It's always been bad. We tend to forget the garbage we passed over when we were younger but for every good anime/manga you enjoyed there were ten garbo harem anime/manga and things even worse.
Dr. Buttplug, April 21, 2024, 08:23:14 am
There are also more shows being produced now.
I think the popularity of isekai partially stems from the way video games are written and the prevalence of explainer videos on YouTube. If the only other media you ingest is video games and people talking about video games, you need someone to just flat out explain the setting and stakes of the plot to you. We are also seeing the Star Wars/Marvel/DC problem where the audience is split into two groups who will waste their money, older die-hards and younger new fans and they need both to survive. Isekai is easy for younger fans to follow because the key information is spoon fed to the audience and older otaku can feel like it is somehow more deep because it appeals to their “mastery.”
Edit: Animation that is still frames and inner monologues is also cheaper to produce.