TheFall 2024 isekai animeshows are gradually approaching the end of their runs, and they have been a mixed bag. Still, putting aside any discussion of quality, the lineup warrants praise for offering a relatively diverse range of stories. Containing a good mix of sequels and newcomers, the season has power fantasies, a villainess story, a comedy, a reverse isekai, andRe:Zero.
The genre will always love its overpowered leads, andFall 2024 delivers on that front. While most of the quarter’s isekai protagonists pack a punch, some are considerably more powerful than others, at least within the context of their universes. So, let’s go throughFall 2024’s OP isekai anime MCs.
Here are a few criteria, notes, and things to keep in mind:
In a refreshing change of pace, quite a few Fall 2024 isekai anime make their protagonists work for their power, andI’ll Become a Villainess Who Goes Down in History’s Alicia is arguably the best example. Covering roughly a decade in her life, the anime chronicles the girl’s growth, in terms of her physical and magical abilities. While regarded as a prodigy by her parents and peers, Alicia earned that reputation through daily practice and a willingness to go the extra mile, even locking herself in a shelter for months to focus solely on training her magic.
As an older teenager, Alicia is now amaster swordswomanwho can hold her own against adult soldiers. Although not granted too many opportunities to demonstrate her skills, Alicia is a very capable magic user; in fact, she demonstrated proficiency in magic at the age of 10, which is remarked upon as an incredible achievement. Later on, she even cured a guy’s blindness by transplanting one of her eyes. While more powerful than most people who exist in this world, Alicia is likely weaker than Liz, who is regarded as a Saint.
AnotherFall 2024 isekai anime MCwho has to work for his power, Haruka isteleported with his classmates to a new world, and he is greeted by a god who asks him to select a unique magic ability or skill. Due to being the last one, he can only pick from leftover abilities that were rejected by the other students; however, he complains so much about the lack of exciting options that the god just gives him all the remaining powers to get rid of him.
Even if they might not be great in isolation, these abilities combine to create a very well-rounded skillset that allows Haruka to deal with most situations while also facilitating quick progression. By about episode 8, the protagonist is capable of holding his own against level 100 enemies, and he is lightyears ahead of his classmates.
Seirei Gensouki: Spirit Chronicles’Rio is kind of hard to pin down in terms of strength, mostly because he has not done much throughout season 2. He has had a couple of moments to demonstrate his top-notch martial arts and affinity for magic, but he is quite subdued and generally tries to avoid attracting too much attention.
Still, Rio is undeniably powerful, and his strength is based on experience and talent accumulated throughout multiple lives. While he can hold his own in hand-to-hand fights, his main asset is his connection to the Spirits, allowing him to use Spirit Arts.
Demon Lord, Retry! Ris probably Fall 2024’s most forgettable isekai anime, along with being a fairly poor follow-up to the first season. Ultimately, the show’s quality does not matter much in this discussion, even if the lackluster production means that most of Hakuto’s OP demonstrations have been undermined by underwhelming animation and scattershot storytelling.
When his game was about to be shut down, Akira suddenly found himself in a similar world as his character, Hakuto Kunai. Designed to be the final boss, Hakuto’s overpowered nature is specifically part of his in-universe lore, essentially acting as aFinal Fantasysuperboss. Now, to be fair, Hakuto’s power is slightly restricted by Akira’s presence, who generally tries to keep control and not lose himself to the character’s berserk-like strength.
Demon Lord 2099is a stealthreverse isekai. Centuries after being defeated by the hero, Demon Lord Veltol is resurrected, only to find that his world, Alneath, fused with Earth about 50 years before his revival. Consequently, he awakens in a cyberpunk city built around science designed to bridge the gap in power separating mortals and immortals.
Importantly, as his strength is directly related to how many people believe in him, Veltol’s lack of stature has rendered him weak. To combat this shortcoming, the Demon Lord becomes (essentially) a YouTuber, and he quickly amasses a huge following that allows him to regain some of his strength.
The idea of streaming to become stronger might sound silly, butDemon Lord 2099makes it work. Veltol rediscovers his former glory quite quickly, and he gradually becomes powerful enough to demolish high-end mechs. Eventually, his fame becomes so great that he succeeds in transforming into his second form, which is ridiculously OP. His potential is limitless, and he is pretty much immortal (at one point, he loses his head and treats it as a minor inconvenience).
At his peak, Veltol isFall 2024’s strongest isekai anime protagonist; however, he also loses quite a few fights early in the season.
Hajime is the personification of cool. Calm, intelligent, and surrounded by all the girls,Arifureta’s protagonist is a near-unstoppable juggernaut, and the anime has only covered about half of his journey. Despite having a ways to go before reaching his final form, Hajime is the definition of a broken OP MC, albeit one who adheres to enough internal logic to still be entertaining.
In his current state, he can use the Synergist class' Transmute skill to produce all sorts of incredible tools and magic weapons (and Hajime loves his guns). While assuming a support role at times, which he can do due to his powerful allies, Hajime is the brains behind every operation. When he does need to get directly involved, he can one-shoot most enemies. In season 3, he toppled an empire, and that was not even his most impressive feat.
