2026 has been a phenomenal year for anime so far, with each season delivering some of the biggest hits spanning across various genres. Much to the pleasant surprise of various watchers, Isekai anime have taken the front seat this year, delivering not only an adventure on a completely different scale but, on top of that, coherent and incredibly compelling plotlines as well.
Re:Zero Season 4, which began airing earlier this year, is probably the biggest example of that. Re:Zero Season 4 is up there with the best anime series to have aired this year, and it is set to make a grand comeback on August 12, 2026, as the biggest isekai of the year. With its grand return, Re:Zero is now set to go head-to-head with Freiren for the top spot of the highest-rated anime series of all time.
Re:Zero Season 4 Officially Returns To Surpass Frieren on August 12
Re:Zero Season 4 began its run on April 8, 2026, with the beginning of the Loss arc. When the season officially began, hardly any of us expected it to be as good as it turned out to be. Yet, Re:Zero Season 4 is completely redefining what isekai series are all about. The compelling plotline and the incredible character arcs, particularly revolving around the likes of the protagonist Subaru Natsuki and even the exciting villains, show that isekai aren’t just repetitive series filled with comedy. Of course, Re:Zero maintains its comedic charm as well, but there is much more to this series set in a fantastical and magical world that leads to great immersion for the fans.
After completing a run of 11 episodes on June 17, 2026, the vast majority of which were incredibly highly rated, Re:Zero is set for a comeback on August 12, 2026, with the second part of its fourth season. The first part of Season 4 was rated incredibly highly by the fans on the biggest anime rating platform, MyAnimeList. Re:Zero Season 4 Part 1 secured the second spot on the list of the best anime series of all time. It sits at a score of 9.14 out of 10 with 308,221 ratings, which is incredibly impressive and is just behind Frieren Season 1, which sits at a score of 9.25 with 1,498,811 ratings.
That said, the best of Re:Zero Season 4 is yet to come, as the Recapture Arc begins officially on August 12, 2026, streaming on Crunchyroll. With the beginning of this new arc, Re:Zero is once again going head-to-head with Frieren for the position of the best anime series of all time. We are incredibly excited to see what this Isekai is going to deliver this time around.
Why Re:Zero Season 4 Is 2026’s Anime Of The Year
2026 has given us quite a lot of compelling anime series, including Freiren, which is the highest-rated anime of all time. Freiren Season 2 began airing in January, and much to the surprise of the fans, it failed to hit the same levels as Season 1. While it was still incredibly fascinating and delivered an exciting experience, Freiren Season 1 is rated far higher. Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3 was yet another anime that we loved this year. But with the Culling Game only in the beginning phases for the vast majority of the season, it is no surprise to know that it wasn’t the highest-rated anime series of all time. Re:Zero Season 4 was the most pleasant surprise to come out this year, delivering immense quality and kept consistently getting better. That is precisely why it currently stands in the view of numerous fans as the best anime of 2026.
The fact that Re:Zero Season 4 is going head-to-head with Freiren Season 1 for the spot of the best anime series of all time speaks for itself. While there might be a certain sense of recency bias attached to the ratings that Re:Zero Season 4 has secured, the immense quality that it delivered, along with the numerous plot lines that it built, absolutely cannot be ignored either. At the Crunchyroll Anime Awards for 2026, Re:Zero Season 3 won the Best Isekai Anime of the Year.
Undoubtedly, the third season of this anime series was quite strong, but it is nothing compared to the level that Season 4 has shown. Based on that, Re:Zero Season 4 should have no problems reclaiming this title and becoming the Best Isekai Anime Series at the Crunchyroll Awards 2027 as well.
In fact, it is entirely possible for Re:Zero to level up and compete on all fronts, including the title for the Best Anime of the Year. Re:Zero has been received incredibly well by fans, and the Recapture Arc, which is set to be even more exciting and intense than the first part of the fourth season, is likely to boost its ratings even further. We wouldn’t be surprised at all if Re:Zero manages to dethrone Freiren from the spot of the top anime and claim it for itself.
The Future Of Re:Zero After New Season Release
As things stand, the Re:Zero series is set to continue for years to come. The production for Re:Zero has been significantly above average, which means that fans get to enjoy quality seasons with a good production schedule by White Fox Studio. To maintain that level of quality, White Fox Studio often takes its time to produce Re:Zero. As such, Re:Zero Season 5 is most certainly going to happen, but it will take up to two years to produce it, at the very least. There is not a concrete release date for Re:Zero Season 5, but we do know that it is happening and that it will not come out any time before 2028, at the earliest.
For what it’s worth, Re:Zero is not ending any time soon, even after the conclusion of its fifth season. The story is still continuously expanding, and we absolutely cannot wait to see in which direction Tappei Nagatsuki, the incredible writer behind this masterful series, takes it on. For now, the anime series is nowhere close to its novel counterpart, with even more exciting developments to come in the future. We are eagerly waiting to see the 2nd part of the 4th season of this anime series begin airing on Crunchyroll, taking the already incredible season 4 to new heights. The Recapture Arc is almost here, and it is time for our beloved Subaru and Emilia to shine like never before.
Re:Zero Season 4 will be available to stream on Crunchyroll.
