Exploring Isekai

Exploring Isekaioffers the first comprehensive study of isekai in anime, manga and light novels in which characters from the “real world” are transported, summoned, reincarnated or trapped in fantastical realms. Challenging the misconception that isekai is mere escapism, the volume brings together an international group of contributors to consider how the genre reflects contemporary anxieties, desires and social structures through game-like world-building, moral frameworks and recurring underdog heroes. Examining classics likeSpirited Away(2001) alongside globally popular series such asThat Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime(2013–25) andOverlord(2015–), the volume traces the thematic and aesthetic evolution of isekai, revealing how these narratives reimagine identity, labour and belonging in an increasingly digital and transnational world.