11+ Anime Where The MC Was Reincarnated As A Child • iWA (2024)

Updated May 12, 2024 by testing

Isekai tells stories about being transported to another world— mostly fantasy ones.

Magic, abilities, memories of your old life, knowledge of your old world, possibly making friends along the way; this very genre tugs on our desire to jump in our imaginary world and see ourselves in otherworldly possibilities.

But being transported in a different world as you currently are is one thing, being actually reborn as a child and resetting the life you’ve lived is either an entirely new excitement or an entirely new disappointment waiting to unfold!

The latter sounds a bit depressing, huh? Well, based on my assortment of anime knowledge, some of the main characters reborn in a new world are not lucky enough in the draw for a perfect reset and made to work with what they’ve got.

Don’t believe me? Well here are 12 of the isekai anime with main characters are reincarnated as children for you to either get jealous of or pity!

ISEKAI ANIME WHERE THE MAIN CHARACTER IS REBORN AS A BABY

12. Wise Man’s Grandchild

Starting off this list with a lighthearted series about a young man in Japan who met an untimely death and got reincarnated in a fantasy world. Shin, his new name, is a prodigy raised by the national hero of this new world, Merlin.

Shin and Merlin lived within the rural woods where the protagonist flourished not only his martial arts early in life, but also his magic casting abilities. Maybe you’re into Martial Arts Manga as well/

As Shin hit 15, Merlin realized that although indisputably skilled, his adopted grandson has yet to know how to interact with others—much like many of us otaku—or use common sense.

As a result, the prodigal child was enrolled into the Kingdom’s Magic Academy where most of his enjoyably light and fun adventure awaits.

11. Knights & Magic

In this entry, we follow an MC with a rather unique interest for the protagonists of this genre; Tsubasa Kurata was a hardcore robot otaku and a genius programmer.

Due to his incredible luck, he’s reborn into a noble family in a medieval world where fighter mechs known as Silhouette Knights exist, and with prodigious magical abilities of his own to top it off!

Reincarnted as Ernesti Echevarria, he enrolls in a prestigious magic school where students are trained to pilot mechanical knights to fight demonic beasts of their world.

Aided by his love of mecha, he aimed to do what’s impossible in this universe: to someday create his very own Silhouette Knight.

10. So I’m A Spider, So What?

Okay so, hear me out. While the MC of this anime is reincarnated as a baby spider, NOT a human one, the series itself actually tells the story of a Japanese high school class being reborn again as children in a diverse fantasy world.

In fact, the show flips on the spider’s and then the humans’ perspectives so much that you feel like it has more than one main protagonist; everyone with their old memories to guide them.

In this new world where the rules of RPG are followed, the class reincarnated as nobles, royalties, and those with varied prestige and talent—the lucky ones, at least.

One girl, bullied in her former life, ended up being the weakest kind of spider forced to fend for herself the moment she left her egg. Aided by her otaku knowledge, she presses on and works to get stronger for a better life.

9. The Misfit of Demon King Academy

Next on the list is an anime whose OP Demon King protagonist is not a conventional hero, unless you ask the ones vying for his attention.

Anos Voldigoad used to be the Demon King responsible for destroying human countries and spirits, and killing Gods. Retiring from this life, he reincarnates in the future only to be disappointed with his now weak descendants as well as the peace that he died for.

The world Anos (Arnos in other translations) reincarnated in was entirely different than the one he expected; his reputation was unlike the facts he knew from his old life and his modern kin are not to his standards.

With new adventures and (possible) friends, he now enrolls in the Demon King Academy—a school made to train his descendants as a vessel for his reincarnated soul— ironically branded as a misfit of all things.

8. Saga of Tanya the Evil

As the title suggests, the protagonist, Tanya Degurechaff, doesn’t pride herself with being good. In this world, her moniker “Devil of the Rhine” is crafted after her ruthlessness as a soldier that led her country to victories in this magical war.

She also made a vow of rebellion against God— no, not figuratively— following her battle of wits with a self-proclaimed one named Being X who reincarnated this Japanese man into the body of the now terrifyingly strategic little girl.

You read that right, Tanya was formerly a man. Fortunately, the series itself isn’t weird at how he reincarnated as a little girl, it just takes it as fact. Pretty neat, right?

7. The 8th Son? Are You Kidding Me?

Diving in with another unfortunate soul, here we have reincarnated Wendelin Von Benno Baumeister, now 8th son of a poor noble family.

From a 25-year-old man, he got isekai’d as a six-year-old boy, youngest of the Baumeister house and farthest from any known inheritance.

Fortunately, he has amazing magical abilities that can possibly help solve his financial problems but, as mentioned, being unlucky as he is, he’ll soon realize that this fact will find its way in making his life difficult.

6. By The Grace of the Gods

Ryoma Takebayashi is a man recognized by three Gods as someone who has lived his life entirely with misfortune. Taking pity as he takes his last breath, the Gods reincarnate him in the body of a young boy compatible with magic.

Now living deep in the forest, he keeps slimes as pets as anyone isekai’d would do… probably. He then meets and heals the wounded and is invited to their group on their way to the nearby town.

Convinced that he can make the world a better place, Ryouma sets out on his noble journey and onto the vast new world.

5. Didn’t I Say to Make My Abilities Average in My Next Life?!

Here we have a misunderstood wish fulfilled that brings a series of unfortunate events the MC’s way. Misato Kurihara is an exceptional person distanced by her peers for that very reason.

As her life ended in a tragic accident, she was given a chance for a second one accompanied with a wish. Looking back at her isolated life, she now asked to be reincarnated as “average” not at all thinking about the definition of the word.

Now reborn as a noblewoman with magical abilities between the strongest and the weakest beings of her world, Adele von Ascham is far more adept than any ordinary man; this then prevents her from having the normal life she wants.

A truly important lesson about grammar and vocabulary when dealing with wish-granting supernatural beings.

4. Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation

This next one follows a former NEET reincarnated as Rudeus Greyrat, or Rudy, whose former life was plagued with bullies, regrets, and unresolved dreams. With the memories of his former life, he faces this new one hopeful and loved.

At a young age, he displays magical talent that leads him to well-known teachers and proceeds to excel aided by his new parents’ tutelage in swordsmanship.

As opportunities and supportive people come his way, he looks forward at the challenges and adventures this world offers!

3. The Faraway Paladin

This heartwarming start to an anime brings forth the reincarnated Will, the only human raised in a dead city by three undeads. While that sounds like an unlucky break out-of-context, these three are actually quite loving parents.

Blood, the heroic skeleton, teaches him to fight, Gus, the ghost wizard, teaches him magic, Mary, the mummy priestess, teaches him religion, and all of them equally teaches him love; such lessons he will treasure and be guided with.

This series takes us into engaging moral conflicts that touch our souls—no pun intended—that then tells a compelling story of a young man who teaches himself of the shades of gray that his world has as he sets his path to be a paladin.

2. My Next Life As A Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!

Tired of OP MCs that punches their way out of every problem? Lucky for you, I have exactly the blueprint of the reverse-harem romcoms that will bring you a fresh story of a girl who got reincarnated into an otome game she used to play.

But as fun a story that is given that she’s the protagonist of Fortune Lover with a fated happy ending, the former student is reborn as the wealthy villainess Catarina Claes who actively makes the heroine’s life miserable.

At every path taken by the heroine, the villainess is doomed with a grim end for all of the bad things she did. As countermeasures, the new Catarina resolves to change her character entirely by making friends and honing questionable skills.

While this is a romance series, Catarina’s naivete prevents her from realizing the expectant eyes on her that she unintentionally seduced on her ways of erasing her death flags. A true comedy gold of a show!

1. Ascendance of a Bookworm

The last one on the list is the story of the bookworm who was at the brink of reaching for her dreams of being a librarian but ended up dying in an accident. She made a wish to read more books in her next life before she loses her old one.

Of all the bad luck that can make its way to her, she ends up reincarnated as Myne, daughter of a poor soldier in a medieval era, where books are only made to be read by the nobles and the printing press are not yet available.

Instead of discouraging her, she takes this up as a challenge. “If there aren’t any books, I’ll just create some.” And there the little girl’s adventure begins.

Conclusion

Just because the MCs got reborn in a mystical world different from their old one, doesn’t mean they’re instantly lucky. Even with the promise of restarting their life as children doesn’t mean they’ll have an easy one, lest they’re pitied by Gods.

It’s certainly fun to see the different ways creators can recreate the isekai genre, even more so as a good plot device to show why a child knows more, or is more skilled than they should be. These kid make these anime Isekais with OP MCs.