Once one of Japan’s most shrewd salarymen, after being pushed in front of a train to his death by a scorned ex-employee, a man is reborn as an adorable orphan girl after pissing off a mysterious being that calls himself God.
While the female form and affinity for magic are not a punishment, being born in a world in the midst of a brutal World War is.
Now, Tanya uses her calculating mind from her past life and magnificent magical abilities to spread terror on the front lines of the war, becoming one of the most dangerous people in the imperial army.
This is all in effort to earn a promotion that will see her safely back to a life of comfort on the back lines, showing up the God that put her in this world for humbling.
In a sea of same-y isekai, Saga of Tanya The Evil breathes fresh new psychopathic air into the genre, and it must be treasured. If you are looking for more anime recommendations like Saga of Tanya the Evil, head on down below.
Anime Like Saga of Tanya the Evil
For Fans of World War Era With Magic
Alderamin on the Sky
The world is currently embroiled by war between the Katjvarna Empire and the Kiorka Republic.
Within a corner of the empire, a young man prepares to take his High Grade Military Officer Exam. He is lazy and lecherous, but no one would expect his name would go down in history as a legendary military general.
This is his story.
While Alderamin on the Sky isn’t an isekai anime, it is a fantasy anime that takes place in a similar sort of world as Saga of Tanya the Evil. Both series are set in worlds where there is magical power, but they need World War Era weapons of war in order to use it in warfare. So you get low technology war machines fused with low power magic into something pretty unique.
Alongside the world it is set in, both series put a particular emphasis on strategy in combat rather than just brute force main character heroism. To beat a superior force, tactics win out.
However, Alderamin on the Sky is more traditionally melancholy about war, much unlike Tanya and her psychopathy.
Izetta – The Last Witch
After invading a neighboring country, Germania thrust Europe into war. Now they turn their eyes on a small nation of Elystadt, a campaign bolstered quickly by capturing the Elystadt princess named Ortfiné “Fine” Fredericka von Eylstadt.
While transporting her, Izetta, the last living witch, who was also being transported, breaks loose and Fine recognizes her from her own childhood.
These reunited friends now have a chance of turning the tides of war against the imperialist giant bearing down on their country.
Both Saga of Tanya the Evil and Izetta: The Last Witch tell war stories in worlds with magic, but who also rely on military machinery. However, the big difference is magic is almost gone from the world in Izetta whereas it is widely used still in Saga of Tanya the Evil.
As such, while Izetta has magic used in a similar way as Saga of Tanya the Evil, it is really only one character using it.
While both series tell war stories, Izetta lacks the same intensity as Saga of Tanya the Evil, though it does capture some of those big action moments quite well.
The titular witch Izetta also rides a .50 caliber rifle instead of a broom, and it’s worth watching for that alone.
Strike Witches
With the appearance of an alien race known as the Nueroi, Earth was pushed to the brink.
To combat this force, a new device known as Striker Units were developed. The young girls that equipped these weapons became known as Witches and are now humanity’s last line of defense.
Strike Witches follows Yoshika Miyafuji who joins the 501st Joint Fighter Wing in order to become a Strike Witch.
What if Saga of Tanya the Evil… was cute? That is more the vein that Strike Witches lives in.
While both Saga of Tanya the Evil and Strike Witches feature an “alternative World War era” world in which there is magic and also more modern military technology, Strike Witches appeals to the standard-issue anime fan by making their soldiers cute anime girls in bloomers.
A further difference is that Strike Witches is about fighting robotic aliens while Saga of Tanya the Evil is humans fighting humans.
Strike Witches is definitely more for people intrigued by the alternate fantasy history world of Saga of Tanya the Evil and not so much anything else about it.
For Fans of Children on the Battlefield
86
For years, the Republic of San Magnolia has been at war with the Giadian Empire. They were constantly plagued by their hordes of unmanned drones until the government created an unmanned solution of their own, finally able to wage their war without casualties.
However, that is not quite the truth. The “unmanned” combat weapons are actually used by those of the 86th sector of the Republic, but they are not considered even human.
This is the tale of both Shin, an 86er and battle commander, and Lena, their sympathetic handler who remotely commands the detachment from inside the city.
While Saga of Tanya the Evil is a World War with magic-themed isekai and 86 is an emotional sci-fi drama, both series follow child soldiers forced to suffer on the battlefield by their government due to their skill, or in the 86’s case, because of government-sanctioned genocide.
While Saga of Tanya the Evil has some more emotional moments, 86 is all raw emotion and is honestly one of the best war stories in anime that evoke it. Furthermore, both Saga of Tanya the Evil and 86 share a high quality animation that is a treat just to watch.
Mobile Suit Gundam – Iron-Blooded Orphans
After the Calamity War, Earth is now ruled over by economic blocs with the military organization Gjallarhorn keeping the peace. However, Mars is heavily dependent on Earth, and often left wanting.
Appalled by the conditions on Mars, young aristocrat Kudelia Aina Bernstein hires the local Chryse Guard Security to escort her to Earth in order to negotiate economic conditions.
However, they soon find themselves under attack by Gjallarhorn who seek to assassinate the revolutionaries that threaten their agenda.
Both Saga of Tanya the Evil and Iron-Blooded Orphans tell the story of talented child soldiers that are really just trying to survive the conflict. However, the major difference between them is obvious – Iron-Blooded Orphans is a Gundam series, thus it is a mecha anime.
While they tell stories of different conflicts, in different time periods, with different genres (isekai v. mecha), as a famously meme-able video game intro drilled into our heads – “War never changes.”
That said, Iron-Blooded Orphans is definitely going more towards dramatic and serious compared to Saga of Tanya the Evil and its occasionally dark humor.
Valkyria Chronicles
In the neutral country of Gallia, they are known for a bountiful reserve of the versatile mineral ragnite.
However, when the Empire decides to invade in order seize the resource for itself, Welkin, the son of a former war hero, and the town watch of Bruhl rise up as Gallian militia group Squad 7 to defend their country.
Both Saga of Tanya the Evil and Valkyria Chronicles tell the story of characters fighting in a World War -inspired conflict, but in a fantasy land. However, while Saga of Tanya the Evil weaves in magic among the war machines, Valkyria Chronicles plays things straight, but does fictionalize some of the weapons used in the war with some magic-like elements.
While they tell the story of a similar kind of conflict, they do so in different ways. Both series emphasize the power of strategy over main character heroism alone, but Valkyria Chronicles does tell a more serious, occasionally heart-wrenching war story.
For Fans of Objectively Evil Protagonists
Overlord
As the final hour approaches in the life cycle of the MMO Yggdrasil, Momonga, a powerful wizard and leader of the dark guild Ainz Ooal Gown, is there to see it off.
However, to his surprise, the servers don’t go down and even stranger is that all the NPC characters have come alive with their own unique personalities.
Both Saga of Tanya the Evil and Overlord are isekai anime that follow protagonists of questionable morality.
In Saga of Tanya the Evil, you know what sort of person Tanya is immediately. However, in Overlord, the protagonist is a regular human guy in the body of his undead avatar – at first. Over time, you watch his morality sort of decay to align more with being an undead, so he starts to make some more objectively evil decisions.
Aside from being an isekai and a similar morality between the protagonists, there isn’t much else shared here. You could say they both do a good job building and showing off their worlds, but the worlds themselves are built distinctly differently.
Code Geass
The Holy Empire of Britannia has established itself as the dominant military nation, starting after their conquest of Japan, now named Area 11. Under Britannia’s tyranny, a number of resistance groups rose up to fight for their freedom.
Enter Lelouch Lamperouge, the exiled prince of Britannia who has been sent to live in Japan. One day, after finding himself caught in the crossfire in a battle between Britannia and insurgents, Lelouch is able to escape with his life after meeting C.C., a mysterious girl who grants him the power of absolute obedience.
In both Saga of Tanya the Evil and Code Geass, you follow main characters that know the path to victory is not paved on good morality. Sometimes you have to make heartless decisions to win the battle, even if it means the loss of lives.
While Tanya remains consistently psychotic throughout the series, warming to a very small few, Code Geass details the more traditional slide of morality as the war goes on. While Lelouch was a little cold and calculating in the beginning, he gets much worse and does more terrible things as the series goes on.
The big difference between these anime is that Code Geass is mecha rather than isekai. However, they do tell war stories that are more like chess games since they prioritize tactics.
Jormungand
After being raised in a conflict area and living as a child soldier Jonah hates weapons, but when he takes a job as a bodyguard to the arms dealer Koko, he is left with no choice in the matter.
Alongside a number of other skilled bodyguards, Jonah must protect Koko and her idealistic goal of world peace in a vicious world.
While Jormungand, following its morally gray arms dealer and her bodyguards in a modern world, is a distinctly different setting from Saga of Tanya the Evil’s World War I with magic isekai setting, what these two series share is a distinct sense of psychopathy.
While Jormungand is more told through the lens of Koko’s child soldier bodyguard, she is still a main character, and she is every bit Tanya in her actions and intensity, though perhaps more prone to whimsy.
You could also say Saga of Tanya the Evil and Jormungand are similar as they both feature child soldiers as main characters, but Jonah is definitely more emotionless and shut down compared to Tanya.
Moriarty the Patriot
William Moriarty is the second son of the noble Moriarty family. During the day, he is a mathematics professor, but at night he uses his keen mind in order to work as a consultant for individuals with a particular need for his intellect.
He has dedicated himself to revenge against nobility in order to crumble the crushing social hierarchy that oppresses much of England.
Although Saga of Tanya the Evil does have certain historical touches, it does take place in a fantasy isekai world. Moriarty the Patriot isn’t an isekai, and takes place a bit further back in time than the World War Era inspirations of Saga of Tanya the Evil by being set in Victorian England.
What these two series have more in common is their manipulative, clever, and morally gray main characters. Both series feature main characters that are capable of putting on a charming face, but what is going on inside their head is all schemes, cunning, and occasionally, malice. They are trying to manipulate things to get the outcomes they want. It’s all moves and counter-moves.
If you are looking for more anime recommendations like Saga of Tanya the Evil? Let fans know in the comments section below.
