Isekai

**Isekai** (Japanese: 異世界) (lit. "different world") is a subgenre of Japanese fantasy light novels, manga, anime, and video games revolving around a normal person being transported to or trapped in a parallel universe. Often, this universe already exists in the protagonist's world as a fictional universe, but it may also be unknown to them. The new universe can be an entirely different world where only the protagonist has any memory of their former life, as in Saga of Tanya the Evil, or one that they reincarnate in. It may also be one where a formerly virtual world turns into a real one, such as in Log Horizon and Overlord.

Contrary to the word, there are relatively few characters in the narrow sense of "things in a different world" that have values, thought circuits, and perspectives that are close to the modern earth so that readers and viewers can embrace emotions, and other common-sense dominates. It does not include works that" depict the daily life and battle of the different world itself "*only*". It seems that it falls into another category called "high fantasy". In the genre, "another world" in a broad sense is literally a "different world", and it can be explained as a parallel world using

another world as a fantasy or quantum theory, or "planetary romance" or "virtual space (data) . The world) ”may also be included. The original broadly defined "different world thing" is a cross-genre concept, but the narrowly defined word "different world thing" is like a bamboo shoot after the rain from around the 2010s on novel posting sites such as light novels and " let's become a novelist ". It originated by pointing to a format with the following characteristics that have increased in number. A person living in modern Japan (although it is a work world) is transferred/reincarnated to a world with a different environment.

* In that world, the feats of the transferred person (which are not appreciated or taken for granted in modern Japan) are prized.

In addition, although there are exceptions, the mainstream destinations for reincarnation are those summoned to the fantasy (or RPG [role-playing game] -like) world, such as Siegzion (SD Gundam Gaiden) and Daikaiju Monogatari. Even if there are small differences, there are many templates of the world view, which is also the reason why it is called "a different world thing (in a narrow sense)". Here, the conceptual meaning in a broad sense is also included.

**(Source: AnimeNewsNetwork)**

## Genre

**[Characteristics of different world objects]**

#### Planetary romance

"Princess of Mars" (1917), the original story of **ALDNOAH.ZERO**, says, "The consciousness of the South Army cavalry captain John Carter is transferred to Mars, fighting the local Martians, and princess Dejah Thoris and Love. The story of "romance".

Although the location is a planet in the same solar system, it can be said that nature is very similar to the fantasy different world transition thing. It is also the ancestor of the following **MÄR** and Doraemon stories that "because it is a low gravity planet, it can be unmatched." By the way, in the Wikipedia head family, it is stated that the above is called "planetary romance", and while sword and magic fantasy are finely distinguished, it imitates the early line (that is, the original planetary romance).

"Sword and planetary romance", "horse opera romance", "space opera romance", and so on. The similarity is also pointed out. In the science fiction genre, there are things such as the novel by Henry Rider Haggard where white people adventure in unexplored regions and become leaders of locals, but this also regards unexplored regions as a different world. There will be. In addition, as will be described later, it is a kind of different world thing in a sense that there is a development that time slips and is unrivaled in the past world.

#### Virtual space

Many of the depictions in **Sword Art Online**'s work are in the game world, a program created by real humans. However, by making it a death game that cannot be logged out, all of the living will be borne by that of the game world, and although it is a game, it is no longer a play. Nowadays, there are many things that extend this line and introduce it like a butterfly dream, such as "I can never return to the real world and the virtual space becomes the person's reality". Also, like the virtual trilogy, there are cases where "It should have been a virtual space..." as a twist.

The work that includes the science fiction element of the nature that "the boundary between virtual space and reality becomes ambiguous" is a derivative of the science fiction genre called "**Cyberpunk**" that originated in William Gibson's novel "*Neuromancer*" in 1984. It may be possible to see that.

The New Romancer envisions a future in which machines are routinely implanted in the body, implying that ethics can change over time. Such a virtual space may be accepted as a mere part of life, or more specifically, as a "real world" for those who live in a world where it is feasible. However, there are works and parts that do not have the above meaning but include the syntax of something from another world.

For example, the **SAO** mentioned above is also a type that does not exist on the earth because the main character is diving into the world where AIs with even advanced emotions called "Underworld" live in the latter half of the Alicization edition, which is not a death game. Cut down the tree to make it a sword, slay goblins, play with AI friends, and fight for them.

This includes the "environment" and "people" described below and can be said to be a part of a different world (meaning that it contains the above-mentioned two elements).

Also, although it is not the main element of the work, Shanflo is also a work that includes a game with a high degree of a different world in the Naruro work. Shanflo has many different games from the title, such as GGO and ALO in SAO, and there is an almost no different world. Most of these elements are played by the main title, Shanflo, who makes AI with high-level emotions and intelligence generated by advanced arithmetic mechanisms live in the game world, becoming the hero's battery, killing each other happily, and getting sick. There are various things.

However, as I said that it is not the main element, in the case of Shanflo, it has an aspect as a "VR game exploration thing" because there is a lot of depiction of other games at the level that it becomes a book by itself like another title of SAO. However, only the title work and the one title that the player in the work started first, the setting like Arishi edition and Shanflo body = AI with high intelligence like human beings and another world level game that simulates history in detail for a long time If a game with a world is played in the play, there is a part where the syntax is similar to that of another world.

(In the book title, "***Only Sense Online***", "***Skeleton magician's play diary***", the latter is not the title = game title, etc.) However, there are cases where there is a game in the kind of normal daily life where you can log out peacefully, and there are cases where there are many elements that include life-threatening factors such as a death in the apt non-logout system as mentioned above. The center of gravity of the depiction also changes.

Therefore, the only work that has a strong flavor like a game is a different world thing "including syntax", and it cannot be said that it is a pure different world thing. Shanflo [**Shangri-La Frontier**] has a real date and solves exam questions with Regigigas and the heroine who is said to be the author (probably love characteristics), and even on a day trip, the different world is life-threatening and there is no real element, and in VR games Instead, there is no particular design element that is common.

Speaking of works that are purely causing a transfer of consciousness to a different world, for example, **Overlord** (novel) tried to reach the end of the game that the main character loved in the game but forced logout did not occur, and on the contrary, it belongs. It is in the beginning that the NPCs of the guild start to move autonomously and start to speak at a high level that is impossible. Log Horizon is a development that goes into the game world while playing in front of the screen, so it is different from the transfer/reincarnation after consciousness. Is it more like **Fushigi Yugi**.

#### A world that is not connected to this world

Saito Hiraga, the main character of **Zero's Familiar of Zero**, is from modern Japan, but has been summoned to another world by the power of magic. Bless you again in this wonderful world! Kazuma Sato , the hero who died trying to help a stranger in the world, has signed a contract with the goddess Aqua in the world after his death and has been transferred to another world.

In such a case, the different world is not only a world unknown to the hero, but also a world that cannot be seen or seen with the technology of the original world. The genres generally called "*different world transfer*" and "*different world reincarnation*" on novel sites such as becoming a novelist, which will be described later, are narrowly defined as the main character from the modern earth and such different worlds (many of which appear in games). It depicts the relationship with the Western-style world).

In many cases, such a different world is created based on an image that comes to mind as one of the countries of the West in the Middle Ages, or the West. Since there are many posts of novels with such a worldview, it is sometimes ridiculed as "Naroppa". Japan and China may also be models in that they can feel exoticism in a good way, although not as much as in Europe. Especially in China, the heroine becomes a queen because she can draw on a large scale. The "Chinese Gomiya Mono", which kicks off rivals and falls in love with the emperor, is proud of its deep-rooted popularity regardless of whether or not it has a reincarnation (transfer) element. In manga, part of the place name may be shared even if the world changes, such as "Tsubasa -RESERVoir CHRoNiCLE-".

#### Villain daughter

The work genre called "villain daughter" is a memory of a person who reincarnated into a nobleman or a royal woman who is a villain in the world of creations (novels, manga, games, etc.) that he had enjoyed in the original world after his death. Based on the knowledge gained in the previous life;

* Kick off the woman who will be the original heroine and become a partner of the main person such as the prince \* 1
* Aside from romance, struggle to avoid tragic endings
* Trying to avoid the bad end under the water while playing the "villain as the original" so as not to destroy the original
* Enjoy observing love patterns other than yourself
* Strive to be connected with your own push
* Ignore the scenario and try to live the second life freely
* If you are reincarnated as a servant or a blood relative instead of yourself, rectify the villain's daughter and lead to a happy ending

Refers to the type of story. Due to the nature of the story, almost all of the reincarnated people are women, but there are derivative types such as "villain decree" that reverses men and women or arranges them in a BL manner.

One of the features is that it is not necessary to create a complicated worldview such as artificial language as described later because the world of creation is the theme. However, after the works of different world reincarnation/transfer to another world were isolated in the ranking to become a novelist, the number of cases of reincarnation / retrograde by the local hero is increasing.

It does not necessarily adopt elements such as reincarnation, transfer, possession, and retrograde, and there are works in which the stage is not a different world and is not much different from reality, and the main character longs for a villain daughter. In addition, the woman who should be the main character is drawn as a villain so as not to cause remorse for conscience when kicking off, and on the contrary, there are cases where the hostile relationship is resolved and a good relationship is built. Often reincarnated from the same world as.

There is a "reverse thing" in a similar genre. This does not go to another world.

#### Crossover

In the planning of some works and the genre of derivative works, the worldviews of other works overlap, and the characters of one work often move to the other. In the case of modern commercial works, both works are made to stand up, but in the case of derivative works, those made simply with the desire to have your favorite character play an active part in your favorite worldview, etc. In some cases, only the characters in one of the works are active.

### Different world

***Different environment ≒ Active / Musou?***

Having a different environment means that it is easy for the character to play an active role by using it as a material. For example, there is something called "modern knowledge unmatched" in some of the stories of things in different worlds. This is to bring knowledge such as modern technology to a fantasy different world and worship the hero.

In the latter half of the 2010s, there were many works that were fused with cooking manga, such as "**Isekai Shokudo**."

It is said that it is often seen in Narō-kei, and there are descriptions such as the original of **GATE**, which was originally a net novel, and **No Game No Life** in Ranobe. Seen in this way, it seems to be a genre developed in modern times, but Columbus's egg-like idea of ​​"if XX is in another place…" has appeared as the subject of many creations. There is.

It can be said that "another world thing" and "Musou (active)" have a long-standing relationship as a genre and are not small. One of the characteristics of what is called "Naro-kei" in recent years is that the advent of the Internet makes it easier to publish novels even if the work is not so elaborate. It can be said that it is characterized by "less kneading" and "the world view is made into a template".

Time-slip items such as "JIN-Jin-" and "A Chef of Nobunaga", which will be described later, require some specialized knowledge for historical examination and setting of the world view, but they are set in a completely fictitious different world. This is because all such efforts can be skipped.

## Active in knowledge and technology

In 1889 Mark Twain wrote a work called "Connecticut Yankee of the A Connecticut Yankee". This work is a story about a modern American engineer (at the time the novel was written) in England in the old days.

In Japan, these days, "JIN-Jin-", where doctors travel back in time around the end of the Edo period, and "*A Chef of Nobunaga*," where cooks go to the Warring States period, are structurally similar. Well, they get caught up in the government and are shaken unreasonably... In England, the work "*Outlander*" is almost the same, and the main character who was a nurse in 1945 moved to Scotland in 1743.

And she was under house arrest, saying, "Use your abilities!" In the main story of **Doraemon**, Nobita has an episode "Let's bring matches and radio to the primordial era and be worshiped" and "Go back to the past", and there is also a virtual war record such as "Bring in the knowledge of the transition of war".

These are identified as past modified objects and time slip objects, but as mentioned above, what is the difference from "modern knowledge in a different world"? Speaking of which, the part of the river is quite large, and there is a scene in the above-mentioned "Princess of Mars" where the main character has an intelligence advantage over the barbaric Martians.

It seems that these things are called "white chieftains" in the movie world. This is a story of a chief who is worshiped as a god or a great man by showing a "civilized instrument" such as a gun to a "barbarian tribe such as the jungle hinterland" whose technical level is low. Also, before the establishment of "Naro-kei", in the genre of secondary creation on the web around the time of *Neon Genesis Evangelion*, there was a setting where the viewer reincarnated as a character and avoided unreasonable events with that knowledge. There is also a theory that points out the connection with the fact that there were many.

In the above-mentioned "villain daughter" type creation (not limited to court romance), the main character has an advantage in experiencing the original, especially in the secondary creation (so-called ori ss). There is also a tag called "original knowledge".

#### Active in supplies and supplies

If it is easy to go back and forth between the different world and the real world, you can make a lot of money in the different world if you use the supplies in the real world well. Hajime Kanzaka's different world thing "Higaeri Quest", which is familiar in " Slayers ", is paid close attention to it. One day, Eri Murase, an ordinary high school girl was suddenly called into another world.

Furious at being called for a trial without saying a big mission or fate, she gave a **mere digital wristwatch** to the wizard who called herself and said, "If you remove it badly, it will explode (big lie) Designated every Sunday Call me at that time. " In that different world, there was a shortage of **salt and spices** during the war. **When she was told that she would buy as many gold coins** as she could bring, Eri laughed, "I wonder if I can really trade here and there." However, since she had a somewhat realistic personality, she noticed that "it would be awkward if a high school girl had converted a large number of gold coins into cash" and she used gold coins only in a different world in the latter half of story.

It seems difficult to turn treasures from another world into real money. By the way, in the title that was made into a book because it will be, as the text says, "It was the black market of the earth that was connected from another world with the skill" market, the main character seems to be Africa-like goods stolen from the hostile human nation of another world. It is flowing to the black market.

The key to this section is the black trading partner, who is given enough money from the protagonist to be exchanged for an old tank but is not arrested and his skills disabled. Also, the original work by Baku Yumemakura, "Beasts in the Wilderness," is not a different world. However, in the comicalized version, it is said that "the funds for guerrilla activities against government policy are the gold of the ruins in the jungle." In other words, it is a setting where it is overlooked that gold nuggets and precious metal crafts that do not know where they come from are handled by the dark route

and turned into weapons and food that are in conflict with government sources. Considering this, the type where the entrance to another world such as a dungeon is fixed in the backyard of a home in a country with strong public or security like Japan is difficult, but the type that relies on "individual" magical power and skills. Then, if you go to a land where the streets of security and bribes are very strange. If magic and skills can be used to some extent on the earth, it will surely be possible to talk with such dangerous sources.

#### Plot Story

***It can be unmatched from the beginning due to the difference in the environment***

As a pattern that does not use knowledge or technique, Nobuyuki Anzai's manga MAR has an early description that "the fairy tale world has lower gravity, so the main character is stronger." (Same as "Princess of Mars" as mentioned above) The same story is also in the main story of Doraemon, and in the short story "Go! Nobitaman" and the movie " History of Space Pioneering ", the star was low gravity, so the bullets are as fragile as popcorn, and the physical strength of Doraemon and Nobita is Superman. It was in a state (although Doraemon, which boasts a mysterious power of 129.3 horsepower and is strong enough to keep its original shape even if it receives a big explosion, should be able to play the same role on the earth).

Also, it is often said that "there is the power that only humans from different worlds can use" such as "**Magic Knight Rayearth**" and "**Brave Story**". However, in the works mentioned above as examples, there is a terrible background the background, and it is not just a "Musou" or "Brave thing". (In "Princess of Mars", not only the difference in gravity but also the mind-reading technique used among Martians, "The main character can read the minds of others with the mind-reading technique learned from Martians, but other Martians are earthlings. I couldn't read the heart of the main character well."

Anomalous examples are Howl and Suliman from "*Wizard Howl and the Devil of Fire*", who were magicians in a different world from the magicless "Wales". Therefore, the reverse pattern was drawn in which the main character Sophie visits "*Wales*".

In addition, there are cases where characters such as "modern people but different talents" move to a different world, such as "Open the door" by Motoko Arai. There is also a simple case like the anime "Aura Battler Dunbine" where "conditions for transfer = aptitude for different abilities".

#### There are many hardships

Just because there is a place where the hero's skills can be utilized in the most different environments does not mean that he can easily forgive the hero.

Speaking of SAO mentioned above, the main character has high ability and unique skills, but he is still next to the deadline. He is at the mercy of the most cheated (literally) person. After that, the cheat guys often struggle and get smashed both physically and mentally. ~~In fact, in his Doraemon, where he has no cheat feeling~~, the actual ammunition of the main story was treated as popcorn, but in the history of space exploration, the professional hitman Guillermin uses a raygun has no description of small fish. Nobita, who utilizes gun skills that are useless in peaceful modern Japan, is not matchless but an apt shootout, unlike the Western story in the main story with the assistance of Dream Gun and Dorami. In the case of bringing in modern weapons, is the supply problem more often mentioned as in the "Sengoku Self-Defense Force"? It can be said that the catharsis that can be matched against many people and the strong people in the world and the tension that the power is not absolute make the story interesting.

His Majesty O's chief also has a work called "Eh? Solar eclipse? I know it" (computational power of Maya civilization) in the story of "predicting a solar eclipse and making the barbarians who see the sun as a god scare". Considering that early works such as Connecticut Yankee are usually unmatched (although Merlin may become an enemy),

rather in recent years, readers have the opinion that "it's just a matter of making them play an active role". It seems that the number of authors who think about gimmicks and reactions corresponding to them has increased. In a game like "Naro-kei" such as "Blessing this wonderful world!" The main character goes to a different world in the world, but it is a parody by drawing the hardships that he has a hard time with in daily life. There are also works.

#### Importance of the factor of "activity"

In fact, success is also very "important" in terms of narratology. The reason is that catharsis is an indispensable element in the story, and it also has an aspect that makes the hero a hero.

In the survival section below, I presented an "unreasonable example" of a fantasy full of ugly people, "Hey" and "It's too minority", but as the same thing, it lacks the factor of "activity". When I write the outline of the work I was in, it looks like this. **The hero has moved to a different world of medieval style! However, he was caught by a bandit who suddenly attacked the village without playing an active part in cooking knowledge, was sold to** a slave trader together with other villagers**, and suffered from forced labor in a coal mine as a slave**. **He died miserably without being ignored**...

Editorial meeting "... The only interesting thing to read like this is you who drew it or the same kid who doesn't know how many people are in the world. Write it on your blog by yourself (manuscript poi)" The work in the situation where the main character is despised but overcomes the hardships from the bottom and crawls up is rather selling, or even if it has been animated, there is a famous category of work. In the trendy (around 2020) genre, the work that is "exiled" is also structurally close to some extent, and it is the same up to the point that the main character is somehow despised. After that, it is a branch whether to slow down or go up and look back. However, work like a synopsis that is unlikely to go through such an editorial meeting ... does exist. Is it animated? Is it a book? …… (Looks away) .... Well, if you search all over the blogs and writing sites, they will come out.

At least, unlike the works that "have catharsis" = "the main character is active and rescued in some way" like the expulsion system, there is only a number that can hardly be said to be mainstream. So, the hero of a child who was bullied on the earth happened to be picked up by a gentle older sister of the upper class in a different world and was given the cheat ability that was shot or attached to the famous but slightly disappointing beautiful girls Let's forgive even if you are surrounded and skate.

No matter how much the outfield hit "Mata Template", at least he was bullied by an unnamed local and became depressed and committed suicide, Chan-chan. There is definitely more demand than a stale fall story, so everyone writes and even companies spend money on media mix.

For the time being, there is a work on the net called "Monk" Hinoki nobo ...? "", "There is expulsion, there is no problem, the hero is oppressed and is not appreciated by the world" and "masterpiece". In fact, the comment section of the top-ranked work summary blogs has been filled with comments for many years. But ... "The main character, the monk ♂, has achieved great achievements," and although from his own point of view, he is "rewarded." In addition, there is a point that dissatisfied comments appear because this work is not described.

In the last scene, the monk disappears, thinking that he was rewarded. However, the brave ♀ whose memory has been erased is obsessed with the hero until the end and is kissing. In other words, it is a hellish situation for the wise man ♂ who was thinking about erasing the monk's memory and getting married.

* Answer (1) The wise man is questioned by the hero who has returned to his memory and is disliked like a snake.
* Answer (2) A monastery course that mourns the soul of a monk in the epoch of the world. marriage? Haha
* Answer (3) A handsome wise man comes up with a clear solution

I hope it will be 3 (reading sticks) Again, this work is "still" a "masterpiece". The monk was a cheat in a sense, but he fought against a strong enemy with a weak weapon, was erased from the memory of the party's favored opponent, and even though he was hated by civilians, he never rotted or bent and protected the human world.

Buddha mental. Even in the blog comment, is it the trace of the saint? Is said. That is why the readers' liking for monks is high. To be clear, if you imitate something with such a high level poorly, the comment section will be a total scan in one shot.

Why does the hero endure hardships? How hard will the hero be? How to describe the unpleasant behavior of an unpleasant character. It's a natural result that only human boos, which I think are unpleasant if I draw them incorrectly, overflow, or it is not evaluated at all. Well, if it's a premise, you can expect that you may be able to laugh at the end even if a guy who looks like shit comes out.

However, when she relies on the holiness of her hero to make her suffer, her empathy for the hero and her companions (her favorite partner) turns into anger at Kuzu. There is an SS called Hinoki nobo, which is "Nothing, there is a heroic element, and is it rewarded?" However, I feel that it is too difficult to make this mainstream.

### Different world

***It seems that there are almost "people"***

Another factor that defines the uniqueness of a different world is probably that "there are groups that are friendly and not the main character group." Paradoxically, this can be seen by looking at uninhabited island objects.

#### Works that survive in a different world

As mentioned above, the anime "Uninhabited Planet Survive" has an element of "using advanced technology on another planet", but it is not like a different world thing like "Princess of Mars".

The reason for this is that there are local aliens as individuals, but there are no village-level intelligence bodies in the field. For this reason, most of the story is a depiction of the relatives of the drifting students, without even the element of being "worshiped like a god" or even "praised as part of a group." A similar example of this is the novel "Sudden Change", which is set as "an earth where transitions and exchanges with another world" back earth "occur frequently at the regional level", but because there is no intelligent life form in the "back earth". , The characters meet only "people of the original world who had transferred earlier" and "animals and plants of another world", which is close to the survival thing.

If you replace this and think about it **The hero has moved to the fantasy world! An elf who understands words? Dwarf? Is not here. There must be a thief who happened to be nearby**. **In the world of goblins, trolls, and only that only Ugauga says, monsters are killed, stripped, and eaten, and they are wary of robbery**.

Only the stage set is an unmistakable different world. But are there many such works in the world? At least, there are a few examples of fantasy works that have a certain degree of commonality and compatibility with science fiction and space objects, such as Mars Princess ≒ History of Space Pioneering ≒ MAR.

Umezu Kazuo's Drifting Classroom is said to be similar to survival things such as the Drifting Classroom of the Fifteen Boys, but there are creatures called "future people" who have a group and intelligence, and culture. But they are hostile, and some of the adult people at school are "enemies" who try to control or kill their children. "Escape the Desert of Death in Sahara" is a survival story about people on a plane who crashed into a vast desert trying to escape.

On the other hand, in the cartoon "Crest of the Royal Family", a girl whose father is a scholar of ancient Egyptian civilization was time-slipped to ancient Egypt and using her knowledge, she was protected and resented by local kings and others. A story that survives while living. In this way, it seems that the nature of "survival things" is fundamentally too strong just by saying "the main character (or a single group) vs. the hostile surroundings and environment".

It is hard to see that readers and authors share the image of "Musou / Activity in a different world (environment)" drawn by Twain and Burroughs for a work that "survives in a different world". In short, should we say that there is a "world" with both "friendly and hostile to the hero"? In the case of hostile nature only, even if there is an intelligent body, it is a "moving obstacle" and a "disturber to be dealt with in order to live". Among them, Uchi-Geba occurs due to the policy conflict of the main character group, and negotiations are tried to solve it ... (This area is usually seen in the Drifting Classroom) When the focus is on such efforts to live, "another world" It seems that "sex" is inevitably diluted.

However, there is no work that travels to a different world, and in Fujiko F's short story "Green Guardian God", there are plants that are not intelligent but are useful for animal treatment and diet, and it feels like a different world. It can be said that you have. There may be a problem with the center of gravity of the depiction in this area.

### Words from another world

It is recommended to refer to the article in artificial language for the contents of this section. There is a negative opinion on the Internet that "I went to a different world, but I can understand the language immediately." But this is also a part that requires the reader's understanding when you think about it.

If there is a story about how linguistics enthusiasts really learn words, and if there is a work that you can understand Katakoto and gradually make friends, it will be a wonderfully different world thing. However, if you try to dig deeper, it will be a different world thing = a linguistic thing. In that case, some readers may be reluctant to say, "It's only Tolkien's advantage! In terms of the area of ​​fictional world creation, such a phenomenon that "the more you make it, the less it sells" is called "commercial rebellion".

As a creator, it takes specialized knowledge to create an artificial language or a fictional language, and the competition population is suddenly large (for example, a shared world based on the fictional language "Arca" described later and its followers or followers. The so-called "fictional language neighborhood", or the creation by Mr. Tomohiro Nakano, including Artige Hark, who is active in approaching geological phenomena and mediating self-produced movies while keeping a distance from such neighborhood. It is extremely difficult to create an academically natural language for a group, others, overseas creators, etc., incorporate it into one's own work, and try to achieve an average degree of perfection.

To give an example of knowledge, linguist JR Tolkien spends 68 years starting at the age of 13 and dying at the age of 81 to create the language of Arda in The Lord of the Rings, and 19130. Arca, Japan's largest artificial language with vocabulary, has been produced after 22 years, with the author Seren Albazard giving up time for all other creative activities. It is extremely difficult to balance the creation of works and the creation of languages because the amount of money and time required to acquire specialized knowledge is enormous.

Furthermore, when I made " **When I go to a world where there are people who can speak the words that people use, I should have assigned a place with a fairly low probability, but why is the language different?** The problem also comes up. Therefore, even if there are much super-fast understanding of languages ​​and translation premises, it is necessary to have a certain spirit of "it can't be helped", "don't rush", and "it's okay to be a top". The authors shouldn't just be thinking about it because there is development such as "I can communicate, but I can't read the characters in another world and it becomes something of a story".

As a specific example, in TRPG's "Chaos Flare", the language problem was solved by saying, "Because there are a lot of visitors from different worlds, the" barrier "that covers the world has an automatic translation function. "It's hard to say when "Kaikai" goes wrong? "(Although many visitors have a translator). In "**The Twelve Kingdoms**", and "**The Shadow of the Moon, the Sea of ​​Shadows**", the main character first understood the words of another world in Japanese, but later, when he met other drifters from Japan, he said, "Originally. I don't understand Japanese (even writing in Chinese characters is quite difficult) ", and that was the background of the transition to another world.

By the way, in this world, there is a system called "Senji" that gives you an immortal and highly regenerative body and a sense of language inconvenience. Japanese people who have obtained "Registration" have also appeared. Dengeki Bunko → In Dengeki's new literary work "Bebel", this "translation premise" is the core of the story, and the hero who had no doubt that words can be understood normally even in a different world at the beginning,

"There are two problems: ("**The special language acquisition law in the stage world and its fluctuations**" and "**Why did the words of this world lead to the hero who should be out of the law?**") From a different world person who knew the language situation of the earth. We will face it and solve it. In addition, in the manga "Drifters", the solution is being attempted in the form of "the person who visited earlier made a Japanese ↔ a truly connaku-like thing in the local language."

Initially, the main character's party communicates with otherworldly people by having a companion who has learned a different world language for half a year as an interpreter, and when that companion is not present, the language cannot be understood. Gestures and **locals** were taking a brute force method such as forcing me to say " **\*2 \*2** ".

Later, a person who came to another world ahead of the main characters distributed the above items to the main characters, and it was finally solved. It can be said that this also solves the points that "words are usually not transmitted in a different world" and "although the same problem cannot be communicated many times ".

Also, in this work, the characters of the different worlds are described as horizontal characters that look like the characters of the Maya civilization that transformed hiragana,

and the same sentences as Japanese are written in the speech bubble of the different world people. Has been done.

As a work that directly confronted the problem of language examination in another world, Gachi's linguistics enthusiast wrote it and managed to make it into a book, and it sold as it was "Introduction to another world language-I was reincarnated but I could not understand Japanese-" There is an example. In this work, Japanese is not understood in the different world where the hero was reincarnated, and the hero's familiarity with the local language and culture using his knowledge of linguistics is incorporated into the format of the reincarnated in another world. It is drawn in close-up.

Looking at the popularity of this work, it seems that there are potentially a certain number of readers who are interested in this kind of apt element (= not necessarily considered "Tolkien profit"), but this work In itself, the selling point is to raise questions about words in another world, and it can be said that such advertisements are of great interest to readers.

#### Other SF proof part

What is called "tsukkomi" such as language problems is also a field where there is no time to start thinking, for example, it is said to be potato police (unknown pathogens are brought from another world or the earth ...) If you touch on parts other than language, for example, the relationship between geology, climate, vegetation, etc. and buildings, food, clothes, etc., ethics, cultural functions, gravity, time difference, calendar, etc. Be done.

For example, if you move a long distance by teleportation, a time difference will occur if the ground is spherical, and if there are two moons, it should affect the orbit of the earth not a little. There are societies whose origins are matrilineal, but there are no undeveloped societies in which women have more social power than men.

There is a myriad of uncertainties, but we need to add some commentary to convince our readers of these events, whether they are perfect (or completely unsuccessful). (For example, in the "History of Space Pioneering" mentioned in the above sentence, the operation of the two moons of the alien planet that is the stage affects the tidal action, and when the two moons overlap, it becomes a spring tide. Is clearly described and explained) Here, at the time when the phenomenon of transfer to another world and the technology that cannot be explained by the science of magic exist in the first place, it is natural to question whether this kind of scientific common sense is valid in another world. It exists (in fact, in the different world that appears in "Twelve Kingdoms", it is said that the earth is flat even though the horizon can be seen, suggesting that the common sense of this world does not apply).

Since many of the main characters of different worlds things bring in modern science and technology, it may be unavoidable that the scalpel of science is included in the worldview as a result. Also, whether it is a language or this kind of proof, there are not a few readers who think that it will be more like that, "Introduction to another world language-I was reincarnated, but I could not understand Japanese". It can be seen from the publication of the book. The bottom line is, "People who can do it should do it, but whether they do it or not (whatever the sales), there is no difference in the degree of perfection."

### Relationship between different worlds and activities

In this way, it seems that the factors of "active things" are likely to be mixed in "different world things". This is because it depicts interaction with friendly beings in another world, and is, therefore, an indispensable aspect of making things in another world into things in another world. "Activity in a different environment" has an element that can be " I TUEEE ". "White chieftain thing" is criticized for such a point, and it is not limited to otaku culture. However, it is premature to see that all of these works have such properties.

In Hitoshi Iwaaki's manga "Historie," the enemy general who invaded the village where the main character teaches and conducts culture says, "You guys, the barbarians don't even know such poems!" There is a scene that surprises me when the author's name is returned. It's like the above-mentioned "solar eclipse? I know you know (Maya-like feeling)", and if you really have a low level of intellect and culture, you won't even try to remember it. It is a scene that highlights the arrogance and stupidity of the side who said that he knew it.

Also, in the starting work "Adventure of Sailor Kupukupu", when a person who seems to be primitive inhabitant said "This is modern technology!", "No, we have scientific power, but we dare to live primitively. Just why ", he was able to do it with more technology. Even in the above-mentioned No Game No Life (although it is not the main work to do domestic affairs / NAISEI), he said that it would be better to provide knowledge but leave the specifics to the original bureaucrats. In this way, the hero of the migrant gives something to the local "incompetent" and "barbaric" human beings and is said to be "great!" I can say. In the Internet area, such as Narō-kei, there are quite a few vicious kings who say, "Give the summoned hero an appropriate thing and let the Demon King make a special attack."

There are cases where they are hunted as incompetent as enemies (only a tool of catharsis), but it can be said that it is a meta to the place of "a strong man who is just worshiped by weak locals". The Drake of Aura Battler Dunbine is an old example of a person who took the position of "the person who came to Japan = a tool, not a power to rely on or worship."

Even in **Fushigi Yugi**, one of the seven stars who should be the hero's friend is supposed to be "raped (actually attempted) and abandoned", and the power as a shrine maiden from another world is used.

The above two people who "use the summoning and migrant existence" may be villains of the class that are normally capable in terms of depiction and ability.

Deceived Earth humans can also have major personality problems, rejoicing that they were chosen as the cheat hero as depicted in games and novels, and summoned themselves without any doubt. Take the words of the villains and take charge of the bad things \*3. Finally, it is either cut off as obsolete or forced into a situation where it is condemned by the main character. There is also a development that converts and fights for reconciliation with the main characters \*4, but even the villains who cheated, such as stubbornly refusing to admit it until the end, reveal stupidity \*5 Not a few. In "Villain Daughter Mono", many reincarnated characters who became the heroine of the main character have appeared, but due to the fact that they were really reincarnated in the game world, they became fools who did not look around more than the above-mentioned transferees. The development \*6 in which people around them are isolated and self-destruct by seeing them only as "characters (NPCs)" is almost standard.

Although later than Dunbine (1983), the villain's summoning material can be found in the "Landover" series (1986), where overseas examples are also found in the relationship section.

Bad court mage "I can't bring things out of the country ... yes! Sell the throne to the rich and unfit for the king, kick them out, and sell them again in an infinite loop!" Christmas Catalog "Sell the Magic Kingdom!" (Volume 1 title, skill name of "Selling Guy" in a certain TRPG) The protagonist, "I was a lawyer, but my wife died ... I thought I should try something new. Now I want to save the plight of this country." Magic Master "Yeah ... why is there a guy who can adapt to such a talented person ... I have to get rid of him ..." In other words, if an evil wizard makes a money-making loop combo, pull out a king candidate that doesn't meet the conditions and gwat! Is the starting point of the story.

#### Active elements different from the original theme

There are cases where "It's nice that the main character plays an active part in a different world ..." is produced with a motif of a work that is not originally the subject. Swift's "Gulliver's Travels" is a satirical novel originally drawn based on British society at that time. It's quite a feature film, and there are a total of four XX country editions (the third one also stops at Japan when returning to Japan).

However, there are quite a few cases where the early scenario that "the hero who has flowed into the land of dwarfs is unmatched by the enemy fleet" is used as a story. Doraemon and Nobita read the above episode and said, "Let's go to such a star (with a dwarf)!" And Doraemon and Nobita become a nuisance to the local dwarfs. It can be taken as ridicule or satire of a different world thing. Fujiko F also describes as a science fiction short story that a giant alien will come to Japan during World War II and be unmatched by the US fleet.

In 2010, one chapter was produced in the United States as the movie "Gulliver's Travels", in which the main character (although once caught) is later welcomed as a hero from another world. In addition, there is a scene in which Star Wars and others are praised as their own original work (although it was later revealed), and "profit is gained from the knowledge that is not your own."

In terms of business, it was not a hit in the United States, and it made more money than the production cost by expanding overseas. It does not seem to be very high in the critic's evaluation. "The Wizard of Oz" is a story in which Dorothy and her friends help each other with their physical characteristics, but in the "Battle of the Beginning of Oz" in 2013, a circus magician was sent to the "Land of Oz" and a magic trick. He won the battle by communicating his technical knowledge in the United States at that time to the local residents and obtaining cooperation . It's not just a story of praising the main character, but it feels like many local craftsmen work like the Drifters dwarves.

This is an industrially higher production cost in the United States, and the evaluation is fair. The above is a derivative of the work "It is not the subject that the knowledge of the hero is utilized in a different world", but it has the characteristic that the hero plays an active part and wants it. In such an example, both the recipient and the creator like this kind of thing, and there is a place that makes us feel the existence of something like demand or universality.

### Relationship between another world and the main character

The "different world" is basically drawn as a world that is different from or has nothing to do with the "world of the main character". However, there are many cases in which the "different world" and the "hero" or "the world of the hero" are related from the beginning, and the transition to another world is inevitable. For example, the beginning of the "Rider Royce Series" (Cobalt Bunko) is set in modern Japan, but since the main character is "Kishu Ryutan", who is a prince of another world, there are few modern elements other than the main character and her.

As an old example, in "The Chronicles of Narnia", the stage "Narnia" and "British in the 20th century" with the main characters are the world created by the same "Emperor", and therefore "Adam and Eve" appearing in the Bible. "Descendants (baru humans)" could be the key point of the story. In Diana Wynne Jones's "Crest Muncie" series, "a magical world where a different world was recognized" and "a world that did not know a different world or magic" were mixed.

In Terry Brooks' "Landover" series, the protagonist becomes king by "buying" the throne of another world country, "Landover." " Go for it! Strictly speaking, the "modern" and "future" in " Space Battleship Yamamoto Yoko " are "worlds where time paradox does not occur with each other" and are close to parallel world movement. In these examples, "means for going back and forth between different worlds" and "mechanisms of parallel worlds" have been clarified to some extent, and therefore the relationship between worldviews is needed.

Also, in the original version of "Magic Knight Rayearth", the character has a question "Why was there English in" Magic Knight "even though it is a different world?", And it is revealed that "the creator is the same" at the end. In this way, there are works that approach the mystery of the world from the similarity of "two worlds".

### How to get to another world

Then, how are the characters invited to another world? In "Princess of Mars", "only the consciousness in the near-death state is transferred to Mars far away", which was a way of life like a "dream story". On the other hand, in "Lion and Witch" in "The Chronicles of Narnia", the atmosphere of "going to a different place" became stronger, saying that "the closet of the house where I was living was a passage connecting the world", and other Narnia works. Then, "Forcibly summoned from another world", "The picture becomes a substitute for the gate", "If you call Aslan, the nearby door becomes the gate", "Use a magic ring" and various patterns are available. As for the "closet", it is similar to "Princess of Mars" that it was passed because it died in the real world in the final volume, because it was inevitable that it became a "passageway" as "actually made from trees grown from Narnia". It was.

In this way, how to get to another world is roughly divided into

1. Going through the gate to another world
2. Going to another world like an out-of-body experience in an unconscious state
3. Using tools, vehicles, etc. that can go to another world
4. Called by a resident of another world

There are 4 patterns. Of these, two variants are combined with the elements of "Kishu Ryutan" and "Reincarnated Things" to create "another world reincarnated thing."

An anomalous example is the foreign literature "Neshan Saga". In the same work, the adventure of "the hero who lives in a different world" was experienced through a dream by "the sickly boy of the earth who has the same name as the hero", and sometimes he advised the hero.

However, in the latter half of the year, the "sickly boy" suddenly moved to another world and was assimilated with the main character without knowing it. "Boy" is treated as missing on Earth).

The depiction of when a "sickly boy" landed in another world and how it was treated on the earth can be regarded as a "transfer to another world", but all the inhabitants of another world usually refer to "sickly boys" as "sick boys". It is treated as "the main character" and can be taken as "another world reincarnation".

Then there remains the question of what happened to the original "hero"'s personality (who recognized the "sick boy" as someone else). If you can choose to go back and forth between the original world and another world, we promise to develop a conflict with "**Which world do you live in?**" \*7. At first, I forgot about the previous life when I thought I was reincarnated and died, but in the latter half of the story, I found out that I could actually go home.

Also, in the case of "transfer due to a shock that seems to die", the transfer destination is the living world to the last, and those who attempted to steal the country of hell against Enma after death and those who executed it are classified as different world things. Not very likely (maybe because it's not just the main subject of the work).

In Michael Ende's novel "The Neverending Story," the hero who has entered the novel world, Fantasien, breaks through the situation where the real world and Fantasien are adversely affecting each other, and grows himself. The process of returning is drawn. In recent years, "things reincarnated in another world" often go to another world with excellent knowledge and abilities due to death due to accidents, illness, senility due to trucks, or unknown causes. There is **no way to return to the original world, and the person has no intention of doing** so."

Often, you will spend your life in a world where you can play an active role and have people who need you. On the contrary, in the anime " Battle Spirits Shonen Gekiha Dan ", a man who has risen to another world can see through the ambitions that have passed from the king of another world, lose everything he gained, and return to the original era. there were.

### Fusion of another world and your own world

In the work, there is also a story that the different world and the earth will eventually merge and meet on a large scale. "Gate Self-Defense Forces in his land, fighting like this" "Battle Spirits Shonen Gekiha Dan" etc. It is also a cathartic development in which the different world, which only the main characters knew until now, shakes the common sense of the earth and the main characters are involved in it.

However, if these works are not inevitably familiar with the fields of politics and economics, they tend to be full of tsukkomi and forced development, so the ability of the author is questioned.

### People in different worlds come to the earth

As mentioned above, there are many stories about the hero who is on the earth in a different world, but of course, there is also a story that a person who is in a different world comes to the earth. Speaking of famous Japanese works, many space guards are coming from the land of M78 nebula and light for the earth. However, it was pointed out in the comments that it is not a different world, but it is thought that the cause is not that they are aliens in the same universe, but rather that they are a "division of activity". As mentioned above, the factors of "activity" and "interaction with friendly beings" that develop from it are important in things in different worlds, but in this case, such factors are thin.

Because it is a general recognition that the giant of light = is the person who defeats the monster ≠ the member before transformation, in short, "the hero defeats a strong monster with great power and is praised by the surroundings" as is often the case with things in different worlds. There is no such flow. Structurally, this person is the same as his predecessor. There is also a type of work that

secretly defeats a strong monster and receives praise only from the heroine of his relatives because he does not want to stand out most. **"The giant of light who defeats monsters is amazing. By the way, it seems that there are always people who don't have monsters when they appear. Isn't it a child who doesn't need it?"** It is said that there is a medium in the above work that has a depiction that the members were hurt by such a bashing article and were cornered. Yeah, hiding the activity or daylight is not a level. In recent years, there has been a scene where a crowded train is "ideal for spiritual training" with a squid, and there is a line like "a different view of different culture" as a different world person. As I started to speak, the number of horse mackerel in another world increased a little. However, I don't talk lightly with anyone other than the main character and other giants of light, so the limitation is very strong and the different world is low.

Shuwa Shuwa Shuwa? ＞ In Japanese By the way, if it is a work of "a character who comes from another star and has high ability (generally scientific power) is the main class", the heroine came from the star "Urusei Yatsura" and the title is **blown away with the stars and all the inhabitants There are many old comics such as "Umeboshi Denka", in which the royal family of the country scattered in the universe** migrates to the earth.

However, when Ram and his friends show their scientific power, they basically get into trouble and fall into a slapstick gag state, and I do not say that I fell in love with Ram until now. In addition, "The Twelve Kingdoms" series episode 0, "Magic Child," is **a tragedy that occurred when a boy brought a great thing from another world without being aware of it, and it** is on the equinoctial week that is unknown from reality. A work depicting the hero who holds the feeling of nostalgia.

Although the boy has lost his memory about another world and has a feeling of lack, he is resented by people because of an abnormal mystery, and finally he is picked up at the place where he has almost lost his place on the earth and his memory returns. , I managed to calm down the things in another world and return to another world again. **And on the way, the hero who was cut off by his seniors saying** that his longing was "different from the boy who actually had something" , finally confessed that the existence of another world and the boy are also different world creatures. It is a rather bitter story that depicts "the light and shadow of a longing for another world", in which you are hungry and emptied to know the isolation and are left behind.

In recent years, "The Devil Is a Part-Timer! In 』, the Demon King who lost to the brave and failed to conquer the world and fled to modern Japan, aims to advance to the next stage by working part-time to know that" working "is indispensable for human life, and the way of the human world and human beings. It is a story of trying to relearn how to guide. Other works include Zatch Bell ! , but since the main focus is not to establish a position on the earth, the horse mackerel in a different world seems to be a little thin.The main characters of World Trigger are strong enough, but the dramatic aspect of the group image is quite strong, and they are sharpening their fangs for the opposite purpose of regaining the people abducted by another world.

**Characteristic**

The genre can be divided into two types "transition into another world" (異世界転移, *Isekai ten’i*) and "reincarnation into another world" (異世界転生, *Isekai tensei*). In "transition into another world" stories, the protagonist(s) gets transported to another world (e.g. by traveling into it, or being summoned into it). In "reincarnation into another world" stories, the protagonist(s) is sent to another world after dying in the real world, often suddenly. Common methods of death including being run over by a truck, spawning the meme of "***Truck-kun***", a truck which appears in many *Isekai* series that sends various characters to the next world.

In many examples, the main character is an ordinary person who thrives in their new environment thanks to things normal in the real world being seen as extraordinary in the "other" world. This can be physical characteristics, such as hair or eye color, or normal, every day skills they learned in their previous life such as cooking, engineering, basic education, or medicine, which are far more advanced in the modern, real world than in the world they are sent to. In ***Sorcerous Stabber Orphen***, an entire population of humans appeared in the magically created world was transported from Earth and got partially mixed with local dragon like Heavenly Beings.

While the protagonist of a classic *Isekai* work is usually a "chosen hero", there have been a large number of alternative takes on the concept. One trend is the protagonist inhabiting the body of an unimportant side character, or even a villain (as in ***My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!***). In these stories, the goal of a protagonist is typically to reform the character in order to avoid a bad fate or death, often being so successful that they become the new lead. There are even instances of protagonists becoming inhuman creatures, such as in *That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime*, where the protagonist starts as a slime with special abilities rather than a human, or even inanimate objects, like a magical Onsen. Others, known as "Reverse *Isekai*", follow beings from a fantasy universe who have been transported to or reincarnated on modern-day Earth, including the anime ***Laidbackers*** and ***Re:Creators***.

An offshoot of the Isekai genre is the "second chance" or "reincarnation" genre, where a protagonist who, upon dying, finds themselves transported, not to a different world and new body, but into their own younger self. With their new knowledge and older intellect, they are able to relive their life avoiding their previous pitfalls, such as ***Replay*** and *T**he First Fifteen Lives of Harry August***. Another offshoot of the genre include the "slow life" approach, where the protagonist was overworked in their previous life, so decides to take it easy in the next. Another offshoot is where the protagonist uses the new world to explore an interest, hobby, or goal they had in the previous world but where unable to achieve, such as studying or perhaps opening a business, like in *Restaurant to Another World*.

In many works, Isekai overlaps with the harem and LitRPG genres, where the protagonist gains the affections of several potential love interests, who may or may not be human. One example of this is ***Isekai Meikyū de Harem O***.

Writing for the *Journal of Anime and Manga Studies*, Paul Price in his article "A Survey of the Story Elements of Isekai Manga" argues for the existence of four kinds of Isekai, based on Farah Mendlesohn's framework of organizing fantasy: "portal-quest", where the protagonist enters the Isekai via some kind of portal (Price sites ***Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody*** as an example); "immersive", where no such portal exists and all the action takes place in the other world (***Slayers***); "intrusion", which are akin to reverse Isekai in which the fantastic enters the real world (***The Devil Is a Part-Timer!***); and "liminal", where the portal becomes a liminal space where the real world and the Isekai mix (*Restaurant to Another World*).

Early titles that could be called Isekai include El-Hazard and Fushigi Yûgi, in which the protagonists stayed similar to their original appearance upon entering a different world. Later titles such as Saga of Tanya the Evil and Knight's & Magic involved their protagonists dying and being reincarnated in a different world.

The .hack franchise was one of the first to present the concept of Isekai as actual virtual world, with **Sword Art Online** following in its footsteps.

The genre became so popular that in 2016, a Japanese short story contest banned any Isekai entries. The publisher Kadokawa banned isekai stories as well in their own anime-style novel contest in 2017.

## A Brief History

> *See also:* *List of isekai works*
>
>

The Isekai genre is not very new at all. It has been prevalent for several centuries. The first possible isekai story in classic Japanese literature is *Urashima Tarou* (浦島 太郎). Written by Iwaya Sazanami during the Meiji Period, this fairy tale is about a fisherman transported to the underwater *Ryugu-jo* (竜宮城, 龍宮城) or “Dragon Palace” after rescuing a sea turtle. The fisherman spent some time in the castle with the princess Otohime. Otohime gave a *tamatebako* (玉手箱) or “jewel box” to the fisherman but forbade him from opening it. The fisherman decided to return to his hometown, believing he just spent seven days underwater, but soon, he discovered that centuries had passed, and he opened the *tamatebako* out of curiosity. Smoke burst out of the box and enveloped the fisherman, who quickly aged into an elderly man. Urashima Tarou was so popular that it received literary and animated adaptations. The first recorded animated adaptation of Urashima Tarou was in 1918.

The other known Western precursors of isekai stories were ***Alice in Wonderland***, ***The Wizard of Oz***, ***Peter Pan***, ***The Chronicles of Narnia***, and ***A Princess of Mars***. These Western stories may have also influenced Japanese pop culture.

The first Isekai anime aired on television was ***Aura Battler Dunbine*** (聖戦士ダンバイン), a mecha anime created by Yoshiyuki Tomino in 1983. The first few Isekai anime of the 90s centered around female protagonists. Anime and manga series such as ***Fushigi Yuugi***, ***The Twelve Kingdoms***, ***The Vision of Escaflowne***, and ***Inuyasha*** have female protagonists with a magical link to a fantasy world. They have melodramatic tones, romance, and a wide cast of interesting characters.

The early 2000s brought the concept of virtual reality to the Isekai genre, particularly the .hack franchise and the *Sword Art Online* light novels. *Sword Art Online* was later adapted into anime in 2012 and spawned several video games. At this time, the concepts of virtual reality and gaming were at the peak of popularity within the anime world. More light novels followed suit, copying the successful formula of *Sword Art Online*.

There was a point in the late 2010s when the Isekai genre became too oversaturated. The tropes and elements of the Isekai genre were repetitive for the sake of pandering to fans’ desires. A short story contest in 2016 by Bungaku Flea Market, an exhibition and sale of literary works held all over Japan, and Shousetsuka ni Narou, one of Japan’s largest contribution fiction websites, prohibited any Isekai-themed entries. In 2017, Kadokawa Shoten also prohibited Isekai stories in their novel writing contests.

### Modern Usage

Isekai is one of the most entertaining, engrossing, popular, and profitable literary genres today. It allows readers to enjoy a power fantasy and escape from reality for a while. It’s a form of wish-fulfillment entertainment for anyone seeking bigger things in life. Isekai also has the potential to encourage young writers to make original and engaging stories.

**(References: WatchMojo & Mother Basement)**

## Etymology

* The word “**Isekai**” (異世界) is a compound word. It consists of i (異) or “different,” and sekai (世界) or “world.” Isekai literally means “a different world” or “another dimension.”

## References

1. ↑  "Knight's & Magic| MANGA.TOKYO". MANGA.TOKYO. Retrieved 2018-07-23.
2. ↑ Kamen, Matt (2017-10-02). "Anime: the 10 must-watch films and TV shows for video game lovers". the Guardian. Retrieved 2018-03-20.
3. ↑ "Short Story Contest Bans 'Traveling to an Alternate World' Fantasy". Anime News Network. Retrieved 2018-03-20.
4. ↑ "Anime-style novel contest in Japan bans alternate reality stories and teen protagonists". SoraNews24. 2017-05-22. Retrieved 2018-03-21.