The popularity of Solo Leveling has grown exponentially over the last couple of years. The source material was already popular during its run, but with the release of the anime adaptation, the title’s fame has skyrocketed. Fans who have read the manhwa until the end know where the series heads and what happens to their beloved protagonist, Sung Jinwoo. However, many fans of the original series are not yet familiar with the sequel or have their doubts about it. So, we discuss whether the sequel, Solo Leveling Ragnarok, is as good as Solo Leveling.
Should You Read Solo Leveling Ragnarok?
Yes, Solo Leveling Ragnarok is indeed a manhwa series that should be read and given a chance to shine. Unlike several other spin-offs, Ragnarok doesn’t divert away from the original characters.
Of course, it shifts its focus to Jinwoo’s son, but it doesn’t compromise on any of the original characters. In a sense, it continues the story of Solo Leveling rather than establishing a story of its own.
The original manhwa introduced us to Sung Jinwoo, and the sequel allows us to see his son, Suho, grow as a hunter. Jinwoo becomes the strongest human being at the end of Solo Leveling and kills the dark forces that threaten humanity. However, that was just the beginning of the end game, as he soon realized that the ones he eradicated were just the puppets, and now, it was time to face the main villains.
So, in the epilogue of Solo Leveling, we see Jinwoo handing over a locket to his beloved soulmate, Cha Hae-In, and instructing Kaisel to take her back to their son on Earth.
Following the beautiful scene, Sung Jinwoo enters the interdimensional portal to confront the Outer Gods, who were the reason for all the chaos in the human world. On the other side, Cha Hae-In gets stuck in another portal for five years. The story of Solo Leveling was intriguing from the start, and the sequel very beautifully expands on the amazing world of the original manhwa.
How Does Solo Leveling Ragnarok Compare to the Original?
It all started with the Absolute Being, who created Rulers and Monarchs at the dawn of time. He was a powerful entity with a significant Mana that gave him the ability to create an entire universe. Did you feel it would have been better if the series delved deeper and gave us some more info about his origin or who he exactly was?
SL Ragnarok Introduces New Villanous Entities
Well, there’s no need to worry, as Solo Leveling Ragnarok does the needful in the most amazing way. The original manhwa focused on the Monarchs and Rulers, and Ragnarok brings the ones who are the biggest threat to the world. These antagonistic figures are called the Itarim, or the Outer Gods.
Itarim is a race that the Absolute Being belonged to. These entities are basically the most powerful forces that have the authority to create life out of nothing. For instance, as the Absolute Being whom we met in the original series created Rulers out of light and Monarchs out of darkness, the other Outer Gods created different universes.
The Rulers were the good guys who took possession of some humans who emerged as hunters, and Monarchs (see the strongest Monarchs in Solo Leveling) were the bad guys who chased the Rulers to Earth and caused chaos in the living world. Despite being vessels to the mighty Rulers, the Hunters had to go through a lot of pain while tackling these Monarchs. If Ashborn hadn’t transferred his full powers to Jinwoo, it would have been impossible for anyone to defeat these powerful villains.
In Solo Leveling Ragnarok, Jinwoo has to step up again and leave his family behind to handle the Outer Gods, who want to invade the untamed realm that has been left behind after the death of the Absolute Being.
Not only the Itarims but our heroes also fight their servants called Apostles, who serve as the secondary antagonists of the sequel.
Solo Leveling Ragnarok Doesn’t Forget Jinwoo While Focusing on His Son
The original manhwa sees Jinwoo fighting all the bad guys after getting trained by the System and eventually becoming the new Shadow Monarch, Ashborn’s successor.
By the time we reached the final chapter, we knew that if, someday, a sequel of the popular manhwa arrived, it would feature Jinwoo’s son in the lead role. That’s because it’s nothing new, and we have witnessed a similar concept in critically acclaimed titles like Naruto. However, despite harboring familiarity in approach, both web novels are way too different. In Boruto, Naruto isn’t given a major role to play, but Ragnarok sees Jinwoo in an important role, even though most of it has been happening off-screen.
Sung Jinwoo becomes Immortal at the end of Solo Leveling, so it makes sense that he holds the responsibility to fight the mighty Outer Gods in the sequel. He discovers he can tackle the Itarim in Outer Space, but he needs a supporting hand on Earth to protect the human world from its Apostles. And who can Jinwoo trust other than his own son? So, he sends Beru to train Suho and prepare him for the showdown.
Sung Jinwoo fought the Monarchs all by himself, but the sequel shows him getting a backup in the form of his own son, Sung Suho. Solo Leveling Ragnarok is certainly a sequel that gives the son a chance to shine without diminishing the father’s glory.
Sung Suho’s Journey Isn’t A Copy-Paste of Jinwoo’s Story
Sung Jinwoo undergoes an awakening sometime before Solo Leveing’s story. However, he was the weakest hunter of humanity until the System chose Jinwoo in the Double Dungeon. On the other side, Suho’s journey as a hunter starts differently. He gets awakened when he decides to help one of his female classmates from an infected hunter.
Like his father, he also starts at the E-Rank, but he is not like the Jinwoo we met in the first chapter of Solo Leveling. Despite lacking powers, Suho never shies away from standing up against injustice, and this is something that wasn’t possible for Jinwoo until the Double Dungeon incident. He was weak, and more often than not, the boy became a burden for other Hunters during most raids.
Sung Suho, on the other hand, was conceived after his father reached the peak of his powers, so he inherited those abilities since birth. That’s why he was powerful enough to tackle at least the corrupt humans with his bare hands without any otherworldly powers.
Solo Leveling exposed us to the intriguing world of Monarchs, Rulers, and Hunters, while Ragnarok expands the already existing world and brings some new characters to the front. The sequel further boasts some of the best action sequences and comes with unexpected revelations that remained a mystery in the first part.
So, yes, the sequel of Solo Leveling is as interesting and thrilling as the original manhwa. It expands on the world of Hunters by introducing new characters, but it also doesn’t diminish the importance of the characters from the original series.
