Blu-ray and DVD sales in Japan revealed a surprise for fans of the “ Solo Leveling anime . Despite its enormous worldwide popularity, official Oricon shows surprisingly low sales for the first Blu-ray and DVD volume of the series.
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According to data from the Oricon website, in the period from March 25 to 31, 2024, the anime “Girls Und Panzer Final Chapter Part 4” topped the list, with 32,614 copies sold. In second place was “Gushing over Magical Girls Vol. 1” with 8,114 copies, followed by “Yohane the Parhelion: Sunshine in the Mirror [Limited Edition] Vol. 7” with 3,380 copies.
On the other hand, “Solo Leveling” failed to reach a prominent position in sales, and concrete numbers were not even published. The lowest ranked Blu-ray/DVD volume, “Mashle: Divine Visionary Selection Exam Arc Vol. 1,” indicated that “Solo Leveling Vol. 1” (released March 27) must have sold fewer than 634 units in its first week. The low sales of “Solo Leveling” added to those of other popular anime, such as “Undead Unluck” and “Shangri-La Frontier”.
Blu-ray/DVD sales as a sign of whether an anime will receive future seasons, as both “Shangri-La Frontier” and “Solo Leveling” have already announced second seasons. “Undead Unluck” also confirmed that it will make a big announcement on August 1, 2024, and many suspect it will be a sequel.
While it's unclear why "Solo Leveling" hasn't been as successful in Japan, comments from Crunchyroll CEO Rahul Purini suggest it was always a possibility. In an interview with The Verge, he highlighted that “sometimes certain stories may not be something that our partners can create and produce primarily for a Japanese audience.” He then cited this franchise as a series worth Crunchyroll investing in given its broader audience .
Internationally, “Solo Leveling” was much more successful. On MyAnimeList , the world's largest anime database, which also has 95% of users outside of Japan, “Solo Leveling” was among the season's highest-rated series. Additionally, it had a surprisingly low dropout rate among viewers who had just started the series. The low sales of “Solo Leveling” in Japan may be disconcerting to some, but it demonstrates that an anime's success can vary significantly depending on region and target audience.
Source: Oricon News
