(CR) Solo Leveling

[Mad Pierrot]

Originally Posted by Frontier

Honestly the Jinho family drama doesn't really interest me at all but just from the get-go I can kind of see how the Jeju Island stuff is meant to parallel Jinwoo's continued to development because the stronger he gets the more invaluable he will be to liberating the island, though that doesn't mean you automatically care about these characters who we don't really know well beyond their pedigree.

I'm on the other side. I found the early episodes featuring the weaker Jinwoo and his mother as the heart of the series as it was like the opposite of other isekai tropes and the protagonist struggled to fight for his family. After his level up, Jinwoo became so strong and kinda selfcentered about the way he is treated that I found him harder to care. I know it's called Solo Leveling but if we have seen more socializing involving the main character and his other comrades rather than revengful work out it would be my favorite. And make his transformation into a stronger more subtle too.

[Frontier]

Jinwoo has lost his teleportation stone, is running on fumes, and facing off against a horde of knights with only his bare hands...and even that can only take him so far. Especially when the doubts and insecurities of his past, including his old self, haunt him as he nears death once more .

But thank you daily quest penalty for coming in right on time! I guess sometimes it pays to ignore daily quests! Especially when now you're in a position to solo giant centipede monster and use them as a means of recovering and leveling up again .

Well, yeah, definitely need an armor-piercing sword, worth the money, and having Igris' ability to telekinetically control things is pretty useful to have as well .

Good on Jinwoo for realizing the mages are the problem, not the knights they summon, and using his skills and his new invisible hand to slice through them as well as the giant golem they summon! Jinwoo finally completes the job change quest !

I'll miss my daily dose of Reina Ueda (even if neither of her characters in either this or Mashle got a lot of screentime...though they made the most of it) .

Jinwoo's job change is...to a necromancer? When he's turned himself into an assassin!? But if the game system set this all up, and had on-point commentary about his character and arc up to this point, maybe it knows what it's doing? Especially when it didn't let him completely refuse it. Though Jinwoo's so over-excelled he jumps straight from necromancer to Shadow Monarch .

And what's a monarch without soldiers? Now he can extract the souls of the fallen into his own personal army, so it's not completely solo levelling any more, and of course Jinwoo couldn't resist recruiting Igris! Third time and a strong speech are the charm! And Jinwoo grows more and more powerful !

(Also will he arrive in time for the parent-guardians meeting for Jinha ?)

And just in time too...they might end up needing him on Jeju Island if the bugs are evolving .

[Greenish Growth]

I'm always wondering where the insert scenes come from now. At least the breaks didn't seem as awkward this time.

[Dengar]

Dude literally gets saved by Deus Ex Machina.... Again. How many times has it been? Will he ever earn his own victories?

And what's the point of giving him a fail chance to extract the shadow? And a limited number of attempts? All that does is waste time.

Also that stuff where is confidence was dropping and haunting him? Why? He is the ultra badass. He has no reason to lack confidence.

[frodonk]

Originally Posted by Dengar

Dude literally gets saved by Deus Ex Machina.... Again. How many times has it been? Will he ever earn his own victories?

Even in terms of this series that teleport to the penalty zone was a glaringly obvious deus ex machina lol not to mention he instantly knows how to defeat all those knights right after he comes back lmao

And what's the point of giving him a fail chance to extract the shadow? And a limited number of attempts? All that does is waste time.

For dramatic effect obviously, we all know he's going to successfully extract that soul on the 3rd try.

Also that stuff where is confidence was dropping and haunting him? Why? He is the ultra badass. He has no reason to lack confidence.

I actually skipped that part, but I'd like to think it's a way for them to show how far he has come from the time of the double dungeon to this, the time he became the commander of that ghost army from LOTR

IMO I'm really only in this for the video game mechanics and the cool fights, I don't really care about the mediocre story behind all these increasingly elaborate fights

[Strahan]

Problem with all the tangential characters is likely that the anime screenwriter proceeds under the assumption the watcher has read the manhwa. They're banking on us to be like Ohhh look, it's so-and-so!

Makes sense to end here, but also kinda sucks. I was looking forward to seeing more of the shadow monarch part of the story animated. Guess I gotta just hope for a S2. I also want to see Esil animated, I hope they get that far. At least I got Felm in ChiyuMahou to give me my cute demoness fix for this season, lol

[Decel]

6/10, and part of me believes that 6th point is only there because I went through the manwha. I actually can't believe they managed to make things worst by animating this. I came into this series with an 8/10 as a baseline.

Whoever thought that the insert scenes were a cool/good thing should be demoted or fired.

Heard or read an apt comment (Tik Tok or Reddit?) arguing that the anime toned down a lot of comedy the manwha had, trying to make it more mature. Part of me believes that removing the comedy made it more monotone overall, stuck on angsty-gloomy mode.

Yet I'll be following this in the next season.

[velvet nightmare]

Originally Posted by frodonk

IMO I'm really only in this for the video game mechanics and the cool fights, I don't really care about the mediocre story behind all these increasingly elaborate fights

If the art wasn't as good as it is, I would have dropped it a long time ago.

The game mechanics aren't all that fleshed out either and are just rudimentary.

At this point I'm just going to spoil myself and read ahead in a wiki.


On a side note, why is the MC's armor still invisible? I could suspend my disbelief when he was previously running an assassin build, but he's supposedly a mage class now. It just looks ridiculous when someone runs around with a hoodie and fights with daggers/swords.

[frodonk]

Originally Posted by velvet nightmare

The game mechanics aren't all that fleshed out either and are just rudimentary.

Can't argue with you there, it isn't the most elaborate game mechanic system we've seen, but eh it's good enough for me.

On a side note, why is the MC's armor still invisible? I could suspend my disbelief when he was previously running an assassin build, but he's supposedly a mage class now. It just looks ridiculous when someone runs around with a hoodie and fights with daggers/swords.

I thought those knight armor drops were dungeon limited items, hence why they're invisible since only their effect matters, I might be wrong though.

[Frontier]

Originally Posted by Dengar

Dude literally gets saved by Deus Ex Machina.... Again. How many times has it been? Will he ever earn his own victories?

Well, his battle tactics and motivation are all his own.

And what's the point of giving him a fail chance to extract the shadow? And a limited number of attempts? All that does is waste time.

Classic gacha moment .

Also that stuff where is confidence was dropping and haunting him? Why? He is the ultra badass. He has no reason to lack confidence.

It's entire because of who he used to be that he projects that attitude and strives to keep improving.

Originally Posted by frodonk

Even in terms of this series that teleport to the penalty zone was a glaringly obvious deus ex machina lol not to mention he instantly knows how to defeat all those knights right after he comes back lmao

Well if he was going to go back and fight knights, better get some armor-piercing blades .

Although it seems like a part of the system setup is deliberately leading him forward somehow.

Originally Posted by velvet nightmare

On a side note, why is the MC's armor still invisible? I could suspend my disbelief when he was previously running an assassin build, but he's supposedly a mage class now. It just looks ridiculous when someone runs around with a hoodie and fights with daggers/swords.

Gotta have that distinctive casual look .

[FlareKnight]

Might be an issue of tastes or something. But this show never really rose above a very "eh" 6/10 for me. One of those mysteries where I can see how popular it is and how much people love the franchise, but I don't see it in the show itself. It looks good. But I mean A-1 Pictures is full of talent so that's no surprise.

The episode was fine. I agree it's a bit silly seeing him have a moment of remembering lines of the past. He hasn't been remotely weak for a long time now. He hasn't had a human opponent that's seriously had a chance at killing him. But honestly his personality has been on that's been tough to get behind since he had his complete character re-design moment. Just feels a bit awkward with both where he gets utterly enraged all on his own or like this where he faces self-doubt all on his own. That's one downside to the solo bit of this show. It's just him and monsters without any personality. He has to deliver so much without any other characters to bounce off of.

I don't know whether to call it dumb luck or the system just messing with him at this point. The story seems to leave the latter open as a legit possibility. Bailing him out with wonderful timing on the "penalty" and then letting him re-arm and sending him back in to clean house pretty easily.

If nothing else the show does visual spectacle just fine. Woo and all that on him getting his shadow army and necromancy stuff. He already seemed busted enough to me, but hey why not load up on more power anyways?

It was an odd show to be sure. But one clearly popular enough to get more and more seasons. Nothing is for everyone and it's good for things to appeal to the people they want to appeal to.

[thundrakkon]

It's an exciting end to this season, and it ended on such a cliffhanger! I want to see his shadow army lay waste in the future, but I guess that will have to wait.


Oh, btw, season 2 is confirmed = Solo Leveling Season 2: Arise from the Shadow.

Spoilers

Spoiler for Season 2 Announcement

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Season 2 Twitter Announcement


Solo Leveling Official site


I really enjoyed this season of Solo Leveling. For its entertainment value, it deserves the highest grades. For a Manhwa, this the most cohesive and understandable Manhwa to anime story line and characterization I have ever seen. It's doing a great job in story, characterization, and entertainment.


I'm looking forward to season 2.

[frodonk]

Originally Posted by Frontier

Well if he was going to go back and fight knights, better get some armor-piercing blades .

Although it seems like a part of the system setup is deliberately leading him forward somehow. .

He was almost done for before he went to centipedeland™ but right after he comes back he suddenly notices the 5 mages who are summoning all the other knights, though in retrospect there was a clear line of reasoning as to how he figured it out: he doesn't get exp from the knights -> the mages are doing something -> there are summoning gates that are spewing knights but not mages -> it must be the mages who are doing the summoning.

Also yeah it also looks like the system has a hand in keeping him alive, so that can be an in-universe reason as to why he keeps surviving these fights.

[Dengar]

Originally Posted by frodonk

IMO I'm really only in this for the video game mechanics and the cool fights, I don't really care about the mediocre story behind all these increasingly elaborate fights

None of the fights here were cool to me. They had no narrative weight behind them and they didn't even look that great either. And they had no sense of progression. Hero struggles > Hero wins. But nothing that leads from the former to the latter.

Originally Posted by Frontier

Well, his battle tactics and motivation are all his own.

I deny this. Getting angy and then winning anyway is not a tactic. And his motivation? Ehhhhh. He's so unrelatable that I can't resonate with it.

Originally Posted by Frontier

Classic gacha moment .

It's not a gacha when you are guaranteed to succeed the third time.

Originally Posted by Frontier

It's entire because of who he used to be that he projects that attitude and strives to keep improving.

Except he hasn't improved even a little bit.

Also, just because you like this show you don't have to counter literally every criticism you come across. Especially when the things people are saying are just true. Nobody is telling you not to like it. They're telling you why they don't.

Originally Posted by frodonk

He was almost done for before he went to centipedeland™ but right after he comes back he suddenly notices the 5 mages who are summoning all the other knights, though in retrospect there was a clear line of reasoning as to how he figured it out: he doesn't get exp from the knights -> the mages are doing something -> there are summoning gates that are spewing knights but not mages -> it must be the mages who are doing the summoning.

Also yeah it also looks like the system has a hand in keeping him alive, so that can be an in-universe reason as to why he keeps surviving these fights.

There being an in-universe reason for the deus ex machina doesn't make it less so.

Originally Posted by FlareKnight

He hasn't had a human opponent that's seriously had a chance at killing him. But honestly his personality has been on that's been tough to get behind since he had his complete character re-design moment. Just feels a bit awkward with both where he gets utterly enraged all on his own or like this where he faces self-doubt all on his own. That's one downside to the solo bit of this show. It's just him and monsters without any personality. He has to deliver so much without any other characters to bounce off of.

I would hate to bring up SAO. But that show has fights against nonhuman generic monsters. Yet that show manages to add narrative weight to those fights. This show fails at something even SAO can do.

Originally Posted by FlareKnight

It was an odd show to be sure. But one clearly popular enough to get more and more seasons. Nothing is for everyone and it's good for things to appeal to the people they want to appeal to.

This, as far as I can see, goes beyond "not being for everyone". Watching this show, do you even have any clue who this is even for?



Also wait, was this the final episode? Wait? But where's the conclusion?

[Decel]

Originally Posted by Dengar

This, as far as I can see, goes beyond "not being for everyone". Watching this show, do you even have any clue who this is even for?

It's really popular, most notably to the same crowd who watch shonen battles. Some people apparently like action without much story to ponder too much on.

Originally Posted by Dengar

Also wait, was this the final episode? Wait? But where's the conclusion?

From the get-go I thought this was a split-cour season.

Heard somewhere that they're going to adapt the whole series over 6 cours. I don't know where that info originates from nor whether it's true.

[Frontier]

Originally Posted by frodonk

He was almost done for before he went to centipedeland™ but right after he comes back he suddenly notices the 5 mages who are summoning all the other knights, though in retrospect there was a clear line of reasoning as to how he figured it out: he doesn't get exp from the knights -> the mages are doing something -> there are summoning gates that are spewing knights but not mages -> it must be the mages who are doing the summoning.

Also yeah it also looks like the system has a hand in keeping him alive, so that can be an in-universe reason as to why he keeps surviving these fights.

Yeah, he didn't immediately notice the mages until he'd gone through some of the fights.

Originally Posted by Dengar

None of the fights here were cool to me. They had no narrative weight behind them and they didn't even look that great either. And they had no sense of progression. Hero struggles > Hero wins. But nothing that leads from the former to the latter.

I think objectively they looked great visually, though their narrative weight is pretty much just Jinwoo's own progression as a warrior and leveling himself up to change himself from what he once was and become stronger.

I deny this. Getting angy and then winning anyway is not a tactic. And his motivation? Ehhhhh. He's so unrelatable that I can't resonate with it.

He can brute force things but we see him using his skills, resources, and experience to his advantage at times.

And we know deep down he's doing this to provide for his family even though now he's also committed to it through his own personal pride.

It's not a gacha when you are guaranteed to succeed the third time.

He got three rolls and with a pep talk he was able to secure the third one .

Except he hasn't improved even a little bit.

Also, just because you like this show you don't have to counter literally every criticism you come across. Especially when the things people are saying are just true. Nobody is telling you not to like it. They're telling you why they don't.

How so? Like, do you mean on a personal level?

I'm sorry if it comes off like I'm saying you can't critique the show, I just don't agree with the critiques. But also your mileage may vary and my take on something can totally be different from yours .

[Anh_Minh]

Originally Posted by Dengar

Dude literally gets saved by Deus Ex Machina.... Again. How many times has it been? Will he ever earn his own victories?

If you mean "will he ever be overpowered enough to not need last minute deux ex machina?", then yes. But earn victories? The guy mostly just lucked out and became strong.

And what's the point of giving him a fail chance to extract the shadow? And a limited number of attempts? All that does is waste time.

So he can fail. But not now.

Also that stuff where is confidence was dropping and haunting him? Why? He is the ultra badass. He has no reason to lack confidence.

Confidence isn't something you can acquire just from one or two victories after years of failing.

[Strahan]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

Confidence isn't something you can acquire just from one or two victories after years of failing.

Generally true, but I've known people who went the exact opposite direction. Fuckups that got lucky once or twice and it went right to their heads and became convinced they can do anything lol

[Dengar]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

Confidence isn't something you can acquire just from one or two victories after years of failing.

You say that, but his mental hallucinations are saying stuff that makes no sense.

[Anh_Minh]

Originally Posted by Dengar

You say that, but his mental hallucinations are saying stuff that makes no sense.

Insecurities cultivated over several years don't have to make sense.