Isekai

Zero no Tsukaima — *The Familiar of Zero*, one of the classic "isekai" titles

Isekai (異世界, lit. "Another world", "Different world", or "Otherworld")^[1] is a theme present in Japanese anime, manga and other media. It usually has to do with the main character being transported to another world, hence the name. Other worlds regard to parallel fictional universes or virtual worlds, unbeknownst to the protagonist of others around him/her.

In Japan, they don't recognize isekai as the same meaning as in the West, and generally separate it into "High Fantasy" (「ハイ・ファンタジー」, hai fantaji), "Transported to another world" (「異世界転移」, isekai ten'i), or "Reincarnated into another world" (「異世界転生」, isekai tensei).

Characteristics[]

The theme can be characterized as wish fulfilment, with the person being transported often being a NEET, hikikomori, gamer, or just a regular human. In the new fantasy world, they are able to succeed through their comparatively unimportant-in-real-life genre knowledge or other skills. In some cases like In Another World With My Smartphone, their power can range from tremendous magical abilities surpassing anyone else, to relatively weak, as in Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World, where the protagonist does not gain any special power beyond the ability to survive death in a type of temporal loop.

In general, the "isekai" protagonist is usually regarded as the "chosen hero". But some titles subvert the theme such as Drifters, where people entering the other world are historical generals and other warriors who are more brutal than the world's inhabitants themselves. Titles like That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, the protagonist starts off as non-human as a weak blob. Some stories involve people being reincarnated as unusual inanimate objects, like a magical onsen or a vending machine.

History[]

In earlier times, the genre started with titles like El-Hazard and Fushigi Yūgi, in which the protagonists retained their original appearance upon entering a different world. Later titles such as Saga of Tanya the Evil inverse the genre where the protagonist dies and reincarnates in a different world, such as Knight's & Magic, with the latter retaining their memories and interests from their previous life.

The .hack franchise was one of the first to present Virtual Reality as a parallel concept of isekai, with Sword Art Online following in its footsteps.

Genre variations[]

These variations aren't univerally agreed upon, but can be a good way to distinguish between types...

Summoning (「異世界転移」, isekai ten'i) - summoned to another world by some means
Reincarnation (「異世界転生」, isekai tensei) - died and reincarnated (which might include resurrection as the same person or renicarnation as an object) in another world
Translocation (「異世界転移」, isekai ten'i) - unknown means of getting to another world
Virtual Reality (「バーチャル・リアリティ」, Bācharu Riariti) - going to a virtual version of another world, usually a video game world
Other - some other means of getting to another world, like a portal

Reverse isekai[]

A very specific variation that is a twist on the general isekai type is the "reverse isekai" where charactrs come to the modern or present day world from another world. Some obvious specific examples are The Devil is a Part-Timer! (2013) and Gate - Thus the JSDF Fought There! (2015) where some kind of portal connects the worlds. However there are some that fall in a gray area like Re:Creators (2017) where the characters appear based on some magical or special power, but do come from some "other world".

Examples[]

Summoning	Reincarnation	Translocation	Virtual Reality	Others
El-Hazard	KonoSuba	Re:Zero − Starting Life in Another World	Log Horizon	The Devil is a Part-Timer!
Fushigi Yūgi	Saga of Tanya the Evil	The Twelve Kingdoms	Sword Art Online	Outbreak Company
Dog Days	That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime	Isekai Izakaya "Nobu"	Gundam Build Divers	No Game No Life
Mashin Hero Wataru	Knight's & Magic	Restaurant to Another World	Accel World	Gate - Thus the JSDF Fought There!
Tenchi Muyo! War on Geminar	Parallel World Pharmacy	In Another World With My Smartphone	Ascendance of a Bookworm	Miss Kobayashi's Dragon Maid
How Not to Summon a Demon Lord	By the Grace of the Gods	Demon Lord, Retry!	Overlord	The Master of Ragnarok & Blesser of Einherjar
My Isekai Life	Wise Man's Grandchild	Farming Life in Another World	Death March to the Parallel World Rhapsody	Re:Creators
The Rising of the Shield Hero	Reincarnated as a Sword	Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun	Shangri-La Frontier	Hinamatsuri
The Saint's Magic Power is Omnipotent	Reborn as a Vending Machine, I Now Wander the Dungeon	Saving 80,000 Gold in Another World for My Retirement	BOFURI: I Don't Want to Get Hurt, so I'll Max Out My Defense.	Grimgar of Fantasy and Ash
Isekai Cheat Magician	The Eminence in Shadow
The Familiar of Zero
Arifureta: From Commonplace to World's Strongest