Solo Leveling is the Matrix TV show I\u2019ve always wanted CrunchyrollSolo Leveling\u2019s blend of fantasy and sci-fi tropes holds clear influence from The Matrix, but Sung Jinwoo\u2019s journey actually improves on Neo\u2019s. I rewatched the first three The Matrix movies recently, and let me tell you, they hold up. Yes, the sequels are a bit uneven, but the universe, ambition, and unrepentant creativity from Lilly and Lana Wachowski has aged like fine wine. After devouring Neo\u2019s journey, I went through The Animatrix, the animated compendium of short films demonstrating other corners of the war against the machines. I love The Matrix, and I\u2019m always left disappointed that there isn\u2019t more to see within the franchise. Thankfully, this winter season gave me Solo Leveling, an anime show that has filled the Matrix-shaped hole in my brain. Sung Jinwoo\u2019s AI-aided journey through an alternate universe mirrors Neo\u2019s own adventure, but with the added inflection of him being a regular person who\u2019s less destined for greatness and more the right person at the right time. Sung Jinwoo is the One In the first episode, Sung Jinwoo sacrifices himself to save what remains of a group of heroes after they get trapped in a terrifying dungeon where enormous stone gods run through anyone who isn\u2019t clever enough to understand their patterns. Sung was just smart enough to see through the gods\u2019 attacks but at the expense of his own body. Miraculously, he wakes up in hospital after being rescued, with no injuries and a bizarre interface only he can see. Some sort of system has chosen him, granting him the ability to level up his rank by completing different quests. Once he begins to understand his newfound strength, he starts tackling more dangerous and elaborate enemies. You can see strands of The Matrix within Solo Leveling\u2019s DNA \u2014 a predestined hero, the melding of our reality with some form of elaborate technology, and a foreboding sense there are multiple layers to what\u2019s really going on. But then creator Chugong uses it all in a distinct fashion, by incorporating a fantastical twist. The Matrix, but make it DnD Dungeons and Dragons is a pivotal touchstone, since the encroaching enemies mostly manifest as rudimentary monsters like goblins, serpents, and werewolves. They appear through inexplicable gates that have been opening, seemingly at random, for years, with certain people having powers that allow them to enter the portals, kill the boss, and collect loot. It puts a fun twist on the man vs. machine paradigm, by giving the machine a creative streak in the enemies and obstacles it creates. Sung can purchase potions in a store and acquire keys from different bosses, all giving it the flair of a DnD session \u2014 just one that\u2019s deeply meta and gone totally awry. (Is there any other kind?) Solo Leveling has the air of an episode of The Animatrix, and you can imagine the first two episodes making a condensed short: a gaggle of adventurers get lost, find some horrendous glitch, one survives with a mysterious tether to the simulation\u2019s code. Chugong\u2019s manhwa massages and contorts the concept using fantasy elements to make a story that requires more space. The symbiosis of DnD and The Matrix is remarkably fluid. Sung\u2019s progression is clearly signposted, though we\u2019re still limited to the knowledge he\u2019s presented, and we have a clear sense of scaling for the enemies and stages he has to face. Solo Leveling provides a version of The One without the narrative crutches of uploading skills to one\u2019s mind on a whim. This is not to criticize The Matrix; I consider it as close to a perfect action movie as we have, and learning new skills coming in literal patches is an ingenious way to manufacture huge scenes, but I\u2019m left wondering what it\u2019s like for people who don\u2019t have a Morpheus or Trinity. A glitch in the simulation There are those whose glitching arrives without context, pushing them to figure out what they can do by throwing themselves into impossible scenarios. What was it like for the first person in The Matrix to realize they could jump from high-rise to high-rise? I\u2019m willing to bet it was a shock to any agents when their target was able to do kung fu after just running around a corner. We get these moments in Solo Leveling. The foolhardy exploration and over-exertion, the feeling of fear and excitement. The sense of progression couched in lingering unanswered questions. Whatever\u2019s going on, Sung has no shepherd. There\u2019s not even a burning bush, just some menus logging his progression and telling him what\u2019s next. Sung\u2019s choices have urgency because he\u2019s getting stronger but still struggles when he brushes against his limits. His clash with Cerberus was so hard fought that he decided to walk away and grind before moving on to the next level. He might have seen the face of God, but his blessing doesn\u2019t make him immune to his own humanity. He can die, and given he\u2019s on his own most of the time, he will if he isn\u2019t careful. No matter how powerful he becomes, he still has those E-level instincts. That\u2019s the trail I\u2019ve long desired to see The Matrix follow. Where a human being sees all the code, but has to learn the appropriate passages to ascend. The throughline of a Christ figure who has no apostles and no messiah, and whose scripture is popups for new quests and skill points. Whose story comes with goofy candor and undiminished self-belief. It\u2019s definitely not as flashy as The Matrix, but I feel like I understand Sung more than Neo. Maybe he\u2019s the One I\u2019ve been waiting for.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Solo Leveling is the Matrix TV show I\u2019ve always wanted CrunchyrollSolo Leveling\u2019s blend of fantasy and sci-fi tropes holds clear influence from The Matrix, but Sung Jinwoo\u2019s journey actually improves on Neo\u2019s. I rewatched the first three The Matrix movies recently, and let me tell you, they hold up. Yes, the sequels are a bit […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13584","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13584","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13584"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13584\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13584"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13584"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dejan.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13584"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}