With the second season and second cour of the anime scheduled to air in 2024, Mushoku Tensei is arguably at the height of its popularity right now, but did you know that this work is said to be particularly "tear-jerking" compared to other isekai reincarnation works? In isekai reincarnation works, which have a story structure in which the protagonist escapes the real world and embarks on an adventure in another world, attention tends to be focused on the exploits of the fascinating characters and the thrilling battle scenes rather than the tear-jerking developments. In isekai reincarnation works that require such a story structure, this work skillfully weaves in the exploits of the fascinating characters and thrilling battle scenes, while also depicting a story development that will move fans as they watch. This also shows that this work has a deep thematic content, which is rare for an isekai reincarnation work. In this article, we will delve deeper into the thematic content, which is this work's greatest appeal, and explore why it is such a moving work despite being an isekai reincarnation work.
A detailed depiction of the protagonist's past life failures
As is typical of reincarnation in other worlds, this work follows the story of a protagonist who failed in his previous life and begins a new life in another world. However, what sets it apart from other reincarnation in other worlds is the more detailed depiction of the protagonist's past life failures.
Bullying and Hikikomori
In particular, the protagonist's failure in his previous life was bullying at school, which resulted in him becoming a recluse. It's a fairly common plot for the protagonist to be a recluse before being reincarnated into another world, but it's rather unusual for the protagonist to continue to carry that trauma with them after being reincarnated and become a recluse in their new world.
He died without resolving any of his problems in his previous life
In his previous life, the protagonist was unable to resolve any of these issues. Ultimately, he was so confused when he was kicked out of his house that he was hit by a truck while panicking, meeting an end similar to that of a RTA runner who dies while out and about. Because of this incredibly tragic life, the protagonist of this work continues to carry the emotional scars with him even after being reincarnated into another world.
Reincarnation and Starting Over
In this way, the protagonist's failures in his previous life are meticulously depicted, and because he continues to bear those emotional scars even in his new world, the story of him being reincarnated and starting his life over from scratch feels very real. The story follows the protagonist as he overcomes the trauma of his previous life through various encounters and experiences.
A careful depiction of what the protagonist learns in his new life
This work, in particular, explores in detail how the protagonist resolves the wounds he has suffered in life in his new life. The story itself progresses through the protagonist's childhood and adolescence, but regardless of the timeline, the theme of resolving the protagonist's emotional issues remains consistent.
Family Ties
The protagonist's family and best friends make frequent appearances, particularly as they play a key role in resolving the protagonist's emotional wounds. The protagonist's family did not get along well in his previous life, which is depicted as having influenced his withdrawal. However, by setting the story in a completely different environment, we can sense a change in the protagonist's perspective toward his family.
Helping Someone
Furthermore, this work does not only depict bonds with family. It also depicts the process of resolving one's own trauma by interacting with and helping people outside of family. This work primarily depicts interactions with many people, including family and close friends.
It's Not a World of Only Good Things
The alternate world in which this work is set is not a world of only good things, where the protagonist's trauma is resolved. Just like the real world, misunderstandings with various people and the death of loved ones await. By depicting these painful events in the alternate world, the protagonist is shown to be not only a world of salvation, but also a place with both painful and joyful moments, just like the real world.
Partings and New Encounters
This work depicts not only interactions with various characters but also farewells, but new encounters are always depicted after each farewell. The characters' interactions with each other lead to repeated partings and new encounters, and the characters around the protagonist constantly change over time, reflecting the style of this work's character portrayal.
〈Theme of this work〉True power already lies within us
While depicting encounters and partings with various characters, the theme this work wants to convey to us seems to be that "true power already lies within us." From here, I would like to consider the message it is trying to convey through the setting introduced earlier.
Using skills from a previous life to resolve bullying in the world of reincarnation
When considering the theme of this work, one scene that deserves special attention is the one in which the protagonist resolves the bullying of his childhood friend, Sylphiette. Speaking of bullying, the protagonist experienced it in his previous life, and the silhouette of the bullied child in his new world must have looked like his former self to the protagonist. Even for the protagonist, Sylphiette's bullying problem was a concern that seemed like a stranger to him. In order to resolve Sylphiette's bullying problem, the protagonist must utilize the argumentative skills he developed as a NEET to persuade his father, who misunderstood the issue.
In reality, he could have solved it in his previous life.
The skills and sense of justice that the protagonist utilized to resolve this bullying issue were already cultivated in his previous life. In a typical isekai reincarnation story, the plot follows a character resolving their trauma and problems by utilizing the cheat abilities and skills they acquired in their new world. However, in this work, the abilities that best serve as solutions to the protagonist's trauma are those that the protagonist already possessed in his previous life.
It's not something that can be solved just because it's an alternate world
In particular, the protagonist's traumas of "bullying" and "social withdrawal" depicted in this work are not something that can be resolved simply because it's an alternate world. Even after being reincarnated, the protagonist continues to worry about being bullied by those around him, and he still remains unable to leave his house. Furthermore, the resolution to these traumas doesn't involve utilizing any of the cheating abilities unique to the alternate world, but rather is depicted as the protagonist becoming aware of the skills and courage he already possessed from the beginning through his encounters with various friends and family.
What Was Missing Was Friends and Courage
This suggests that the protagonist of this work wasn't able to resolve the trauma he suffered in his previous life by being reincarnated into another world. Rather, he was able to escape this situation even before his reincarnation, but was unable to take the first step. However, in his new world, he was blessed with various friends and found the courage to resolve those traumas on his own. When the protagonist resolves his trauma, he often uses "enlightened" phrases like "Roxy made me realize it," likely because he feels he has realized his own potential.
True power is already present.
Thus, while this work depicts the protagonist's traumatic resolution, it is not someone who helps him; rather, the protagonist resolves his trauma on his own. Furthermore, the protagonist's growth is depicted through the presence of friends who help him solve his own problems. From this, we can see that this work is conveying the message that "The protagonist already possesses the power to resolve his trauma within himself. What's important is whether he has friends around him who can help him realize that power."
What Makes This Work Different from Other Reincarnation-in-Another-World Stories?
This story structure, in which the protagonist discovers the powers he already possessed in his previous life through interactions with various characters, is actually quite unusual for reincarnation-in-another-world stories. From here, I would like to further explain the uniqueness of this work's theme.
Isekai Reincarnation Works: A Potential Escape from Reality
Isekai reincarnation works generally depict people abandoning their previous lives in Japan and starting lives in another world. Because of this, the reincarnation destination needs to be portrayed as more appealing than the real world, so the real world is often portrayed as more difficult than usual, while the reincarnation destination is often portrayed as a setting full of incredibly fun things. Compared to works in other genres, these works offer a high level of escapism, allowing viewers to forget the hardships of reality and enjoy themselves.
Some voices question the popularity of reincarnation-themed works
As such, many reincarnation-themed works contain content that can even disgust viewers with the real world, leading some to question the current popularity of reincarnation-themed works.
This work depicts an alternate world without rejecting the real world
While this work depicts a fun alternate world, it does not waste the trauma and skills the protagonist developed in his previous life. The alternate world is carefully depicted as an extension of his previous life experiences. Therefore, it does not completely reject the harsh reality of his previous life. Instead, it depicts the difficulties that can be overcome precisely because of those painful experiences. This makes it an alternate world work that does not reject the real world.
Is this work actually children's literature?! In fact, this is a classic theme for children's works.
As I explained, "By having the protagonist awaken to his inherent powers after being reincarnated into another world, the story unfolds without wasting the painful experiences of his previous life, and it's a theme that doesn't deny reality." However, this theme of "we already have powers within ourselves" is actually quite classic for children's works.
Themes must be useful in real-life works as well.
Children's literature is essentially literature that parents buy for their children to help them grow, and the premise is that if a book doesn't contain themes that will be useful to children as they grow, it won't be chosen by parents. For this reason, many works depict themes that will be useful to children as they grow.
Don't Let the Protagonist's Growth Be the Only Thing
It goes without saying that children's literature isn't meaningful if the protagonist's growth is the only part of the story. The protagonist's growth must also inspire readers to take action and apply it to their daily lives. For this reason, as mentioned earlier, typical reincarnation stories often have a nuance of rejecting the real world, making them less suitable for children.
The impact of the message "True strength lies within you" on children
That's why children's literature often conveys messages like, "True strength lies within you! You just haven't realized it yet, but with wonderful experiences and friends, you'll be able to overcome any challenge." When children are told that it's important to recognize the strengths we all possess from the beginning, they can gain the courage to challenge themselves in their daily lives. This is because stories aren't just about depicting the growth and happiness of the characters in a story; they also consider the reader and tell them, "That strength lies within you." This is what makes a story educational.
Let's take a look at classic works with similar themes
This work is not just a simple story of characters' growth, but also a work that incorporates themes that inspire the reader. Because this work often contains rather bold language, it may be difficult to actually show it to your children. However, if you are a parent who has been moved by this work, it may be worth buying your child a classic children's work with a similar message.
Summary
What did you think? This article introduced the themes and worldview of this work. While this is a reincarnation-themed work set in another world, it also has a deep theme that inspires us as we read it. Without rejecting the real world, the story of how the protagonist solves problems one by one through his efforts and the bonds between his friends has a timeless appeal that has stood the test of time, so be sure to reread this work in the future.
