Isekai: The Genre that took over Anime

Hey guys today I wanted to talk about the newest hottest anime to come out this season ,all right? Get this. It's about a completely normal shot in otaku with a very specific skillset that makes them useless in the real world who suddenly transported to a fantasy world kinda similar to any JRPG you've ever seen way suddenly becomes the hottest shit, and he has two jobs Messing up any poor soul who looks at it the wrong way and getting some 2d bitches. Wait, doesn't this sound oddly familiar? Well if you're a fan of anime or at least aware of modern anime it should. As what I just described is a basic premise for a show in the genre of ISEKAI, which roughly translates to another world. In recent times has been pretty hard to escape shows in the ISEKAI genre to the point where every season there always seems to be one or two new additions with variations for the premise. another world, but with a smartphone another world with the world of games another world, but with a group of dickheads If you've been following anime for the past few years You can't have missed it, and it's taken up some spots with some of the most popular anime to come out each year. But how did this come to be? How did such a seemingly niche idea end up rising to become almost as prominent anime as Highschool Mecca or slice-of-life, and is there anywhere left for the genre to go Well today I thought it'd be interesting to explore the roots of the genre why script modern audiences so much and the evolution is taken to get to where we are now. see when we think of modern isekai We have a general idea of the tropes and cliches of the plot and worlds that we normally see but the concept of a main Character being transported to another world is by no means new or even Exclusive to the world of anime and if we are going to explore the roots of the genre we have to travel back a pretty long time If we were to go back to the first piece of prominent fiction to really nail down a character being transported to another world it Would be hard to argue against Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland from way back in 1865 one of the most iconic stories ever told that's been referenced and adapted countless times and just about every medium Imaginable could very well be considered the progenitor of Issei Chi he went on to directly influence other hugely impactful works of his kind like The Wizard of Oz and The Chronicles of Narnia All which laid the groundwork for what is now common practice in the genre for such classic stories influencing global media It would only be natural for the concept to hit anime and while Alice in Wonderland itself did in fact get an anime adaptation from March of 1983 a mere month before that saw the first episode air or something a bit closer to the tones and themes of the Issei Kai Shows of today or a battler dunbine produced by studio sunrise was one of their recent follow-up works to Mobile Suit Gundam It's all a young male protagonist from Tokyo get transported to a fantasy ward resembling medieval England full of giant robots and mythical creatures Which definitely sounds like Issei Chi now? I'm guessing that very few you would have even heard of done beam I mean I certainly didn't until I did research for this video with its direct influence and legacy being fairly Non-existent as the modern consensus of fantasy world in anime would really start a little later in the decade of the 90s If we were to look at early psych, I work in anime before anyone even really called them II say Kai We think of some fantasy shows in the 90s and the one that most obviously comes to mind for old school fans would most likely be the vision of Escaflowne though that wasn't the only one shows like magic knight rayearth twelve kingdoms and most notably inuyasha Have a main character transported to a different world But these shows are certainly not very reminiscent of the Seiko shows we know of today the fantasy world these shows are set in Seymour rooted in that of traditional fantasy with inspiration seemingly from old Japanese or Western folklore they have more in common with the worlds of Alice in Wonderland and The Wizard of Oz than they do any modern Issei Kai and Like the two classics they all share another thing a female protagonist see back Then rather than being his own genre with the same tropes in cliches These shows were seen as more of an extension of the myriad of fantasy anime that came out in the 90s and as the fantasy trend started to die out when the 2000s came along it was only then that the calling cards of what we now expect from be Sakai to become prevalent in the genre Gone were our female protagonists and traditional fantasy worlds dolt hack in the greed island arc of hunt hunters original adaptation introduced the idea of having your conscience trapped in the virtual world and zero sukira in 2006 saw harem elements added and most importantly came in a time when the idea of light novel adaptations were just starting Combine all these aspects and you have the building blocks for these shows that marked the explosion of the modern, Issei Hi, Jonah, as we know it. What sure am I talking about what other show could I be talking about? I Know we're all sick and tired of hearing about sword art online by now But it's impossible to discuss this genre without mentioning the massive impact this show had I've already talked in depth about how sword art online Got popular at how it filled in a niche of popular anime targeted towards gamers in a time when there wasn't much competition and through His success it marked the point where the genre we know today as Issei Clive Really found its footing if we compare SEO to the previously mentioned shows in the 90s you can see a massive shift at the way The concept is approached this time we had a male protagonist One who was way more powerful than everyone around him with an entourage of love interests and rather than be set in the traditional fantasy World the setting was more akin to an RPG fantasy world and this I think is the most noticeable change It makes sense for sao as all the members are stuck in a video game But it seems like the world that characters are transported to nowadays have more of a grounding in classic fantasy JRPGs like Final Fantasy and Chrono Trigger with the same tropes that would envelop such a world well The show did was make these elements marketable and while some still argue That sword art online isn't technically we say high as their real bodies didn't get transported anywhere It didn't matter as it left its mark the ground world was set for the rise of a new trends and shows would pull more From aspects in sao than anything that came to fall for better, or worse the new Issei, Chi was here to stay Just what is it that makes Issei Kai's such an appealing? genre you can take a look at some of the more prominent ones and say well isn't it just escapism a self-insert or just a power fantasy And in this broad sense it's hard to argue Against it one of the best things that you say car platform allows for is having far more relatable main characters than traditional fantasy on a surface level at least having someone from our world coming to terms with and learning the ways of this new world allows the audience to share their experience of Learning about said world from the ground up There's generally very little need for wordy Exposition early because the way the story plays out tends to favor gradual progression and development in world building It's this reliance for making the protagonist relatable that has many of these characters start out as gamers or anime fans in their own world If there is a definitive platform that thrives on self insert characters It is Issei Kai and in many ways Turns the genre into one of the truest forms of escapism at least as long as you are a part of that wide target audience whether you are a gamer gamer a gamer or a gamer Hmm wait a minute I think we might be on to something here while Issei Kai technically means another world which could be any type of world Modernista Kai has almost become synonymous with an RPG world knights majors spells NPCs a power system based on RPG likes that whether the story is something more akin to an actual gaming world like in log horizon Or a much more brutal and unforgiving take at the genre like in grimgar fantasy and ash It's to the point now where I completely forgot that I show like done much He wasn't in fact at lycée Kai show there is no guy transported to another world They are just in another world But because of the tropes their presence in it and the RPG life world that is set in I completely thought it was until rereading Up on it made me remember Otherwise if we look at the most popular shows in the genre that came out after sword art online We see the different appeal that made them stand out and the evolution of how a different aspect of the genre was explored in order To do so no game no life played on some of the same power fantasies as in Sao But instead of showing that through action scenes overall strength It was three interesting contests and entertaining mind games kanasu batuque the standard setting and added in a memorable Colorful cast who bounced off each other well bringing out the wacky humor that we loved essentially making a sitcom in a setting we don't normally see a Sitcom and finally are easier to call the tropes We thought we were familiar with and tired of and subverted them Deconstructing the overpowered otaku protagonist that we were just watching a few seasons ago But the one thing that remains constant is just that the setting every one of these shows still has a grounding in an RPG Fantasy world even if the shows have nothing to do with Videogames itself in some way is still appealing to the same demographic of gamers that allowed Sao to take over the community to begin with the ones that grew up playing these types of games and in some cases the protagonists are as familiar with the genre of RPGs as the audiences while the main appeal of the popular si Kai titles at some level draw in that game a crowd with the sheer number of Titles coming out now. We are starting to see stories that explore other aspects of Si Kai and the reason this is possible is because these shows are normally based on light novels and there are a lot of light novels To pick from which in turn can cause a lot of these anime Adaptations to suffer from a lot of the same problems like novel adaptations suffer from one of course being incomplete Annotations all the titles I mentioned still have ongoing light levels Which may or may not ever be adapted into an anime work and with that said I'm happy to announce our latest offer in Collaboration with book Walker who just released volume 5 of re0 officially translated as I'm sure you all know by now But Walker akattak hours official eBook service for light novels including a likes of sa own No game the lifecolor Subedar machi And they are also doing a special giveaway to celebrate the release of volume 5 of re0 If you buy any volume of re0 you have the chance of winning either a signed illustration by the author This Ram figure or a REM and Ram desk trash Bin yes a fucking trash bin which I would love myself if they weren't giving it away So unless you have already used it in the past all you need to do is use coupon code giga cut checkout to buy any Ebook for $5 off see in many ways the ESA kite friends runs hand-in-hand with the rise of light novel adaptations as a whole It's only been within the last decade that live members have become such a common source of material for anime But why is it that ESA guy in particular has such an abundance of light novels? Today there are hundreds of different light novels from hundreds of different authors, and Shi Ford's a large portion of this but where are they all coming from what could cause the market to be dominated in such a Fashion well when looking into this further. I stumbled upon something quite interesting and the pieces started to click One of the biggest outlets for this is the sideshow Satsuki dinero, which literally translates to becoming a novelist This is a website that relies on user-generated content And is essentially the YouTube of light novels authors can independently publish their individual works on here Which are free to distribute and free to read by all individuals that use the site hosting hundreds of thousands of novels with the registered user base close to a million its reach has not gone unnoticed by some of the Biggest publishers and distributors in Japan to put this in perspective the likes of log horizon re0 kana Suba and the Hoka were first published on this platform He'll win the last season alone three entirely different series got anime Adaptations based on works from this website all of which were Issei Kai's lights and magic Restaurant to another world and another world with my smartphone, and you know what this makes perfect sense What better source of stories that can appeal to the community of gamers and anime fans than the actual community? Itself of course a genre that is so prevalent with self-insert Protagonist and an understanding of exploring these stories through relatable eyes would come from user-generated content the sheer quantity of a Sakai story specifically that came from this platform is absurd to think about but it truly goes to show that this genre at the moment is the Bread and butter of the light novel industry as far as large publishers for light numbers are concerned though It has even gotten to the point now where they are having to actively restrict How many new stories based around young male characters being trapped in the fantasy worlds are being created conacher's? entertainments novels that adults want to read contest a light novel contest which in itself stands as stupidly wordy as your typical light novel title had to set a rule where all Stories that contains a teenage protagonists in any form of Issei Chi were banned so if even Kodansha themselves have had to put their foot down about the Overabundance of Issei Chi it's clear that this concept has grown way beyond what anyone could have expected With the sheer volume of new Issei Chi stories coming out It doesn't look like it's slowing down anytime soon But we've gotten to the point When the genre has become so saturated that just about every original twist on the premise seemingly has been done to the point while we Are starting to subvert the tropes that have been established with other works in its own genre? So where can we possibly go from here well? Here's the interesting part out of all the tropes in the genre that have been picked apart Explored expanded on subverted or even satirized. There is one part that has remained almost untouched the fantasy part a Pure fantasy without any RPG elements or Transported to another world is something that audiences won't be completely tired of and this is something that we've actually seen in recent seasons one of the big reasons maiden Abbess felt like such a Monumental breath of fresh air last season was because here was a pure fantasy without any of the traditional Issei Chi storytelling mechanics that have taken over recent fantasy animes within the past few years and the show itself ended up being a prominent Contender for anime of the year seriously if he didn't finish this show last season it is absolutely amazing and as one of the best examples anime has to offer of a Captivating and wonderful story remaining completely true to the core ideals of a fantasy fiction, and if you should watch One Show this year That's not my hero academia It's this one But it doesn't stop there either as some of the most high-profile anime coming out this year have their roots in traditional fantasy again rather than the world of modern Issei high fantasy Little witch academia is one of the most hyped shows earlier this winter which probably would have games more attraction within the community if Netflix had made it widely available as it was airing and this season the Ancient Magus bride is gaining a lot of attention and traction for the ways presenting his Fantastical world within modern England we may end up going full circle back to the genres roots in traditional fantasy And I find that Hilariously ironic as it was because of the Issei kahshanna itself that traditional fantasy Started to die out in anime whatever the future for this genre whether hundreds more, Issei Qi stories get pumped out or he gets swallowed up by fantasy again, or if both die out We shouldn't forget that trends come and go all the time at the end of the day getting Transported to another world is just a premise a premise They got immensely popular But stories don't have to be completely original to be good you can take all the tropes that have been established and refined them or Put a creative new spin on it, which admittedly is harder and harder to do with just how saturated Issei Chi has become But it's not impossible We thought we were completely tired of it at the beginning of last year then Connor Siebert made us realise that we weren't we thought There was nowhere left for the genre to go then rezero came along and though it is much harder now to leave an impression on me with this premise if There is a new story that comes out that is just well-written or entertaining that also happens to be an essay Kai I will still gladly welcome its with open arms Again I would like to thank book Walker for inspiring this video you can check out all their selection of ESA Kyle Idol was if you found some interest all in the description below and remember if You want to enter the prize draw for e0 you can buy any volumes including vol 5? Which was just released and remember to use coupon code Giga at the checkout anyway. That's all the updates I have today as I'm actually in Japan right now, and this is all pre-recorded so no patreon shouts out today I will be back soon though so until then. Hope you enjoyed the video, and I will see you all next time

Channel: Gigguk

Views: 1,881,236

Rating: 4.9358392 out of 5

Keywords: Anime Zone, Gigguk, Top Anime, OP, ED, Isekai, Another World, Fantasy World, Transported to Another World, Fantasy World Anime, Isekai Anime, Anime, Top Isekai Anime, Top Another World Anime, Top Fant

Id: uFR2nvw19h4

Length: 16min 11sec (971 seconds)

Published: Tue Oct 31 2017

Reddit Comments

[u/GoodMorningFuckCub]

about a year too late, we imouto now

[u/Rakisanalligator]

Isekai and demon hunting manga/light novels are really prominent these days. No wonder we're seeing more anime adaptations.

It seems like people are getting fatigued though, so I don't think it will last.

[u/freshkicks]

Digimon?

[u/AdiDassler]

Hoping that 2018 will be the year that catgirl anime will take over.

[u/TreGet234]

aren't there only like 1 or 2 isekai every season, compared to like 10 cute girl slice of life/gag shows?

[u/Hades_Re]

In my opinion he forgot to mention one of the biggest problems of Isekais: The unbelievable protagonist without background.

Don't misunderstand me, right now Re:Zero Vol. 2 is lying at my table and I don't dislike the genre at all, however, nearly every Isekai forgets to use the protagonist in a realistic way. That person is transported out of his world, in which he lived his whole life, mostly around 16-18 years, sometimes even much longer. He has friends and if not, he has a family at least. Living at home with his parents and living his normal life. And suddenly the protagonist is another world and doesn't care at all, what happened before. There is never a moment, in which the author cares about the background of the character and most of the time, the fact, that the MC is from another world, gets unimportant with the second volume (so around episode 4). It is only mentioned, if the MC needs to have a skill or if he has to not knowing something.

I think there are many possibilities to write better Isekais and the prime example would be Mushoku Tensei, in which the fact, that the protagonist lived a life before coming into the new world is even important in volume 16 (where I am right now). Especially Re:Zero is such a shame not using that element, since it is based on a MC with emotions and weaknesses.

[u/Ztaxas]

He should have commented about Tanya the Evil, it’s an Isekai where the other world is just our own world in the WW2 era but with (military) magic and our protagonist is reborn with the knowledge about the past and uses it greatly to his/her (it’s 2017 w/e) advantage rather than having gaming experience and “exploiting” the worlds mechanics

[u/Differently-Aged]

Hah! Gigguk's research missed the true (technically) "grandfather of [edit: anime] isekai": the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon. Yes, it was made for American audiences, but (and this is why I say "technically") it was animated by Toei.

It definitely fit the isekai genre as he's defining it these days - it could be rebroadcast with japanese VAs right now and nobody'd blink (though it would be just as trashed for its poor plotting and "classic anime look", no doubt.)

I wonder if it had any lingering influence at Toei which spread and sparked the genre resurgence 30+ years later?

[edit 2] The concept in an animated show (not necessarily anime) outside of kiddy shows being around even earlier kept nagging me until just now: The "Den" segment in Heavy Metal (1981).

[u/Zirzon]

I just want an anime adaptation of "Kumo Desu ga, Nani ka?"

A girl gets isekai'd into a video game-esque dungeon world... as a level 1 spider monster.