Solo Leveling may have already cemented its place in the new Big 3

Modified Feb 28, 2025 08:01 GMT

Solo Leveling may have already cemented its place in the new Big 3 — Sung Jinwoo as seen in Solo Leveling season 2 anime (Image via A-1 Pictures)

While fans have long debated the new Big 3 anime, evidence suggests that the Solo Leveling anime may have cemented its place in the debate. As seen on the anime streaming platform Crunchyroll, Solo Leveling has surpassed Jujutsu Kaisen as the third most-rated anime on the platform.

The Big 3 anime were indeed chosen based on their immense worldwide popularity and longevity. However, they were all picked from the Weekly Shonen Jump magazine. This categorization does not give titles from other publishers a chance. Hence, it does not make sense for fans to follow the same pattern when debating the new Big 3.

Therefore, an anime's popularity and ratings could be a great way to pick the new Big 3.

Solo Leveling's Crunchyroll ratings could push it to become a new Big 3 anime

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As seen on Crunchyroll, while One Piece and Demon Slayer held onto their positions as the top two most-rated anime on the streaming platform, Solo Leveling managed to surpass Jujutsu Kaisen as the third most-rated anime. While this does not prove that the A-1 Pictures anime is better than Jujutsu Kaisen or any other anime, it is a clear sign of its rising popularity.

Before Solo Leveling became popular, Demon Slayer and Jujutsu Kaisen changed how the Western audience perceived anime. While anime was popular, it was limited to only some audiences. However, after Demon Slayer aired, anime became mainstream media. This continued with Jujutsu Kaisen, Attack on Titan, and other anime.

Sung Jinwoo as seen in the anime (Image via A-1 Pictures)

Therefore, if one were to create a bar for the new Big 3 anime, there is good reason to debate that Solo Leveling deserves third place behind Demon Slayer and Jujutsu Kaisen. People have been looking for a new Big 3 for a really long time. Many also believe that My Hero Academia deserves the place. While it does, Solo Leveling has also made a valid case with its awesome animation, something well-liked by both Western and Japanese audiences.

While many fans complain that it lacks a story, A-1 Pictures has been adding anime-original content to make sure the story is expanded and surpasses the manga. So, there is a chance that the anime adaptation could turn out better than its source material.

Fans' reaction to the three most-rated anime on Crunchyroll

Most anime fans expressed their support for Solo Leveling as they loved the anime and looked forward to its future episodes. They indeed believed it was worthy of becoming one of the new Big 3 and expressed that it could soon become the most-rated anime on the streaming platform, surpassing both One Piece and Demon Slayer.

"New big 3," one fan said.

"SL will be number one soon!," another fan added.

"Well it is better than both demon slayer and jjk," another fan said.

"SL mid though. All fight and zero story," other fan said.

Meanwhile, other fans believed that the reason SL deserved the spot was because it was better than both Demon Slayer and Jujutsu Kaisen. Many fans disagreed with this analogy, stating that Solo Leveling wasn't that good. As per them, the anime was full of fights with zero story.