Jujutsu Kaisen and Solo Leveling are both extremely popular anime. They are powerhouses among the modern anime series, with millions of fans worldwide. Yet, when it comes down to it, they struggle with the same fundamental issue of focusing on their protagonists.
Jujutsu Kaisen is a narrative with rich characters, lore, and development. So much so that the protagonist himself feels secondary to the narrative. The anime has faced a lot of criticism for sidelining Yuji Itadori in favor of not one but many side characters.
Characters like Gojo Satoru and Sukuna steal the spotlight and feel much more alive than Yuji, who seems to develop very little throughout. On the contrary, we have Solo Leveling, which does the exact opposite, making everything revolve around Jinwoo, the protagonist, without giving the side characters many chances to develop.
Jujutsu Kaisen’s mistake was sidelining Yuji for far too long
Jujutsu Kaisen started strong; it had a unique narrative rooted in dark fantasy, lore, supernatural abilities, friendship, and mystery. But as the series went on, Yuji went from being an emotionally cognizant and intuitive protagonist to a side character.
The reactions of side characters, their thoughts, and emotions were widely depicted, whereas Yuji felt like an unfeeling, dense protagonist who just acted on instincts without much thought.
There is no deep development, and unlike characters like Gojo, Yuta, and Fushiguro, Yuji felt insignificant as a fleshed-out character. Especially considering that he was supposed to be at the core of the narrative.
Tell me ONE thing Solo Leveling does better than JJK and I will deactivate https://t.co/XXDTrcS0YG
— Cleave 🎶 (@Since_heian_era) February 24, 2025
Even during some of the biggest arcs, Sukuna, the sinister demon, or Gojo Satoru (probably the coolest character in all of anime) took the reins, making Yuji a mere spectator or a passive character.
During important events like the Shibuya Incident, Yuji had his own impactful moments, but he felt unimportant in the grand scheme. Gojo’s imprisonment, Sukuna’s massacre, and Megumi’s perplexing fate took away the attention of the viewers.
While expanding side characters is great for world-building, sidelining the main character for too long makes their personal journey and growth feel less important.
Solo Leveling’s mistake is overloading the story with too much of Jinwoo
Unlike Jujutsu Kaisen, Solo Leveling focuses on the growth of Sung Jinwoo. It is fascinating to see the growth of the ‘weakest Hunter’ to the strongest. But when it comes to the development of other characters, it often feels forced, as if to usher the narrative forward.
Sometimes, characters are introduced to either become a stepping stone for Jinwoo or to praise him and give an ‘awe effect.’ The anime places an overwhelming focus on Sung Jinwoo, making it seem like he is indeed a Player and the rest of the world is filled with NPCs.
The key to a well-balanced story is giving the protagonist enough focus while allowing side characters to grow in their own way. Attack on Titan or One Piece are stellar examples of this. We can only hope that Solo Leveling focuses on side character development more moving forward.
You can stream Jujutsu Kaisen and Solo Leveling on Crunchyroll.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
