Manga recommendations
Best Fantasy Manga
Fantasy is a large tent. Under this one: scheming shadowbrokers, scythe-wielding students, dungeon survivors, demon lords, overpowered witches, and one deeply inconvenienced spider.
Start here
Choose your way into another world
You can enter through grand adventure, supernatural danger, or a quiet cottage where the supposedly retired witch has accidentally become absurdly powerful.
Primary pick
Soul Eater
Start here for a complete supernatural adventure with witches, living weapons, a memorable ensemble, and a world that wears its Halloween energy proudly.
Death City is home to the Death Weapon Meister Academy, established by Shinigami—the grim reaper himself. Created to maintain peace, the academy trains Meisters and Demon Weapons—people who take on the form of a weapon—to defend humanity…
- Best for
- Stylish fantasy action, strange magic, big personalities, and a complete story.
- Why this over others
- It has the strongest all-around case: a large established audience, solid reader ratings, a clear fantasy identity, and an ending already waiting for you.
If you want isekai power-fantasy comedy
The Eminence in Shadow (manga)
Great heroes and diabolical villains are the types of characters that people long to be—but not Cid Kagenou. He longs to become the true mastermind behind it all, pulling the strings, and having his machinations drive the entire story.
Better than primary if You want an absurdly overpowered lead, secret organizations, and a hero who keeps inventing conspiracies for atmosphere only to discover they are real.
Worse than primary if You want a finished story, a broader ensemble, or fantasy that takes its own dramatic cloaks a little more seriously.
If you want fantasy with the stress turned down
I've Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level (manga)
Suddenly dying from overwork, salarywoman Azusa Aizawa finds herself before an angel, who allows her to reincarnate into a new world as an immortal witch, where she spends her days killing slimes for money on an otherwise eternal vacation.
Better than primary if You want a laid-back witch, found-family warmth, gentle comedy, and an immortal vacation repeatedly interrupted by friendship.
Worse than primary if You want dangerous quests, darker stakes, or battles that feel more important than protecting a peaceful afternoon.
Everything else
More fantasy worlds to wander into
Keep going for skeleton rulers, dungeon crawlers, monster reincarnations, revenge quests, demon-world vampires, and heroes whose character sheets may be doing too much.
After the Golden Kingdom is sunk underground by an insane magician, its king emerges, promising all of his treasure to any who defeat the magician, before crumbling to dust. Guilds are spurred on by this promise, traversing the labyrinthine dungeon in search of the magician.… Read more Show less
After the Golden Kingdom is sunk underground by an insane magician, its king emerges, promising all of his treasure to any who defeat the magician, before crumbling to dust. Guilds are spurred on by this promise, traversing the labyrinthine dungeon in search of the magician. Laios Touden, the leader of one such guild, encounters a dragon that wipes out his party and devours his sister, Falin. Despite having lost the entirety of their supplies and belongings, Laios along with Marcille Donato, an elven healer, and Chilchuck Tims, a halfling thief, immediately reenter the dungeon, determined to save Falin. Time being of the essence, Laios suggests the taboo of eating the monsters of the dungeon as a means of gathering supplies. Upon the preparation of their first meal in the dungeon, they are stopped by an on-looking dwarf named Senshi. An enthusiast of monster cooking, he helps them prepare their monster ingredients for safe consumption. After learning of Laios' circumstances, Senshi expresses his desire to cook a dragon and joins their guild, thus beginning their food-filled foray into the dungeon together. [Written by MAL Rewrite]
Also known as Dungeon Meshi · Dungeon Food
Momonga is an average salaryman who spends his free time playing Yggdrasil, a DMMO-RPG (Dive Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game) well-known across Japan for its immense world and limitless customization.… Read more Show less
Momonga is an average salaryman who spends his free time playing Yggdrasil, a DMMO-RPG (Dive Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game) well-known across Japan for its immense world and limitless customization. Unfortunately, all good things come to an end, and Yggdrasil's servers shut down in the year 2138. Wanting to witness the game’s final hours, Momonga, the leader of the guild Ainz Ooal Gown, logs in for the last time and heads toward the guild’s headquarters. After reminiscing about his comrades and adventures, Momonga prepares for the server to automatically log him out as the clock strikes midnight. However, he is not forcefully booted out of the game. Instead, he finds himself in a new world—now trapped in the body of his avatar and where non-player characters are aware of their feelings. Left with no other options, Momonga takes on the name of his guild in hopes that other players would recognize Ainz Ooal Gown. Determined to make sense of the bizarre situation, Momonga embarks on a journey to unravel the mysteries hidden in this uncharted world. [Written by MAL Rewrite]
Also known as Over Lord
Reminiscent of a broken toy box, the mystical Abyss is a terrifying realm home to monstrous creatures called Chains. Most believe it to be only a fairy tale, used to scare children who misbehave.… Read more Show less
Reminiscent of a broken toy box, the mystical Abyss is a terrifying realm home to monstrous creatures called Chains. Most believe it to be only a fairy tale, used to scare children who misbehave. Oz Vessalius, the cheerful and mischievous heir of the noble Vessalius family, is one such individual—until, at his coming-of-age ceremony, the mysterious Baskerville Clan arrives and condemns him to the Abyss for a sin he neither committed nor knows anything about. Oz then forms a contract with Alice, a unique Chain who can take on human form, in an attempt to escape from the Abyss. As Oz struggles to unravel the mysteries behind his sin, the Abyss, and a tragedy from one hundred years ago, he and his companions find themselves confronted by the Baskervilles and ghosts from the past. Meanwhile, his journey back home is plagued by relentless despair. [Written by MAL Rewrite] Included one-shot: Volume 8: Pandora Hearts (pilot)
Also known as Pandora Hearts · Pandora Hearts Pilot
After dying in humiliating fashion, shut-in Kazuma Satou is reborn in a fantasy world with the useless goddess Aqua and quickly learns that even an isekai adventure can turn into a disaster comedy.
Also known as Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo! Comic Anthology · Konosuba Comic Anthology
I'm gonna survive-just watch me! I was your average, everyday high school girl, but now I've been reborn in a magical world...as a spider?! Wait-this isn't how these stories are supposed to go! Can I get a do-over? ...No?… Read more Show less
I'm gonna survive-just watch me! I was your average, everyday high school girl, but now I've been reborn in a magical world...as a spider?! Wait-this isn't how these stories are supposed to go! Can I get a do-over? ...No? But how am I supposed to survive in this big, scary dungeon as one of the weakest monsters? It's "every spider for herself " in here! I gotta figure out the rules to this QUICK, or I'll be kissing my short second life good-bye... (Source: Yen Press)
Also known as Kumo desu ga, Nani ka? · So I'm a spider what about it?
Fourteen-year-old Madoka Kaname has a surreal dream about a strange creature and a girl in trouble. The next morning, a mysterious girl named Homura Akemi transfers into Madoka's class; to her surprise, Homura appears to be the exact same girl that she saw in her dream.… Read more Show less
Fourteen-year-old Madoka Kaname has a surreal dream about a strange creature and a girl in trouble. The next morning, a mysterious girl named Homura Akemi transfers into Madoka's class; to her surprise, Homura appears to be the exact same girl that she saw in her dream. Later that day, Madoka hears a plea for help in her head. It turns out that the cries belong to an injured Kyuubey, the cat-like creature who was also in her dream. But she finds Homura at Kyuubey's location, who warns Madoka to get away from the small entity. Making the connection that her new classmate attacked the helpless creature, Madoka takes Kyuubey and runs away with the help of best friend Sayaka Miki. After their escape, Kyuubey offers the girls an enticing opportunity: become a magical girl in exchange for having any wish granted. However, not everything is as it seems, as the weight of their wishes may be a lot heavier than they might have expected. [Written by MAL Rewrite]
Also known as Mahou Shoujo Madoka☆Magica · Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magika
"The Age of Transmigration" is a concerning, worldwide phenomenon where people on the verge of death receive spam text messages about a life insurance package. With her life cut short, a woman receives the cryptic message before waking up in the afterlife.… Read more Show less
"The Age of Transmigration" is a concerning, worldwide phenomenon where people on the verge of death receive spam text messages about a life insurance package. With her life cut short, a woman receives the cryptic message before waking up in the afterlife. There, she is given a choice on which fictional world she would like to be reincarnated in. After dealing with many hardships in her past life, the woman desires to be a child in a fantasy romance novel, famously known for having easy-going plots. To her misfortune, she is transmigrated into Infinite Returns to Save the World—a story with S-Class difficulty, where death is a reoccuring instance. She awakens as Ailette Rodeline, the daughter of a servant who works under an aristocratic family. In the original novel, the next family head canonically abused the main character, leading toward the tragic ending of the entire household. Luckily, the woman's life as Ailette is not as doomed as she thought; without her knowledge, she had bought the insurance's full package. As a result, she is given an unimaginable amount of cash to spend on skills and other special items. In order to avoid Ailette's original deadly fate, the woman must become strong and fend for herself. [Written by MAL Rewrite]
Also known as Binguijareul Wihan Teukye · Preference for the Possessor
Bell Cranel is just trying to find his way in the world. Of course, in his case, the "world" is an enormous dungeon filled with monsters, below a city run by gods and goddesses who have way too much time on their hands.… Read more Show less
Bell Cranel is just trying to find his way in the world. Of course, in his case, the "world" is an enormous dungeon filled with monsters, below a city run by gods and goddesses who have way too much time on their hands. He's got big dreams but not much more when a roll on the random encounter table brings him face-to-face with the girl of his dreams—but what does a beginning adventurer have to offer a brilliant swordswoman? And what if the lonely goddess who sponsors his solo adventuring gets jealous...?! (Source: Yen Press)
Also known as Dungeon ni Deai wo Motomeru no wa Machigatteiru no Darou ka · Dungeon ni Deai wo Motomeru noha Machigatteiru darouka
Kim Dokja does not consider himself the protagonist of his own life. Befitting the name his parents gave him, he is a solitary person whose sole hobby is reading web novels.… Read more Show less
Kim Dokja does not consider himself the protagonist of his own life. Befitting the name his parents gave him, he is a solitary person whose sole hobby is reading web novels. For over a decade, he has lived vicariously through Yoo Joonghyuk, the main character of the web novel Three Ways to Survive the Apocalypse (TWSA). Through Joonghyuk, Dokja has experienced secondhand the trials of repeatedly regressing in time, in search of an end to life-threatening "scenarios" that force people to act out narratives for the amusement of god-like "Constellations." After reading 3,149 chapters—long after all other readers lost interest—Dokja finally resigns himself to the story ending. However, he receives an enigmatic message from the author, stating that the story will soon be monetized, before his surroundings suddenly go dark. He swiftly realizes that fiction has become reality and he is now living through TWSA. Although he is the singular omniscient reader of the events yet to come, his success in the scenarios is not guaranteed—but perhaps his advantage will empower him to step into the protagonist role that never suited him before. [Written by MAL Rewrite]
Also known as Jeonjijeok Dokja Sijeom · Omniscient Reader
Rumors of the supernatural overrun Kamome Academy, namely the "Seven Mysteries." One of these mysteries is the legend of Hanako-san, the ghost of a young girl residing in the girl's bathroom on the third floor of the old school building… Read more Show less
Rumors of the supernatural overrun Kamome Academy, namely the "Seven Mysteries." One of these mysteries is the legend of Hanako-san, the ghost of a young girl residing in the girl's bathroom on the third floor of the old school building, who is said to grant any wish her summoner desires. First-year high school student Nene Yashiro daringly summons Hanako-san in desperate need of love, but the Hanako that appears before her is a boy! After Hanako-kun claims that he has no magical items of use, Nene tries various ways to get noticed by her crush. With her desperation reaching its peak, she gets into trouble after consuming a mermaid scale, which turns her into a fish. Hanako-kun rescues her, binding their fates together in the process; in return for this aid, Nene must become his assistant. Now entangled in the supernatural realm, Nene soon discovers that there's much more to the school's Seven Mysteries than basic rumors. [Written by MAL Rewrite]
Also known as Jibaku Shounen Hanako-kun 0 · Toilet-Bound Hanako-kun 0
Monica Everett is the Silent Witch, the only mage in the world who has mastered the art of unchanted mage craft. But Monica hides a secret: The reason she learned to use magic without speaking is merely because of her extreme shyness.… Read more Show less
Monica Everett is the Silent Witch, the only mage in the world who has mastered the art of unchanted mage craft. But Monica hides a secret: The reason she learned to use magic without speaking is merely because of her extreme shyness. Until now, she's been content living a peaceful life hidden away in the mountains, but an unexpected visit from a colleague brings her a task more daunting than any other. Now, it's up to the world's shiest mage to infiltrate an academy and protect the second prince from danger...without letting her fears get to her! (Source: Yen Press)
Also known as Silent Witch: Chinmoku no Majo no Kakushigoto
Atsushi Nakajima is on the brink of death after being kicked out of his orphanage. With no food and nowhere to go, all hope seems lost—until he saves a mysterious man called Osamu Dazai from drowning.… Read more Show less
Atsushi Nakajima is on the brink of death after being kicked out of his orphanage. With no food and nowhere to go, all hope seems lost—until he saves a mysterious man called Osamu Dazai from drowning. Much to his partner Doppo Kunikida's irritation, Dazai offers Atsushi a meal and reveals they work for the Armed Detective Agency, an organization of gifted individuals who take care of criminal cases the authorities cannot. The two ask Atsushi for his assistance in tracking down a supernatural tiger that has been wreaking havoc throughout the city, and he reluctantly agrees. After they resolve the case, Dazai offers him a position in the agency. But the job is about to get a lot more dangerous as the Port Mafia, the local crime syndicate, begins to move against them. Caught in the middle of a turf war, Atsushi must master his newfound special ability in order to protect himself, his new friends, and the entire city. [Written by MAL Rewrite]
Also known as Bungou Stray Dogs · Literary Stray Dogs
Staz Charlie Blood is a merciless and powerful district leader of the Demon World. However, Staz is also a lax vampire who refuses to drink human blood and bears a strange obsession with human culture, taking a keen interest in Japan.… Read more Show less
Staz Charlie Blood is a merciless and powerful district leader of the Demon World. However, Staz is also a lax vampire who refuses to drink human blood and bears a strange obsession with human culture, taking a keen interest in Japan. So, when a cute human girl named Fuyumi Yanagi wanders into the midst of the Demon World, Staz develops an interest in her and uses this rare opportunity to consult her on human society. However, their conversation is cut short when a rival demon challenges his rule. Momentarily leaving Fuyumi, Staz swiftly defeats his opponent, but finds that Fuyumi was eaten by a carnivorous plant in his absence! Fortunately, Fuyumi is not completely gone, as she now simply exists as a ghost in the Demon World. However, Fuyumi has lost the human appeal that mesmerized Staz in the first place. As a result of this, he becomes determined to find a spell to resurrect her body. This means traveling to the human world—a dream come true for Staz—where he, Fuyumi, and their associates' misadventurous quest is just about to begin. [Written by MAL Rewrite]
Also known as Blood-Rad · Brad Rudd
Fantasy picks beyond the main road
5 recommendations
Wander this way for less familiar worlds, stranger premises, and series that sit a little deeper on the shelf.
Mika Kamiya is a young woman who is a "magic printer"—that is, she helps to create grimoires and other mystic books which witches and wizards can use. However, she cannot use any magic herself.… Read more Show less
Mika Kamiya is a young woman who is a "magic printer"—that is, she helps to create grimoires and other mystic books which witches and wizards can use. However, she cannot use any magic herself. Desperate to find a spell which can send her back to her homeworld, Mika decides to create a completely magical market, where magicians can trade and show off their creations. (Source: Batoto)
Also known as Mahoutsukai no Insatsujo · Mika's Magic Market
Deep in the unexplored reaches of the dungeon, a corpse is discovered—one that shouldn't exist. After Iarumas is resurrected, his memories of life before death are gone, and he spends his days delving into the dungeon to retrieve the bodies of dead adventurers.… Read more Show less
Deep in the unexplored reaches of the dungeon, a corpse is discovered—one that shouldn't exist. After Iarumas is resurrected, his memories of life before death are gone, and he spends his days delving into the dungeon to retrieve the bodies of dead adventurers. Can they be revived as well? Or will God reduce them to piles of ash on the altar? Either way, Iarumas collects his finder's fee. And though his skills earn him some grudging respect, he's also scorned for this cold, utilitarian attitude. The living keep their distance—Iarumas consorts primarily with the dead. That is, until he meets Garbage, a feral young swordswoman who's the sole survivor of a massacred party. With Garbage by his side, Iarumas ventures deeper, scouring the dungeon for clues to his past, avoiding monsters, traps, and the inevitability of a permanent ashen demise. (Source: J-Novel Club)
Also known as ブレイド&バスタード · Клинок & Бастард
As a child, Nunnaly Hell was entranced by the receptionist at the magic guild Haare. She admired how the lady handled everything that came her way, sending off heroes as they ventured out. Since then, Nunnaly has aspired to become a receptionist herself.… Read more Show less
As a child, Nunnaly Hell was entranced by the receptionist at the magic guild Haare. She admired how the lady handled everything that came her way, sending off heroes as they ventured out. Since then, Nunnaly has aspired to become a receptionist herself. Enrolling in Dolan Kingdom's Magic Academy, she aims to be the best. However, the noble Alves Lockmann is always preventing her from being at the top. From simple games like rock-paper-scissors to greater trials like exams, Nunnaly has always been second best. The years quickly pass, and though unable to beat Lockmann, Nunnaly graduates second in her class with a recommendation letter to Haare. Beginning her new job is not so easy; the days are hectic and many trials come her way. To make matters worse, even though they chose different careers, she still can't seem to get away from Lockmann! [Written by MAL Rewrite]
Also known as Mahou Sekai no Uketsukejou ni Naritai desu · I Want to Be a Receptionist of The Magic World!
Scoring a job at Square Enix, Sasaki Shougo's dream of producing a Final Fantasy game finally seems within his grasp! But after he starts, he quickly discovers that the work has nothing to do with his favorite franchise at all…… Read more Show less
Scoring a job at Square Enix, Sasaki Shougo's dream of producing a Final Fantasy game finally seems within his grasp! But after he starts, he quickly discovers that the work has nothing to do with his favorite franchise at all… Disillusioned, his enthusiasm for FF begins waning despite his sister/co-worker Yuuko's attempts to lift his spirits. Their conversation is cut short, though, when a runaway truck suddenly careens toward the two of them! When Shougo comes to, the first thing he sees is... a Moogle?! Wait, was that a Cure spell? And chocobos?! Hurled into a Final Fantasy world unbound to any particular installment, how will an uber-fan like Shougo survive?! (Source: Crunchyroll)
Also known as ファイナルファンタジー ロスト・ストレンジャ
On a fervent quest to become stronger: the heroic tales of the adventurer Lecan start! The One-Eyed Wolf Lecan, jumped into a black hole he found in the confines of a labyrinth, falling into another world. No matter the world he is in, the adventurer Lecan doesn't lose his way.… Read more Show less
On a fervent quest to become stronger: the heroic tales of the adventurer Lecan start! The One-Eyed Wolf Lecan, jumped into a black hole he found in the confines of a labyrinth, falling into another world. No matter the world he is in, the adventurer Lecan doesn't lose his way. Seeking strength, challenging labyrinths, and defeating formidable foes: this is the stout fantasy! (Source: Kadokawa, translated)
Also known as Ookami wa Nemuranai · Okami wa Nemuranai
Why These Picks
These picks use the ranking system to balance page fit with outside reader signals, which makes the list more consistent and less arbitrary than a pure vibes roundup. How recommendations work.