Uncle From Another World (Netflix) 2022

We know how isekai stories work. Protagonist gets into an accident, gets transported to a fantasy world, and in that world he gains some unique abilities, meets new friends, and embarks on a grand quest. 

 But what happens when your isekai adventure has ended and you return to the real world only to find out that 17 years had passed? You wake up on a hospital bed and are told your adventures in another world were just dreams while in a 17 year coma after your accident. To add insult to injury your family had broke apart during the time with only your nephew willing to take care of you? 

 Said nephew is our protagonist Takafumi, and his Uncle is the one claiming to have been a magical warrior in another world for the past 17 years. While skeptical at first, Uncle proves his claims by conjuring up magic leading Takafumi set Uncle up as a YouTuber performing said magic and regaling his viewers of his past adventures. Hijinks ensue when Takafumi himself and his old friend Fujimiya become big fans of Uncle’s stories and convince him to use his magic to solve everyday problems like a broken air conditioner solved by summoning a frost spirit that plunges the room into a new Ice Age.

 Episodes may seem formulaic with half the time dedicated to hijinks with Uncle in the real world, and the other half to Uncle’s fantasy adventures shown by magically displaying his own memories. But it helps that the comedy is genuinely funny and the characters are charming. 

In the flashbacks, we are introduced to a tsundere elf princess, 

a lazy ice mage, 

and a sweet young priestess 

as Uncle turns their lives, and the lives of the fantasy realm, upside down by his mere presence and mastery of magic.  

Through the laughs, an element of melancholy lingers. Uncle is a stranger in a strange world, both in the present and in his flashbacks. In typical reclusive nerd fashion he has trouble relating to others and picking up on social cues. On top of that, there is the trauma that is initially played for laughs where Uncle is constantly mistaken for an orc due to his looks, and often at the receiving end of fearful villagers intending to kill him. 

This made him shy away from relationships even more, unsure when a friend might turn against him, and there is a sense that those companions who may have taken a liking to Uncle never got their feelings reciprocated. There is also a running joke of him wanting to erase the memory of anyone who catches him doing something embarrassing which turns out to be indicative of his own low self esteem and trauma. 

Uncle would rather people forget about him than to remember him badly, even if there were some good memories. He would also rather someone else be happy than allow himself happiness if it came at another’s expense (and this manifests in the present day by Uncle constantly setting Takafumi up to spend time with Fujimiya). 

 I certainly wished they explored that aspect more. While I loved the chaotic comedy, the series ends with little headway into any character development. In the both the present day plot and the flashbacks, it feels that our characters’ journeys were only just beginning. Time will tell if the anime gets a continuation but at least the manga seems to be going strong. Until then, I would recommend UNCLE FROM ANOTHER WORLD as light and easy viewing for a few laughs.