Solo Leveling is mid
tldr solo leveling is good if you're looking for a brainless power fantasy w/ action-packed fights w/ an op gary stu but fails in every other area.
_
The first few chapters with the statues were good. It showed how smart and quick-witted the mc is despite being a coward and the stakes were high but all that went of the window.
First of all, why tf did sung jin woo need a damn near-death experience for him to start working out LMAO. I thought it would be common sense for a hunter to work out. The story goes on about him being the worst but he doesn't try to improve himself by keeping fit.
Second, the system is literal plot armor. I get that every mc needs plot armor bc there would be no story w/o it but the system makes it way too obvious. Sung Jin Woo gets hyped up by the fandom and characters and thinks he's hot shit but he wouldn't have never gotten far w/o the system. It would have been more interesting to have him achieve higher ranks w/o it.
Third, Sung Jin woo goes from cowardly straight to edgy gary stu. His character arc/development is very flat. Ironically, he was more interesting when he was a coward.
Fourth, the side characters get shafted for Sung jin woo. They're nothing more than props to make him look so ~cool~ and ~strong~.
The plot itself is decent. It's not terrible but there are better written stories out there.
It's not a masterpiece by any means and I wish people would stop using that word so easily. SL is a 6.5/10 a 7 if we're being generous.
The main reason why Solo Leveling is a masterpiece is probably cause it was like the origin of all those 'hunter' manhwas. The story itself i enjoyed mainly cause of the fight scenes and nostalgia. I guess if you read it when its already completed its not the same feel but for its time (2018) it was an amazing piece of work.
2 reply
08 09,2023
i mean yes, right now but bro this was revolutionary back in 2019. just like "who made me a princess" is a mother of reincarnation truck kun history romance with magic manhwa, "solo leveling" is father of hunter/dungeons/system crack in reality manhwas. these two started a whole new concept and probably without them manhwas wouldn't be as popular ......
1 reply
08 09,2023
So according to these replies, everybody jumped on the bandwagon because of "hype" not good storytelling or well-written characters. ...Lol.
This reminds me of a youtuber who said that anime/manhwa/manga fans will pedestalise anything as long as it has flashing action/fighting scenes despite having dogshit writing.
1 reply
08 09,2023
I’m gonna be honest. I liked it… especially when comparing it to other stories in the genre that just feel completely braindead.
But if I see Jinwoo’s same goofy ahh haircut on some other random protagonist that’s just “leveling up” and “trying to beat the system” I might lose my mind.
1 reply
08 09,2023
Valid. It's a fun and easy story to read. I think anyone who wanna transition to reading more action fantasy types should start with Solo Leveling. It's the beginners guide to all other copy pasted stories.
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08 09,2023
