Now and Then, Here and There (1999)

"Where the hell am I? This isn't Japan."

Welcome to another contender for my Top 100 Anime of All Time List:

An Isekai from a time before all of the ridiculously titled over-the-top

Power Fantasies. It's 1999, and Akitarô Daichi has yet to direct the 2001 adaption of Fruits Basket - instead, he's directing Now and Then, Here and There. An anime all about a young boy who's unwittingly caught in a war between a young girl with a mysterious pendant and a Mad King after being transported to another world.

It's a dystopian-sci-fi-Isekai anime that takes the terrifying concept of children being forced to fight in a war, and cranks it up to 11 as they fight for survival in a desolate world that lacks water, lead by their unhinged Mad King. Which makes sense, since the director also spent time as a camera operator for Grave of the Fireflies - I can see that influence carry over in ways.

It's a beautiful anime in more ways than one, with all the charms of 1999 technology colliding with all of the themes of growing up in a post-war life in Japan. Sitting at 13 episodes, this is an easy contender for the Top 100.

My Current MAL Ranking: 9/10

Top 100 Contender: Yes

Top 100 Ranking (Temporary): 3/10