i did expect the adaptation to be as un-unique as the webtoon carried by above average animation (and i was right), but i did not expect them to fuck up the premiere this badly.
half of the episode is just dialog and lore dumps presented in a boring way. we got unnecessary character introductions that are clearly fan service because there is no anime-only will give a shit about them.
AND THEN it just ended out of nowhere. like, why? i'm willing to bet 99% of people read Solo leveling because they got hooked by the intro, and we only got half of the intro in the anime for some reason.
is this what the anime adaptation is? just fan service for existing fans? how are anime-onlys supposed to be hooked by that mediocre premiere?
from my limited exposure to the anime fandom, the general reception to the episode has been quite positive, despite all my complains.
because i am being unfair to Solo Leveling. all things considered, it's a pretty decent first episode, with animation that most anime wouldn't dream of having.
BUT, i think my complains are justified, because it's fucking Solo Leveling, the king of all webtoons, as mainstream as a webtoon can be. it has enough existing hype to be the next demon slayer as long as the adaptation is on par with that, and i want to see that happening.
i'll admit that i'm judging it a bit too early. we won't know how good it is until more episodes come out. but it definitely failed the first impression. i wish they went for the oshi no ko route where they go all out for the first impression.
it's amazing. to the point that i'm puzzled by why they didn't decide to air both episodes at once, or make the first episode twice as long like re:zero s1.
it's still not as unique as i've hoped. but hey, i guess there's not really much you can do when you adapting solo leveling, the king of unoriginality.
animation-wise, it's just as good as the last one. not mind-blowingly good, but very very solid, and far above the average.
okay let's talk about the elephant in the room
the opening and endings are god tier. i know i said i wanted the adaptation to be insanely good, but this is on another level - it makes me feel like solo leveling doesn't deserve it. like just give it to something that deserves it more, like, urm, errrr..... gushing over magical girls......... i mean, i did said more deserving, not most deserving.
the opening feels like it's genetically engineered to be as hype as possible. the transition from the end of the episode to the ending's backroom-esque visuals is amazing. i get whiplash every time i watch them because of the sheer difference between the show and that.
back to my overall thoughts
i'm excited about the adaptation now.
there's only a couple episode left until the mc has ANY weakness left, until it turns into a 100% power fantasy. hopefully when the time comes, the visuals will be like the webtoon - so good that you forget that the plot is just shamelessly masturbating the main character.