/lit/ - Literature

>>11058810
It's just wish fulfillment. They're transported from the real world so the person reading them can imagine the same being done to themselves. They're immediately accosted by attractive women, the exact opposite of what happens in real life. They're made out to be main characters and lionized by everyone around them, unlike their unremarkable selves. They're given power, something of which they likely have none, and struggle against distinct opposition, which allows them to revel in their own perceived superiority and fight something obvious as opposed to the nebulous and stressful, yet unremarkable difficulties they face in life. It's not hard to see why people like it. It's like all the escapism provided by sci-fi and fantasy, distilled to their essence, but losing all complexity and flavor in the process. It's like taking all the sugar out of a pound-cake and serving that instead. I'm sure some gluttonous fucks are fine with eating spoonfuls of raw sugar for their daily rush, but some people require a bit more.

The isekai genre in general is plagued by the same thing that plagues all young adult literature and twenty-something authors, and that's the horrible incest of fiction -- people who have grown up only exposed to video games, anime, and pop-fiction like Harry Potter, then inspired, fancy themselves an author and attempt to write without reading any of the classics or having experienced anything truly profound in their lives. No matter how original they think they are -- and certainly most don't even try -- they cannot help but channel the pablum they've consumed.

As long as you tick the correct boxes and tickle the right fancies, you're all set. Have you ever imagined yourself the head of a harem of catgirls? Write an isekai about it. Ever wanted supreme power that would make the school bully Cockku-kun kneel at your feet? Write an Isekai about it. Ever wanted to feel like your life actually mattered? Write an isekai about it.
It's a very simple concept, but quite potent. It's almost disgusting.