On the topic of worldbuilding in fiction, it’s not easy to top Lord of the Ringsin book or film form. The world of Middle-earth and beyond set a new standard for fantasy with its kingdoms, the people who lived there, its rich history and much more. That being said, today’s pop culture consumers find Lord of the Rings‘ deep but familiar world. In this way, Lord of the Rings did well when every fantasy work imitated it, to the point where it now seems routine.
This is why some anime series with remarkable world-building can rival or even surpass Lord of the Rings in terms of novelty and memorable twists or quirks. Such worldbuilding can’t beat Lord of the Rings with the volume of detail involved, but then again, bigger doesn’t always mean better. These anime series feature worlds that are even more thematic or memorable than those of Frodo Baggins, and that’s part of what makes these anime so special.
The world of One Piece is built on layers of disaster and mystery
If an animated series can seriously compete with the world-building found in Lord of the RingsIt is One piece. To start, One piece is one of the few valuable anime that can actually match Lord of the Rings in terms of breadth and depth of world-building. This includes nations, historical figures, world-shaking past events, geography, and even mysteries of the universe, such as the Void Century. We don’t know how many islands the world has. One piece It actually is, but fans can tell there are plenty of them on the Grand Line and beyond. Additionally, the fact that the world is divided into small islands rather than continents is part of the mysteries of the incredible world-building, and not just an excuse to create a pirate-friendly tropical island setting.
The world is divided into islands because in the Void Century, the world government used an ancient weapon to flood the world to destroy the ancient kingdom, and something similar could happen again now. It’s a stunning revelation about why One piece is designed this way, and there is even more. Fans are eager to know how One Piece’s treasure ties the fate of the Old Kingdom and its champion Joy Boy, which could also tie into Harley’s cryptic prophecy about the divided world’s reunification. This alone makes One piece one of the best examples of animated worldbuilding, and there’s so much more: the unusual weather of the Grand Line, Noah’s Ark found on Fish-Man Island, the vivid themes of Alabasta and Wano, and even topics like the Voice of All Things and the Will of D.
The three worlds of Bleach are distinct and balance each other
It’s true BleachThe worldbuilding doesn’t easily compare to either One piece Or Lord of the Rings in terms of scale and depth with its world-building, but there’s more to consider than that. The worldbuilding also thrives on efficiency and distinct contrasts, which helps to BleachThe advantage. As fans recently learned, the story of this anime includes the fact that the Soul King split the original world into three current worlds, which meant that the Quincy tribe had no place to call home. The three-world model has worked for the benefit of souls and humans, but now the vengeful Quincy fight to restore the original world, even if it means ushering in the apocalypse for Earth, Soul Society, and Hueco Mundo. Few anime depict a villain who wishes to destroy three worlds just to give his wronged people a promised land, full of moral ambiguity.
In addition to that, Bleach has powerful world-building with its contrasts and balance in these three worlds. Karakura Town is the most grounded of the three, giving Ichigo Kurosaki a slice of life where Rukia and the other Soul Reapers can stand out as reverse isekai characters. This gave the Substitute Shinigami Arc a distinctive flair and comedy, then Bleach this was all reversed with Ichigo and his friends traveling to Soul Society as isekai heroes. Notably, Soul Society is a peaceful pre-industrial world based on Japanese history, making it simultaneously exotic, enjoyable, and disturbingly regressive. Finally, Hueco Mundo may seem boring at first, but the dark, nighttime desert is perfectly symbolic for the empty, dead creatures that dwell there. It’s a world of despair, a barren jungle where being the strongest means nothing.
That time I got reincarnated as a Slime, it’s Lord of the Rings for Isekai
The isekai genre as a whole is a total sandbox mode for anime, opening the doors to all kinds of world-building. Some isekai anime don’t make a serious effort since they don’t have to, like I’ve been killing slimes for 300 years Or Trapped in a Dating Simbut others go the distance to rival Middle Earth. One of these anime is That time I was reincarnated as a SlimeOr tensurawhich was clearly intended Lord of the Rings in isekai space. The breadth and depth of the world-building in Rimuru Tempest’s world is astonishing, gradually and energetically expanding the fantasy realm Rimuru calls home with nations, cities, notable characters, monster races, spells, and much more. By season 3, world building in tensura is so vast that fans may need to start taking notes or looking up maps of this isekai world.
The history and themes found in tensura also do their job, like how the world is divided between feuding nations and even monsters against humanity. It’s an immersive and captivating take on how such a world would work, because of course people would feel threatened by the monsters, and of course some of the more intelligent monsters would feel wronged by this prejudice. This made tensuraThe world of is the perfect place for a philanthropist like Rimuru to bring races together with the power of kindness, tolerance and friendship to build a newer and better society. Thus, Limule established the current phase of this world’s history, the era where everyone is adjusting their views on what monsters like orcs are – and what they are not.
The attack on the world of Titan seems foreign but terribly familiar
Attack on Titan may not have in-depth knowledge of elves and kingdoms like Númenor, but it has some seriously effective world-building to make the story hit home. In fact, fans might say that author Hajime Isayama did too well with Attack on Titanworld-building, given how much controversy it has generated in terms of dark historical events and current geopolitical tensions. Then again, art isn’t always meant to make people feel comfortable – it’s often meant to expose the problems of humanity and the real world in a vivid and engaging way. This is undoubtedly part of what Attack on Titan It is a tale of an island under siege by larger neighbors or by one ethnic group calling another “devils.”
Everything that makes Attack on Titan it feels like early modern fantasy mixed with all-too-real political tensions and war stories, combined with the unforgettable excitement and horror of the Titans themselves. The great thing about Titans is that they are defenders, builders, and monsters all in one, depending on who uses them, why, and for what time period. The Titans have reshaped the course of humanity every time the Eldians are involved, making it difficult to decide whether the Eldians are honest people who got carried away by their powers or tyrannical devils after all. As an aside, anime fans love the simple but memorable world-building centered around the residents of Paradis Island defending their walled city against the Pure Titans while desperately wondering what lies beyond the confines of those same walls.
What makes the world build? Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood it’s so interesting how the entire nation of Amestris was built to be the Father’s ultimate transmutation circle. Edward Elric’s homeland is the model for Father’s final victory, hidden in plain sight, which explains its unusual shape as a well-designed circular nation. It seemed like the anime designed Amestris this way for pure convenience or to hint at the transmutation circles, but this worldbuilding isn’t for the sake of it. Father designed this nation as an artificial sacrifice for his divinity project, and only later Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood Did the heroes realize this fact and decide to do something about it?
This alone makes Fullmetal Alchemist: BrotherhoodThe worldbuilding is some of the best, as few stories of any kind use an entire nation as a sinister plot hidden in plain sight like this one. To complete it all, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood offers fans a stylish steampunk world of alchemy, homunculi, and 1910s technology to add some serious shonen flair. It helps Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood pits Amestris against the distant kingdom of Xing with its charming Chinese overtones, as well as the fallen nation of Xerxes in the desert, a cool place for fans of archeology.