This post contains SPOILERS for Solo Leveling and Solo Leveling Ragnarok.
Solo Leveling Ragnarok is an incredible spin-off or sequel manga series that expands on the universe of Solo Leveling. While the original series focused on the leveling-up of Sung Jinwoo, Ragnarok puts Jinwoo's son, Sung Suho, in the spotlight. Solo Leveling introduced us to beings like Monarchs and Rulers, sentient beings who have been fighting a war for eons.
Solo Leveling explained that Itarim, a godly entity, created Monarchs and Rulers in Jinwoo's universe. However, just as there is more than one universe, there are more than one Itarim being. While Solo Leveling focused on the creation of a single Itarim being (Monarchs and Rulers), Ragnarok introduced us to the creation of other Itarim. Yes, we are talking about Apostles, beings who want to capture Jinwoo's world at the behest of their creators. Since Apostles are also created by other Itarim Gods, it's normal for fans to assume that Apostles are similar to Monarchs and Rulers, but it's a little more complicated than that.
Solo Leveling Ragnarok: Where Is Sung Jinwoo In The Sequel Series?
Every fan who has starts reading Solo Leveling Ragnarok after finishing the original series wonders where exactly Jinwoo is in the sequel.
Apostles Are Nothing More Than Tools For Itarim In Solo Leveling
Their Only Purpose Is To Serve The Itarim
In the Solo Leveling lore, we learned that there are not one but several Itarim beings in the multiverse. Each Itarim, or Outer God, created their respective universes and watched their creations fight each other for eons. The Itarim of Jinwoo's universe created Monarchs and Rulers and allowed his creations to fight each other just for the sake of entertainment. Later on in the story, the Rulers realized that they are nothing but pawns to the Absolute Being, so they rebelled and killed their creator. You could say that Rulers escaped the Matrix by killing off the entity that created them in the first place.
However, this realization of self isn't common, and maybe that is why the Apostles never broke free from the programming set by their creators. Just like Monarchs and Rulers, Apostles were created by the Outer Gods, from the other universes, of course. However, unlike the Itarim of Jinwoo's universe, these other Outer Gods didn't make their creations fight each other. Instead, they produced or created Apostles so they could serve their creator for eternity. And unlike Rulers, the Apostles never broke free from the programming. Instead, these Apostles have been fighting Jinwoo's Shadow Army at the behest of their creators.
Apostles Are The Same As Monarchs And Rulers
But The Apostles Are Much Weaker
One may wonder if Rulers were able to kill the Absolute Being, can the Apostles do the same if they ever rebelled against their creators? Certainly not. To understand this, we'd have to go back and discuss how the Apostles were created.
When there was nothing in the universe, the Absolute Being split the light to create eight Rulers, and the darkness to create a similar number of Monarchs. The other Outer Gods also utilized the Primordial Light and Darkness to create Apostles, but there was a slight variation in their strategy. Interestingly, the Absolute Being split the Primordial light and darkness among eight Monarchs and eight Rulers. Apostles, on the other hand, were mass-produced by their creator.
In Solo Leveling, the amount of Primordial Darkness of Light each entity has within themselves defines their overall strength. That is why Jinwoo is stronger than other Monarchs and Rulers, because he has both Light and Darkness inside of him. And since Apostles were mass-produced, the amount of Primordial Light they hold inside of them is comparatively less than the Rulers. Of course, the Apostles are strong in numbers, but they are much weaker than the Rulers when it comes to raw power or strength. So, to answer the above question, no, Apostles can't ever kill an Itarim like how the Rulers killed the Absolute Being.
Solo Leveling: Every God In Solo Leveling
The Monarchs and Rulers in the Solo Leveling anime act as gods to the world of humans, fighting an endless war that Sung Jin-Woo has just entered.
In fact, in Solo Leveling Ragnarok, Apostles didn't even come close to killing any Ruler so far. Of course, the Apostles are way more in numbers, so they can attack Jinwoo's universe from different directions, but so far, the Shadow Army has successfully prevented the Apostles from taking over the universe. All being said, Apostles aren't some weak foot soldiers either. Even an S-Rank Hunter will struggle against an Apostle, and it will take the strength or power of a National Level Hunter to defeat these puppets of the Itarim.
- Release Date
- 2024 - 2025-00-00
- Network
- Tokyo MX, Gunma TV, BS11, Tochigi TV
- Directors
- Tatsuya Sasaki, Toru Hamasaki
- Writers
- Shigeru Murakoshi, Shingo Irie, Fuka Ishii
Cast
-
Taito BanSung Jin-woo -
Genta NakamuraYoo Jin-ho
A-1 Pictures' Solo Leveling is an anime based on Chugong's popular web novel. Set in an unforgiving fantasy world where hunters explore dungeons filled with monsters, the vulnerable Sung Jinwoo gains a significant power boost after he is picked to be a solo player by the System.
- Main Genre
- Animation
- Seasons
- 1
- Studio
- A-1 Pictures
- Producers
- Kanako Takahashi, Kang Kyewon, Kim Ayoung, Park Jin-hae, Sota Furuhashi
- Based On
- Manhwa
- Creator
- Chugong
- Number of Episodes
- 25
- Streaming Service(s)
- Crunchyroll
- MyAnimeList Score
- 8.28 (Season 1); 8.86 (Season 2)
- Creator(s)
- Chugong
- Where To Watch
- Crunchyroll
- Executive Producer(s)
- Asa Suehira, Kwak Hae-eun, Masanori Miyake
