Solo Leveling 2x2 FULL REACTION!
Added 2025-01-12 12:08:39 +0000 UTCAre we getting this quality the entire season?!
2x2 Reaction
Password: SL2x2FL
Comments
Talking about the music, sound, and voice work coming together to make this scene, please rewatch this episode dubbed and tell us how you feel. Im normally a subtitle purist, but the dub for this series is god tier.
J
2025-03-04 00:00:30 +0000 UTCThanks!
MJAnime
2025-02-03 22:20:15 +0000 UTCJinwoo kicked the sword over to Kim hoping he would charge him. In the Manhwa the scene was a lot better/ showed everything. If I remember the system even detected the hostility and said to kill Kim.
Justin Moore
2025-02-03 04:52:48 +0000 UTCAm I mistaken or was there a mistake with Kim's sword? When Jinwoo knocked him away his sword went flying and landed upright in the snow. When Jinwoo realized that he would need a stronger solider to win the fight, the sword was in the frame which for me was foreshadowing that he needed Kim's help. But when Kim came to and realized Jinwoo knocked him out, his sword was on the ground in front of him and he picked it up and ran with it. I don't think I missed anything so I think that might be a mistake.
MJAnime
2025-01-27 03:25:58 +0000 UTCMy favourite part about the episode personally was how they made a big point that Igris and Sung couldn't beat the ice elf king alone, Sung needed Kim dead and didn't hesitate to put the kill order and take the guy for his army. They king even repeated the same line when it charged Kim's shadow, showing that it was a skill being used to taunt the boss, which led to the opening Sung used to kill him eventually. Really nice touch that made the manhwa an absolute pleasure to read, and I'm so glad they didn't miss these details.
Christian Pham
2025-01-21 05:03:36 +0000 UTC@Jo while I respect your pov and understand where you're coming from, I would still respectfully disagree with most of what you said because it doesn't sound like you're being fair in your judgement of Jinwoo. Calling Kim pragmatic for leaving half the group to die while critiquing Jinwoo for inadvertently the same thing doesn't seem fair. Yes Jinwoo can assess power levels and yes this was a red gate but again, Kim wasn't a low rank hunter, he was A class and this was his/WT team's raid. Jinwoo wasn't going to take over the reins right from the start. Plus to add his own power assessment was not always accurate, case in point he reassess Igris's power after watching him fight with his sword and says he's probs only now on par with Igris or actually might still be a bit weaker. Either way, pragmatic is not what I'd call Kim. He was indeed overestimating himself and seeing the others as weaker (not counting the E ranks, I'm referring to the C rank he dismissed also). Kim was the kind of non-monster enemies Jinwoo's had to fight all his life as a hunter prior to the game and this episode was a showcase of Jinwoo, albeit begrudgingly, accept that his is a dog eat dog world in which he's becoming more predator than prey. I'm not saying Kim was a bad person and deserved to die, but he was not better or worse than Jinwoo in that particular circumstance. Kim Chul the human was meant to serve the purpose of furthering the story of Jinwoo in this arc and that's that. His death was meant to make us feel uncomfortable at the morally grey nature of Jinwoo while also feeling some satisfaction/relief ourselves because Kim Chul the person was an asshole who cared little for others so it was in a way karmic for the group he'd led to destruction. (The point about the healer too, perhaps he could have asked her why she wanted to join Jinwoo's group instead of just judging her for joining a mere E-rank). I like to think that Iron is what Kim Chul may have been as a human if he did not have those complexes that were shown to us lol.
Meg
2025-01-18 06:52:06 +0000 UTCI do think Kim Chul gets dealt a bad hand, and isn’t probably that bad a guy outside of these events/is much more pragmatic. I just think that within what we’re given, we as the audience are set-up to dislike Kim from the word go. So when he gets killed, there’s a part of us that goes, “eh well he kind of deserved it”, while also being uncomfortable with it. To me it’s like when a character in a horror movie does something either mean or nasty in the movie that, while in the real world we wouldn’t ever consider as worthy of the death penalty, in the movie when they inevitably die, we can feel a little bit more okay with it. Which is an odd thing imo, but based on what I’ve seen is fairly consistent.
Kaldain
2025-01-14 08:09:31 +0000 UTCI won’t argue with you regarding SJW killing Kim was a morally correct thing to do. I mean on a personal level I’m a pacifist(take that as you will, I’m not trying to virtue signal or anything just have had too much personal violence in my life to see any of it as justified anymore) and so I think him killing Kim was wrong and should be considered as such. That said, I feel that most of your points in support of Kim could be flipped to SJW given just a different perspective. The inner dialogue we get from Kim throughout I believe sets him up to not necessarily to be pragmatic, but rather selfish and egotistical (i.e. him being frustrated at having to “babysit” the rest of them even outside the gate). It seems to me that the author wants us to dislike Kim Chul. So I guess my question is, where do we see his pragmatism? Sure he makes a somewhat pragmatic decision to leave the “deadweight” behind, but his inner monologue’s indicate no care in the decision, as he pushes one hunter down who wants to join, inwardly calls Heejin the healer a fool for going with them for what he thinks is out of pity, and after lying to them saying that if everyone follows his direction they would all live, immediately after leaving them says they are all going to die. He then leads his entire team to their deaths, and then panics and loses all rationale when faced with overwhelming odds. Attacking even his allies when he reaches them, going for the two women straight away. None of those things speak of a pragmatic leader to me. SJW seems much more pragmatic, especially when taking into account that we get hints that he is losing his humanity in these episodes(which was hinted at in season one, but now is confirmed with his convo with the Ice elf). I think that is important to consider, because now we as the audience know he is most likely going to be viewing humanity less and less as “his” as he progresses. Because while you’re right, if he were the most virtuous person, he could have solved that in so many different ways. But why do that when to him his secrets are more important than strangers lives. That interaction in the first clearing he determines who will work with and for him, and who won’t. Kim he determines as egotistical and so writes him off as such, letting them go because he believes working together would only hinder him. He allows those to stay that want to, keeps his word to his sisters friend, and moves forward solo. He even keeps his cool in the face of overwhelming(not as overwhelming to be sure, but still) odds. He knows he can’t beat Baracca on his own/that the Ice elf is stronger than him, and so makes a decision that (is morally wrong I believe) is incredibly pragmatic for himself. Once again, not defending SJW killing Kim. I just think of the two of them, SJW is much more pragmatic than Kim Chul when it comes to leadership and decision making. I feel that the key difference in the consideration is that each of their “humanities” is fundamentally different. Kim Chul is fully human, and should be expected to act as such. SJW we are beginning it seems to understand is maybe not?, and so it seems that he will be much more tribal in his nature. A very “I’ll do right by you if you do right by me”, regardless of species kind of thing. Love your deep dive into it though, and mad respect for the thoughts, would love to hear and thoughts on these thoughts!
Kaldain
2025-01-14 07:57:36 +0000 UTCBut that doesn't make sense. Jin Woo can sense power levels and he would know how well they would fare against the elves. He knew they wouldn't stand a chance. SJW left them to die just as much as Kim Chul left the weaklings in the team to die. Difference being that one was done out of necessity while the other was done on a mere whim. Kim Chul recognized that he couldn't save everyone. He is the only A rank in the team of people that can't save themselves. He can't just keep protecting everyone and putting his own life at risk. If he dies, everyone dies. That's why you protect the King in chess. Meanwhile, SJW knows he is the strongest and CAN protect everyone like he ofc did in the episode, but chose to ignore that path because he was more worried about keeping his own secrets. If he doesn't want people finding out about his abilities, then stop going into dungeons like these other people and either stay in your lane or do your own dungeons from the dungeon keys obtained in the rewards.
Jo
2025-01-14 05:14:30 +0000 UTCYes true, but I would like to rebut a few details: 1. Kim Chul is not a very good leader in the sense that he is not a people person, this is true. But this gate was more or less a test for him from the guild as a promising up and coming lead. This tells me that he's more of a pragmatic leader and not a charismatic one. From his actions, I think he would make a great war general, even if he does not bedazzle the people. Such leaders are still important for obvious reasons. 2. I don't think he was underestimating anyone. He also wasn't overestimating himself. He is an A rank and they did not know what was awaiting them in the dungeon. How could anyone make the claim that an E rank was being underestimated? In their world, E ranks get killed in these situations. The entire show up to this point explains in great details how an E rank gets absolutely destroyed by any D rank, so naturally it would be the most common sense fact that E ranks in an A dungeon red gate is fodder. I think Kim Chul was being 100% rational. Just because we as the viewers understand that SJW is not actually E rank doesn't mean the world owes him any kind of consideration. If SJW wanted a better outcome for everyone, he could just have said that he was the strongest there and it would not be difficult to prove. There, problem solved. 3. You could say that SJW needed him against Beruka, but then that would make him a murderer and a hypocrite (which he is). Kim Chul left half to die, but that's not a bad thing in this situation, it's the obvious choice to make. You cannot have E rank dead weight in a red gate. It's just inconceivable to argue anything other than that. If you infected a leg and the poison would kill your body, would you not cut off your leg to preserve your life? Same exact situation is happening here. Difference being that Kim Chul could not possibly have known what was awaiting the party. It's not like Kim Chul wanted to send them to their deaths, he just had to make the hard choice for the betterment of survival. This was a reaction to an uncommon situation that became lethal for everyone present, including himself. Was he thinking of himself as well when coming up with the division strategy? Yeah I'd say so... but so would anyone in that situation. It's not like you would think of yourself dying as an expected or wanted outcome. That wouldn't make any sense. You would obviously craft a strategy in which you survive as well, ideally with everyone else. 4. It's easy why he would be antagonistic towards Park. She is a healer and could have assisted his team if they went with his group. It's easy to see how anyone would come to the conclusion of betrayal and/or collusion. Especially when being doped up on the last shreds of fight or flight adrenaline like he was likely in, everyone could seem like an enemy. From Kim Chul's point of view, he was convinced that they could have beaten the elves if they had the right setup (he doesn't know how strong Beruka really is, but another supporting argument to why he drew his sword against Park). And tbh, with Baek there, they could have taken on the elves. His thought process wasn't wrong, but he was wrong in the sense that they could have taken the elves with their group, even in their best conditions. He definitely needed more A ranks and possibly an S rank to make this a success. Additionally, Park stayed quiet about seeing SJW catch the arrow. I don't see any valid reason why she would not speak up about it unless she just didn't care about the lives of the hunters in her own guild. If you think Kim Chul is an asshole for his decisions, you would also have to consider her just as much of an asshole, as well as SJW. It's only fair. 5. I like your idea of allying to beat the boss. That would have been for the best outcome given their situation at the time, but SJW did not allow this to happen. He could have assuaged an angry Kim Chul or handled the situation in about 100 other different ways but he chose the most antagonistic to the cause. He just attacks Kim Chul, which only confirms his suspicions that they were against him and the group from the very beginning. I mean, it doesn't take a whole jump of logic to get to the conclusion that escalating a bad situation with more violence to serve your own purposes does not benefit anyone but yourself. This is the truth of the situation. SJW had the power and ability to resolve this in a number of ways with a number of different outcomes, but he did not do so intentionally. This is further emphasized when he thinks back on killing Kim Chul later in the episode. He is in the dark, in front of a mirror, taking a hard look at himself and cleansing... thinking of dark things he did - killing a life for his own agenda and justifying it to himself at the time. However, he did reflect on it later, which tells me that he knows what he did was wrong. It's a very symbolic scene and I think it speaks way more about him that people don't actually catch on to; the body language and meaning behind the actions. Those are my 2 cents on the matter.
Jo
2025-01-14 04:37:19 +0000 UTCAlso wanted to add that while Jinwoo could have said something when Kim initially split them up, the reason he didn't was likely because a) he genuinely did not think an A rank and other B ranks wouldn't fare well in a red gate especially given the way Kim was sounding so confident and B) since Ahn told him this was a mission for the WT guild members he couldn't overrule Kim's authority since it wasn't his place to do.
Meg
2025-01-14 04:04:42 +0000 UTCYou make some good points, however just like you justified Kim Chul's decision to split the team based for survival, I would say the same is true for Jinwoo when he realized he'd need a stronger opponent against Barca and decided to use Kim Chul. The key difference between both though is that unlike Jinwoo, Kim Chul left half of them to die from the get go just on the premise that he can't take care of all of them, and he weeded out the weakest members and only joined up with the higher ranking ones. Yes, being a leader in that situation is tough, but he did not in fact act like a leader back there. Kim Chul's downfall was because he overestimated himself while underestimating everyone else, including Jinwoo, if not he would have noticed he saved Songyi from the Ice Elves and suspected him like the healer Park Heejin did. I won't argue that Jinwoo's morality was questionable there and that is part of his character development in this series, however him killing Kim Chul was a result of Kim's own actions, even if Jinwoo did set it up. Kim lost himself to his rage and didn't even note the bigger enemy before them, him rushing to Jinwoo to kill him would have forced Jinwoo to end him anyway once his killer intent activated the system. Also had Kim not been weakened after a week of no food, I feel like Jinwoo would have considered allying with him to fight Barca instead of using him as a shadow soldier, but Kim's own actions made it obvious that he wouldn't ally with Jinwoo that way. Jinwoo's decision was just as tough, if not tougher than what Kim had to do. But it's a dog eat dog world they were in so of Kim's choices could be justified because it was a red gate, then so could Jinwoo's because Barca was just that tough to beat. 🤷🏻♀️ (sorry for the long reply 😅)
Meg
2025-01-14 03:58:29 +0000 UTC1 on 1, yeah, I agree. He still needs to get stronger for the demon castle, too!
Angela
2025-01-14 03:28:35 +0000 UTCThe manga has so many funny moments so this is giving me hope that the anime will honor it. It's a much appreciated breather in between from how dark the series can get at times. You guys will absolutely love it! It's only been two eps so far but this season gives me hope that the anime will keep the manga's tone both in terms of the seriousness and the funny moments as true to source as possible.
Meg
2025-01-14 03:28:16 +0000 UTCGreat reaction as always! So glad you're enjoying the start of this season! Something interesting to note is that while this is the third time Jinwoo has killed a person, it's the first time he's done so unprompted by the system and premeditated. He very much intentionally sets up the situation to kill Kim Chul because he's more useful to Jinwoo as part of the shadow army. Jinwoo mentions that "he needs a stronger fighting force" while Kim Chul's sword is focused in frame. Then we can see when Jinwoo and Barca/Baruka jump towards each other Jinwoo kicks the sword towards Kim Chul (this is shown more clearly in the manwha). When Kim Chul attacks Jinwoo, Jinwoo says "I figured that was your next move" confirming that Jinwoo intentionally set up Kim Chul by giving the sword back in order for him to attack Jinwoo so he had an excuse to kill him and add him to the shadow army (while making it look like it was self-defence). Kim Chul's comment of "You knew this would happen" is him realizing that Jinwoo set him up.
Jamie
2025-01-14 03:14:42 +0000 UTCI was so glad that they kept the humour of the manwha! The shadow army antics are some of the best parts of the story. And yes, very excited for you-know-who!!
Jamie
2025-01-14 03:06:17 +0000 UTCJin Woo would die if he fought against Dongsoo at this point. It wouldn't even be close. He really lucked out that it was a red gate (lol system).
Jo
2025-01-14 02:40:01 +0000 UTCGreat reaction but I'll have to disagree with your assessment of Kim Chul. Was he an asshole? Yes, but this was a red gate and he was making the tough choice of picking out the best team for survival's sake. It's tough being a leader and if you haven't been in that position, I don't think it's a fair judgment to speak on it. However, he did choose a scapegoat for the failure of the mission and I think it's perfectly rational and understandable that he would think Park had some level of collusion with Jin Woo, especially when it makes no sense logically to go with a group that's got low ranking hunters in it (basically a death sentence if Jin Woo was not a player). I'll take it even further. I'll say it's a bigger scumbag move for Jin Woo to kill him. Yes he was hostile but Jin Woo had the power to mitigate this outcome and chose to kill him of his own volition because without him, he would have likely lost against Baruka. This is one of the areas of moral talking points that I wish people would bring up more against Jin Woo. I think it's interesting to talk about his morality throughout the series, especially when he has a problem when others do it, but thinks it's justified when he does this to others. Thoughts?
Jo
2025-01-14 02:35:48 +0000 UTCDongsoo would be a crazy addition! 😍
Carlie & Ange
2025-01-14 02:12:58 +0000 UTCThanks to much Meg! Glad you liked it. We’re looking forward to future episodes too, seasons off the an incredible start! 🔥
Carlie & Ange
2025-01-14 02:07:54 +0000 UTCI was wondering if the honour was anime exclusive, but it’s cool to know it was in the manhwa originally! Can’t wait to see more of the shadow soldiers now 😂
Carlie & Ange
2025-01-14 02:05:56 +0000 UTCIt was self defense, I see nothing wrong here xD
Ryan
2025-01-13 21:21:05 +0000 UTCngl i subbed bc i tought i was getting fullscreen reactions just like all the other content creator...
Rashh Beats
2025-01-13 19:09:42 +0000 UTCYou were talking about who else they might add to the army... What about Dongsoo? I think that's his name. The younger brother that's after Jinwoo? He would make a great addition to the army! LOL!
Angela
2025-01-13 17:56:02 +0000 UTCKeep watching.
hsyer
2025-01-13 13:49:48 +0000 UTCthat's my goat diddy woo
Jeff
2025-01-13 08:53:03 +0000 UTCNot exactly a spoiler but tq SO MUCH
Joan
2025-01-12 23:32:24 +0000 UTCOhhh I didn’t notice that on the first watch good catch
Joan
2025-01-12 23:31:55 +0000 UTCMy interpretation of the scene where the leader of the ice elves is glitching out, is that the system doesn't want Jinwoo to know what the elves truly are/where the elves come from. It's interesting to think about because we're given very little info on where the gates come from, and how these different monsters and dungeon enemies exist. Maybe I'm reading into it too much and it doesn't go anywhere (or just doesn't really matter), but it seems like there's potential for more narrative depth to the system. A good example of this is when the leader of the elves, Barca (Baruka), says "i haven't enjoyed a fight like this in ages". Which could imply that the elves have been around for a very long period of time. It's also highly likely that it's just the system programming them to behave and speak this way. It begs a question though, what the system is and what it wants from Jinwoo. I'm just a sucker for compelling narratives, so it would be cool if they narratively explored this system more (not saying it has to in order to be good). Either way, great episode! A-1 Pictures do an incredible job with these fights and the visuals of everything. PEAK
Gabriel Barott
2025-01-12 18:06:02 +0000 UTCIdk man jinwoo might have to catch a stray bullet in the future lol
Dune
2025-01-12 17:17:36 +0000 UTCi really like that army has their own personality and quirks. yes they wont speak but they add to atmosphere and with iron mimicing kim's nature (stubborn, egotistic, holding grudge, thats just few things i saw in iron that i saw in kim as well)... it just makes me like igris even more because to me this says igris is loyal to sung jinwoo because that is igris personality and he does it because thats part of who igris is and not because game system force him into loyalty like some slave. its cool detail and made me really like igris more :D
Cayseron
2025-01-12 16:20:23 +0000 UTCi like how they managed to integrate the game mechanic called "taunt" in the anime/webtoon and make it work exactly the same (tank unleashed aura making all the enemy targets inside it focus on him and getting all the aggro) yet they did not break the immersion from the world they are in. We can clearly see the ice elf king/leader immediately target "IRON" after he does the red aura shout that is clearly taunt skill but it also feels part of his character and not magic inclination or part of the game. like when he shouts "you are going to die first", it feels like he acts on his own and not because game forces him to
Cayseron
2025-01-12 16:05:40 +0000 UTCSpoilers: Dont worry (slightly more info lower) There is no harem and she's not really relevant for much longer after this. Don't worry about it.
Chimpman
2025-01-12 15:58:49 +0000 UTCRizz Jinwoo did Kim so dirty not even letting him keep his name after murking him without warning. S2 == villain arc ??
Khalayx
2025-01-12 15:57:43 +0000 UTCWe're eating good this season if the later part has this level of quality
Night Sterling
2025-01-12 15:08:07 +0000 UTCIron wasn't resisting Jinwoo. I think he used something that in video games is called ''taunt''- you yell at the enemies and make them focus on you, that's a common ability for a warrior/tank. Notice how everytime he yelled Barca switched from attcking Jinwoo to attacking Iron
Yashu
2025-01-12 14:02:47 +0000 UTCI think Jinwoo was ''down'' after leaving the gate from combination of failing to resurrect Barca and having to kill Kim. The guy was an asshole tru, but still, Jinwoo just killed a man...again
Yashu
2025-01-12 13:55:40 +0000 UTCThis season will be peak you guys aren't ready for it 🔥
Maya Coleman
2025-01-12 13:53:37 +0000 UTCYesss and also eager for you-know-who to join the gang!!
Meg
2025-01-12 13:47:54 +0000 UTCAnge's covers never disappoint! The second half was wayyy too good!! Love your reaction to Iron's addition to the team. He's a riot in the manhwa so looking forward to him in the anime as well. He wasn't resisting Jinwoo in that one scene, that was him gearing up to do the shout of provocation (or whatever it's called) against Barca. I do think A1 will keep this quality for the rest of the season. Barca was incredible, loved his voice actor too. Song-yi's crush on Jinwoo is kinda cute and Jinho's misunderstanding was hilarious. Once again, can't wait for future episodes and seeing your reactions to them!!
Meg
2025-01-12 13:46:33 +0000 UTCI'm SO looking forward to all the little antics of the shadow army!
Phaerroh
2025-01-12 13:26:54 +0000 UTCI didnt like how they made an underage girl fall for him and hinted at possible harem (I have not read the manga yet), but the animation is peak leveling it felt so satisfying watching the fight scenes 😮💨
Joan
2025-01-12 13:14:57 +0000 UTCyeah i hope they do, i dont see any announcements anywhere though so maybe not
Synatx error
2025-01-12 13:08:18 +0000 UTCIron is such a simpleton, I love him.
NavigatorLuna
2025-01-12 13:07:25 +0000 UTCBarca, the ice elf boss glitching out was the system stopping him from answering Jinwoo's question or atleast from Jinwoo getting an answer.
Phil
2025-01-12 13:07:18 +0000 UTCIron >>>>>>>>> Kim Chul
FTN Chicken
2025-01-12 13:04:53 +0000 UTCYou guys gonna watch sakamoto days? to replace Dandadan?
Creative Umair
2025-01-12 13:04:44 +0000 UTCYESSSS I've been waiting for you guys' reaction to this episode! 😍 😍 We're in for a treat this season! I watched the first two eps in the theaters here and it was sooo good! I'm so glad they kept in the humor element from the manhwa with Iron and the shadow soldiers. So so excited for the upcoming episodes. A1 truly cooked!! 😍 😍 😍
Meg
2025-01-12 12:51:54 +0000 UTCConsidering this season is going to have several episodes that top even THIS ONE, you're in for a treat.
Xaniss
2025-01-12 12:47:50 +0000 UTCYes! This season will be peak!!
Kevin Pahson
2025-01-12 12:22:06 +0000 UTCPeak leveling
Gavin fox
2025-01-12 12:21:48 +0000 UTC
