Summary
The following contains spoilers for Solo Leveling, available onCrunchyroll.
During the second episode ofSolo Leveling, many viewers noticed that there was something about the basic elements of the anime that are inspired by various media, the most obvious being videogames and the basic skeleton of the shōnen power fantasy. One specific element inSolo Levelingis interestingly reminiscent of the major hit shōnen parody gag series,One Punch Man, originally created by ONE with a manga in collaboration withEyeshield 21mangaka, Yusuke Murata.
The first season of theOne Punch Mananime left a major mark on the medium, and it appears that its influence has found its way into Chugong’s immensely popular story. So, in what ways areSolo LevelingandOne Punch Mansimilar?
Both Series Feature The Same Training Regimen
WhileOne Punch Manis meant to poke fun at various aspects of the shōnen genre and anime in general, it does so through faithfully following in the footsteps of those kinds of shows in a way that strikes a balance between taking itself too seriously and comedy. Saitama is an example of an overpowered protagonist, and as the title of his show of origin plainly explains, he defeats his opponents with a single strike – to his chagrin. Saitama’s means of obtaining strength are ridiculous in how straightforward his journey was, and since the huge waves made bytheOne Punch Mananime, the training regimen of 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups and 10km running, daily, has become a well-recognized recipe for overwhelming strength. What viewers ofSolo Levelingnoticed in the second episode of the series was that Jinwoo’s new situation required that he do the same training Saitama did to fulfill his daily task.
Much like a videogame, Jinwoo receives various rewards for completing the daily task, and a very dangerous penalty should he fail to complete it. In this way, Solo Leveling pays homage toOne Punch Man, and implies that Jinwoo is seeking a similar kind of strength. This similarity in training regimen is perhaps a direct reference to the series, and going by how the past four episodes ofSolo Levelinghave gone, the anime will be paying homage and making reference to heavy-hitters that came before it quite a lot this season. While Saitama owes his strength solely to this 100/10/10 workout, Jinwoo comes to realize that the daily task is probably his least effective means of “leveling up”.
They Both Have the Same Classification System
While this aspect can be attributed to the fact that there are countless videogames that issue rankings based on a system in which S is higher than A, and Solo Leveling is obviously very much inspired by videogames, it is the existence of a Hunter Association not like that ofHunter x Hunter, but something closer to the Hero Association ofOne Punch Man. In that universe, heroes are classed similarly, with S-Rank heroes being the very best in their field; often because they have various abilities or armaments; and E-Rank heroes, who may as well be regular people. Despite crushing every test on his physical exam, Saitama didn’t perform well on the written part of his hero exam, and wound up being considered a C-Rank hero. Jinwoo’s E-Rank status is something based on the minimal levels of magic power found coursing through his body, but eventually, after going public with his immense power and rescuing various S-Class Hunters from certain death on Jeju Island, Jinwoo is considered an S-Class. UnlikeSolo Leveling; however, characters inOne Punch Manfind various ways to get stronger– there’s no potential cap, in theory.
A Truly Overpowered Protagonist
In various ways,Solo Levelingis exactly the kind of shōnen power fantasy thatOne Punch Manparodies; however, they both have in common an exploration of the immense strength and will displayed bythe average battle shonen protagonist– taken to the furthest extreme. Saitama literally lives up to the series title as he defeats any and all foes with a single punch, and the fun is in seeing how intense his battles can get, as he barely breaks a sweat fighting against some of the most incredible opponents. His wish is to be able to once again feel the kind of fear and excitement that comes with engaging in battle, especially if it is a serious fight. On the other hand, Sung Jinwoo begins with a similar kind of origin, and his overwhelming strength comes in over time; however, it is the fact that he lacks any kind of ceiling that makes Jinwoo, even among some of the most OP in anime history, perhaps one of the most broken characters out there.
The fact thatSolo Levelingbuilds up to Jinwoo’s total conquer of Jeju Island – a region overrun by magic beasts condemned by the Korean government because of how many lives were lost in each attempt to take back the island – is a testament to the centrality of his overpoweredness to the narrative. When he eventually becomes what can be considered an S-Class Hunter, Jinwoo far outclasses his contemporaries in the same bracket, so even among the very strongest humans in theSolo Levelinguniverse, not a single one stands a chance against him. While Saitama is known for defeating his opponents with a single blow, regardless of who they may be, Jinwoo’s strength is sometimes genuinely put to the test, like during his second entry intothe Cartenon Temple Double Dungeon, where he had to fight not only the Statue of God that began his entire journey, but also the Architect who created the very system that enables him to continuously improve despite starting off as an E-Rank Hunter.
