,Re:Zerois up on the list. This anime series portrays the very distraught life of Natsuki Subaru and how he watches his friends succumb to one plot or the other as he tries to use his “return by death“ ability to change the outcome of events.
Unfortunately for Subaru, even with his unique ability, he has witnessed the deaths of his friends, characters who play important roles in the series, many times, and they don’t always come back. Sometimes dead even beyond what his “return by death” can change.
As various anime series have portrayed, the concepts of absolute good or absolute evil do not exist, and they’re even more blurred when it comes to wars like the ones Tanya Von Degurechaff is involved in. However, with the series portrayed from Tanya’s point of view, Tanya’s Empire’s opposition is often seen in a negative light, and their mighty individuals are killed off.
Characters like Anson Sioux and his daughter in theSaga Of Tanya The Evilmovie played very important roles, appearing as excellent soldiers but Tanya’s opposition, and so were doomed to be killed by the ‘protagonist.’
3Faraway Paladin
The Passing Of Strong Parent Figures
This anime series portrays the life of the young William, who is raised by three undead beings: a powerful warrior, a gentle priestess, and a wise sorcerer, respectively. After many years of growing, the truth about William’s past and his connection to his “parents” comes to light. However, it seems William is to play a role in their eventual death.
With tears and sadness,the anime series kills off these characters, who serve as William’s closest confidants and the most important people in his life, showing that few to no characters are indispensable for the progression of the plot.
TheNo Game, No Lifeanime series is well-known for its well-thought-out plots and characters. With the movieNo Game No Life: Zero, the series proved that evenit has its tear-jerking momentsin which important characters are killed off.
The characters in this case would be Schwi and Riku, two individuals who bear an uncanny resemblance to Sora and Shiro in terms of overall mannerisms. Schwi and Riku were individuals who fought to end the Great War in the Genesis of Disboard. While they accomplished their goal, they didn’t live to witness it come to fruition.
When it comes to the killing off of important characters,Log Horizonis certainly accountable but not like other isekai series that rely on shock-value deaths. Due to the unique setting in which the series takes place, the “killed off” characters don’t die permanent deaths but rather lose their memories of their original identities as they are now trapped in a game world.
With this unique form of death, the consequences of death inLog Horizoncan be seen as more horrible than death itself, particularly to the characters whose memory of their true identity is the only thing that separates them from actual NPCs, making the emotional turmoil of “death” that much more.
