Best Anime With An Overpowered Main Character

Admit it; you adore powerful main characters. At times, it’s completely gratifying to witness a character effortlessly defeat foes like crops in a farm. Similar to TikTok highlights, it’s the kind of impressive heroism you simply want to rewatch.

At times, being too powerful can be uninteresting. The story loses its purpose when the main character is already in control. However, some stories with strong main characters are successful because of silly or funny ideas and enemies that deserve to be defeated.

The proliferation of isekai anime brought more powerful MCs in the past decade, so do not be surprised that almost half of the recognizable ones in the list are isekai characters with powerful cheats.

So, buckle up and get your fix of OP goodness from these beloved animes with godly main characters who were just way too extraordinary to stand in the same starting line as everyone else.

Let’s get started!

Related:Best Manga With An Overpowered Main Character

Let’s start with someone so powerful he needed to teach a class of assassins just to kill himself.

Before obliterating the planet, a yellow octopus known as Koro-sensei by the students at Kunugigaoka Junior High School attempts to educate a team of outcasts to become junior assassins in order to thwart him.

Koro-sensei’s funny behavior and good teaching methods make him dear to Class 3-E as they grow into strong individuals in this science fiction comedy with surprising turns.

Why Is The MC OP?

Koro-sensei is already a master assassin known as the 1st “Deity of Death” before he got captured, experimented on, and transformed into the yellow tentacled monstrosity he became known for.

He possessed super speed, super regeneration, genius-level intellect, super-precise tentacle manipulation and alteration, and many more.

Of course, isekai animes can’t be left out of this list. Hajime Nagumo started as a lowly support in a party of summoned heroes, all high school kids from the same class.

Mocked for being weak and sent to his death through schemes, Hajime literally fought his way from the bottom: inching his way from the abyss of a dreaded labyrinth back to the surface with a never-say-die attitude.

Why Is The MC OP?

This person who was once seen as a loser gained powers and ancient objects from a long time ago after completing dungeons in different places, increasing his abilities much more than his classmates who were considered heroes.

Hajime also changed his personality to suit his renegade getup of white hair, black eyepatch, and dope super-guns.

Here’s another isekai character who’s incredibly strong, overpowering opponents even while restraining himself. Takuma Sakamoto is a recluse gamer who gets transported to the world of his favorite MMORPG, Cross Reverie.

He was summoned by two girls, Rem and Shera, who wanted to enslave him. The spell backfired, and the girls became Diablo’s slaves instead.

Why Is The MC OP?

Diablo was summoned by the girls to help them solve some problems, which Diablo easily resolves (read: bulldozes through). These girls just summoned a cleaver to kill mosquitoes.

As a skilled user of different magics and holding the position “Destroyer Sorcerer,” Diablo possesses a vast array of incredibly strong spells, many of which he rarely employs. Being a high-ranking player in Cross Reverie, Diablo also possesses high-quality gear and maximized abilities.

Vash Stampede was equipped with supernatural abilities that could destroy the world but opted to be kindhearted and not murder people. This premise of a pacifist ‘time bomb’ of a character has fascinated fans ever since the manga was released almost three decades ago.

This misunderstood gun-toting hero is followed by destruction and chaos everywhere he goes, leading to him being called The Humanoid Typhoon with a bounty of $$60 billion (double dollars).

Meryl Stryfe and Milly Thompson, who work for an insurance company, track Vash’s accidents to assess the damage claims.

Why Is The MC OP?

The nickname Humanoid Typhoon is actually an understatement of Vash’s capabilities. Born as a Plant, an artificial human used as a literal walking battery by the planet Gunsmoke, Vash and his twin Knives Millions are holders of unimaginable powers.

Apart from universe-level hypersonic speed and attack potency, Vash possesses a dreadful weapon called Angel Arm, a massive cannon that shoots antimatter blasts capable of burning a hole through the moon. He once lost control of his Angel Arm and destroyed an entire city, which started his legend as a walking disaster.

 Demon King Anos Voldigoad is undoubtedly one of the most overpowered characters ever created in anime history. The tyrannical king was once a top-level powerhouse who sacrificed himself thousands of years ago to end an interspecies war.

Anos was successful, as he was reborn to the current era of peace, where magic as a whole declined and his descendants a lot weaker.

Still possessing the godly powers he had during his reign, Anos aims to reclaim his former prestige as the Demon King.

Why Is The MC OP?

Possessing powers that can put any god to shame, this Demon King effortlessly overwhelms any opponent. Even reading this list of his most potent abilities will probably hurt you.

One memorable moment of Anos’ power was when he defeated the proud student Zepes Indu by repeatedly killing and reviving him while discussing the effects of his spell. Too strong and merciless.

If you need a diverse isekai (overpowered, harem, comedy, world-building), Tsukimichi is a solid option. Makoto Misumi isn’t the usual isekai hero, but he possesses the common outrageous abilities.

As a World Traveler summoned by the Goddess, he was abandoned and thrown to the edge of the world because he looked subpar by the new world’s standards. This is the story of him trying to find his place in a different world while also discovering his powers and limitations.

Why Is The MC OP?

Do not be fooled by his level 1 tag. Makoto’s powers put him in league with the gods. For one, His Creation powers are beyond what gods and goddesses can do.

Makoto also has the power to boost anyone who has a pact with him. One notable example is Tomoe’s Subspace, which became a utopia for Makoto’s band of misfits and the people of the Wasteland.

If you want an emotionless badass OP MC, Tatsuya Shiba is your man. Amusingly called by fans Godsuya, this particular main character is a bit of an enigma: he’s a ‘useless, magicless Weed’ in a magic high school, but he’s actually one of the strongest magicians in his generation.

Godsuya always has a response to any obstacle, especially when it comes to threats against his beloved sister, Miyuki. He is so powerful that he needs a boundary to control his energy.

Why Is The MC OP?

Everything about Tatsuya Shiba involves destruction. Specifically, the Hindu deity of destruction, Shiva (Shiba, Shiva, you know). He has abilities that are considered extremely powerful in a magic society, leading to his famous escapades.

In fact, Tatsuya’s powers cannot be considered “magic” by the world’s standards—they’re superpowers. His highly-specialized types of magic, Decomposition, Elemental Sight, and Regrowth, were too great that they hindered him from using other basic magic.

If there’s a line that perfectly describes Seiya Ryuuguuin, it will be what Kazuki Nakashima once said, “A lioness will use all of her strength even when hunting a rabbit.”

Seiya was summoned to the S-rank difficulty world Gaeabrande by the goddess Ristarte. When he arrived, he bought three sets of armor and items before destroying a single slime by repeatedly attacking it with his strongest techniques.

Why Is The MC OP?

Due to his cautious nature, Seiya grinds and overprepares before any battle. Thanks to his ‘EXP boost’, Seiya levels up quickly, making him an undefeatable existence against any enemy he encountered (except that one in his past life).

To stay safe, he learned many spells, becoming skilled in various types of magic. Seiya was always cautious, prepared for any enemy attack.

Rimuru isn’t the only slime-y OP isekai MC here. 11-year-old Ryouma Takebayashi walks the OP path by owning hundreds and hundreds of slimes he bred and evolved.

Ryoma was initially set on building his slime empire and honing his skills deep in the forest when a baffled Jamil household discovered him and brought him out to their duchy, where he tried to reconnect to society and live a peaceful life.

Why Is The MC OP?

As the title implies, Ryoma is the favorite of the Gods, receiving blessings from the Gods of Life, Love, Wine, and the Creator. These were the gods’ gifts to Ryoma after he suffered a difficult life (and a boring death) on Earth.

Slimes were only a clue of the Ryoma iceberg, though. This MC has learned different skills like washing and creating things, as well as combat and mystical abilities. It truly sparks your interest and makes you excited to uncover what mysteries Ryoma has concealed inside.

True anime fans will always remember when Charlotte shook and disturbed the world. What started as a funny yet kinda-useless ability, Yuu Otosaka’s power bloomed and eclipsed everyone in unimaginable ways.

The story is set in a world where a percentage of the population gains supernatural abilities upon reaching puberty. One day, the sudden death of his little sister left Yuu severely depressed.

His hope is reignited when he learns the true nature of his abilities, setting him on a path of saving not only his sister but all ability users in the world.

Why Is The MC OP?

Yuu initially thought that his ability was limited only to possession, all the while only using it to fraudulently lead a carefree high school life. He later learned that his ability is called Plunder, and it allows him to “loot” the power of any ability user he possesses.

He used his injured skill to take all powers globally as he traveled from country to country, earning him the nickname “One-Eyed Grim Reaper”. Yuu is said to have acquired thousands of abilities by the end of his journey, reports claim.

Mondaiji is probably the top OP MC anime among the isekais in this list, based on its premise: three extraordinary teenagers gifted with super psychic powers, each nursing an unbearable boredom due to their OP-ness.

They receive an invitation from Kurousagi to a location called Little Garden, filled with strong individuals. Chaos follows, as expected.

The strongest among these problem children is Izayoi Sakamaki, an arrogant boy prone to solving problems with violence. He only wanted to have fun, and fun is what he gets.

Why Is The MC OP?

In a world where all have special abilities, Izayoi’s power, known as [Code: Unseen], can cancel and destroy other abilities, allowing him to easily win his fights.

Kurousagi stated that Izayoi has the power to destroy heaven and earth, with Baron La Croix adding later that Izayoi’s ability can even destroy stars.

Here’s another super strong main character from the isekai category, who sees battling demon lords as a secret side gig. Satou Pendragon (formerly Ichirou Suzuki) used to be a programmer who found himself in a fantasy RPG world, a blend of the games he used to fix.

Perhaps a really terrible, confusing dream, who knows?

Anyway, Satou advances from level 1 to level 310 (many levels above everyone) after his meteor spell annihilates a tribe of strong lizardmen. Now overpowered and transported to another world, Satou goes on a tour while rescuing the occasional young girl and defeating stray demon lords along the way.

Why Is The MC OP?

With maxed-out stats and plenty of time, Satou was able to copy tons of skills and abilities during his adventures. His super high-level and isekai cheats helped him destroy evil behind the scenes.

The girls he saved along the way also became overpowered with his help, many of them having their own adventures and empowering tales.

What do you do when confronted by a strong entity you have always denied?

This MC’s answer was to mock and criticize Him, of course, prompting the entity to reincarnate this unnamed salaryman into an orphaned little girl named Tanya Degurechaff caught in an alternate reality where wars are fought with guns and magic.

Tanya enlists in the military in a different Empire of Germany. Her powerful secret magic and harsh nature led her to join a special group of magic users, which was unexpected for her. Tanya always wanted to be a high-ranking officer with less responsibilities.

Why Is The MC OP?

Tanya is a ruthless yet efficient soldier trapped inside a diminutive, blue-eyed blonde little girl. In an attempt to climb the ranks and escape the battlefield, her wartime leadership and magical warfare prowess instead made her an ace, hence a card that her superiors couldn’t just hide.

Drawing on her understanding of the conflicts in her former realm, Tanya asserts control over her portion of the battleground, earning her the impressive nickname The Devil of Rhine.

Her small stature and pre-teen doll-like cuteness make it more jarring, considering how much of a demoness she is on the battlefield.

Although Asta may not be the most powerful character in his show, his confidence in his own skills and his determined attitude, typical of shonen protagonists, make him the favored hero by all.

And just like his fellow shonen protagonists, Luffy and Naruto, Asta believes he has what it takes to become the Magic Emperor.

Asta was initially an unlucky orphan from the Forsaken region who discovered he was magicless. Under mysterious circumstances, he was chosen by an extremely rare five-leaf grimoire, gaining an ally called Liebe and the powerful anti-magic.

Why Is The MC OP?

As the MC of a shonen show, Asta is bound to become a top existence, fulfilling his destiny of becoming Clover Kingdom’s most powerful magic knight. With his indomitable will, Asta is making his name known in a world with numerous beings more powerful than him.

However, what differentiates Asta from others is his power’s nature, which is anti-magic.

Gaining a magic-nullifying ability in a world where magic makes might is truly overpowered, especially when used right. His unique power also prevents him from the adverse effects of mana drain, since he has no mana, to begin with.

It started simple, really: In a world where most people inherit supernatural powers called quirks, Izuku Midoriya is a superhero-stanning quirkless boy who one day gained an overpowered ability from his idol, the world’s strongest superhero, All Might.

This is another common shonen tale, some might say, but My Hero Academia effectively blends shonen clichés and the superhero theme to make a beloved cult favorite.

The representation of superhero tropes, coupled with great character growth and world-building, guaranteed that Deku stayed as one of the best animes of this present era.

Why Is The MC OP?

Deku’s special ability, named One For All, is one of the uncommon quirks in My Hero Academia. It can be passed from one person to another, giving the user super strength and speed by storing a lot of energy.

It’s a simple power-up kind of quirk, but the destruction and damage it can cause are insane.

What’s crazier is that Deku also inherited the quirks of all the previous users of One For All, giving him an all-around boost to his super-abilities, not to mention the possibilities Quirk Singularity can do to Deku’s already-OP might.

Not a bad upgrade for a powerless nerd.

Watching an anime with a percentage meter of the MC’s psychic explosion is a unique experience in itself. Shigeo Kageyama, or Mob, is a simple and naive protagonist who transforms into his badass OP self once the meter reaches 100%.

Mob isn’t the only overpowered MC author ONE created (the other one being more ridiculous), but he has perfected the style of taking a blank-looking MC and giving him abilities so powerful that it upends people’s belief of what an overpowered being truly is capable of.

Why Is The MC OP?

Mob possesses great psychic powers that he has kept hidden since a past incident. When Mob reaches his breaking point, his power is unleashed depending on his emotion at 100%.

There’s also a ???% that comes out when Mob undergoes extreme stress or when his physical vessel is destroyed. Under this special state, Mob loses control of himself and becomes even more powerful.

Over the past few years, an influx of isekai’d MCs with cheats brought a lot of representatives for the OP trope.

But not many can truly compete with this MC and the following one. The leader of a powerful guild in Yggdrasil was transported into the game’s world as his skeleton Overlord character called Momonga.

Taking on the name of their guild, Ainz Ooal Gown, he and his ensemble of powerful NPC guardians explore the world while at the same time establishing his own domain in hopes of finding other players.

Why Is The MC OP?

According to Yggdrasil’s norms, Ainz is very overpowered. When someone has endless strength without caring about morals or ethics, it’s incredibly effortless to defeat helpless enemies with immense power.

Disregarding Ainz, just Nazarick’s stewards are already enough to topple down Yggdrasil’s empires.

Even though he can compete physically because he is also a skilled fighter, Ainz is mostly known for his wide range of very powerful spells, some of which can instantly defeat many enemies.

Some of his magic also violates the laws of life, death, and even space and time.

Rimuru Tempest is probably the most popular isekai protagonist in recent years, and he’s practically overpowered right after he got reincarnated despite being a lowly slime.

Armed with the OP skill Predator and similarly OP luck, this slime discovered an entity inside the cave where he was born—the imprisoned Storm Dragon Veldora.

Using Predator to unseal and “eat” the dragon, he was able to jumpstart his isekai adventure with a monstrous energy source.

Why Is The MC OP?

His skills can synthesize and evolve into Ultimate skills (with cool names to boot!).

The most OP among these was Wisdom King Raphael, a skill that developed its own consciousness. It’s a hack similar to planting a supersmart AI chip inside your head.

Having a variety of skills that an overpowered isekai main character needs, Rimuru founded his own little kingdom, promptly becoming one of the demon lords and gaining a position among the planet’s mightiest.

You just know that any list of overpowered MCs is incomplete without the presence of this dull-looking baldy who moonlights as a superhero for fun.

Saitama is a B-class hero in a world where superheroes have become part of the public’s daily lives. This webtoon-turned-beloved-anime by ONE is a parody of the OP trope that people just can’t get enough of.

Why Is The MC OP?

The title shows that Saitama defeats lots of bad guys only by hitting them. The issue is that no one sees Saitama fight the most dangerous enemies or they mistakenly recognize other heroes (we know, King).

The fights are also entertaining as hell, albeit way too short (the fight against Boros, thankfully lasted more than a punch, at least).

Fortunately, Yusuke Murata (of Eyeshield 21 fame) gave life to ONE’s funny-looking characters and blessed fans with one unforgettable anime.

Another important member of OP character lists and truly the grandfather of OP anime, Son Goku is the beloved power booster of all. This is clear to the extent that whenever a strong main character appears, it has become usual to ask, “Can he beat Goku, though?”.

But really, can they?

Goku’s fights sit right up there amongst the best ones in anime. While they aren’t as quick as most of the guys here on this list, the sheer amount of destruction and power level are in a different league.

Why Is The MC OP?

What makes Goku really OP is how he upgrades himself, outpowering his old OP self every time a stronger contender comes out and threatens the universe.

Even though he wasn’t born a god, Goku is already fighting some of them.

It’s amazing to imagine how he came a long, long way from being an adorable alien monkey to a literal God of Destruction.