God-Tier Animation – The Best Recent Isekai is a Genre-Redefining Underappreciated Gem

Despite isekai being so dominant that it has officially entered the dictionary, one of the genre’s most innovative and surprising entries, Sonny Boy, slipped past many fans. With jaw-dropping animation, incredibly realistic characters, and themes of coming to terms with adulthood Sonny Boy is one of the most artistically fascinating isekai to release in years.

Animated by the acclaimed Studio Madhouse and directed by One-Punch Man season 1 director Shingo Natsume, Sonny Boy is a 12 episode anime series about a group of high school students who one day find their school transported into a strange black void.

Just as tensions reach a fever pitch with the class trying to establish some sort of hierarchy, the students find the blank space become an island (called This World by the students) where each is gifted with an odd power. From there, the series focuses on a group consisting of Nagara, Nozomi, Mizuho, and Raj, who try to discover a way out of This World and back to their normal lives.

Sonny Boy is One of the Best Looking Anime in Recent Memory

Shingo Natsume’s Direction Combines with Hisachi Eguchi’s Character Designs to Fantastic Effect

What’s immediately clear from watching any clip of the series is that Sonny Boy is one of the most gorgeous-looking anime of the past few years. There’s an impressionistic quality to the world that sets it apart. Far from the typical vaguely medieval fantasy setting of many isekai anime, Sonny Boy’s This World is a psychic and surreal landscape that evolves alongside its inhabitants. This World always feels like a truly alien place where the protagonists are always at a disadvantage, even when they think they have the place’s mechanics figured out.

More than just pretty and weird visuals though, all of the gorgeous animation in Sonny Boy is in service to a deeply personal story. Nagara, Nozomi, Mizuho, and Raj’s quest to return home is littered with heartbreaking setbacks. Nagara and Mizuho in particular are forced to confront their own failings on more than a few occasions. The anime takes a sympathetic look at what it’s like to be a young person in the modern world, making it one of the best anime that truly captures what it’s like to be a teenager.

Sonny Boy Deconstructs the Central Theme of Many Isekai Anime

People Can Only Escape Their Lives for So Long

Regardless of whether it’s intentional or not, Sonny Boy offers a thought-provoking critique of a central appeal of isekai anime; escapism. Though some in the series come to view This World as a welcomed escape from the social pressures and responsibilities of impending adulthood, the anime’s central group recognizes it as something darker. Stuck as perpetual teenagers, many of the characters of Sonny Boy use their powers to essentially recreate the adult world they’re ostensibly running from.

The plot adds up to a fascinating criticism of the need for escapsim. Far from the fun getaway of many isekai anime, Sonny Boy’s This World keeps its residents as captives and prevents them from growing. Given the prevalence of power fantasies in isekai and how many series completely abandon the idea of their protagonists ever returning to their old lives, it’s not difficult to see Sonny Boy as a commentary on the genre. This deconstructive take on the genre makes Sonny Boy one of the best and most refreshing isekai of all time.

It’s important to note that Sonny Boy isn’t for everyone. The series can be dense, with important events going unexplained. Many might also see the series’ finale as a bit of a letdown that leaves too much up to the audience’s interpretation. There is also a notable lack of action, with the series focussing more on character drama. However, any fan of anime looking for a philosophically rich series layered in metaphor and social commentary will find few isekai anime better than Sonny Boy.

All episodes of Sonny Boy are streaming on Crunchyroll.

Watch on Crunchyroll