RECAP: Solo Leveling Episode 8, “This Is Frustrating”
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Solo Leveling is a hard-hitting series based on author Chugong’s web novel and illustrator DUBU’s webtoon. In this fantasy anime, hardworking E-Rank hunter Jinwoo Sung and his allies fight monsters from another world that threaten our own. As a weak, low-ranking hunter, Jinwoo barely scrapes by in raids, but he always manages to survive. One fateful day in a dark dungeon, everything changes…
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Now that we’re back from the break, let’s talk about everything that happened in Episode 8! And catch the next new episode of Solo Leveling, only on Crunchyroll.
Warning: Full spoilers for the currently airing season of Solo Leveling follow. Seriously, major spoilers ahead!
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Mar 7, 2024 11:00 PM +06
RECAP: Solo Leveling Episode 8, “This Is Frustrating”
Back to the grind
Kelly Knox

Solo Leveling is a hard-hitting series based on author Chugong’s web novel and illustrator DUBU’s webtoon. In this fantasy anime, hardworking E-Rank hunter Jinwoo Sung and his allies fight monsters from another world that threaten our own. As a weak, low-ranking hunter, Jinwoo barely scrapes by in raids, but he always manages to survive. One fateful day in a dark dungeon, everything changes…
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RELATED: Solo Leveling Episode 7, “Let’s See How Far I Can Go” Recap
Now that we’re back from the break, let’s talk about everything that happened in Episode 8! And catch the next new episode of Solo Leveling, only on Crunchyroll.
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Warning: Full spoilers for the currently airing season of Solo Leveling follow. Seriously, major spoilers ahead!
New Resolve
Back safely from the Demon King’s Castle, Jinwoo visits his unconscious mother in the hospital. He thinks about the promised reward for completing the dungeon, the Elixir of Life, and how it could cure her Eternal Sleep Disease. He resolves to get stronger so he can venture into the castle and retrieve the necessary ingredients.
RELATED: The Anime Effect Podcast Episode 2 Welcomes Caitlin Glass and Aleks Le to Talk Solo Leveling
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Jinwoo meets with Yoo Jinho again and agrees to join the strike team they discussed earlier for nineteen C-Rank raids. He has one condition, however; it must only be himself and Jinho entering the dungeons to minimize injuries and casualties. Jinho agrees, recognizing the potential to impress his father, and says he’ll handle the logistics and scheduling.
Who’s Who
Elsewhere, S-Rank hunter Cha Hae-in finishes her training run when a guild recruiter approaches her. He’s from Yoojin Construction, the company Jinho’s father owns.
RELATED: Watch the Solo Leveling 2-Part Documentary Now on Crunchyroll
Jinho and his father talk about the current state of the world ten years after the appearance of gates. Many of the planet’s industries now rely on the resources found in dungeons, which can only be retrieved by hunters managed by the Hunter’s Association, a public institution that assigns the gates. Once a hunter is ranked by the Association, private guilds recruit and hire the hunters out as a service.
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There are five major guilds in their country, Jinho’s father tells him: the Hunters Guild, the White Tiger Guild, the Reaper Guild, the Fame Guild and the Knight Guild. Jinho’s father wants to be in on the action as a matter of responsibility to their country.
Growing Frustration
Elsewhere, Jinwoo finishes his daily training. He notices that any extra miles or exercises aren’t counted, indicating that he completed the one-time quest. He hopes to get another key in his random loot box reward so he can level up some more, but all he finds is a punched bingo card. (Ouch). Jinwoo is impatient about leveling up because he wants to successfully obtain the ingredients for the Elixir of Life, but he’s forced to wait for Jinho to line up the C-Rank dungeons.
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RELATED: Tips & Tricks to Surviving a Dungeon in Solo Leveling
Just then, his phone buzzes with a notification from the Hunter’s Association. They’re looking for members to join a D-Rank gate strike team. Jinwoo debates declining since he would have to fight with other hunters, but he can’t pass up any opportunity to level up. Frustrated at his current lack of options, he decides to join the raid.
Hunters Gather
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Song Chiyul, the party leader of the ill-fated dungeon raid that changed Jinwoo’s life, rests after a kendo bout with a student. He receives the same message as Jinwoo about the D-Rank strike team. Song’s student asks him why he doesn’t retire now that he’s missing an arm, and Song replies that he still wishes to contribute to society. Kim Sangshik, another hunter who survived Cartenon Temple, also accepts the raid request even though his wife gently asks about choosing another occupation.
RELATED: How Well Do You Know Sung Jinwoo from Solo Leveling?
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At the Hunters Guild, S-Rank hunter Baek Yoonho chews out guild leader Choi Jong-In for wasting his time with the morning show interview. Choi handles the tirade with a smile. Choi tells Baek about the Yoojin Construction guild, but the impatient S-Rank hunter wants to know what Choi actually wants to talk about.
Elsewhere, Lee Joohee thinks about Jinwoo and resolves to overcome her weakness. Her phone buzzes with the same D-Rank raid notification as Jinwoo, Song and Kim.
Song Chiyul, the party leader of the ill-fated dungeon raid that changed Jinwoo’s life, rests after a kendo bout with a student. He receives the same message as Jinwoo about the D-Rank strike team. Song’s student asks him why he doesn’t retire now that he’s missing an arm, and Song replies that he still wishes to contribute to society. Kim Sangshik, another hunter who survived Cartenon Temple, also accepts the raid request even though his wife gently asks about choosing another occupation.
RELATED: How Well Do You Know Sung Jinwoo from Solo Leveling?
At the Hunters Guild, S-Rank hunter Baek Yoonho chews out guild leader Choi Jong-In for wasting his time with the morning show interview. Choi handles the tirade with a smile. Choi tells Baek about the Yoojin Construction guild, but the impatient S-Rank hunter wants to know what Choi actually wants to talk about.
Elsewhere, Lee Joohee thinks about Jinwoo and resolves to overcome her weakness. Her phone buzzes with the same D-Rank raid notification as Jinwoo, Song and Kim.
Hae-in stops by Choi’s office to let him know that she was headhunted by Yoojin Construction to be their guild master, but had declined. Baek, out for a drink after hours, thinks about his conversation with Choi that afternoon. Choi revealed that he’s planning a return to Jeju Island, the site of a failed raid that cost many hunters’ lives. His easygoing attitude disappeared for the first time as he told Baek that he’ll never forget what happened there.
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Unexpected Reunion

In the morning, Jinwoo leaves for the D-Rank raid. His sister Jinah sees him off, remarking that he works a lot more now that he doesn’t get injured on every raid. Song also makes his way to the raid, thinking about the irony that even though he’s a trained martial artist, his awakened power is magic-based. He spots Jinwoo and is surprised at his new appearance. Jinwoo smiles like his old self for the first time in a while as the two catch up.
RELATED: What's Your Solo Leveling Hunter Class?
They arrive at the gate where Song can’t help but chuckle at the coincidence of other survivors Park, Kang Jeongho and Joohee being there, too. But their reunion is cut short by the arrival of the remaining party members: three convicted C-Rank hunters in handcuffs looking to reduce their prison time. They’re supervised by B-Rank hunter Kang Taeshik from the Hunter’s Association.
Song asks Jinwoo if he can take the lead, and Jinwoo agrees easily. To his shock, Song bows and claims responsibility for the lives lost in their last raid together. He credits their survival to Jinwoo and expresses his gratitude. Song leads the group into the gate, where the dungeon awaits…
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What’s next for Jinwoo and the other hunters? What will they find inside the dungeon? Find out in the next episode of Solo Leveling, right here on Crunchyroll!