Summary
In current Isekai anime, it is strange to come across worlds that are inspired bytraditional fantasy,and most of the things we see arecheat skills, broken abilities, game systems, and such. The summoned heroes trope is a constant in Isekai anime, but what happens when this trope is not the main element of the story?
In the rare cases where an Isekai show follows a more traditional-inspired narrative, we get interesting (and goddamn good) results, with characters that are no heroes but normal people put into strange situations, or with heroes built from effort and sacrifice instead of godsent and prophecies. This list contains several series that have worldbuilding elements closer to traditional fantasy than modern Isekai anime.
TheGateseries tells the story of a reverse Isekai situation where the denizens of another world invade Earth through a portal in Ginza, Tokyo. Though the creatures and enemy soldiers that come out of the gate are superior in strength and number, Japan’s top-notch military force quickly repels their attack, and counters by going through the gate and forcing the enemy empire to negotiate their surrender.
Throughout the series, we witness countless remarks about cultural shock and the depiction of this Fantasy world is closer to traditional fantasy, with Dragons, Elves, Orcs, and other sorts of fantastical creatures. There are no cheat skills, no game-like features, just your regular soldier and nerd Yōji Itamiusing his knowledge of fantasy creaturesto explore this new world. There are several references to Tolkien here, especially if you consider that the father of modern fantasy was a soldier himself.
Traditional fantasy has more in common with Grimdark than what people believe in (remember the Grimm Brothers' folk tales?) and at that,Driftersfollows the traditional structures of fantasy to the letter. We have a superior force constituted by creatures of all sorts, against the remains of mankind that are desperately struggling for survival.
Up to that moment, we have all the elements of traditional fantasy, until, of course, the Drifters come crashing down in this alternate world and change everythingwith their modern technology and war tactics. There’s little magic in the series, and all the Isekai’d members of the “human team” have no special skills other than those they had in their original worlds. We have a Samurai, a Ninja Archer, a combat Pilot, and Oda Nobunaga himself. Perhaps that’s where it diverts most from traditional fantasy, but the worldbuilding and the background design are still faithful to the classic adventures.
The world of Grimgar is harsh, visually impactful, gory, and akin to traditional fantasy in many ways. The flora and fauna are the most faithful to folk tales, where there are kobolds, goblins, and such. There are no special skills, no leveling system,and definitely no chosen hero. It is a tale of survival, friendship, and most importantly: working together to overcome loss.
In technical terms, we can identify most of the narrative resources present in traditional fantasy, including the Hero’s Journey, the call to adventure, the refusal of the call, and so on. But most importantly, the worldbuilding elements present in the storytelling basically scream high fantasy with a high dose of realism. In the world of Grimgar there’s no such thing as resurrection spells, no guild search parties, and most importantly: no broken Isekai protagonists and no comfortable plot-armor cushion to lessen the impact when they fail.
Though quite divergent from the original story narrated in the Light novels,The Twelve Kingdomsis simply the perfect example of a classic Isekai story with traditional fantasy elements. There are mythical creatures, and chosen heroes, but with no exaggerated powers, you have a main plot depicting a war spanning over the ages, and the struggle of the normal people trapped in the middle. With a dramatic tone, a more than willing MC with a knack for ruling, and a colorful cast of characters with their own agendas, the show was simply too ahead of its time. More so if we consider all the topics discussed in it, like diversity, the dangers of alcoholism, and the struggles for power hurting people.
Then there’s cultural shock, something always present in traditional fantasy, and some great references to western fantasy though the main worldbuilding and plot revolve around oriental mythology. The figure of the Kirin represents divinity ruling over the world, while the King selected to guide the people is the traditional “savior” figure or the catalyst of a new age. As this anime is from the 90’sit would be interesting to see a remakethat is more faithful to the source material. That would reflect the true identity ofTwelve Kingdomsas a traditional fantasy-inspired anime.
The Faraway Paladin is a prime example of an anime based on traditional western fantasy, with some speckles of oriental myths put in between, but most certainly fixated on traditional fantasy storytelling. The journey of a resurrected hero, coming from our world, with his fragmented memories that slowly but steadily fade into oblivion as he adapts to his new life.The vow of the hero that chooses to defendthe oppressed, not in a quest for power, but in pursuit of Justice and freedom.
Then you have a clear Tolkien-like inspiration in the worldbuilding. The mythology, races, places, and even the enemies and the plot could have been brought to life by an absolute Middle Earth fan, and that’s great. There are many aspects of the modern fantasy elements present, but the magic system showcased is pre-Vancian, that is: it requires casting time, it requires chant, but there is no mana, no memorization. The empowerment of the spells depends on the gift granted by the gods, and that’s something present in traditional fantasy, while in modern fantasy the Vancian system is preeminent.
