> The key difference is in the context. "Embedded" Java and Flash still required an external runtime,
But that was Netscape's initial decision. There was nothing stopping a browser vendor from embedding Java into the browser the same way. Microsoft ended up doing that for VBScript in IE. Lotus Notes was embedding Java on their clients in the mid 90s alongside LotusScript. In addition to that, you could even copy/paste a Java applet from the web into Lotus email, and it would run, although that was different from having Java embedded as a language.
Wasm was built from the ground up to be run in the context of a browser. It's also implemented by browser vendors so they can take responsibility for security. In essence, the difference is that it's made to be sandboxed from the rest of the system.