Thanks for visiting Anime Rants! Today we’re reviewing the most recent episodes of Solo Leveling Season 2. Since depression and addiction are kicking my ass lately, this will be a shorter than usual post and may skip a few points worth mentioning. Sorry about that. Writing is hard when it feels like the world is burning and my hormones are a mess on top of everything else, haha. Anyway, please enjoy these short recaps.
- Episode 23: It’s Going to Get Even More Intense
- Episode 24: Are You The King of Humans?
Episode 23: It’s Going to Get Even More Intense
Episode Rating: 9/10
This was an exciting and dark episode. It started with a scene of several Japanese S-Rank Hunters getting slaughtered by the new king of the ants, who is referred to “The Black Ant” even though he looks dark blue to me. While that was happening, the team of South Korean Hunters went deeper into the ant nest. Thanks to Baek’s power of clairvoyance, they found the Queen Ant.
Together, the team of Hunters killed the Queen Ant. Baek’s beast form was so cool, and I’m a bit of a furry, so you know I’m having certain thoughts about that beast. 😉 Hunter Cha finished off the Queen with her amazing sword skills. Just as everyone started relaxing, the Black Ant arrived. He had killed six of the Japanese Hunters without effort. As if to show off his brutality, he ate some pieces of his dead mother before beginning his attack. (Another reference to Hunter x Hunter.)
As a beautiful but haunting song played (“Dark Aria Lvl2” by Hiroyuki Sawano), the Black Ant thrashed the absolute hell out of the Hunters. He fatally wounded all of them, but Byung-gu kept healing them. The Black Ant noticed this and promptly killed the healer, stabbing him from behind and ripping off his head. The Black Ant hurt everyone badly, but left before killing anyone else. He said he wanted to find the king of the humans and fight him. (Yes, the Black Ant can talk.)
While outside the nest, the Black Ant encountered Goto, leader of the Japanese Hunters. Thinking Goto was the king of the humans, the ant king attacked. Meanwhile, the Hunters back in the nest were about to be overwhelmed by ant soldiers. Suddenly, Jinwoo’s warriors appeared from their shadows to help defend them. Jinwoo himself traded places with one of them and materialized in the nest, much to everyone’s shock. It was time for the tables to turn.
Episode 24: Are You The King of Humans?
Episode Rating: 9/10
Having arrived in the ant nest, Jinwoo gave potions of healing to everyone. Baek, Ma, and the others were all instantly healed – everyone except Cha, who was too badly hurt for the potion to take effect. Before the group could hurry and get the wounded lady to safety, the Black Ant returned. He had killed Goto and was still looking for a fight. As the other Hunters stared in disbelief, Jinwoo faced off with the deadly monster.
Meanwhile, the Japanese leader was trying to find a way for political gain, even after seven of the ten strongest Japanese Hunters died. This man is an absolute scumbag! Once he heard that the Black Ant was returning to the nest, he ordered the three surviving Hunters to go back onto the Island and finish it off. He hoped that by then, the Korean Hunters would have died weakening the threat. The glory for the victory would go to Japan. That’s all this man cared about.
The battle between Jinwoo and the ant king was stunning. Even though I knew Jinwoo would win, I was still excited to see how the fight would go down. It was thriling, colorful, and bombastic! The animation and music were both great. It looked less like a man fighting a beast and more like two magical monsters fighting for godhood. Jinwoo’s mind remained human, but to all appearances, he was basically a monster.
At one point, Jinwoo got poisoned by the ant’s whip-like tongue, but his resistance to toxins quickly neutralized the threat. In the end, the ant tried to run away on all fours, truly terrified of the one being stronger than him. Jinwoo finished off the enemy with the upgraded form of his special skill, Mutilation. He used his two best daggers for the task. Finally, the threat was over, and the remaining ant soldiers fled.
Jinwoo hurried to Cha’s side. The brave Hunter’s aura was fading fast as she lay dying. Desperate to save her, Jinwoo used a little bit of the remaining Elixir of Life. However, even that had no effect on Cha’s damaged body. Jinwoo frantically tried to think of another way to prevent Cha’s death. The episode left us with that cliffhanger. Join me next week for a review of the final episode of Solo Leveling Season 2!
~Thanks for reading~
Written by 7Mononoke
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