The capturing element of The Eminence in Shadow is that the world we are thrown into and the story we see is quite original. Originally a Japanese young man named Minoru Kageno, a guy wanting to be the best and stronger than everyone else, ends up getting killed but is reborn in a new world with magic, power, and supernatural abilities. Now under the guise of the leader of Shadow Garden, Cid will make his dream of becoming Eminence of Shadow a reality. That part seems like every single isekai ever but what we love about The Eminence in Shadow is that the main character and his aspirations create an entirely new theme for the usual isekai formula. Cid isn’t going “I want to rule the world,” and can’t do it, he’s making the moves to do so and crafting stories to convince others to join his goal…literally what some rulers in the real world have done. Cid and his desires are just so peculiar that it has hypnotized us and made us want to keep watching The Eminence in Shadow just to see how his tale unfolds.

After four episodes our Cid has already amassed quite a bevy of strong and beautiful waifu. Named after the Greek letters, Alpha, Beta, and Delta, these lovely girls are quite the powerhouse for Shadow Garden. We actually love the idea of a “pseudo-dark ruler—having a not-literal-harem of girls who kick butt and help make his dream a reality. The Eminence in Shadow really takes the idea of being a grand leader to a very interesting place and we don’t hate it.

The Eminence in Shadow is a pretty nice-looking anime in terms of visuals, design, and animation. While a lot of isekai—we won’t name them to be kind—rely on usual fantasy-like imagery and design, The Eminence in Shadow goes for a more original blend of dark fantasy and modern themes, which works in its favor. Cid’s various magical/physical attacks are quite breathtaking and we often were surprised at the level of quality overall. Though we aren’t surprised to see how Studio Nexus, known for Chivalry of a Failed Knight and Darwin’s Game, has made some impressive animations before.

Now we can say we love Cid, his various waifu, and the action elements of the series but we can’t deny that in the end, this is still yet another isekai. Cid alone is what keeps the series from feeling like every other story but if you remove him from the equation you can literally say The Eminence in Shadow is like Spirit Chronicles or The World’s Finest Assassin Gets Reincarnated as an Aristocrat. That’s why if you really aren’t a die-hard isekai fan—or are getting tired of them—we HIGHLY doubt The Eminence in Shadow will change your mind about the genre sadly.