Understanding the Appeal of Solo Leveling

Summary

• Solo Leveling’s success stems from vivid artwork, engaging fights, and impactful sound design.
• The protagonist, Sung Jinwoo, is relatable due to financial struggle, but lacking depth in motivations.
• The series’ popularity is a testament to its aesthetics rather than its writing; a fun power fantasy.

Solo Leveling has become one of the most popular and talked about anime since the premiere of its first season last year – hype which has been reignited with the sequel’s start this month. However, for those who have taken a gander at the show to see what all the fuss is about, the magnitude of its reception versus the story itself might leave one thinking “Why this series?”

The original novel by author Chugong was by all accounts a phenomenon even before official translations were available, and the subsequent Webtoon adaptation only furthered its popularity. Without even a hint as to its story, the artwork of Solo Leveling was everywhere online and language was no barrier to how its designs and colors spoke to audiences.

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Solo Leveling Season 2 English Dub Premieres January 18

Cast members from the first season reprise their roles for Solo Leveling Season 2 -Arise from the Shadow-.

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(Not) Just Another Power Fantasy?

From the outset, the logline of Solo Leveling can be its worst enemy or its greatest asset depending on one’s familiarity with similar stories. In a world where gates have opened up, through which monsters can wreak havoc, a select number of humans have awoken to powers capable of fighting such monstrosities. These “Hunters” enter the gates as they open, to clear these game-like dungeons and close the gates before their horrors can slip into reality.

Enter, Sung Jinwoo, an E-Rank hunter and considered one of the worst by far, but with bills to pay and family relying on him, he presses on despite his weakness. When a supposedly low-level dungeon reveals a deadly secret, his party sustains many casualties, and he’s left for dead, yet he wakes up in the hospital, alive and well, albeit with a catch. Suddenly, he can see a heads-up display that no one else can, almost like a game menu; a game that lets him level up.

An MMO Fantasy Isekai (But Not Really)

Love it or hate it, isekai is a formidably popular genre, the appeal of which is rooted deeply in Japanese culture, and has reached critical mass in the current anime industry. In case you’ve somehow avoided it, it refers to stories in which a protagonist is reborn or otherwise transported to another world, typically after they’ve already died. Tangential to the isekai craze is the MMORPG anime, which shares many similar tropes and plot devices.

Sword Art Online is perhaps the most popular example alongside peers such as Log Horizon or .hack//Sign, in which the protagonists are trapped in video games. Some Isekai even eschew the game element entirely, but retain game-like mechanics, relegated solely to the protagonists, like in The Rising of the Shield Hero. Then there’s Solo Leveling, which is like if the protagonist gained isekai rebirth and MMO mechanics, but remained in their original world.

Where Solo Leveling Stands in the Hierarchy

Sung Jinwoo is given daily quests, where the punishments for non-completion are severe, yet the rewards for completion transform him into a new man. He becomes stronger and more attractive, but mainly, he progressively unlocks the power needed to be the Hunter he never thought he could be. As time passes, he is even presented with a chance to gain a cure for his mother’s mysterious affliction, assuming he’s strong enough to earn it.

Divorced from the saturation of its genre peers, it’s a seductive power fantasy, but that separation is easier said than done. The sense of familiarity with Solo Leveling is what contributes to the confusion about its success among detractors, and it isn’t as though the series puts its best foot forward. Its earliest episodes are the slowest, where the writing must balance exposition and the impetus to make the viewer care about Jinwoo.

The Weakest Links in the Story

Sung Jinwoo is kind and easy to like, but not the easiest to love, unless you’re only there for the eye candy, which he certainly accommodates past the opening arc. In terms of motivation, the story’s best vehicle through which to endear him to viewers is his financial woes, something especially relatable to today’s youth, who are entering adulthood in difficult times. Frankly, between the guild politics and the emphasis on financial gain in the dialog, economics seems to be at the heart of Solo Leveling’s subtext.

Yet, while supporting his family is ample motivation, the story rarely goes for the heart in enunciating this point. Jinwoo’s ascension is articulated only through a desire for power, but only occasionally (and quietly) contextualized by the complexities of his heart. As such – likable as he is – he’s not the most compelling of leads. With that thread cut, the rest of the world around him, and much of the supporting cast, feel like set dressing (at least by Season 1’s end).

What Solo Leveling Does Right

Trying to understand the colossal success of this series might leave one scratching their head, but simply ask a fan why they like it, and the answer rarely will. If what drew many to the Manhwa was the sheer power of its artwork, then as hungry for nuance as its script may be, the presentation is everything it needed to be to succeed. The fights are well-animated and only got better the longer Season 1 pressed on, especially the fight against Igris.

The sound design was even more commendable, punctuating every sword clash, magic spell, and blood spray, the viscera of which was impactful without feeling egregious. This series is certainly edgy, but it’s a palatable and not-so-off-putting kind of edgy that leaves lesser stories feeling like they’re trying too hard. Plus, with Hiroyuki Sawano’s score, Solo Leveling practically uses a cheat code to give its biggest moments the backbone they need to entertain.

Understanding the Success of Solo Leveling

Close

For all the reasons stated above, I find that Solo Leveling is just okay. It’s a neat show; a strong 5 to a light 6, and the biggest mistake I made when I first watched it was thinking that it needed to be more than that to make sense of its success. Permit me a story to illustrate. Last month, I reviewed The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim and I was probably kinder to that film than even many positive reviews. In it, regarding the protagonist, Hera, I wrote the following:

If aesthetic is narrative; if images can speak to us like words, then Hera’s aesthetic strengths carry with them a profound depth.

Solo Leveling is not a masterfully written story – something even its hardcore fans will concede, but its aesthetic strengths can’t be understated. Its success gives it the air of an industry plant, but its artistry is no fabrication. Sung Jinwoo’s power fantasy may seem one-note, and the allure may wear off with future seasons, but the performances, especially in the excellent English dub – with the likes of Aleks Le as Jinwoo – embolden the storytelling.

The Context of Success

A lot of factors contribute to whether one finds Solo Leveling an appealing story or not, and a not insignificant portion likely relates to one’s familiarity with Korean webcomics. After talking to Manwha fans, it’s clear that adaptations of such works don’t have the best track record. The God of High School and Noblesse never quite took off. Tower of God has somewhat fallen from grace recently, and any hopes for Lookism Season 2 are fading quicker by the day.

In this context, Solo Leveling isn’t just worth celebrating in itself, but for what it could mean for future adaptations of Manhwa. But even without that context, I appreciate this anime more now than I ever thought I would – not because I determined it to be deserving of its overwhelming popularity, but rather because it never needed to be. It is a fun and appreciably well-made show capitalizing on the appeal of a protagonist going from zero to hero, and then beyond.

Solo Leveling is available to stream on Crunchyroll.

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Crunchyroll Reveals Solo Leveling Apparel Line

Sung Jinwoo voice actor Aleks Le modeled a brand-new line of Solo Leveling apparel now available on the Crunchyroll Store.

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Solo Leveling

Release Date

January 7, 2024

Seasons

2

Studio

A-1 Pictures

Based On

Manhwa

Creator

Chugong

Streaming Service(s)

Crunchyroll

Directors

Shunsuke Nakashige

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Fuente: successacademy.edu.vn
Categorías: Anime