The isekai anime genre is, arguably, one of the most prolific and popular phenomena in contemporary anime. However, its reputation is anything but ubiquitously positive. When thinking of isekai anime in the modern era, most fans unanimously imagine the same kind of series – a Medieval-inspired fantasy world, a stock protagonist who awakens to unimaginable power, and a predictable narrative filled to the brim with cliches. Although the isekai anime genre is not void of acclaimed gems – even among the indulgent and generic power fantasies – its repetitiveness and over-reliance on superficial gimmicks over genuine narrative innovation have resulted in understandable frustration among fans. Yet, the stock isekai anime fantasies are far from the only type of series the genre has to offer those seeking something one-of-a-kind.

Released in 2021, Sonny Boy wasn’t counted among the most sensational premieres of the year, going unnoticed by the mainstream anime community. Unconventional, idiosyncratic, and openly peculiar in both its presentation and narrative delivery, Sonny Boy is a curious series which doesn’t resemble your typical isekai anime adventure in any way. Nevertheless, Sonny Boy has established itself as a cult classic outside of genre conventions, its story’s effectiveness being a major consequence of cleverly subverting the classic isekai anime premise. In Sonny Boy, fans of “another world” escapades might find something countless other isekai anime fail to be – a gripping fantasy which examines real-life struggles instead of providing mindless escapism.

Isekai Anime Offers More Than Generic, Trope-Ridden Power Fantasies

Fans Tend to Underestimate Isekai Anime’s Potential & Diversity

Isekai anime have many distinctive characteristics which have shaped it into a recognizable genre over the years. However, “isekai” in the most literal sense simply means “another world” in Japanese and can be used to describe any story which features a protagonist who is whisked away from their ordinary reality to a different universe. Most portal fantasies, from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland to The Chronicles of Narnia, can technically be considered an isekai, even if they share very little with the likes of Sword Art Online or Mushoku Tensei. Isekai as a plot device in anime has also existed long before the genre exploded in popularity in the 2010s and took on the form of what today’s anime fans recognize as a conventional isekai story.

Isekai anime dates back to the early 1980s, and the early examples of “another world” anime series were far more willing to experiment with the concept. Aura Battler Dunbine and The Vision of Escaflowne combined isekai with mecha and science fiction, Digimon Adventure used the premise to make its world more immersive for kids, and Now and Then, Here and There explored mature themes of war through the eyes of an isekai hero. The current, more homogenous state of isekai anime was preceded by a long tradition of narrative experimentation with “fish out of water” fantasy, and lumping all isekai anime series together would mean overlooking the limitless potential of the “another world” plot device. Titles like Sonny Boy prove that unconventional takes on the isekai premise have a place in the genre’s modern landscape.

Calling Sonny Boy an isekai anime is subversive in and of itself, as the series uses “isekai” as a literal plot device instead of working within the conventions of the isekai genre. As such, it’s more similar to other “isekai by technicality” anime like Spirited Away, Haibane Renmei, or Angel Beats. All of the aforementioned anime center around an ordinary protagonist ending up in a fantastical, unfamiliar world, not unlike a standard isekai hero. However, they don’t use this plot mechanism as an inciting incident for a grander adventure that usually involves the protagonist foregoing their past life and identity. Instead, such unconventional isekai anime largely utilize “another world” as an incentive for the characters to recognize something fundamental about their former selves and grow into a person capable of facing the “real” world.

Sonny Boy Is an Outstandingly Creative Take on the “Another World” Premise

Sonny Boy Is so Unlike All Other Isekai Anime, Most Don’t Even Recognize It as Such

Produced by the renowned Studio Madhouse, Sonny Boy is an original anime written and directed by Shingo Natsume, known for such acclaimed series as Space Dandy and One-Punch Man. However, whereas Natsume’s most famous works lean toward the comedy genre, Sonny Boy presents the viewers with a much more dramatic, mystifying story. The premise of Sonny Boy centers around a class of 36 students, all of whom find themselves randomly transported to an enigmatic void dimension – together with their school. To add even more intrigue to their predicament, some of the kids awaken to supernatural powers, ranging from space manipulation to planting visions in other people’s heads. Confused and out of their element, the children look for a way to return to reality, all while trying not to succumb to infighting and internal dread.

​​​​​​The first thing one notices about Sonny Boy is its distinctive, avant-garde style – both visual and narrative. The confusion felt by the characters upon finding themselves in such an odd predicament is carried over to the viewers, and Sonny Boy doesn’t strive to give out answers easily. Surrealist and prone to convey its story symbolically instead of relying on conventional narrative means, the series always manages to subvert the viewers’ expectations, constantly presenting its heroes with new, unexpected situations. This approach is reflected most evidently in the show’s isekai setting. Only Episode 1 of Sonny Boy takes place in the initial void the students observe through the windows of their school, and after they find a way to escape it, a new world resembling a deserted island awaits them instead of their ordinary reality.

In essence, the setting of Sonny Boy is a multiverse, connecting different worlds with their own reality-bending properties together. The more the students learn about the many interconnected worlds, the more mysteries arise from their interactions with different realities. Such an approach to world-building is notably unlike even the most experimental isekai anime and hardly resembles an escapist fantasy offered by most contemporary isekai adventures. While the many realities of Sonny Boy are fascinating, the anime’s main trio of protagonists, Nagara, Mizuho, and Nozomi, never quite abandon their quest to return home. And the unique arcs of growth they undergo as they prepare to face their versions of “reality” lie at the heart of Sonny Boy’s story.

Sonny Boy Uses the Premise of Isekai Anime to Introspect Reality

Sonny Boy’s Coming-of-Age Story Is Splendidly Grounded for a Sci-Fi Fantasy Anime

Although Sonny Boy can initially come off as confusing and hard-to-follow due to its eccentric style, lack of straightforward explanations, and deliberate “show, don’t tell” approach to storytelling, its thematic foundation is surprisingly simple – but no less impactful. Ultimately, Sonny Boy is a coming-of-age drama examining the complex emotions everyone experiences when transitioning from adolescence to adulthood, and how facing them head-on allows one to reach individual freedom and take a leap to become a part of the real world. While the absurd and the supernatural are a big part of Sonny Boy’s narrative, these fantastical elements mostly serve as metaphors – even down to the characters’ superpowers, which reflect their individual strengths but also aspects of their personalities that hold them back.

No character arc is more central to Sonny Boy’s themes than Nagara’s. As the anime’s de facto protagonist, Nagara enters the drift as a cynical, detached individual who both struggles to make personal connections and doesn’t seem overly interested in the people surrounding him. In a different kind of story, Nagara might’ve made a perfect isekai anime protagonist, finding solace in escaping to another world instead of facing the hardships of reality. Yet, the path Sonny Boy has in store for its main character is quite different. Through getting to befriend ever-optimistic Nozomi and level-headed Mizuho, as well as interacting with his drift companions, Nagara undergoes a subtle yet significant transformation that ultimately leads to his decision to leave This World behind with Mizuho and accept reality.

Sonny Boy’s rather mundane and anticlimactic finale, which sees Nagara seemingly go back to square one – working a dreadful part-time job, alone, and hesitant to even approach Nozomi to rekindle their friendship – can seem unsatisfying to some. Yet, it achieves exactly what the anime strives to accomplish, reinforcing that, while facing reality might be painful, it’s still worth it to embrace the world and attempt to better one’s life little by little. This hopeful sentiment is reflected in Nagara’s final smile and the words he leaves for the viewers – “Our lives are only beginning. What lies ahead will take just a little bit longer.”