Anti escapism anime shows are exactly as they sound.
They’re the type of anime that don’t promote:
- Certain ideologies.
- You getting lost in the sauce.
- Trying to get you to escape reality in ways that aren’t practical.
And don’t promote the sort of anime shows or topics that essentially sell you a dream.
No, these anti escapism anime instead promote:
- Realistic topics.
- True to life anime shows.
- Stories that you can relate to without the fluff.
- Writing that applies to the real world.
And more importantly, the types of anime that are more than just brainless entertainment.
Here’s a list!
The best anti escapism anime:
1. Attack On Titan
Attack On Titan can be compared to a horror series for its intensity and human eating titans. But it’s also not an anime you watch for escapism purposes.
The first episode which was done by WIT studios sees Eren Yaeger’s mother eaten by a Titan, as Eren and his friends like Armin are forced to watch it unfold.
They escape with their lives thanks to the mother and then Eren becomes hell bent on revenge.
While the anime evolves drastically over its 5 or so seasons, the consistent element is that escapism is not built into this anime’s DNA.
2. Toradora
A slice of life/romance series with lots of drama. The drama part becomes more consistent over time, maybe after the first 5 episodes.
Taiga Aisaka is the smol girl who is older than she looks and is a lot angrier than she should be which is explained later.
Ryuuji Takasu, the guy who becomes a punching bag for Taiga likes someone else just like Taiga, but both become interested in each other later.
The romantic drama may take place in school, but it has many relatable moments and isn’t exactly what people look for in escapism when it comes to romance anime.
3. Kabaneri Of The Iron Fortress
Kabaneri Of The Iron Fortress, also by WIT studios, is an anime about Kabane, a type of zombie-monster that attacks the human race in droves. It then turns those humans into Kabane.
The main female character is half Kabane, half human, and Ikoma, the main male character becomes half Kabane himself after a crazy experiment (he’s the scientist of the series).
Both team up to fight back against Kabane, and their relationship blossoms in a world where their lives are on the line every day, and the human race is under threat of extinction.
Kabaneri Of The Iron Fortress is a horror/action series in a fantasy world.
4. Plastic Memories
Many romance anime are sometimes idealistic when it comes to the outcomes of the series, the outcome of the “couples”, and the happy endings they can get.
The same can’t be said about an anime series like PLASTIC Memories.
Isla, as she’s called, is a type of super realistic android girl, and Tsukasa is her new partner. They go on missions together which is to “shut down” machines like Isla who if not shut down, will go rogue and cause havoc.
This is a sad reality for Isla as it also applies to her someday.
Still, she uses her time wisely with Tsukasa and their relationship despite the fact she isn’t “human” is more realistic and thought provoking than most realistic romance anime.
As well as more emotional. It leaves no room for an escapist reality.
5. A Place Further Than The Universe
A bunch of girls from the neighbourhood get together to go on their own little mission. This mission involves travelling, exploring, and doing things many will tell them NOT to do out of fear.
Just like in real life if and when you decide to travel, many will give you excuses as to why you shouldn’t (it’s not safe, etc).
It’s a slice of life series with some comedy and many laughs, but also warm moments and emotional episodes between friends.
Many life lessons and personal development aspects are littered through A Place Further Than The Universe.
6. Oshi No Ko
Oshi No Ko borrowed from anime like Re:Zero with its long first episode, and that ONE episode was enough to sky rocket the anime’s fame into the “mainstream” you could argue.
Ai Hoshino as she’s called is a famous Idol who appears one way on the outside, but not so much behind closed doors. She’s fatally stabbed which her son and daughter witness (they’re both reincarnated as Ai’s kids).
The anime follows her kids Aqua and Ruby, with Aqua determined to find out Ai’s killer, and who was connected to the crime so he can “deal” with them.
Ruby, on the other hand, has seemingly gotten over her mother’s death being the more optimistic and positive type of sibling out of them both.
The anime becomes a business series in the realm of acting and entertainment but has darker tones underneath that drive the plot forward.
7. Higurashi: When They Cry
Higurashi will always be a classic horror series and one of the highly rated horror anime to have ever been made.
The anime follows a renewing plot adapted from its video games. Each 4 episodes or so is its own arc which follows ONE specific character each time. They have their own story and their own outcomes from start to finish.
Each arc essentially shows the dark side of that character’s life or lifestyle, and the underbelly of what they’re capable of when push comes to shove, etc.
The way Higurashi is written is different even to this day, and the psychological aspects of this anime are in a league of their own.
8. Akiba Maid War
Akiba Maid War is about Nagomi Wahira, and Ranko Mannen, two maids who come from similar beginnings.
Ranko was once a “nice” person until she witnessed death, then she changed and became colder and more withdrawn.
On the other hand, Nagomi, despite joining the “maid” business only to realize it’s full of gangs, never changes who she is and refuses to become cold or develop a killer instinct.
She remains pure and is the reason she has so much influence on other characters.
Akiba Maid War mixes brutality, action, gun fights, and even comedy with serious episodes that are anything but “wholesome”.
9. Berserk
Berserk is an anime series (and manga) that was unfortunately cut short after the author’s death. But even still, long before then this franchise has been established as legendary and high quality.
It’s a horror/action style series like no other in a fantasy world where some of the grimiest stories and darkest aspects of humanity are shared.
No serious Berserk fan would consider or even associate it with being an anime with “escapism” elements.
It’s relatable, has a strong sense of realism, and tells a deeper story that connects you to its characters like Guts.
10. Monster
This anime is about the monster that sleeps deep within all of us.
Monster is an anime about a serial killer. That serial killer was once a pure innocent boy who is groomed into the savage he is through trauma and heart-breaking circumstances.
This is how he becomes a serial killer, and so feared in the world at large. But not before he is saved by Kenzo Tenma after extracting a bullet wound from the boy’s head, that same boy then becomes a serial killer 10 years later.
Kenzo Tenma as a Doctor feels shame and regret, and goes on the hunt to find JOHAN LIEBERT, as the serial killer is called, to atone for his guilt in saving someone he could never have known would end up a mass murderer.
11. The Executioner And Her Way Of Life
For an Isekai series, this is one anime that doesn’t follow the tradition of its brothers and sisters. It instead takes a new approach.
In this anime, it doesn’t pander to the idea of reincarnating in another world after death, and life becoming 100X better than it ever was. Or the idea that killing yourself to be reborn in another world is sensible.
The Executioner And Her Way Of Life, adapted from a light novel, decides to KILL otherworlders who are reborn into another world.
The reason is because they can create problems and upset the world’s balance.
We witness this savagely as the seemingly main Isekai protagonist is assassinated in the first episode without ever seeing it coming.
It’s one of the most anti-escapism Isekai there ever will be.
12. Psycho Pass
Psycho Pass is a futuristic anime series with Akane Tsunemori being the main female character of the show. She’s a new police officer who witnesses what it’s like to be on the job in the first episode.
While she is a beginner police officer, she is inquisitive, smart, intuitive, has guts, has a creative mind and doesn’t bow down to authority. But is willing to negotiate and share her thoughts openly.
This makes her stand out among police officers in a world where their guns (dominators) are controlled by Artificial Intelligence, and are able to measure a person’s mental health automatically.
On the basis of that, the gun either locks down and takes no action, or it unlocks and either kills a person for being “too much of a threat”, or does enough so they can be arrested.
This anime was released back in the early 2010s but the way it’s framed could play out in real life at some point in the future.
13. Shadows House
Shadows House is what The Promised Neverland wished it could be, but never was. It’s about nobles (shadows) and their dolls who believe they’re dolls and not humans.
The anime is filled to the brim with plot twists, turns, and shocking outcomes that can’t always be predicted. It’s the nature of this mystery series.
Based on the subjugation and slave like circumstances in this anime, the idea of escapism becomes silly. The main and supporting characters are fighting for their freedom, ultimately.
This is in spite of the game being rigged.
14. Erased
Erased is a psychological anime many may have forgotten about in 2024 and beyond. The main character helps a friend the best way he can after feelings of regret.
He is able to go back into the past to prevent the death of someone close to him (he’s a kid keep in mind), and he succeeds in the end.
This is an anime you will either love or hate based on its writing, or you’ll be neutral to its quality.
Still, it’s a meaningful series and one that people still like.
15. Hell Girl
Hell Girl is about Ai Enma, a girl who is forced by the hell master to do everything he demands of her. One of those things is to send other people to hell if they wish to do so.
At 12AM, people can make a wish of sorts to send someone to hell that they hate and despise because of how they’re treated, etc.
It could be:
- Bullying.
- Animal abuse.
- Cheating.
- Manipulation.
- False accusations made public.
Or other circumstances that humans in the real world find themselves in.
If wished upon after 12AM, Ai Enma shows up and sends their oppressor to hell but there are consequences to these actions as well.
16. Violet Evergarden
Many anime series tell good stories, but Violet Evergarden tells stories that are so good you can’t help but feel emotional, sadness, and the various emotions of the characters in the anime.
This also includes painful emotions and experiences.
Violet is an ex-soldier who was groomed to be one from an early age. She wants to discover the meaning of “I love you”, and so she searches far and wide for an answer.
In pursuit of it, she started to professionally write for others and help them write love letters or their thoughts and feelings on paper for someone else they cherish. The latter is where deep emotional storytelling comes into play.
17. Madoka Magica
Puella Magi Madoka Magica. Most magical girl series are painted as positive, hero of justice, cute, or something in between. It’s something people want rather than avoid.
In this anime adapted by Studio SHAFT, the reality is different. It shows you the darker side of being a magical girl, and why it’s NOT something to strive for.
This makes Madoka Magica a magical girl series that has anti escapism built into its DNA.
Every magical girl suffers in some way without any exceptions, despite how well they may be taking their circumstances and newfound realities. This includes protagonists Homura Akemi and Madoka Kaname.
18. Akame Ga Kill
Akame Ga Kill is a series that depicts realistic elements of the real world, depending on where and which country you focus on, but in animated form.
A corrupt government that oppresses its people, has extortionate tax rates that make it impossible to thrive, beheads those who fight back in public, and abuses its nation of people.
This is Akame Ga Kill, and it’s why the assassination group called nightraid was created to topple the government and create a revolution.
Tragic deaths, moments, episodes, brutal action, and visually pleasing scenes are what you get from Akame Ga Kill. It’s a far cry from an “escapism” series.
19. Clannad
Clannad on the surface seems like a relaxed slice of life/romance series that slowly builds up its characters and romance, but has a lot of comedy and repetitive cliches that are genuinely funny.
This is partly true for the first season and it’s also enjoyable given the mix of relationships, bonding, and experiences certain characters go through.
Season 2 evolves from S1, erasing the thought of Clannad ever being an escapism anime if anyone ever thought it already was.
It’s a realistic depiction of romance, eventually, and relationships, more so the sadder side of relationships, as well as the potential trauma and struggles parents go through under the surface.
