Love it or hate it, the isekai genre isn’t going away any time soon. There’s no shortage of isekai titles in this anime season or the next one, so why not discuss the most influential light novels that have inspired some of the most popular anime of the past decade? After all, some of themost popular tropes and conventions in isekaistarted with these titles.
Even though the ‘transported to another world’ genre did not originate with Japanese light novels, light novels and isekai have almost become synonymous. These titles have spawned popular sub-genres, tropes, and formulas within isekai, hence making them important and worthwhile reads.
7The Familiar of Zero
Popularized the ‘Summoned to Another World’ Trope, Which Led to the Isekai Boom of the 2000s
Pre-dating theSword Art Onlineboom,The Familiar of Zerois an early pioneer of modern isekai elements, including the protagonist being summoned to another world. The love interest, Louise Françoise Le Blanc de La Vallière, also popularizeda certain type of tsundere- one who is short, fiery, and violent to boot.
The series also helped spawn a whole host of other isekai light novels, both in web and print formats. Tappei Nagatsuki, the creator ofRe:Zero - Starting Life in Another World, began his career writingThe Familiar of Zerofanfiction.
6Re: Zero - Starting Life in Another World
Inspired a Wave of Darker and Grittier Takes on the Isekai Genre
Speaking ofRe: Zero, it has also become massively influential, since it was one of the first deconstructions of modern isekai, with the protagonist actuallystruggling to adapt to his new world, instead of immediately becoming overpowered. This has led to a wave of more ‘realistic’ isekai series, such asGrimgar of Fantasy and Ash.
Re:Zero - Starting Life in Another Worldhas broadened the appeal of isekai for fans who want more than just pure escapism. The anime adaptation has also been well-received and topped many ‘Best Anime of 2016’ lists.
Popularized the ‘Reincarnated as an Otome Villainess’ Sub-Genre
WhileMy Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!didn’t start the ‘Villainess Reincarnation’ trope in isekai, it certainly popularized it with its massively popular anime adaptation. Since then, there has been a barrage of light novels, anime, manga, manhwa, and web novels that feature a female protagonist being reincarnated intothe antagonist of an otome game, trying to avoid a terrible fate for herself.
The light novel and anime have been praised for being a breath of fresh air, having a lovable protagonist, a multi-gender harem, and an expert balance of comedy and drama.
4KonoSuba: God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World!
Influenced an Avalanche of Isekai Parodies
KonoSuba: God’s Blessing on This Wonderful World!was an unexpected smash hit when the anime first aired in 2016. Itscomedic and satirical approach to the isekai genrehas inspired a lot of similar self-aware isekai parodies, includingCautious Hero: The Hero is Overpowered but Overly CautiousandDo You Love Your Mom and Her Two-Hit Multi-Target Attacks?
In fact, these self-aware isekai have become so commonplace that one might say that parodying isekai clichés has become a cliché in and of itself. And for that, the anime fandom has the quirky cast ofKonoSubato thank.
3Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation
Popularized the Reincarnation Sub-Genre and Gave Rise to Many Isekai Clichés
Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnationsolidifiedreincarnation as a way for protagoniststo enter the isekai world. Many of the more divisive elements of modern isekai, such as harems and slavery, were also popularized byMushoku Tensei. Interestingly, the series is very different from the stereotypical power fantasy isekai that’s all over the place today.
For starters, the series places great emphasis on world-building and character development instead of flashy action sequences. And despite the protagonist being a NEET in his past life just like many isekai protagonists, he is deliberately made to be unlikeable, very unlike the typical idealized, overpowered isekai hero.
2Sword Art Online
Made Isekai Mainstream and Popularized Now-Common Genre Conventions
Sword Art Onlineis easily one of the most popular isekai franchises out there, being responsible for the 2010s isekai boom. Being many fans' first anime,SAOhas managed to reach a broad audience beyond the typical light novel and anime fans, as evidenced by its numerous anime, video game, and movie adaptations, not to mention its vast array of merchandise.
Many tropes that are commonplace in isekai now can be traced back toSword Art Online, like the self-insert, overpowered protagonist, the ‘trapped in a video game’ sub-genre, game mechanics influencing the virtual world, and the virtual world being indistinguishable from the real one. The influence thatSword Art Onlinehas had on the genre will easily last for years to come still.
