Felt betrayed after watching the water magician and now i need new anime to heal myself.
The Water magician started quite well, had everything i love in an anime. The adventure part, the brotherly bond between Abel and Ryo, and everything.
But it didn't take long for the pacing and the animation quality to go down the drain.
Can anyone suggest some anime where the MC travels around the world? Something like jobless reincarnation, Water magician etc?
Thanks!
But it didn't take long for the pacing and the animation quality to go down the drain.
Can anyone suggest some anime where the MC travels around the world? Something like jobless reincarnation, Water magician etc?
Thanks!
Commentaires
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Somali to Mori no Kamisama
Kino no Tabi
Seirei no Moribito
Fumetsu no Anata e
Ookami to Koushinryou
Magi and its prequel Sinbad no Bouken
First, try Frieren if you haven't.
I also recommend Weakest Tamer. (we are getting a second season!) It's about a small girl, but it's full of travel and found family energy.
Campfire Cooking is also pretty great! Second season just finished wrapping up. Lots of travel, and the animation only gets better as it goes along.
"Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic" doesn't have traveling around the world, but I enjoyed that for an isekai. I think we're getting a second season? (I could be wrong; there've been a lot of announcements in the last few weeks.)
And for a gritty fantasy, you can check out Clevatess!
Editing to add: this is getting a lot more attention than I anticipated! I’d like to drop a couple more recommendations if that is okay:
“Ugly Mug” was panned pretty hard, but it’s fantastic IMO. It’s got a similar vibe to Vending Machine but with a stronger, more cohesive plot and some vibrant characters. The world-building impressed me, too — they did a great job. I hope we get a second season.
“May I Ask for One Final Thing” is top notch and definitely up there in my list of faves of all time. It’s silly but fun, and every episode is a thrill. World-building is minimal and quite contained to one region, but the world doesn’t feel small, just focused.
And OP, you may like Zenshu. I can’t tell you about it without massive spoilers, but it’s my personal anime of the year, and I say this knowing it’s not everyone’s cup of tea and that it was made for a specific audience versus a wider audience. It’s still a good watch if you’re not part of that specific audience, though.
I will check them out.
Also, the upcoming swntenced to be a hero seems similiar to clevatess
And yeah the light novels are pretty rough. MC was one of the more unlikeable characters I've seen in a long time. A sociopath but in the boring way, not in an interesting way.
What didn’t work for me with water magician was MC. There were some really cool and interesting characters in Water Magician, but the MC wasn’t one of them. He was about as complex as a kid’s TV dinner. No personality, little interest in the people around him, was barely even in several episodes. Boring all around.
The pacing was another issue, with the last few episodes being very sloppy. I just wasn’t a fan.
Art style was pretty alright though.
...
You can try out "Spice and Wolf", although it is not a Literary-RPG, just a long fantasy setting (pseudo dark ages Europe) travel saga. They plan to adapt all the novel volumes eventually.
"Ascendance of a Bookworm" is a fun isekai, but doesn't have travel as of the first 3 seasons. It's an isekai that gets better the further into the story you go (as opposed to the typical isekai doing the opposite).
If you'd prefer if Water Magician were well written (fat chance), behold, the same VA also voices "Iruma-kun". THAT manga has good writing and actual pacing + character development. And I believe that premise features a "Demon Lord", so it has some JRPG tropes in a way. Season 4 is in production.
Do you have a source for this?
Fingers crossed.
[DM plot summary]>!MC gets isekai'd into the jank ass game he's overtime-coding, accidentally drops a meteor or two hundred on an endgame zone and ends up massively OP. Decides that going back to work is shit, so vacations around isekai-land doing OP stuff and builds a found-family party that half-pretends it's a harem.!<
It was intriguing at first but the animation and the dialogues forced me to drop it.
I mean, jobless reincarnation unlike many isekai anime has alot of depth or so i feel.
The emotions and the bonds the MC has and the lengths each character goes for their loved ones. Everything. It was my first isekai anime and I loved it. And it had amazing travel as well.
Was hoping to watch beginning after the end after it got animated but we ended up getting a powerpoint presentation. Huh!
So if you have any anime on your mind that you think i would enjoy, please share them with me🙂↕️
I prefer something that has good writing like jobless reincarnation.
I mean, jobless reincarnation unlike many isekai anime has alot of depth or so i feel.
The emotions and the bonds the MC has and the lengths each character goes for their loved ones. Everything. It was my first isekai anime and I loved it. And it had amazing travel as well.
Action is top notch too!
Was hoping to watch beginning after the end after it got animated but we ended up getting a powerpoint presentation. Huh!
So if you have any anime on your mind that you think i would enjoy, please share them with me🙂↕️
Will try the other two.
Thank you
I think the water magician was quite good having gone in with no expectations.
Easily one of the best adventure anime in my opinion. Has great writing and lots of emotional moments. It also has a "deeper" story in the background of the main adventure kinda like how mushoku has.
Also it has the best first episode of any anime that everyone should watch even if they won't watch the rest.
Thanks
Something interesting is that they changed voice actor from season one to two iirc. It's a female voice actor in the first and then a male in the second because he becomes an adult. It was a great decision, I generally find it jarring when they have female voice actors for men past puberty. (I would prefer if they use boys for boys as well but maybe it's best if kids aren't involved in productions). Even if it's a feminine or daintly character, I prefer if they find a man who can do those voices.
Still fun.
I was thinking of reading some adventure stuff for a long time.
Guess i will just pick an adventure book after i finish my current pick!
Thank you! Haha.
Do you have any good book recommendations?
I will do that.
Thanks 🙏
I am seconding this recommendation. I personally rank it above even the juggernaut "Frieren" (though both shows are of equal overall quality).
All Dunmeshi stans ALWAYS have to bring up their show is better than the number 1 Top anime in MAL, Frieren.
They remind me of ol' Donnie always finding a way to talk smack about Biden (he lives rent free in his mind too).
That said, while Dungeon Meshi is my personal favorite, I consider Frieren to have the sharper and funnier punchlines thanks to its most powerful clowns, Frieren, Sein, and Richter.
Love both shows.
Or where you betrayed by the declining of the show itself?
I've made it to episode 10 or so. I don't know if or when I'll feel inclined to watch another episode.
Lord of the Mysteries was phenomenal and has been the only anime I’ve watched dubbed. Voice actors do a heck of a job for this anime.
Re:ZERO is another entertaining Isekai but there are a lot of episodes. (Can’t wait for the next season in 2026)
Other anime that aren’t exactly the same but I’d also recommend Secrets of the Silent Witch, Mushoku Tensei, and maybe Wistoria: Wand and Sword.
Record of Lodoss war - D&D the anime
Dungeon meshi - D&D but cooking focused and more light hearted. It is a single dungeon but it's across multiple ecosystems inside
Hunter X Hunter - lots of traveling here and one of the best anime ever made both version are great but I'd recommend the newer one just because it's newer, but if it doesn't click try the older one
space dandy - episodic shenanigans traveling across space absolutely a blast
Frieren is an excellent fantasy anime with lots of travelling around and actually feeling engaged with the world.
Spice and Wolf is another great example of world building through showing not telling, where the protagonist couple travelling a lot and you get to see how people live. The world feels alive and organic.
Faraway Paladin will hit the isekai mark. More travelling mercenary band vibes with great world building. There's a very big shift between early training arc episodes and later travelling episodes.
Delicious Dungeon I felt took some time to grow on me but is a great "work friends" travelling together anime. Lots of exploration, cooking, character insights. While not a common complaint, I found the protagonist's lack of common sense both ingratiating and grating.
Clevatess is a more recent example. Tonally distinct from a lot of other anime, with a bleaker atmosphere but an ingrained sense of hope.
Wandering Witch is about a...Wandering Witch. She visits lots of places, meets lots of people, and there are some fairy tale callbacks. It is a somewhat confused show that struggles a little tonally and shifts tones without warning, but has a dedicated fan base.
Mushishi is atmospheric and cleanly episodic, which makes for easy jumping in and out like I did. It's about a man who travels the countryside helping people affected by the supernatural.
Ancient Magus' Bride is likewise very atmospheric with a lot of folklore squeezed in between the seams. You follow the journey of a self-loathing magical apprentice and her non-human teacher's journey in discovering themselves. I think this one might have fewer places visited but each feels very distinct and it is dripping with character.
Personally, I do wish there were more deep journey-based or slice-of-life style isekai shows. Anime seems to have become too childish lately.
One of the few "overpowered" anime that doesn't disappoint as it progresses.
Aside from that, some other recommendations that might align with some or all of what you liked about the start of Water Magician:
- Fullmetal Alchemist (either the 2003 version or Brotherhood): features both adventure/travel and brotherly bond. I’ve seen a bit of the 2003 version and all of Brotherhood. 2003 version apparently has an anime-original ending, whereas Brotherhood adapts the manga more closely including the ending.
- Yona of the Dawn / Akatsuki no Yona: includes adventure/travel, a bit of fantasy, action, and the protagonist (female MC) forming bonds with warriors she and her close friend/love interest have to find and befriend. First season aired back in 2014, and it was announced recently (I think this month or last month) that a second season will be in the works. I have heard that the further the story goes in the manga, the more it leans into the “reverse harem” dynamics, in case harems in anime aren’t your preference to see.
- Hunter x Hunter (either the 1990s version or the 2011 version): includes adventure/travel, friendship bonds (especially a best friendship/sort of brotherly bond between 2 of the MCs). The 2011 version I think adapts a couple more arcs than the 1990s version (I’ve only seen the 2011 version). However, neither version is complete as the manga isn’t finished yet and that often goes on hiatus too because of the author’s health. And there’s no indication that the 2011 anime will continue anytime soon.
- [Unorthodox recommendation] JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: probably gonna be way different in tone and style story-wise (as well as art and animation-wise) compared to something like Jobless Reincarnation or The Water Magician (though, i can’t really speak about the latter as I haven’t seen any of it). But definitely lots of traveling throughout the world in this series (especially in Part 3). And definitely an emphasis on characters’ bonds with each other.
- Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic and its sequel series Magi: The Kingdom of Magic (adventure/travel, plus friendship bonds as well). To my knowledge, though, the anime adaptation doesn’t cover the whole manga, and I don’t recall if the manga ever finished. Still worth the watch. The prequel series, Magi: Adventures of Sinbad, might be worth a watch, too, after watching the main series (if you like it).
- Violet Evergarden: less action, no fantasy elements, but an overall beautiful story. MC (teenage girl) starts off as a young soldier (essentially a child soldier), and she takes up a new job after a war, learning to write letters on behalf of clients, and she travels a lot for that.
- To Your Eternity: I’ve only seen the first ep, but I’ve heard a lot about it. MC does seem to travel throughout the world and forms bonds with people. There’s a bit of fantasy here from what I could tell, but I think the stories may be a bit more grounded in reality otherwise.
Hope this helps!
- Kinos Journey
- To your eternity
- Ascendance of a Bookworm
- The eminence in the shadows
- Ishura
- Log Horizon
- My Gift: Level 9999 Unlimited Gacha
- Made in Abyss
I ended up reading the LNs while the series was airing because I *really* liked Sera and thought it was interesting that a show like that would give the MC such a charming and fun love interest who was also really competent and *not* introduce any garbage harem or love rival elements as these shows usually do. The anime covered I think 2-3 of the LNs, and I read all 4 of the translated volumes and then an addition 3 volumes worth of translated webnovel chapters, so I got pretty damn far into the story.
Unfortunately [Water Magician] >!the author never actually ends up telling the romantic part of the story. Sera is basically not a character in the series. She's mentioned maybe a dozen times in each volume, and the other 98% of the volume will be Ryo going off on some adventure by himself or with Abel and he forgets Sera even exists during them. There is a scene in what will end up being volume 6 or 7 where suddenly they share a kiss and act like they've been dating for months, but none of it was ever shown. She had like 5 scenes over the previous several volumes where there will be 1 paragraph that mentions she's hanging out at his house while he practices alchemy, or a single line about how he and Sera went out to eat, and she doesn't get mentioned again for the rest of the volume. Then suddenly she has to return to the Elf forest while he has to go off and do his own thing, again, and they kiss in front of everyone and have this 'of course we're together like that' moment.....and then she doesn't appear in the series again at all after that. The author just does not tell any aspect of their romance story at all. I actually took the entire series, all the translated chapters from the very beginning and did a word count. Abel's name comes up something like 6,000 times over the course of the series so far. Sera is mentioned I think less than 200. Total. She's basically not a character. What you saw in the anime is about 85% of her total existence in the entire series. They do not spend even 3 paragraphs in the same room together for the *entire rest of the series* after what you saw in the anime, and I'm not exaggerating.!<
Ok I hate the show now too. WTF. Though I guess its better than nothing..
Atleast in the anime she was a good character and they had good chemistry. Adaption beating the source I guess.
- Helck
- The Magical Revolution of the Genius Young Lady
But they travel around Hokkaido
Inuyasha, Mushishi, Akatsuki no Yona (new season inc hype)
also non Fantasy types like Trigun and Spice and Wolf are great
BUT they typically follow an overarching plot or goal, save a few.
Newer ones are your typical suspects, Frieren, DunMeshi, One Piece unironically.
I agree Water Magician started so good though, don't know a good 1:1 for it. In terms of manga though- if you're interested- Bard Loen fits the vibe very well (he's an old man knight tho).
My fave isekai where the MC is alright and the high school friends are not stupid or assholes.
It ends with the setup for season 2 where he travels more.
Kino's journey, literally travelling around on a motorcycle to different city.
Mushi-shi, similar vibes as Kino's journey but a more eastern take.
Girls' Last Tour, travelling in post apocalyptic world.
I'm Standing on a Million Lives, has minimal travelling with its a fun take on isekai story.
To Your Eternity, immortal traveling.