Heavily shadowed by the Japanese manga industry, Korean webtoons were hidden gems, read by of the niche who were drawn to the medium’s distinct artistic style, which differed significantly from manga prints. Manhwa, also known as webtoons, has roots in history that go deeper than most realize, dating back to the early twentieth century, with pioneering works like Manhwa Haengjin laying the groundwork for the industry.
Recently, the manhwa industry’s collaboration with anime studios has been on the rise. Iconic shows like Noblesse, The God of High School, and Tower of God set the standard for the industry’s reception among anime devotees. Building on these milestones, the adaptation of Solo Leveling finally broke through the manga-dominant space, making it clear to viewers that there might be a rich resource of untapped stories out there waiting to resurface.
A Survivor In An Industry Dominated By Manga & Light Novels
Webtoons Have Constantly Been Overshadowed By Mainstream Manga
Even anime owes its origin to manga, so it hardly comes as a surprise that the manhwa industry has been fighting a losing battle in of popularity over the renowned art form. With visible traces in the nineteenth century, manga’s influence had over a century's headstart in the Asian comics industry. The medium’s success was built even further through Weekly Shōnen Jump, Weekly Shōnen Magazine, and Weekly Young Jump, who determined the trajectory of the most popular anime series of all time, like Dragon Ball, One Piece, and more.
Webtoon Anime Is Booming Thanks to Manhwa, And It Could Learn a Few Things From Solo Leveling
Solo Leveling is undoubtedly the best manhwa-to-anime adaptation, and here is what future webtoon anime adaptations could learn from it.
To make things worse, light novels had an even stronger fan base than webtoons. Most anime and manga were adaptations of light novels, so the trio-cycle kept the anime industry running for years. However, the manhwa industry had its manga counterparts beat in one regard: illustrations. Not everyone is enthusiastic about reading monochromatic s, which heavily contrast with the anime they are referenced to. Many anime fans who are curious about the source material behind anime they cherish sometimes find the manga versions unappealing. Webtoons, on the other hand, are colorful, vibrant, and attractive — a glaring similarity to the Western style of publishing comics.
Webtoons, on the other hand, are colorful, vibrant, and attractive — a glaring similarity to the Western style of publishing comics.
However, even with this redeeming trait, the manhwa industry was still far from achieving the success attained by the manga medium. Series like One Piece boasted incredible sales, selling as high as 500 million copies worldwide. The anime space was solely dominated by manga-oriented works, and the manhwa industry had no choice but to slowly thrive in a world where they could barely gather the attention of fans; that is, until Solo Leveling happened.
Solo Leveling Pioneering Debut Is Driving Webtoon's Success
Solo Leveling Performance As An Anime Is Groundbreaking
Before the debut of Solo Leveling anime in 2024, many other webtoons received adaptations fraught with notable issues that hindered their success. For instance, the webtoon, Tower of God, had a budget-saving animation that reflected in the anime’s failure to animate critical parts of the manhwa. The anime condensed over 70 chapters into its first 12-episode season, resulting in a rushed story with questionable plot holes that received disapproval from fans globally. A similar story unfolded with Noblesse, which featured multiple adaptations without a coherent narrative pattern for fans to follow the story. Adding salt to an already festering injury, The God of High School had a flashy debut with its attractive battle choreography, which was not enough to hide the anime’s questionable plot.
Solo Leveling was already successful as one of the most popular manhwa series before receiving a well-thought-out adaptation. The smash-hit animation deviated from the underwhelming path set by earlier webtoon adaptations. Starring a captivating “hero saves the day” narrative, which attracted the attention of even new anime fans, Solo Leveling earmarked its way to success. Adapted by A-1 Pictures, a studio responsible for successful anime adaptations like Sword Art Online, Kaguya-Sama: Love is War, and Erased, Solo Leveling’s animation success was expected.
8 Emotional Solo Leveling Moments From the Manhwa That Will Break Anime Fans
Most people recognize Solo Leveling as one of the best action anime of all time, but these emotional moments prove that the series is so much more.
Solo Leveling’s success is apparent to everyone, as the series secured Crunchyroll’s “2024 Anime of the Year Award” — a breakthrough the webtoon industry needed to gain more popularity. Building on this success, the iconic webtoon on which the story is based has skyrocketed in popularity. Presently, on Tapas, the webtoon has over 27 million views and is now serving as a source of inspiration for other manhwa series.
While it’s impossible to animate a webtoon by , A-1 Pictures adapted the series masterfully, focusing on highlighting every critical moment, as well as the last minute details. Some diehard fans of the original story may complain about the minor changes made by the studio; however, these changes can be justified in the context of the story’s animation. Presently, Solo Leveling flaunts an impressive 4.9-star rating, over 800,000+ ratings, on Crunchyroll, exceeding even One Piece, which has about 596,000+ ratings. The relatively new anime is already carving its spot in the anime hall of fame, serving as a testament to the hidden gems of the manhwa industry.