A former IT grunt wakes up to find himself aboard on a spaceship. When he finally gets his bearings, he realizes that he’s been isekai’d into Stella Online, a game in which he has 3000 hours logged. Yep, it’s a space isekai, which, to be fair, is somewhat novel on the surface. The vast majority of isekai series take place in some generic anime fantasy setting filled to the brim with demon lords, goblins, mages, etc. So at least this show won’t be super derivative, right? Ehhhhhhh…
Like always, the standard isekai complaints apply. Naturally, his ship is the bestest and strongest in all the land. Always gotta be overpowered, even in space. And of course, he’s also a highly skilled pilot and marksman. Immediately, space pirates show up thanks to his cargo full of precious rare metals (which means he’s also rich). Without even needing to think about it, our protagonist Hiro happily takes them all out, even when some of them were trying to flee once they realized they stood no chance. Sure, they were looking to rob him, but it’s strange how, again, an IT guy can casually take a human life. He only throws up because he isn’t used to dogfighting.
But more importantly, nobody ever cares that they’ll probably never see their family again. It’s just not a concern. You know why I don’t trust these protagonists? Because they’re not pet owners. If you have a pet and you got isekai’d, your first thought should be, “Oh shit, what’s going to happen to <insert your pet’s name here>?” But do you ever see isekai heroes worry about that? Never. Because they don’t have pets. They’re not animal lovers, and you can’t trust those people.
Jokes aside, the setting might be different, but there are a lot of familiar elements in this isekai. Worried that you’ll be missing out on hot elf babes? Don’t worry, ’cause we got space elves! Worried that you won’t have a princess to save? Well, Serena here is a daughter of a marquess. Even in space, there are nobles. Worried that a futuristic setting might be too woke? We got you, bro! Build the biggest harem you want, because isekai anime series are always full of rapey men attacking girls in the streets! Just step right up and save them, and they’ll be your space waifu for laifu. Last but not least, just replace the adventurer’s guild with the mercenary guild. We’ve got ranks to climb too!
(Our space elf waifu kinda sucks, though. That girl who needed help? Well, she advises Hiro to ignore the situation. I suppose Serena sucks too, because she’s in the military, which is doing a poor job of policing the colony.)
Ultimately, I just have to laugh because our space isekai ends up not feeling all that different anyway. At its core, it’s the same bullshit as always. We just have a different coat of paint. Welp, right into the Isekai Hate Watch pile, you go!
As an aside, would I want to be isekai’d into any of my favorite games? Honestly, not really. The Outer Wilds? Boom, universe is on the brink of death and needs to be remade. Disco Elysium? The Pale will consume us all. Tactics Ogre? I’d end up dead in one of the many racial conflicts plaguing Valeria. A Persona game? Knowing my luck, I wouldn’t be one of the Chad MCs. I’d be one of the suckers caught without a coffin during the Midnight Hour, so the shadows will get me. Final Fantasy XIV? Ehhhh. Not only would I have to deal with evil, money-grubbin’, pervy lalafels, knowing what direction the story has been leaning lately, I would just be NTR’d by Runar and forced into a relationship with Graha Tia. I kid, I kid… I don’t even like Y’shtola all that much (she lacks whimsy). I don’t like Graha either (too much of a Warrior of Light fanboy for my taste). I thought the actual Sphene was cute, but alas, she’s reserved for a certain cat lady. Damn, what’s with ronsos stealing all of the good FFXIV women? How ’bout Dark Souls or Elden Ring? Man, I don’t even need to explain why being isekai’d into those games would totally suck. Silent Hill 2? Hoo boy… actually, what would my Silent Hill look like? Hmmm…