2025 was absolutely massive Solo levelingwith the series was crowned Anime of the Year at the Crunchyroll Awards by the fans and the jury. Outside of Japan, Solo leveling the hype was unmatched. In Japan, however, Solo Leveling is nothing special, many prefer other new anime series over it.
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The last time it came to light Solo Leveling did not make it to the most searched Japanese anime titles of 2025which is definitely shocking to many overseas fans. Instead, it was the most searched anime in Japan Takopi's Original Sin, followed by Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX and Sakamoto Days. Solo Leveling still has a long way to go to become an iconic series in Japan.
Solo leveling is nowhere to be seen in the most wanted Japanese anime titles of 2025
Solo Leveling is growing in popularity overseasespecially with the huge success of its anime adaptation. The series dominated the Crunchyroll Awards and fans eagerly awaited new projects. However, fans in Japan don't seem so enthusiastic.
in Japan Solo Leveling was not among the top 10 searched anime titlesand of course international fans can't understand how. Instead, a smaller but more prominent Japanese series took the top spot.
Takopi's Original Sin dominates searches in Japan in 2025
Takopi's Original Sin has gained great popularity overseas, but even more so in Japan. It had one of the highest-rated episodes of the year in the West. Meanwhile, it finished as the most searched title online in Japan.
Fans all over the world can't seem to get enough of the short 6 episode anime that is Takopi's Original Sin. Its premise has fans both surprised and disturbed at the same time, but that's part of the charm.
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Aside from Takopi's Original Sin, other series smaller than Solo Leveling overseas also made it into the rest of the top 10. Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuuX, Sakamoto Days, The Summer Hikaru Died, The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity, and Orb: On the Movements of the Earth were all on the list. All of these titles caught the attention of Japanese fans for one reason or another, while Solo Leveling failed to do so.
Solo leveling does not have a dominant presence in Japan
It's not a secret to know Solo Leveling is much bigger overseas than in Japan. Japanese fans don't seem to care much about the series for some reason. Even Atsushi Kaneko, someone who works on Solo Leveling, knows this.
“While I'm thrilled with the response, I personally don't feel like everyone knows the series at this point. Solo Leveling isn't that widely recognized in Japan yet. As a Japanese person living in Japan, it's not an anime on the level of Dragon Ball, One Piece, or Naruto. But if season three happens, that's when I really want to break that line.” – Atsushi Kaneko
One of the reasons for this lack of interest by some Japanese fans could be the lack of representation of Japanese characters. For example, in the Jeju arc, most of the Japanese SS-Hunters were massacred, even their strongest, but it seems Solo Leveling is slowly making its presence felt in Season 3 to eventually break records.
Source: Google Trends
