One of the go-to concepts of modern-day storytelling is the existence of a multiverse. The trope is everywhere, from anime to movies. A concept that was once a ground-breaking idea is now a book that no one wants to read.
Just as I was starting to forget about this overused trope, Solo Leveling, out of all the universes decided to remind me of it through the latest chapter of Solo Leveling: Ragnarok.
Ragnarok has confirmed a Solo Leveling multiverse
Solo Leveling: Ragnarok, for those of you who are unaware, is the sequel to Solo Leveling and tells the story of Sung Suho, the son of Sung Jinwoo and Cha Hae-In (congrats shippers).
The story tells us that after settling down with Cha Hae-In, Sung Jinwoo had to carry out his duties as the Shadow Monarch and had to leave his life behind to protect the universe from alien gods known as the Itarim.
We follow Sung Suho, who learns that his father, who is protecting the entire universe by himself, needs his help. After learning this and getting access to the system, Suho decides that he will grow strong enough to help his father.
From this point on, the story is like Solo Leveling, with Suho leveling up and going on different quests to get stronger. Suho is a great protagonist, and he is supported by Beru, Esil, Gray, and Ammut.
While the manhwa has never touched on the topic of the multiverse, Chapter 46 changed that. In Chapter 46, we see Suho going through a Job Change quest where he has to defeat a clone of himself to clear the quest.
At first sight, Suho sees that the clone, unlike him, is wielding swords. Suho is a brawler and fights with his fists, so the clone’s fighting style confuses him (it confused me, too).
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Assuming that the clone was a simple construct of the system, Suho ignores this and starts the quest. During the fight, Suho gets injured and experiences memories that do not seem to be his own.
This is when he realises that what he is fighting is not a clone but an alternate version of himself from another universe.
He sees that while the alternate version received easy tasks from the system that gave it a steady growth, he only received tasks that pushed him to the absolute limit. Instead of breaking down about this prospect, he finds the strength to carry on and clears the quest.
While the twist opens up new possibilities for the franchise, does it add substance to the story? Or is it just a nod to a tired and overused trend?
A tired and overused trope in today’s world
Ever since the MCU and Avengers popularized the idea of the existence of infinite universes, every existing franchise has tried its hand at incorporating the idea into its story.
This has caused the concept to devolve into a tired and overused trope that is seldom implemented properly. It often gives the impression that the creator has nothing new to offer and, hence, is resorting to using a cheat code to forward the story.
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While the use of an alternate Suho was supposed to allow character growth, it just reminded the audience of how boring the concept of the multiverse had gotten and left a bad taste in everyone’s mouth.
I feel like it would be the best for Solo Leveling: Ragnarok if this is the last time the manhwa mentions the concept of the multiverse.
The multiverse was used in Chapter 46 to provide Suho with the necessary character growth. By facing his alternate version, he realised that moping around and crying is of no use to him, and he decided that taking advantage of the system is the best thing to do to get strong.
This is where the multiverse should end because a concept like multiverse lowers the stakes of the story and just makes it feel like the author doesn’t have anything else to add to the lore.
Solo Leveling: Ragnarok’s chapters are available on Kakaopage and Tapas.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
