10 Best Anime About Time Travel That You Need Know Update 04/2024

anime about time travel

Even though anime frequently features time travel, some shows do it better than others.

A common plot device in anime is time travel. These anime examine a variety of ways to manipulate and interact with time, including characters that travel back in time, send messages to other universes, and relive their lives over and over again.

It may seem like an overused anime cliche, yet there are some shows and movies that have used it well. A novel twist on time travel without sacrificing quality writing, storytelling, or character development can be found in these compelling stories.

10 The Tatami Galaxy Takes A Page From Groundhog Day

The Tatami Galaxy

The Tatami Galaxy, based on Tomihiko Morimi’s novel, tells the story of an anonymous protagonist reflecting on his time as a senior at a Kyoto university. With echoes of the iconic film Groundhog Day, the protagonist relives his college years by participating in several groups in pursuit of the ideal college experience.

Disillusioned by each new club, the narrator eventually chooses to give up and retreat to his cramped, tatami-floored room altogether. The plot of the anime is a philosophical reflection on the significance of living in the moment and the perils of waiting for the ideal time. The anime has a distinctive visual style.

9 Zipang Is A Historical Time Travel Epic

JDSMirai, Japan’s most advanced destroyer, is the subject of the new television series. It’s June 1942, and the crew of the Mirai discovers that they’ve been transported back in time to the beginning of the Battle of Midway.

Zipang’s crew purposefully avoids tampering with the past, unlike most other time travel shows, where the characters aim to affect the future. However, even though they try to oppose the authoritarian and militaristic rhetoric that accompanies war, their crew is dragged into it, as is documented in the story.

8 Re: Zero – Starting Life In Another World Is An Isekai Time Travel Story

Re Zero - Starting Life In Another World

A socially awkward young man, Subaru Natsuki, is suddenly transferred to a new world in Re: Zero – Starting Life in Another World, an adaptation of Tappei Nagatsuki’s light novel. When he arrives, he promptly dies and learns that he has the power to go back in time and alter the course of events for the betterment of others as well as his own personal benefit.

To save his companions, Subaru dies over and over and has to deal with the loneliness that comes with the fact that no one remembers him. It is a profound examination of the consequences of changing the past, with a richly detailed setting and a cast of likeable characters.

7 Puella Magi Madoka Magica Is A Unique Magical Girl Anime

As a deconstruction of the magical girl anime, Puella Magi Madoka Magica follows Madoka Kaname and her friends as they form magical alliances to confront evil witches in their school. It’s not all it’s cracked up to be as a magical girl, the girls soon learn.

As one magical girl attempts to save Madoka from an awful fate, Puella Magi Madoka Magica is filled with deep themes and characters as well as storytelling. While most magical girl anime never even come close to touching on any of these topics, this one does.

6 Erased Is A Time Traveling Murder Mystery

Erased

Rewinding time back to moments before an accident, Satoru Fujinuma is the protagonist of Kei Sanbe’s manga Erased, which follows the young man’s journey. To save both his mother and several of his childhood friends, Satoru rewinds time back eighteen years after she is murdered.

Erased manages to incorporate both time travel and a murder investigation into a gripping story.. Anime fans will be sucked in from the start by the show’s stunning animation, fast pacing, and a variety of compelling topics, such as loneliness, abuse, and facing one’s fears head on.

5 Inuyasha Is A Timeless Classic

One of the finest animes of all time, Inuyasha follows the story of Kagome Higurashi, a 15-year-old Tokyo girl who is abruptly taken back in time to Japan’s Sengoku period. There she encounters Inuyasha, a half-dog, half-human demon, and goes on a quest with him to retrieve the magical Shikon Jewel’s shards.

Inuyasha’s renowned tale and engaging characters continue to captivate new and old fans alike, despite the fact that it was launched more than two decades ago. It’s an epic fantasy quest of good vs evil as Kagome and Inuyasha switch between the past and the present in alternating episodes.

4 The Girl Who Leapt Through Time Is A Charming Slice-Of-Life Story

The Girl Who Leapt Through Time

The Girl Who Leapt Through Timeis a science fiction love film that serves as a loose sequel to Yasutaka Tsutsui’s novel of the same name, which was released in 2006. After discovering she has the ability to travel back and forth in time, Makoto Konno sets out to use her skills for the betterment of herself and others.

She utilizes her power to achieve better grades and escape unpleasant circumstances, but when she discovers her time-leap limit, Makoto is forced to make some difficult decisions with her powers.

You won’t be disappointed with The Girl Who Leapt Through Time’s heartfelt plot and great animation and voice acting.

3 Your Name Is A Charming Romantic Fantasy

Mitsuha Miyamizu, a young girl from Itomori, unexpectedly begins to swap bodies with Taki Tachibana, a male in Tokyo. Your Name is directed by Makoto Shinkai. To save Itomori from a comet, the two find that they are separated by time and space and work together as a team to do it.

Audiences and critics alike were impressed by Your Name’s visuals, soundtrack, and emotional impact. To keep the audience on the edge of their seats, Mitsuha and Taki try desperately to keep their memories of each other intact while also trying to modify the past.

2 Orange Tackles Serious Subjects

Orange

On the 10th anniversary of the release of Ichigo Takano’s popular manga, Orange follows young Naho Takamiya, whom she receives an old letter from. Naho and her friends try to prevent the suicide of Kakeru Naruse, a new transfer student, using knowledge she receives from her future self.

An interesting twist in Orange’s plot is the idea of sending signals to other universes in an attempt to prevent catastrophe. The series’ honest portrayal of despair and its realistic and likable characters have won over many fans.

1 Steins;Gate Is A Time Travel Masterpiece

Steins;Gate follows Rintaro Okabe, a self-described “crazy scientist” who runs a science laboratory with his friends in 5pb. and Nitroplus’ science-fiction visual novel game. After discovering that their invention, a cell phone-operated microwave oven, can transmit text messages back in time, the friends are forced to engage in a struggle with a powerful organization known as SERN, which is determined to seize control of the technology.

In this sci-fi anime adventure, the viewer is kept guessing until the very end thanks to a slew of unexpected plot twists. Character development and plot twists are praised by fans, as the series utilizes the power and mystery of time travel to create a unique and complex tale.