Crunchyroll's 23 Episode Shonen Masterpiece Is Everything Solo Leveling Should Have Been

Custom Image by Casandra Ronning Published Sep 12, 2026, 11:00 PM EDT Casandra Ronning is a staff writer for Screen Rant's anime section. Since mid-2024, she has dedicated herself to expanding her knowledge and experience in the entertainment industry. She is most proud of conducting an exclusive interview with popular voice actor Stephanie Nadolny. Sign in to your ScreenRant account Solo Leveling quickly became one of the most talked-about and watched anime series on Crunchyroll following its debut. Propelled by its massive following from the original web novel and manhwa, Solo Leveling’s meteoric rise went on to break several records, become one of the best gateways to anime as a whole, and set a high standard for what to expect from modern animation and battle sequences. All that said, there is another Crunchyroll anime series that arguably accomplishes everything that Solo Leveling does and much more. Kaiju No. 8 is packed with action, humor, stunning animation, strongly written characters, and immediate stakes that quickly draw viewers into the story. Even when compared to a mega-hit anime like Solo Leveling, Kaiju No. 8 still stands as a definitive must-watch anime that can’t be overlooked. Kaiju No. 8 Is One of the Best and Most Unique Shonen Anime Available Unlike most shonen series, Kaiju No. 8 centers on a 32-year-old protagonist named Kafka Hibino. Initially, he was a professional kaiju cleanup worker who dreams of joining the Defense Force in order to fulfill a childhood promise to his friend Mina Ashiro, the current Captain of the Third Division. When Kafka unexpectedly inherits the ability to transform into a kaiju himself, he finally achieves his dream of joining the Defense Force after years of failed attempts. One of the most refreshing aspects of the series is that Kafka is far from an ordinary protagonist in terms of age. It’s rare to find a shonen protagonist who isn’t a pre-teen or teenager, and there are very few exceptions to this rule. Unlike typical heroes who discover their potential near the beginning of their life, Kafka spent years watching others achieve the dream he had given up on since he passed the enlistment age. However, when the age limit is raised, he gets one more chance to prove himself, immediately adding weight and unique stakes to the story. Beyond that, Kafka stands out because, without his kaiju form, he lacks the strength to keep up with his fellow members of the Defense Force. Yet, rather than dwelling on that fact, Kafka finds other ways to assist his team early on, particularly through his deep knowledge of kaiju anatomy from years spent cleaning up their corpses. He doesn’t hold back his fellow soldiers, and the anime lets these supporting characters carry scenes without depending on him, making the cast feel fully developed rather than revolving solely around the protagonist and relying on him to solve every major conflict. Solo Leveling Has Nothing on Kaiju No. 8 Compared to Solo Leveling, Kaiju No. 8 shares equally stunning animation and action sequences, an underdog protagonist who unexpectedly gains the power to rise above their initial limits, thrilling growth into one of the most powerful heroes in their universe, and a need to hide their true power earlyin the series. The difference between them is that while Sung Jinwoo’s strength is often enough to clear virtually any obstacle, Kafka Hibino faces real challenges due to both the enemies he faces as well as his own power. Crunchyroll · Anime Knowledge Edition The Official CrunchyrollAnime Quiz ⚔ClassicsLegendary ✨New GenRising 🎬StudiosCreators 🏆AwardsBest of ▶StreamingWatch START STREAMING! → 01 Attack on Titan (Shingeki no Kyojin) became one of the most-watched anime on Crunchyroll. The story takes place in a world where humanity lives behind massive walls to protect themselves from giant humanoid creatures. What are these creatures called? AKaiju BTitans CHollows DDemons ✓ Correct! The giant humanoid creatures are called Titans. In the original Japanese, they’re referred to as “Kyojin” (giants). Eren Yeager’s quest to destroy all Titans after they breach Wall Maria became one of the most gripping storylines in anime history. ✗ That answer needs more filler training! The answer is Titans. Kaiju are giant monsters from Japanese cinema like Godzilla, Hollows are the enemy creatures in Bleach, and Demons appear in series like Demon Slayer. In Attack on Titan, these towering humanoid creatures are specifically called Titans. NEXT → 02 Studio MAPPA has become one of the most prominent anime studios in recent years, producing several massive hit series. Which of these popular anime was NOT produced by MAPPA? AJujutsu Kaisen BAttack on Titan: The Final Season CChainsaw Man DDemon Slayer ✓ Correct! Demon Slayer (Kimetsu no Yaiba) is produced by ufotable, not MAPPA. Ufotable’s stunning animation quality — especially the breathtaking fight sequences — became a hallmark of the Demon Slayer franchise. MAPPA produced Jujutsu Kaisen, Attack on Titan: The Final Season, and Chainsaw Man. ✗ That answer needs more filler training! The answer is Demon Slayer. Demon Slayer is animated by studio ufotable, renowned for its gorgeous visual effects. MAPPA has produced Jujutsu Kaisen, took over Attack on Titan: The Final Season from WIT Studio, and animated Chainsaw Man. NEXT → 03 Solo Leveling became a massive hit anime in 2024 after being one of the most popular manhwa (Korean comics) in the world. The story follows a weak hunter who gains the unique ability to level up. What is the protagonist’s name? AJin-Woo Sung BSung Jin-Woo CKim Dokja DYoo Joonghyuk ✓ Correct! Sung Jin-Woo is the protagonist of Solo Leveling. Originally the weakest E-Rank hunter, he gains the power of the mysterious System, allowing him to level up infinitely. His transformation from the “World’s Weakest Hunter” to the most powerful Shadow Monarch captivated millions of readers and viewers. ✗ That answer needs more filler training! The answer is Sung Jin-Woo. Jin-Woo Sung reverses the name order (Korean names place the surname first). Kim Dokja and Yoo Joonghyuk are protagonists from Omniscient Reader’s Viewpoint, another popular Korean series. Sung Jin-Woo is the iconic Shadow Monarch of Solo Leveling. NEXT → 04 The Crunchyroll Anime Awards celebrate the best in anime each year. Which anime won Anime of the Year at the 2024 Crunchyroll Anime Awards? AJujutsu Kaisen Season 2 BFrieren: Beyond Journey’s End COshi no Ko DVinland Saga Season 2 ✓ Correct! Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End won Anime of the Year at the 2024 Crunchyroll Anime Awards. This beautifully contemplative series about an elven mage reflecting on mortality and the passage of time after her hero party’s quest ends charmed audiences and critics alike with its unique, introspective storytelling. ✗ That answer needs more filler training! The answer is Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End. While Jujutsu Kaisen Season 2, Oshi no Ko, and Vinland Saga Season 2 were all critically acclaimed, it was Frieren’s meditative exploration of time, memory, and connection that captured the top prize at the 2024 ceremony. NEXT → 05 Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is consistently rated as one of the greatest anime of all time. The story follows two brothers who attempted a forbidden alchemical technique. What taboo did Edward and Alphonse Elric commit? ACreating gold BHuman transmutation (trying to revive their dead mother) CDestroying a Philosopher’s Stone DKilling a homunculus ✓ Correct! Edward and Alphonse attempted human transmutation to bring their deceased mother back to life. The attempt failed catastrophically — Edward lost his left leg and then sacrificed his right arm to bind Alphonse’s soul to a suit of armor. This event drives the entire series as they search for the Philosopher’s Stone to restore their bodies. ✗ That answer needs more filler training! The answer is human transmutation — specifically, attempting to resurrect their dead mother. In the world of FMA, human transmutation is the ultimate taboo in alchemy. The brothers’ failed attempt cost Edward his limbs and Alphonse his entire body, setting the stage for their epic journey. NEXT → 06 Spy x Family became a worldwide phenomenon with its wholesome yet action-packed story of a found family. The father, Loid Forger, is secretly a spy. What is his spy codename? AAgent Dusk BTwilight CShadow DNightfall ✓ Correct! Loid Forger’s spy codename is Twilight, and he’s considered the top agent of Westalis’s intelligence service, WISE. His mission, Operation Strix, requires him to build a fake family — leading him to adopt the telepathic Anya and marry the assassin Yor, creating one of anime’s most beloved found families. ✗ That answer needs more filler training! The answer is Twilight. Agent Dusk and Shadow are fictional names, while Nightfall is actually the codename of another WISE agent, Fiona Frost, who has a crush on Loid. Twilight is Westalis’s greatest spy and the heart of Spy x Family’s charming story. NEXT → 07 Crunchyroll merged with another major anime streaming service to become the dominant platform for anime. Which streaming service was absorbed into Crunchyroll? ANetflix Anime BFunimation CHIDIVE DAnimeLab ✓ Correct! Funimation was merged into Crunchyroll after Sony’s acquisition of Crunchyroll from AT&T in 2021. The merger consolidated the anime streaming market, bringing Funimation’s massive library of dubbed anime together with Crunchyroll’s simulcast catalog, making Crunchyroll the world’s largest dedicated anime platform. ✗ That answer needs more filler training! The answer is Funimation. Netflix Anime is part of Netflix and operates independently, HIDIVE is Sentai Filmworks’ streaming service, and AnimeLab was a smaller Australian service. Funimation — once Crunchyroll’s biggest rival — was fully absorbed into the Crunchyroll platform. NEXT → 08 Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli are legendary in the anime world. Miyazaki’s final film was released in 2023 and won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. What is the title of this film? ASpirited Away 2 BThe Wind Rises CThe Boy and the Heron DPonyo Returns ✓ Correct! The Boy and the Heron (Kimitachi wa Dō Ikiru ka) was released in 2023 and won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature in 2024. The deeply personal, surrealist fantasy film was widely considered Miyazaki’s farewell masterpiece, exploring themes of grief, imagination, and the passage between worlds. ✗ That answer needs more filler training! The answer is The Boy and the Heron. Spirited Away 2 and Ponyo Returns don’t exist. The Wind Rises was Miyazaki’s previous “final” film from 2013. The Boy and the Heron marked his true farewell, winning the Oscar and cementing his legacy as anime’s greatest storyteller. REVEAL MY SCORE → Binge Complete Your Anime Watch Level / 8 Are you an anime sensei — or still on episode one? ↻ REWATCH Another major difference between the two is that in Solo Leveling, the centralized focus on Jinwoo’s rapid rise to prominence comes at the cost of true stakes, leading to a lack of tension and no room to develop its broader cast. In Kaiju No. 8, however, the story effectively injects higher stakes and a sense of uncertainty every time that Kafka unleashes his true power due to the Defense Force’s hostility toward kaiju and the limits of his power, all while ensuring that viewers never stop rooting for the Defense Force by expanding on its supporting cast. All that said, both Solo Leveling and Kaiju No. 8 are thrilling series that push shonen to bigger and better heights. However, for viewers who want a thrilling action series that also comes with greater depth, character development, a sense of stakes and tension, and an atypical protagonist that breaks all the rules, Kaiju No. 8 is the perfect anime to jump into. Release Date 2024 - 2025-00-00 Network TV Tokyo, TV Osaka, TV Aichi, TVh, TVQ, TSC Directors Kouji Komurakata, Takayuki Inagaki, Yoshihide Ibata, Kazuma Satou, Kazuki Yokoyama, Hitomi Ezoe, Hirotaka Mori, Claire Barbou des Courières, Tetsuharu Nakamura Cast Masaya Fukunishi Kafka Hibino / Kaiju No. 8 (voice) Asami Seto Mina Ashiro (voice) Writers Ichirō Ōkouchi Franchise(s) Kaiju No. 8