Solo Levelinghas quickly become one of the most popular anime series in the world, but its rampant success didn’t come out of nowhere. Sung Jinwoo’s story has taken the world by storm, showingjust how good edgy anime can beas he’s one of the most powerful and dominant main characters in anime. As you’re able to imagine, fans are keeping close tabs on anything involvingSolo Leveling, and a new interview is breaking down how long the anime spent in the works.
In a recent AMA on Reddit, aproducer at Aniplex, Sota Furuhashi, noted that theSolo Levelinganime began way before most fans would realize.After all, for anyone who isn’t familiar with theSolo Levelingmanhwa, it may seem like the anime series came out of nowhere. However, not only was the manhwa hugely successful before the anime came out, but the show’s producers already had their eyes on the comic years before the first season was released.
Solo Leveling’s Anime Isn’t An Overnight Success
The Anime’s Producers Have Been Working On The Project For Years
In fact, according to therecent AMA,Soto Furahashi had his eyes onSolo Levelinga whopping 5 years before the anime was released.“My first encounter withSolo Levelingwas around 2019, when I started developing an interest in Webtoon. I thought the manhwa was genuinely fascinating, and I felt that if such a visually powerful work were to be adapted into an anime, it would become a truly amazing visual piece. That’s when I initiated the anime adaptation project within Aniplex,” the producer shared with fans.
As you may know, the first season ofSolo Levelingdidn’t come out until 2024 before the second followed in 2025. Furahashi’s note shows that adapting a manhwa takes a lot of time if it is going to be done well. This quote feels more relevant than ever nowadays given how closely anime is tied to webtoons and manhwa. For fans of series likeThe Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint,a good manhwa takes time to flourish on-screen, and shallow adaptations will inevitably flop as we have seen withThe Beginning of the Endas of late.
The Effort Put Into The Solo Leveling Anime Is Clear
Solo Leveling Has Broken Record After Record Thanks To The Work The Producers Put Into It
Solo Levelinglooks magnificent in each one of its 25 episodes, and a large part of that isjust how much effort A-1 Studios has put into the hit manhwa.As mentioned, another beloved manhwa,The Beginning After the End, had such a disastrous debutthat the anime was pronounced dead on arrival. Many fans are holding Studio A-Cat responsible given its limited staff, and in light ofSolo Leveling’s success, the fandom’s anger is understandable.
Honestly, fans ofSolo Levelinglucked out that A-1 Studios optioned the project. Atsushi Kaneko, another producer on the hit anime, mentioned in the above AMA just how much work the studio puts intoSolo Leveling,“Episode 24 really stood out for me. I don’t recall the exact average, but mostSolo Levelingepisodes typically had around 8,000 to 10,000 frames. Episode 24 had about 17,000, which completely eclipses the others”.
When it comes toSolo Leveling, episode 24 is considered one ofthe best fights in its historyas Jinwoo heads to Jeju Island and takes on the Ant King. The fight is stunningly animated, and only a dutiful studio like A-1 Pictures could have pulled it off. From its animation to its voice acting and pacing,Solo Levelingis a triple threat, so it’s no wonder the anime was in production for years before it ever debuted.
