To be into anime is to at some point watch a series that's based on a light novel, novels typically aimed at young adults in Japan. In the same way that Hollywood pulls from comics and novels (and old films) for their films today, anime pulls from manga and light novels.

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This has especially been true in the last two decades, as the popularity of certain light novel adaptations has led to studios rushing to grab any remaining series in the hopes of stumbling on the next major hit. Some of these biggest and best anime based on light novels were popular not only for their overall quality but their huge impact on the genre.

Updated On November 10th, 2021 by Claris Lam: Though this list contained many notable anime adaptations of light novels, there are more that are certainly of note. Five more entries have been added to make this list more complete.

15 MONSTER GIRL DOCTOR

Monster Girl Doctor

The one-season anime adaptation of Monster Girl Doctor involved the main protagonist, Glenn Litbeit, running a clinic along with Sapphee. Both of them tended to many monster girls featured throughout the series for medical reasons, and this series gave an interesting yet realistic look at monster anatomy. Fans were intrigued by the medical aspect, but some also enjoyed this series for the fanservice involved. Despite the unique and serious takes on the medical aspect of the series, however, some fans felt that it got a bit too lighthearted later on.

14 DRUGSTORE IN ANOTHER WORLD

Cast of Cheat Pharmacist's Slow Life Making A Drugstore in Another World

Drugstore In Another World is another one-season anime adaptation of the light novel series of the same name, featuring the isekai protagonist Reiji running a pharmacy with Noela and Mina. Chaos ensued as the trio tended to their clients' needs by making medicines and other helpful items. Together, they made beast repellent; tea that helped the consumer reduce anxiety and get better sleep; and energy potions. Many viewers enjoyed this series thanks to the slice-of-life aspect on top of the concept of there being a normal, non-overpowered pharmacist in an isekai setting rather than an active fighter or warrior.

13 IS IT WRONG TO TRY TO PICK UP GIRLS IN A DUNGEON!?

Hestia taunts Bell with groceries in Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?

Is It Wrong To Try To Pick Up Girls In A Dungeon!? was so popular that the series gained three seasons, with a fourth one coming up in 2022. This series followed Bell Cranel, who lives in a world where all the adventuring parties are organized into Familias led by the gods and goddesses themselves.

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Though Bell started as one of the weakest adventurers best known for running away from trouble, he slowly became a fine warrior through his hard work and determination. Many viewers loved seeing Bell's growth, as well as the other characters that eventually joined his Familia.

12 RESTAURANT TO ANOTHER WORLD

Restaurant to Another World-2

Restaurant To Another World is a slice-of-life anime that featured a restaurant serving guests from a fantasy world every Saturday. This led to all sorts of guests, ranging from literal dragons to elves checking out the restaurant whenever the door to said restaurant appeared weekly. Many doors appeared in all sorts of places in the fantasy world, giving access to a wide variety of new characters. Even as the cast increased with each new episode, so did the delicious dishes. Many fans enjoyed checking out this heartwarming series, and it got so popular that a second season is currently airing.

11 THE DEVIL IS A PART-TIMER!

devil-is-a-part-timer-season-2-header

The Devil Is A Part-Timer! had the hero (Emilia) and the villain (Maou) go up against each other, only to end up in Japan. While Emilia initially took on a job at a call center, Maou had to work at the fast-food chain Mg Ronalds. Maou struggled to survive on his meager budget along with Ashiya, and things devolved further when the cast realized that their magic powers were dwindling in the world of Tokyo and had no choice but to assimilate into modern society. Fans loved this take on what happened after the supposed final battle between the hero and villain figures. They also enjoyed watching the cast deal with relatable issues such as budgeting, debt, and just generally trying to survive.

10 GOBLIN SLAYER

The main cast of Goblin Slayer anime

Goblin Slayer has its share of haters due to some of its…controversial earlier moments. Having said that, there’s no denying its absurd popularity, as it became the most-watched anime during the season it aired. A large part of that comes down to its’ simplistic, but familiar high fantasy roots that feel reminiscent of countless games of Pen and Paper RPGs.

RELATED: Top 10 Fantasy Anime To Watch After Goblin Slayer

The other half of it is its likable protagonist: a stoic man only stirred to action for the cause of slaying goblins, he’s easy to relate to like a character that’s great at one thing but pretty terrible at everything else.

9 NO GAME NO LIFE

Sora and Shiro studying a device in No Game No Life.

Before the isekai genre became completely oversaturated but after everyone realized it wasn’t going away anytime soon, No Game No Life hit the airwaves in 2014. It featured Sora and Shino, an agoraphobic brother-sister duo who exist in the gaming world as Blank, an undefeated being. When the two defeat the gaming god Tet, they’re transported to an alternate world known as Disboard, where all conflict is solved with types of games. But No Game No Life’s story takes a backseat to its enigmatic lead characters and breathtaking world brought to life by Madhouse. Over half a decade later, fans are still begging to see more of this series.

8 GRIMGAR OF FANTASY AND ASH

Students hunt in the forest in Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash

By the time Grimgar hit the scene, the isekai genre was already packed with tons of characters being sent to other worlds and becoming incredibly overpowered. Grimgar manages to turn these expected tropes onto their heads, by focusing on a group of young teenagers who…weren’t powerful at all. The series saw them struggling against low-level monsters and just trying to make enough money to buy clothes and food. It saw them try to figure out the mystery of how they got to this new world, and their changing emotions while dealing with puberty. The series manages to carve its place in the isekai world by perfectly mixing RPG fantasy with coming-of-age tropes.

7 SWORD ART ONLINE

Sword Art Online main cast

This series is almost a requirement to be on this list. It started by doing the unlikely and being one of the few light novel adaptations that aren’t immediately canceled after its first season. Instead, it’s been chugging along pretty steadily since it first aired in 2012.

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Plus for better or for worse, Sword Art Online transformed the anime industry by making the isekai sub-genre a major one for the industry. Though they existed before the series came along, it wasn’t until Sword Art that a proliferation began — this season alone there are four isekai anime airing, and they all owe it to Sword Art’s popularity.

6 GAMERS!

Keita and Karen from GAMERS!

Gamers! is probably the only series on this list that doesn’t have its roots in some sort of fantasy world. The series follows Keita Amano, a young boy who finds himself invited to his high school’s video game club by Karen Tendo, the most beautiful girl at his school. When he finds out the club is about competitive gaming, he turns her down, which topples over a series of dominos that sets this comedy into play. The series manages to balance humor with some pretty insightful (and often incisive) comments about gaming as a whole, helping it to worm its way into the hearts of anime/gamer fans everywhere.

5 FATE/STAY NIGHT

Fate/Stay Night Saber and Shiro

If Fate/Stay Night isn’t one of the best light novel anime series, it’s certainly one of the most popular ones on this list. It got its first adaptation back in 2005, but the popularity of the franchise dictated that this wasn’t nearly enough, leading to the series getting not only a prequel in 2011 but a remake in 2014. Since then, the franchise has continued to chug along, giving us plenty of new video games, manga, light novels, and multiple animated versions of the universe’s fabled, ever-occurring Holy Grail War, even spinoffs featuring popular characters from the franchise.

4 LOG HORIZON

Log Horizon main cast

About a year after Sword Art Online set the anime world ablaze, the “trapped in a video game” subgenre of isekai got a big contender in Log Horizon. When everyone finds themselves unable to log out of the MMO Elder Tale and were then forced to try and survive in their favorite game.

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Where Sword Art focused on surviving in a world where death was the end, Log Horizon took the other direction. With death meaning respawn, the characters are forced to learn everything from how to cook actual meals to how to create a working economy. But what makes the series stand out is its usage of actual, in-depth MMO mechanics and strategy for its combat scenarios, lending a truer life feel that Sword Art never even tried to aim for.

3 RE: ZERO - STARTING LIFE IN ANOTHER WORLD

Re Zero Season 2

Re: Zero is basically if Groundhog’s Day somehow became an anime. Its lead character Subaru is a guy from the real world who enters an alternate, fantasy-like universe with one unfortunate ability: he can come back to life after he’s killed. An ability dubbed Return from Death, Subaru gets to utilize this ability to help not only himself but those around him, as coming back to life reverses time, often going back to right before a situation goes for the worst. The series gained massive popularity for its gorgeous animation courtesy of White Fox, but also its likable cast and the unique way each new scenario unfolds. It was even popular enough to survive its first season, with the second coming in 2020.

2 LEGEND OF THE LEGENDARY HEROES

Legend-of-Legendary-Heroes

Takaya Kagami’s Legend of the Legendary Heroes novel series was such a massive epic he needed two dozen novels just to set the stage for the story he wanted to tell. The story follows Ryner Lute, a soldier cursed with a magical eye power known as the Alpha Stigma, allowing him to copy any spell he wishes.

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Ryner works alongside his partner Ferris to recover powerful items known as Hero Relics for their country. It’s a straightforward enough premise, but Kagami sets up such a compelling world filled with political intrigue and magical powers that it’s almost criminal it ended after a single season, and pretty consistently makes Most Wanted Sequels lists.

1 THAT TIME I WAS REINCARNATED AS A SLIME

That Time I Was Reincarnated As A Slime cast

Reincarnated as a Slime takes the isekai genre and has fun with some of its tropes. Its main character is Satoru Mikami, a salaryman who dies as a 37-year-old virgin and is reincarnated as an invincible slime known as Rimuru, capable of consuming anything.

In this new world, Rimuru works to carve out happiness for him and his newfound monster friends. In Reincarnated as a Slime, fights are just as likely to be resolved by cooler heads discussing diplomacy as they are battles to the death. Having one of the most genuinely affable leads in anime, it’s no surprise the series was renewed for a second season.

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