As anime and manga fans may know, works that are called "other world stories" are now recognized as a genre. Almost every season of anime includes other world stories, and the work we are introducing this time, "The Beast Tamer Who Was Expelled from the Hero's Party Meets the Strongest Cat-Eared Girl," is also an other world story. There are many other world stories, from novels to manga and anime, and everyone is working hard to make them more original in order to become popular. However, I think that the first step in deciding the direction of the work is to decide which of the three settings the main character will be: "reincarnation in another world," "transfer (summoning) to another world," or "no reincarnation or transfer." This time, we will reconsider these three settings and, as we have featured "The Beast Tamer Who Was Expelled from the Hero's Party Meets the Strongest Cat-Eared Girl," we would like to introduce some other tamer works.
Are "other world reincarnation" works common these days?
Originally, works from a novel posting site became popular when they were made into anime and became a hit, and many popular works have since appeared on "Let's Become a Novelist". Since then, other-worldly works have become a phenomenon known as the "Narou" boom, and I think the most common setting now is "reincarnation in another world". Even when looking at works that are made into anime, there are many "reincarnation in another world" stories.
So what is "reincarnation in another world"?
After dying in the real world for some reason, one is reincarnated as another person or creature in another world. However, in recent years, there have been works in which the character is reincarnated as a sword or something, and the story has become more diverse. And when reincarnated, it is standard for the character to be reincarnated with the memories of their previous life. However, there are works like "Black Summoner" in which the character is reincarnated without the memories of their previous life, so I think we will see works with various situations in the future.
What was the first "reincarnation in another world" work that attracted attention?
There are various opinions, but I think the popularity of "reincarnation in another world" started with the anime adaptations of "The Saga of Tanya the Evil" and "That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime." I also thought about "KonoSuba: God's Blessing on this Wonderful World!", but the main character dies in the present world and is taken to another world by the goddess, but since he himself goes to the other world, I thought this was not reincarnation but transference, which was a mistake.
The popularity of "That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime"
"Saga of Tanya the Evil" and "That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime" were animated at almost the same time, but the popularity of Tensura has grown tremendously. The total number of copies of the series, including related books, was 10 million when the first season of the anime was broadcast, but exceeded 30 million when the second part of the second season was broadcast, and the comic won the 46th Kodansha Manga Award in the boys' category in 2022, so its popularity is only increasing. And it is currently being rebroadcast on the Nippon Television network, which shows expectations for the movie version to be released in November.
Are there many freedoms in the settings of "reincarnation in another world" works?
First of all, there are many different situations that can be considered depending on what you are reincarnated as. Human, monster, or something that is not a living thing such as a sword. Even if you are reincarnated as a human, there are many different possibilities depending on who and what kind of person you are reincarnated as. Also, if you are transferred, you are limited to your age at the time, but if you are reincarnated as a human, you can put together various stories depending on how old you are. Even with this in mind, I think "reincarnation in another world" has a high degree of freedom.
The future of "reincarnation in another world" works...
I wrote that "reincarnation in another world" works have a high degree of freedom. In other words, because of this high degree of freedom, it is likely to be further subdivided and divided into various genres. However, no matter how much it is subdivided, if there are too many works, the number of similar works will increase and people will get bored. In the end, only works that are attractive will remain. And I think the number of works will settle down.
The origin of other world stories? "Another world transfer (summoning)" works
The part in the mythological Kojiki where Izanagi goes to the underworld to meet the dead Izanami can be interpreted as a "going (transferring)" to the underworld (another world), so it can be thought of as a story similar to "another world transfer (summoning)". This is just an analogy, and I wanted to say that there are quite a few works in which the protagonist goes to another world (transfer/summon) as a setting, and that they were common even before other world works were recognized.
There are various settings for "transfer to another world (summoning)"
Basically, it is moving to another world for some reason. The reason can be that someone is moved from the real world artificially, or that a divine being moves them to the other world. Or, they are generally summoned from the other world. There are also works in which the characters move between the real world and the other world through some form (for example, a door), or come from the other world to the real world by their own power. There are also works that depict what happens after the characters move to the other world, complete their role, and return to the real world, and there are many detailed settings.
When did it start in commercial works?
So when did commercial works start in Japan? I think it was Takachiho Haruka's "Warrior of Another World" published in 1979, which was the first fantasy work set in another world. Since then, works about transfer to another world have been published, such as Ono Fuyumi's "Twelve Kingdoms," which was published in 1991 and is still a popular series today.
Works in Vistone Well
So what about anime "transfer to another world (summoning)" works? When asked, "Saint Seiya Dunbine" comes to mind. This work was directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino, and while fantasy works were not yet widespread at the time, it was an ambitious work that was made with a strong awareness of "Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind," and some people even call it "Tomino's version of Nausicaä." Tomino has also worked on "Wings of Rean" and "Aura Battler Senki," which are also set in Vistone Well.
The driving force behind the popularity of otherworldly works
I think the spark that ignited the popularity of "otherworldly transfer" works was "Sword Art Online" (hereinafter referred to as SAO). SAO is a work that has contributed greatly to the popularity of the genre of otherworldly works, and the SAO series is still ongoing, with anime and movies being made. After the popularity of SAO, many otherworldly works began to be posted on novel submission sites. And many popular works began to be produced.
The future of "Isekai Tensei (Summoning)" works
The setting of being transferred to another world has been around for a long time, and works have been constantly published. Then, when anyone could publish their work on a novel posting site, many works called "Narou-kei" were posted, and a new genre of other world stories was created. Now, other worlds are popular and many works are being created, but as I wrote at the end of "Isekai Tensei", if there are too many works, people will get tired of them, and only high-quality works will remain.
Another world story without reincarnation or transference...
If there is no reincarnation or transference (summoning), it is a story set in a fictional world. There have been many such works since ancient times, and I think there are especially many in fantasy works. However, since we are considering this in the genre of other world stories this time, we will introduce the settings in other world stories.
You won't get cheat skills
In "reincarnation in another world" and "transfer to another world (summoning)", there are many settings in which you are given skills when you go from the present world to the other world, and in many cases, those skills are cheats in the other world. Also, there are many settings in which you have memories of your previous life and use your knowledge to become invincible. However, if you are not reincarnated or summoned, you will not receive such benefits.
What are some common settings?
First, there is the pattern where the person is not aware of it, and is often expelled from the party. Next is the pattern where the person lacks awareness of skills, and often gets expelled from the noble's house because they have acquired a skill that is different from what was thought to be an excellent skill, but that skill is recognized as useless. Next is the pattern where the person makes an effort, and at first it is a modest ability or skill, but they work hard and grow. Next is the pattern where skills are given to them, and they gain abilities by helping or being liked by spirits, demons, demon kings, etc., and making them their allies. There are others, but these are the most common ones.
The work we are introducing this time
The work we are introducing this time, "Beast Tamer Expelled from the Hero's Party Meets the Strongest Cat-Eared Girl," is a perfect example of this. Piece and the tamer are extremely talented, but in the hero's party they are forced to search for enemies and carry luggage. And the heroes do not understand the protagonist's abilities and expel him. It is a classic work with no reincarnation or transference.
Introducing works in which tamers are the main characters
In addition to "The Beast Tamer Expelled from the Hero's Party Meets the Strongest Cat-Eared Girl," there are other works in which tamers are the main characters, with interesting settings and appealing features. Now, I would like to introduce some of the works that have been made into comics.
"My knowledge from my previous life is likely to turn the low-level tamer into a high-level job"
The story begins when the protagonist, who was active in a world where the strongest profession of tamer, who can conquer difficult dungeons alone, such as holy knights and heroes, and who was active with the strongest familiar, is reincarnated into another world due to a storage magic accident that occurs with a probability of less than 1 in 100 million. The story begins when the protagonist, who was reincarnated as an 8-year-old boy, Varius, decides to prove that he is the "strongest tamer" in the world where tamer is a low-level profession.
The setting of this work is reincarnation!?
This is a work about "reincarnation in another world", but the setting is not from the real world, but from another world to another world. It is also unusual that the reason for reincarnation is an accident with storage magic, but the common setting from another world to another world is that the demon king is reincarnated into the future for some reason.
A slightly unusual setting for this work
This work has a slightly unusual setting, and while the monsters that appear are Son Goku-style or Zhu Bajie-style, slimes also appear. And the items dropped by Son Goku-style monsters are the Nyoibou and the Nimbus Cloud, so the world view is quite different. The story progresses with a fairly vague setting, so I don't recommend it to people who are concerned about details, but I think it will be enjoyable for people who don't mind a crazy setting like One Punch Man.
"The banished burden tamer awakens to the world's only necromancer..."
"The banished burden tamer awakens to the world's only necromancer ~ Enjoying freedom with his abundant power, he suddenly becomes the strongest ~", Rand, who was a tamer, is betrayed by his companions who treated him as a burden. He is left behind in a dungeon and awakens to "necromancer" when his tamed companion is killed. After that, Milim, the vampire lord, becomes his companion and they form an adventurer party together.
What is the setting of this work?
This work is set in a "no reincarnation or transfer" setting. And as the title suggests, the main character, Rand, awakens from a tamer to a necromancer. Necromancers can make a necromance contract with dead monsters and make them their allies. At that time, they have the power to absorb the abilities of the person they make a contract with, and the more they necromance, the stronger Rand becomes.
Meeting with the Vampire King
Rand met Milim, the Vampire Lord, while investigating the vampire village. Rand was powerless against Milim's overwhelming power, but Milim, who was interested in Rand, asked him if he would like to become her kin. As they talked, they realized that they were similar to each other, so Milim accepted Rand's request to become a companion. And he and Milim made a contract, not a Necromancy Contract, but a Necromancy Covenant.
A classic work from another world
Although the work is not about reincarnation or summoning, it includes standard elements such as "banishment," "overpowered," and "cheat." However, it is well-balanced and easy to read. There is also a strong connection with the banished party, which is common in "banishment stories," so it is a work that you can read casually.
"The unlucky job 'Tamer' is invincible with the weakest skill 'Seikentsuki'..."
Start from the lowest setting
This work also has no reincarnation, transference, or summoning, and is a story about working hard to make the worst abilities you were born with stronger. The best setting is "A tamer who has reached job level 100 can revive the monster he has contracted with," and it is a sports-oriented otherworldly work in which the protagonist strives to become a level 100 tamer in order to save the dead Fenrir.
A truly unusual tamer work
As I wrote earlier, this is a work in which the sports-minded protagonist pushes forward with a single straight punch. Although he is a tamer, he does not tame any more after taming Fenrir for the first time. This is because he was weak and had decided not to tame Fenrir until he was able to protect it. This is a strange work in which the tamer does not tame and fights with a straight punch. I am very curious to see how it will develop in the future.
Summary
I have considered the protagonist's initial settings of "reincarnation in another world", "transfer to another world (summoning)", and "no transfer/movement", and introduced other Tamer works. Although the discussion of the settings has been a rough consideration, various sites and writers have considered them from their own perspectives. If you are interested, it may be interesting to look into them. I have also introduced some other Tamer works. I have chosen works that are a little unusual, so if you are interested, I would be happy if you read the comics. Thank you for reading to the end.
