Not Only Is 'Saga of Tanya the Evil' a Notable Isekai, but It's a Compelling Alt-History Anime as Well

One of the anime I picked up for the 2019 spring season is the short-form series Isekai Quartet, which is a chibi-style crossover of Re:Zero, KonoSuba, Overlord, and Saga of Tanya the Evil.  Among those four isekai titles, Saga of Tanya the Evil was the only one I hadn’t watched prior to watching Isekai Quartet.

In watching Isekai Quartet, I found that a basic knowledge of Saga of Tanya the Evil – very easily acquired through a quick Wikipedia read – was what’s merely needed in order to make sense of its place on the show.  Meaning, watching the entirety of Saga of Tanya the Evil is not integral to enjoying Isekai Quartet.  Nevertheless, completionist compulsion dictated that I still should go watch it.  Plus, there was the possibility that a very clever gag might come down the line which required the viewing of the source material to be understood completely.  And so, I binged all available episodes – which are only 12 so far, all from the debut season that ran in 2017.

Saga of Tanya the Evil is set in an alternate world in which a World War I-style conflict – with some shades of World War II – is brewing in Europe.  Moreover, in this world, magic exists, and people who have aptitude in magic are drafted and trained to become mages – soldiers who are capable of flight and shooting powerful energy attacks with their rifles.

The story centers on Tanya von Degurechaff, an orphaned girl born in the Empire (the Germany of this world).  When a routine test determines that she has magical capabilities, she quickly enlists in the Imperial Army despite her extremely young age.  Because of her tremendous intellect, magical power, and ruthlessness – qualities uncharacteristic to a preadolescent girl – she quickly rises up the ranks of the military (her rank at the start of the first season was lieutenant, but by its end, it was major), and becomes the commander of an elite, quick-response battalion – the ace of the Imperial Army – which she herself trained.

Actually, prior to being born as Tanya, she was a he in our world – an atheist Japanese salaryman.  On his way home from work, a disgruntled subordinate whom he fired earlier in the day pushed him to his death from the train platform.  At that moment, a self-absorbed deity named “Being X” suddenly revealed himself to the salaryman.  When the latter offended the former, the former condemned the latter to be reincarnated as Tanya in that war-ridden world, and was put under the stipulation that she would be sent to hell when she dies.  Thus, Tanya sets the goal of putting herself in the best possible situation where she can keep herself alive and be comfortable in this new world.  However, whenever she’s at the point of succeeding, Being X – keen of breaking her stubbornness and make her acknowledge that he is her god – would throw a wrench into the works.

Years ago, I was very much into alt-history novels, especially when they had elements of science fiction and fantasy.  And Saga of Tanya the Evil reminds me of the best of them.  I extremely enjoy the compelling mix of fictional components and background details that have real-life references.  For example, although magical soldiers exist in this world, the predominant military doctrines, weaponries, technology, fashion, and even applied scenarios featured are still very much similar to those employed during our World Wars.

In relation to this, an aspect that appealed to me immensely is the prominence of strategy and data analysis.  There are three or four supporting characters capable of these, but it’s most exciting when the one performing them is Tanya, being the MC and all.  It’s so fun watching Tanya work her brilliant mind, as she’s both a Jack Ryan-like intelligence analyst and a Lelouch Lamperouge-like tactician.  She’s so sharp and perceptive that, when given the proper information, she can quickly deduce what her more experienced superiors are planning or arrive at the same conclusion as theirs.

Her intellect makes her a character worth rooting for.  On the other hand, she’s not truly a hero.  After all, the title of the anime is “Tanya the Evil.”  She’ll do whatever it takes to accomplish her goals.  She’s mostly selfish with her motivations; cruel, Machiavellian, and even nihilistic with her methods.  Thus, though you would generally root for her to triumph, you will nonetheless not be totally comfortable about it.

In summary, the two most notable things about Saga of Tanya the Evil are: a.) the different but not-so-different composite version of the World Wars unfolding at the forefront of the narrative; and b.) the intriguing but uniquely anti-heroic – villainous, even – military prodigy, who is bitterly feuding with a self-important god, serving as the main character.  Add some solid direction, fabulous animation, and dynamic action on top of them, and the result is one of the better, more distinctive isekai ever produced.