Solo Leveling Episode 4 Review

Leveling Up

Solo Leveling Episode 4 was another pretty decent episode. The series is definitely overrated on MyAnimeList right now. And, like most anime on there, will likely continue to be. But, at least we’re now into the good content of the series.

In this episode, Jin-Woo leveled up for the first time. He then leveled up many more times. Unfortunately, we don’t know exactly how many times it was. We didn’t see his status screen after he was level 2. And, I’m not going back to count how many times the level-up screen appeared.

But, his precise level isn’t what matters right now. What matters for now is how leveling up impacts his stats. It seems a little overpowered if you ask me. So, every time Jin-Woo levels up, he gains a point in each of his five major stats.

In case you’re wondering, the major stats are strength, agility, perception, vitality, and intelligence. He also has HP and MP stats. But, those don’t appear to increase upon leveling up. I would assume that those are two stats that won’t change. At least, based on logic and what we know of this world.

His HP is literally his health. So, that not going up makes sense. And, we already know that your MP is set when you awaken. Since we see his MP is still only at 11, this could be evidence that he didn’t undergo a second awakening.

But, why is leveling up so powerful? Even if he can’t choose where the points go, he gets five ability points. Daily training only provides three. And, while he puts all his daily points into strength, that’s not necessarily the best choice. Leveling up forces him to become more well-rounded, which is good in the long run.

King of the Swamp

If you want more proof of how overpowered leveling up is, just look at the fight against the King of the Swamp. Jin-Woo assumes this was a C-rank boss based on its drops. And, if that’s the case, he leveled up a lot from fighting some basic monsters.

In the end, he killed the King of the Swamp with his bare hands. He choked it to death despite not being able to wrap his arms all the way around it. In my mind, that would put Jin-Woo at B-rank, at least.

Based on what we see later in the episode, he might even be higher-ranked than that. And, again, this is all from him defeating some low-ranked monsters and a single boss. Imagine how strong he’ll be after fighting some monsters that aren’t weaklings. He’ll become Saitama in no time.

Anyway, I wasn’t that impressed by this fight. I’m sure there are many people out there who thought it was cool. And I’m sure there are many who thought this was a powerful opponent Jin-Woo had to overcome. But, was it really? I don’t see it that way.

Yes, during the entire fight, Jin-Woo kept commenting on how weak he was. He also kept commenting on how fast and strong the King of the Swamp was. However, it never felt like Jin-Woo was actually in any danger. And if you want proof of that, look at all the attacks he was tanking.

He got hit hard multiple times. He even got hit through cement pillars. And yet, he was able to get up again without any serious injuries. This alone should prove how strong Jin-Woo was even by this point. The boss wasn’t stronger than him. He was underestimating himself.

D-Rank Dungeon Break

Before I get to the dungeon break, there’s one more thing I want to mention. Jin-Woo said that the monsters within the instance dungeon weren’t the same as those within the gates. This implies that the gates may not be part of the “game” he’s a player in.

I don’t know what the full implications are. But, it’s possible that this gamification only applies to Jin-Woo and isn’t the “true nature” of the gates. Now, with that said, the timing of the dungeon break in Episode 4 was a bit suspicious. It seems to have happened when Jin-Woo defeated the boss of his instance dungeon.

That’s the only potential connection between the two dungeon’s, though. As far as we know, they have nothing else in common. They aren’t even classified as the same ranks. Though, it’s not exactly clear what rank Jin-Woo’s instance dungeon was.

By the time Jin-Woo makes it out of the instance dungeon, the dungeon break is almost contained. There’s only one monster left — the boss. And, Jin-Woo uses his perception to identify it as a likely D-rank boss. That means it’s weaker than the C-rank boss he just soloed.

So, what does Jin-Woo do? Does he jump into the fray and save the other hunters by taking out the boss on his own? That’s what I expected him to do. But, that’s not what happened. Instead, he threw a sword at the boss, shattering its defenses. This allowed the other hunters to finish it off.

Why didn’t Jin-Woo take a more active role? If I were him, I’d want to show off my new strength. You know, prove to everyone that you aren’t humanity’s weakest hunter anymore. But, I guess with his heightened intelligence stat, Jin-Woo has a plan.

Final Thoughts

What do you think of Solo Leveling Episode 4? Which of the five major stats would you put your ability points into? Did you also think that the King of the Swamp fight wasn’t as hard as Jin-Woo made it out to be? And, what rank do you think Jin-Woo is by the end of the episode?

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Finally, I’d like to thank Roman and JasonHK for supporting DoubleSama.com at the Heika tier this month. To learn more about supporting this blog, check out DoubleSama.com/support.

My review of Episode 5 is available now.