Warning: The following contains spoilers for Solo Leveling Season 2, episode 5!!

Although Solo Leveling is now the anime of the moment, its current popularity was impossible to predict during its early episodes, as at the start of its first season it felt like another overplayed and overused power fantasy series. Yet, this changed after a meaningful scene turned everything around, showing the true potential of Solo Leveling's story.

Solo Leveling's first episodes, covering the Double Dungeon incident, was a gripping and tense arc that successfully caught viewers' attention. But after the introduction of the player system, the anime became very formulaic. After Jinwoo begins overpowering every beast, he starts losing his initial charm when he was an underdog protagonist considered the weakest hunter in the world and becomes more bland and one-dimensional. However, one of the best fights in Solo Leveling Season 1 took Jinwoo from the bare bones of an edgy protagonist and turned him into a character whose journey was more than worthy of watching.

The Dungeon and Prisoners Arc Gave Jinwoo The Humanity He Needed

Jinwoo's Character Proved to be So Much Better Than Viewers Expected

Though Jinwoo's becoming colder and more emotionless is a natural response to the betrayal he experienced in the Double Dungeon, as the series focused instead on the battles that happened at a breakneck pace, it was necessary to bring out his emotional side to give more depth to his character. Thankfully, in Solo Leveling Season 1, Episode 9, the anime showcases how the trauma of being left to die has affected Jinwoo, which might not have been evident to viewers otherwise.

When the hunters find Kim Sangshik, who was injured by Kang Taeshik, Jinwoo struggles with the fact that the person who once abandoned him is now about to die. This highlights how, despite not outright saying it, Jinwoo has resented Kim for selfishly escaping from the Double Dungeon, throwing everyone's life away in exchange for his own survival.

Although Jinwoo understood Kim's desire to return to his family, he didn't forgive his actions, which is why he didn't ask how he was after waking up, as he did with Joohee and Mr. Song. Yet, Jinwoo wanted Kim not to give up on his life. Moreover, struggling between not wanting to forgive him and being incapable of holding out to his hatred denotes how Jinwoo was a more complex character than viewers give him credit for. As a result, this small moment of humanity made Jinwoo a more relatable protagonist.

Jinwoo Has A Kind Heart That's Easy To Overlook

Solo Leveling's Story Shows Jinwoo's Personal Growth

Additionally, in Solo Leveling episode 9, it's clear by the contrasting treatment that Jinwoo has towards characters like Joohee and Mr. Song that he values people who show kindness to others. Both Joohee and Song Yi Chul respected Jinwoo when he was the weakest E-rank hunter, which is why he didn't hesitate to protect them from Taeshik even with the risk of exposing his strength. This is also clear when he protects Jinho in Solo Leveling episode 6, proving that while Jinwoo isn't shy about making use of his sense of justice and punishing those who deserve it, he is also prone to recognizing the good in others.

This also serves to point out how, despite Solo Leveling being about Jinwoo's escalation of strength, the anime explores his personal growth. This is seen in Solo Leveling episode 17, when, upon being greeted by the mining team, Jinwoo re with fondness his former teammates when he was an E-rank, even Kim Sangshik. This not only means that Jinwoo was capable of forgiving Kim but also that, despite having escalated multiple ranks, he can look back on his days as a weak hunter with nostalgia.

Solo Leveling's Story Hinted that Jinwoo's Gray Morality Has a Deeper Meaning

That's Why Solo Leveling Became So Successful

Likewise, it is also made evident in the Dungeon and Prisoners Arc that Jinwoo's morality has been affected as he gains strength. This confirms that the battles Jinwoo had until that point, more than only helping him level up, were meant to show the implications of power in human ethics, as he clashes with characters who act motivated by their own interests, like Hwan Dongsuk and Kang Taeshik.

This gives a whole layer of meaning to Jinwoo's journey, letting viewers see that the nature of his powers hides a deeper meaning and hinting that he was shaping out to become a different type of protagonist, not a benevolent one common in shōnen anime. This made Solo Leveling stand out from other anime, as, according to the Aniplex producer Sota Furuhashi, Jinwoo’s dark side is his biggest trait.

What draws the most attention to Jinwoo is his dark side. Many people compare shōnen anime to Solo Leveling, but a shōnen would never introduce the story of someone who levels up by killing other people, besides monsters. - Sota Furuhashi.

Nevertheless, the realization in Solo Leveling episode 9 that Jinwoo’s story isn't only about becoming the strongest, but the meaning of how someone will act if given the opportunity to become infinitely more powerful while holding deep inner darkness proved that the series crosses that fine line that separates edgy anime characters and is more a kind of antihero journey. This confirms that Solo Leveling' popularity, more than due to its intense battles and stunning animation, is thanks to its overarching mysteries and the gratification of watching Jinwoo progress.

Source: @chromat1cfire on X.