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Synopsis

In the year 2022, virtual reality has progressed by leaps and bounds, and a massive online part-playing game called Sword Art Online (SAO) is launched. With the aid of "NerveGear" technology, players tin can control their avatars within the game using zippo but their own thoughts.

Kazuto Kirigaya, nicknamed "Kirito," is among the lucky few enthusiasts who get their hands on the first shipment of the game. He logs in to notice himself, with ten-chiliad others, in the scenic and elaborate world of Aincrad, i full of fantastic medieval weapons and gruesome monsters. However, in a savage turn of events, the players presently realize they cannot log out; the game's creator has trapped them in his new world until they complete all 1 hundred levels of the game.

In order to escape Aincrad, Kirito volition now take to collaborate and cooperate with his fellow players. Some are allies, while others are foes, similar Asuna Yuuki, who commands the leading grouping attempting to escape from the ruthless game. To make matters worse, Sword Art Online is not all fun and games: if they die in Aincrad, they dice in real life. Kirito must conform to his new reality, fight for his survival, and hopefully break complimentary from his virtual hell.

[Written by MAL Rewrite]

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Reviews

Apr half-dozen, 2014

25 of 25 episodes seen

Overall	4
Story	4
Animation	8
Sound	viii
Character	1
Enjoyment	3

--The review contains minor spoilers--

Since I've seen a plethora of scores of ten for this show, I thought I'd write what I feel is a more realistic review for this bear witness. Sword Art Online is more or less the equivalent of a fanfiction in it's writing and quality. Whether people desire to overlook information technology or not is up to the individual, but I believe it fails at the fundamentals for writing a practiced story. This review volition get into details every bit to my opinions on why I feel this mode.

1) Story - This is starting time major trouble is the testify. Permit's start from the beginning shall we. The first arc consists of 14 episodes. The first 2 episodes are honestly pretty good and set up up the plot of the evidence that should follow. You're introduced to the principal characters and information technology shows mmo mode of play. I hateful with ii episodes that are astonishing, surely what follows will be more of the adventures of the main characters and these mmo boss fights...right? Wrong. What follows are 5 completely irrelevant side grapheme episodes and unnecessary terrible time skips that ruin any sense of a story the first 2 episodes set upwardly. And then due to some illogical reason, we're now downwards to vii episodes to tell the balance of this story. Still achievable right? RIGHT? Incorrect again. The serial wastes some other two ane/2 episodes on pointless filler garbage. Then in that location you have it over half of first role of the story has nothing to practice with the overall plot. Well what near the other episodes you ask? The remaining "plot" episodes are filled with deus ex machina in its purest form. Even the finale of the first flavour makes absolutely no sense. This isn't a fantasy world, it's a freaking video game, you tin can't have miracles here. And then that concludes my issues with season one, which the majority of SAO fans consider to be the best part....Yeh yous heard me, the 2nd part is fifty-fifty worse.
Without going into spoilers, the 2nd role of the series takes identify in a dissimilar setting, with a generally new cast bated from our main hero. This part of the series probably deserves the award for most unnecessary story in the history of anime. This arc is pretty much a mario game. Our hero must save the princess in the castle. Not really much to say about it. Oh yeh deus ex machina finale here likewise...oh and at that place'southward an incest subplot...for some reason. This concludes the plot department. I think I'm being pretty generous with a iv here.

ii) Art - The art is fantastic. Colorful characters, bosses (the few nosotros see), and settings are all here. It's hands worth an 8.

three) Sound - Once again fantastic. Nothing wrong with it at all. 8.

iv)Characters - Here we get...This is easily the worst part of the series. I'll separate the main characters and lump together the not so primary characters.

Kirito/Kazuto - The main character of this prove is the epitome of the current definition of a "Gary Stu". He has no personality whatsoever. He is skilful at everything he tries for no reason. He's an amazing player, an super sleuth, a ladies man, and a master hacker. You lot proper noun it, he can do it. In that location's no reason given for this other than he's just that expert. Girls all love him, guys want to be him, and villains are jealous of him. He too solos MMO dominate fights...yeh wrap your caput around that 1. Side note - I often come across people claim they dearest this bear witness because they're hardcore gamers. I take to say as an avid gamer myself I find this evidence to be insulting. Unless y'all've hacked or cheated , I don't understand why you lot're content with a graphic symbol who does. Side note over.

Asuna - The chief female lead/nearly blatant waifu grapheme ever. Asuna is introduced equally a stiff player who can stand on her own with Kirito, that is for the outset couple episodes. Once she reappears she barely does annihilation other than cook for Kirito. That's correct, her ass stays in the kitchen, while Kirito does all the important stuff. In part two she does absolutely nil...seriously. She again has no original personality...textbook Tsundere.

Yui - This character is terrible in all senses of the give-and-take. She's walking deus ex machina, nothing more than. This character should be hated by whatsoever gamer, since she'south a cheat device, who adds nada to the story.

Villains (modest spoilers) - There are 2 major villains in this series and they're both terrible. The beginning one forgets his motives for doing everything in part 1 and the function two 1 is so comically evil he can't even be taken seriously.

Other Characters/ Who the hell cares - The female characters all want to have sex with Kirito and have no personality past this. The male characters don't get to practise anything because Kirito hogs the prove from anybody. That's really all there is to say near that.

Suguha - This is Kirito's sister. She honestly has layers and was a plus to the show in my stance. I don't know why she's in this show, she doesn't belong in information technology...

And then yeh, Gary Stu and Waifu - these characters are pathetic (1).

v) Enjoyment - Needless to say I didn't bask it. Poor show (3)

half-dozen) Overall - This show has then many fans, and I really don't know why. Its plot is rushed and terrible. Its characters so flat, information technology's almost funny...almost. Its romance is highly misogynistic and terribly developed. I felt insulted watching this, and don't understand how any could like this show. Even Gamers.

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October 12, 2014

25 of 25 episodes seen

Overall	two
Story	ii
Blitheness	7
Sound	vii
Character	two
Enjoyment	5

In one case upon a fourth dimension, in a land far abroad, there lived a brave immature male child. He was the all-time swordsman in the land and the manliest man of all. He overcame countless trials with little effort and won the hearts of many fair maidens.

Yes, it'south time for Sword Art Online, the origin of many angry rants.

The premise doesn't sound too bad. Ten thousand players of a virtual MMO are trapped in the game and forced to consummate information technology to escape, except that death in the game leads to death in real life. Just think about it: this could be a tragic story of struggle where death is behind every corner. A story of cede and despair. A story of alliances and betrayal. A story of the struggle to retain humanity in front of incommunicable conditions.

...Simply why accept any of that when you tin can have romance and harem?

That's right; the survival game is but for show. Don't expect deep interpersonal or political conflict. Don't await psychology or moral dilemmas. Don't expect tactics or mind games. Actually, don't expect witty dialogue of any kind.

And that is the biggest problem with this show. Information technology is bankrupt in substance. It's mostly just uninspired romance and harem, with a scrap of action here and there. There isn't much thinking involved. A few plot holes I could forgive, but if the show isn't near anything worthwhile, in that location isn't much to do. What makes this problem all the more than apparent is that the premise promises something entirely different than what information technology delivers. The show has thrown its hands up in the air and said, "We don't care." So why should the viewer?

It doesn't help that the show has grown infamous for glorifying its protagonist, who in the optics of many has become the epitome of a Gary Stu. He can defeat anything, he can solve any problem, and he gets all the girls. It'southward most similar this show was meant to exist a propaganda piece in his favor.

Story: iii

The commencement two episodes are decent, building up the premise. We are introduced to the protagonist Kirito and the concept of the death game. Soon enough, nosotros are told that a calendar month has passed and two thousand players take died offscreen. ...Wait, non fifty-fifty a curt montage or anything? Apparently not. Anyway, these two episodes are pretty much the but decent ones, then savor them while you can.

The third episode begins to show more serious problems. We are supposed to form an emotional bond to new characters in a few minutes, and nosotros have to go through over-the-top angst over irrational deportment. But there is also optimism in the air; of course we tin can revive someone whose brain has been fried, right?

What follows is an abrupt jump to harem and romance antics. The side by side few episodes are about various girls suddenly falling for Kirito, oft the same day they met him. This typically involves uncontrollable blushing, fanservice, and people acting Tsundere. Y'all probably get the picture. It doesn't assistance that many of these episodes take a very filler-esque feel to them. The chief plot ‒ if yous can phone call it such at this betoken ‒ takes a backseat in favor of these random new girls.

The girl called Asuna, who quickly becomes the token love interest for Kirito, has at least met him before, but there is still very little buildup to their relationship. Unless it took place offscreen. You see, another thing that becomes very noticeable is the pacing. In that location have been timeskips of months betwixt episodes. This wouldn't exist a problem if these snapshots contained all the events that were disquisitional to the story, but information technology'southward obvious that the author has picked rather boring events out of all the possibilities. Why is it that thousands of people dying is covered in a few lines, while we accept to sit through hours and hours of romance and harem? I hate to be beating a expressionless horse hither, only it'south unavoidable because information technology comes up again in merely virtually every episode.

Past at present, it has also become obvious to the viewer that Kirito is invincible to the point of tedium. He has a level higher than anyone, the best equipment, and a seemingly countless pool of abilities, but most importantly he e'er wins. There is sometimes false tension, sure, simply you know he will survive anyway. Y'all can only stomach so many clutch survivals before you lot get-go rolling your eyes.

The rest of the story arc involves Kirito and Asuna hanging out in the countryside to spend their honeymoon. They fifty-fifty adopt a daughter to portray a typical happy family. The problem is that their human relationship is actually not that interesting. But "dem feels"! Nah, sorry. I have a heart of rock.

This is followed by a sudden confrontation with the master villain, which Kirito wins considering the power of dear conquers all. And past that I mean the power of beloved conquers the programming of the game. Well, okay, peradventure there was some "power of love" clause in the code somewhere. It wouldn't surprise me at this point.

Predictably enough, melodrama ensues. Tears, promises of love, etc. You can probably imagine. At to the lowest degree at present we're washed with this show, correct?

No, think again, that was only the good function. In that location are really 11 more than episodes left, and the journey takes us further downhill. We enter another game, this time without the expiry aspect. Before we get to the plot itself, fifty-fifty at a glance this idea brings up a few problems.

The harsh reality hits you faster than you lot can say "cashcow." This 2nd arc feels completely unnecessary. It has been tied into the original story with an overly convenient plot device for no apparent purpose other than stretching it farther. At least know to quit while you're ahead. But no, they just had to elevate this bear witness through the mud to rip apart any shred of dignity information technology had left.

It doesn't aid that there is no death anymore. While this makes the slice-of-life content more fitting, it also removes the established selling bespeak of the show. The change is too abrupt, and the difference in tone is too jarring. If you want to make a piece-of-life of ordinary MMO players, do it from the start.

Now, for the plot itself, and it isn't pretty. We become straight to a Mario game, by which I mean saving a dryad in distress trapped in a muzzle. And that isn't a metaphor; she is quite literally trapped in a cage. Add tentacles and incest to the plot, and yous accept a winning combination. The incest aspect is provided by Kirito'due south sister Suguha, who as well provides additional fanservice.

At least now the pacing is less erratic and there is seemingly less development taking place offscreen. It's just too bad that there is likewise very little meaningful taking place onscreen. At that place are some new characters and even an ingame state of war going on, just it's all and then irrelevant to the principal story that information technology's hard to maintain interest.

Long story curt, Kirito beats the second villain with the assistance of more deus ex machinas. There are too more tears, promises of beloved, etc.

So now we're done, correct? For now, yep, but at that place's still season ii to await forrad to.

Setting:

This is technically office of the story category, but I really think it deserves its own department hither. You see, the very foundations of the setting make no sense. People in Sword Art Online are likewise often interim similar they are in a normal game, not in a life-and-death scenario.

For case, why is there then much resentment towards beta testers who have greater knowledge of the game? This isn't a contest; the faster someone beats the game, the faster everyone gets out. And, similarly, why are beta testers reluctant to share information? Are they then worried about other people using their newfound abilities to kill them for no reason? Look, you can't have both a coincidental piece-of-life of MMO players and a grim expiry game at the same time. Selection one.

This casual attitude becomes more pronounced later on when it becomes obvious people are wasting tons of time with unproductive quests, romance, and just hanging effectually. Kirito himself spends time on seemingly useless sidequests, and Asuna spends time cooking for him. Come to retrieve of information technology, why has Asuna wasted points on a useless skill like cooking in the get-go place? Are these people even trying?

And why are so many players dying when towns are safe zones? Are they stupidly rushing into high-level dungeons? I suppose then. You see, for a grim death game it certain is hard to die in SAO. Bosses won't respawn, so anybody can advance forward, fifty-fifty weak players. Going from town to boondocks is also easy enough with teleport crystals. Well, okay, there is that trouble of challenging people to a duel while asleep, but that can't have out so many.

There is no lack of critical resources considering you tin can hang out in the rubber of towns indefinitely. Sure, exp and coin are limited considering the regeneration of monsters is limited, which is strange game blueprint itself, but they aren't necessary if you stay in boondocks. At least, the show never implies that they are necessary. Oh, and for the tape, I'm treating the show as self-contained and ignoring the source material.

Then why do they die? I'd put my coin on rushing stupidly into dungeons because we get to come across one notable example.

Let's imagine y'all found yourself in the following state of affairs. Before you and your social club are about to enter a high-level dungeon, you learn that 1 of them lied about his level. Knowing this, you realize you are underleveled and likely to end upwards dead, while avoiding expiry and warning the others would be as simple as staying in town.

What would y'all do? Would you
a) Record a message in accelerate, knowing that you wouldn't last long, or
b) Stay in boondocks and so that you wouldn't go killed in the get-go place?

A tricky one, I acknowledge.

We are likewise introduced to groups of player killers. Sounds skilful until you lot realize this isn't a normal game. At least, I thought information technology wasn't, simply it looks like some people didn't become the memo. In a state of affairs like SAO, there should be no reason for these killings. This isn't Danganronpa, where the chief point of the premise is that you can only escape by killing someone. This is a game where it makes the near sense to team up and trounce the game. There is no prisoner's dilemma; cooperation is the best program and any sensible person would go for it.

If you lot impale someone hither, you lot but get some money and equipment. While it may help you beat out the game a little faster, odds are that it volition but injure your chances of survival overall. Only off the acme of my caput, a few reasons:
1) If people start killing each other, it evidently increases the hazard of dying yourself, both in retaliation and spontaneously.
two) Killing people reduces manpower needed for beating the game, and the distrust that follows will brand it even slower. You could only kill useless low-level players, but they probably don't accept much money or expert equipment to brainstorm with.
3) There is the chance that you will land murder charges if you escape from the game and officials detect out.

Actually, does the equipment even aid that much? Kirito seemingly uses the same equipment for long periods of time, notwithstanding he is practically invincible. On the other hand, he does say that equipment can be worth many levels, and then did he go the best stuff for himself and then fast? Is it foreign game design or crook codes? It's anyone's guess.

Of course, if you have petty interest in beating the game, killing other players makes more sense, if only a little. I suppose getting more money tin assist you obtain some luxury items, but is it worth the risk? The implied reason is that they are killing people for laughs, but why did so many murderous psychopaths decide to log into this MMO on its opening solar day? Is this some kind of stab at gamers, maxim that they are unable to distinguish between real violence and imitation violence? Mayhap, or the author forgot that this isn't a normal MMO. Once again.

So is information technology a legit programme to stay in the virtual earth for the residual of your life and requite up on getting dorsum to the real world? If and then, information technology would explain a lot. While the range of pastimes in there is smaller than in the real world, possibly there is enough for some people.

The choice between staying in relative happiness in a virtual globe and risking your life returning to the existent world could accept been an interesting one. Unfortunately, their bodies are deteriorating in existent life, which makes the choice very one-sided. For some reason, Asuna has to betoken this out to Kirito because apparently the state of his real-earth body had never occurred to him over the course of two years. Yeah, good task, Kirito, yous sure were fast on the uptake. Lying down on the grass and having a carefree nap doesn't sound so smart anymore, eh?

Finally, why are virtual MMOs nonetheless legal after the SAO incident? Sure, the new hardware is supposedly safer, but the previous death trap must accept every bit passed through "strict" government examination, so who in their right mind would trust them? And fifty-fifty if we assume information technology is safety, since when has people'south hysteria hinged on facts? People fear new technology fifty-fifty when it's harmless, let alone when a massive incident like this happens. There would exist mass protests in the streets in favor of banning them.

Characters: 2

Y'all may accept noticed that I take but mentioned three characters by name so far. For some other show, this might be considering the cast is and then vast that there is no time to go through them all, but here it's rather that at that place are very few characters worth mentioning. Kirito, and by extension Asuna and Suguha who are defined by Kirito's character, hog practically all of the screentime.

Anybody else gets thrown under the bus. Girls only exist to fall in dear with Kirito, and males simply exist to be junior to him. The villains in particular only exist as forage to the guy.

Kirito:

I have barely touched on Kirito's personality. Well, blame the bear witness, not me; it should at to the lowest degree be willing to meet me halfway. We know very petty most him, other than existence invincible and inexplicably good with the ladies. Essentially, he is the manliest man on the planet.

That's pretty much all he is. Even his dialogue ends upwards pretty bland. In that location are no witty insights, no clever jokes, no skillful word games. Much of his dialogue consists of maxim that the world is a virtual one, explaining game mechanics, wishing to save everyone, or loving someone forever. The sort of stuff you'd expect from a cardboard cutout hero in a situation similar this.

It can be a facepalm-worthy experience to witness girl after girl falling for Kirito like zero, often the same mean solar day they met him. The show incessantly drills into the viewer that he is the sexiest man alive... for some reason. I get that rescuing people tin can requite you points in their eyes, only come on at present. I tin only assume there is a hidden manliness stat and his black jacket comes with a +999 boost.

Equally far as his invincibility goes, the win streak by itself isn't the biggest problem. The problem is that he ever wins through brute strength. That is to say, his character skills and stats. There are no tactics worth mentioning, no psychology, no politics, no thinking whatsoever. He will only leave there and pull off his generic action hero stunts. Sure, developing those skills and stats may accept required some tactical thinking. Maybe he has optimized his skill tree or has amazing grinding strats. In theory. We run into no hints of it. It all happened offscreen and offscreen doesn't count. I'm sorry, it simply doesn't.

To add insult to injury, some of Kirito'southward abilities are completely forgotten afterwards on. I'grand sure that health recovery affair would accept come in handy whatsoever number of times. And when even his skills and stats aren't enough, he is saved past plot armor at the concluding second.

It'southward as well a mockery of MMOs in the sense that Kirito is able to solo raid bosses. And he is able to achieve a level college than anyone despite playing solo, supposedly because he doesn't have to split up the exp. His well-nigh unique power is revealed to be... *drumroll* dual-wielding, which nobody else is allowed to do in this game. This doesn't sound like any MMO I know of, or was the idea to portray a player with god-mode cheats on?

I'g seriously thinking that the show would accept been a lot more tolerable if Kirito alone had been replaced by i of the side characters. It yet wouldn't have been a masterpiece or anything, but at least the Gary Stu accusations could have been avoided.

Asuna:

She is well-nigh every bit bland in personality as Kirito. She is also portrayed as fairly powerful for no substantial reason merely of class nada compared to him. As time passes, her most notable trait becomes being a textbook Tsundere.

...Well, that was fast. Moving on.

Suguha:

As mentioned earlier, her main function is providing fanservice and a tacked-on incest subplot. It'due south simply another element thrown into the plot for cheap shock value, if anyone is still shocked by incest in anime nowadays.

Villain #ane:

The first villain barely appears, and his motivation for trapping the players is vague, to say the least. He basically did information technology out of personal interest. He wanted to create a virtual world where expiry has meaning like in the real one, simply as for why he was interested in the idea, he forgot. Err, alright then. Moving on.

Villain #two:

The 2nd villain is pathetic and a disgrace to antagonists everywhere, coming beyond as a cartoon villain who does evil things for the sake of existence evil. The disharmonize here is portrayed as completely blackness-and-white, simply in instance someone had sympathy for the guy, every bit unlikely as that is.

His main focus is essentially raping a asleep girl. And that is over obtaining tons of cash, presumably in the millions. If he had left the girl alone, he probably would have got away with it, so for all intents and purposes, he chose raping a girl over millions in cash. Talk about priorities.

Come to think of it, it's already ridiculous that the family of the comatose girl is planning to have her marry the guy. I mean, she is in a coma. As in unconscious, unable to land her own intentions, etc. Where are child protective services when you need them? Thankfully, the police disagrees, and so they can't apply for an official marriage. Instead, he'll be adopted by her family equally their son in spirit... Wait, what?

Furthermore, his sheer incompetence is mindboggling. He openly explains his evil plans and his security is practically at Dr. Evil level, up to entering a secret keycode in plain sight so that the prisoner can see. Thankfully the government and his visitor are every bit incompetent and are not monitoring his research grouping closely despite its reliance on infamous technology used in SAO. Are these the same people who accounted the new tech prophylactic? If so, I'd like a 2nd stance. I wouldn't trust these people to operate Angry Birds, permit alone a virtual MMO with potential wellness risks.

Art: 7

Then this is where the money went. The backgrounds expect nice but cheap fanservice scenes not so much.

Sound: seven

Not too bad either. The soundtrack and opening and ending songs work pretty decently, and the voices are also alright.

Enjoyment: five

Funnier than I was expecting just for the wrong reasons. There is something earnest almost how the show is trying to portray escapism and man relationships, only information technology falls just short enough to create a dissonance.

Overall: 3

Sentinel it to witness the writing yourself. Just more chiefly, by watching the show you tin meliorate understand the reviews or, better notwithstanding, write one yourself.

Dec 31, 2012

25 of 25 episodes seen

Overall	3
Story	iii
Animation	8
Sound	6
Character	3
Enjoyment	half dozen

Once in a while, there comes along a title (exist it movie, book or anime) that takes the audition by storm, sweeping numerous off their feat, leaving several with a bad aftertaste in their rima oris and making a few laissez passer the work off equally 'average' or 'mediocre'. Online communities, forums, chat rooms and every other nook and corner of the cyberspace known to man turn into arenas of debates, discussions, fanboyism/fangirlism and flaming. Information technology's apparent that when something is popular, information technology doesn't always go to bath in praises. With the acclaim, comes a sheer amount of criticisms. Also, information technology goes without saying that popularity doesn't necessarily equate to quality.

Sword Art Online, abbreviated as SAO from this bespeak on, is no exception.

SAO, the anime adaptation of a serial of calorie-free novels of the aforementioned proper name past Kawahara Reki, has been the much talked about prove of the Summertime and Fall 2012 seasons, and taking into consideration the incredible hype surrounding it with reviews of mixed sorts, it's likely to stay that way for quite some time. Keeping in mind the faddy of MMORPGs and the demand for something 'captivating', the team behind SAO attempts to bring an enticing work to the table by executing the intriguing premise of 'players trapped in a VRMMORPG where death equates to death in existent life and the only way out is to clear the game'. Unfortunately, SAO fails at many levels which is a shame because when the anime kicked off with the highly anticipated first episode, all seemed well and information technology gave the vibes of something truly worth spending your time on but then it does a flip and from this betoken, things go amiss. And here we have it— ane of the nigh controversial anime of the contempo years.

Before proceeding with the review, let'south get one affair straight. I have not read the original source material— the light novels, that is. Hence, I'm not going to draw whatever comparison between that and the anime. With that out of the way, let'due south keep the brawl rolling.

SAO on the surface has a fairly interesting premise, no doubt, and it'due south executed well to some extent or so did information technology initially seem. The very idea of a big number of people logged into a VRMMORPG with the intention of embarking on a virtual reality take a chance but only to be struck with utter horror as they're faced with the shocking truth of the game has been put into effect quite satisfactorily in the first episode. It'due south pretty much what I'd call an excellent start. Notwithstanding, SAO effortlessly manages to ship all my expectations and enthusiasm downward the bleed for it takes the evidence only an episode or two to reveal its true colours followed by the thwarting it has in shop.

And then, what goes wrong? Well, many things.

Following the Great Beginning, the beginning arc decides to take a detour and invests on a few episodes dealing with side stories in which our protagonist Kirito gets acquainted with one girl per episode and ends up rescuing her from a jam. This is precisely why I similar referring to this bunch of side stories as 'episodic harem' wherein the main heroine of the story and Kirito's love involvement Asuna is causeless to be abiding and the other girls are variables. Now this isn't necessarily a bad thing. However, these side stories accept very little to zippo to contribute to the series as a whole. Absolutely, they equip the viewers with some clever, little details here and in that location regarding how the game world works only they hardly have any bearing to the overall plot. The chief goal of these filler-like episodes appears to be that of giving our hero clad in black an opportunity to flaunt how much of a chick magnet he is and how he has it all that takes to be the coolest dude in this world made upward of zillions of pixels. To kick, the characters (read: beautiful chicks) that appear in these episodes accept absolutely no substantial role to play in the story subsequently. 'Side' characters indeed. And SAO knows how to effectively sideline them.

When the arc finally gets itself dorsum on track, it's but natural to hope that the show volition now take something worthwhile to deliver. Yet, that isn't the case. If anything, some astringent cracks begin to appear equally very soon the focus of SAO is the romance betwixt the two leads which is, in one word, cheesy. At this point, opinions are divided. The romance aspect, for some, can be highly-seasoned while for others, it can be a major turn off especially if they don't like the characters involved. Information technology all comes down to personal preference. However, personal preferences aren't a convincing excuse by any ways to overlook the fact that the story, world building and everything else have a backseat for the sake of allowing the ii leads to be lovey-dovey in the properties of gorgeous sceneries. When the arc does manage to divert its focus on to some 'serious business organization', things look proficient for a while but with a rather unimpressive ending, the first arc concludes on a pretty bad note in my volume.

And then begins the 2d arc which, to exist blunt, is a letdown over again.

The second arc or the ALO arc is set within ALfheim Online, a VRMMORPG successor to SAO. Kirito logs in with a mission to rescue his wife (Asuna, duh) from the clutches of an archetypical antagonist who is a disgrace to all the villains in fiction nosotros accept come across so far. This arc showcases some actually eye processed visuals but that's pretty much its only redeeming point. It doesn't accept annihilation much going on except for a few climactic action sequences now and so with intense boxing music playing in the background that last simply for a while. Not to mention, there's some other girl added to Kirito's harem.

And so the hilarity ensues.

The manner in which ALO is brought to a close is appalling to say the least and at the same laughable because it doesn't hesitate to employ the much notorious plot device dues ex machina, ruining whatever hopes there were for the final confrontation with the villain. The poor determination could be excused if it was handled more than cleverly and assuredly merely a blatant donkey pull is past no ways satisfactory. If anything, information technology only proves that the writer faced a expressionless end and was unable to call back of anything better and creative, and expected the audience to eat downwards whatever he could come up with, no matter how downright stupid it is.

Amongst all the other things, the almost easily noticeable flaw without a uncertainty is the execution of the plot itself which is all over the place. It doesn't take a genius to figure out afterward a couple of episodes that SAO suffers from poor pacing and inconsistency. It appears to exist highly indecisive equally to what exactly it wants to do and how to get it washed. This is mostly evident in the kickoff arc which is incredibly rushed at many parts. There're timeskips and the next affair you lot realize is that the characters take already cleared quite a lot of floors while keeping united states of america, the viewers, in the dark. This makes the plot disjointed, prevents whatever sort of correlation to the win-or-dice situation that the characters take been put into and gives everything the feel of it existence goose egg more than a piece of cake. The struggle for survival and a sense of urgency are inappreciably felt fifty-fifty though the lives of the characters have been said to exist literally at stake. The episodes dealing exclusively with the atomic number 82 couple taking some time off for a 'vacation' and later ending up building a virtual family can further make ane wonder: Why are they so carefree when they're supposed to chalk out plans to trounce the game and make a quick escape? To put information technology in other words, the arc has a tendency to become off track. It lays down for itself i affair but ends up doing something else altogether. It'south uncertain equally to whether to brand itself come across as a story of survival ready within a VRMMORPG or as a fluffy love story. In due grade, information technology decides to juggle with both but doesn't get either of them rightly washed. Non to mention, when the situation demands it and the writer goes out of any creative ideas to motility the story frontwards, the characters' actions are made to contradict the established game mechanics and the only reasoning that's provided for such miracles is 'where in that location's a will, at that place'southward a mode, and in that location're times when true dear and conclusion can overcome any obstacle in the game'.

At present, for those who look for substance in any given story, it's almost a fact that no amount of fanservice, heart candies, self-insertion or guilty pleasure factors tin can possibly compensate for a substandard storytelling. Yet that's what SAO tries to exercise. Information technology brings in all the same elements to sugarcoat its sloppy writing. On the whole, at that place're no sincere efforts made to incorporate details that would contribute in some way or the other to world building or characterization whatever.

While the poor quality of the writing is the key factor, the other aspect that contributes considerably to the mediocrity of the testify is the label. Simply put, SAO'south characters are bland. Essentially, the show has its focus on simply two characters: Kirito and Asuna. The others are merely there; mere devices to move the story forward. And a few have nothing to contribute to the plot at all. For instance, the ones featuring in the side stories.

Let'due south talk near the protagonist Kirito starting time.

An unsocial, reserved all the same headstrong player who knows how to get things washed his way and is determined to crush the game. That's basically how Kirito is portrayed in the beginning. At this point, he seems like a skillful riddance from the generic wimpy male person leads that have get and then much of a commonplace in anime. A proficient main character who knows how to deal with things is something refreshing to witness once in a while. Unfortunately, the impressions didn't concluding for long. In desperate attempts to make his character more 'appealing', Kirito is depicted every bit a 'perfect' being which leaves his grapheme with fiddling plausibility and much insipidity.
He's a guy with a heart of golden.
He has an 'ideal' girlfriend/married woman.
He's admired by those around him.
He can 'unintentionally' make every other adult female adore him, romantically or otherwise.

Thus, he serves equally a mere self-insert character for wish-fulfilment and at the stop of the day, at that place's nothing 'individualistic' near him. Gary stu is probably what describes his grapheme the best, and if paired with the Mary sue of the testify, we become a lead couple that seems to have been cut out straight from a tacky romance fanfiction.

Yes, when I mentioned 'Mary sue', I was referring to Asuna.

Asuna as the female lead is equally stereotyped every bit they come. Much like Kirito, her graphic symbol is heavily idealized. She'due south pretty, pop, kind, caring and every other man wants to have a piece of her. Oh, and did I mention her cooking skills that level up with each passing day? Later on all, her foremost duty is to cook for Kirito and show how much she cares for him. While initially she'southward portrayed every bit a stiff, independent female player with a tsundere-ish attitude, information technology doesn't take her long to make a transition from that to a sorry damsel in distress, requiring her knight in blackness robe to come up to her rescue whenever she'due south in a bind. Kirito fighting her guild leader to earn her some time for honeymooning is laughable to say the least. Information technology shortly becomes apparent that she doesn't have much of a role other than serving as the love interest of the protagonist and being the object of fanservice now and and so which might be successful in pleasing the male audience somehow but that alone can't make up for her desperately written grapheme. In fact, the other female character the show cares to put the spotlight on as well ends up condign the target of fanservice but doesn't have anything else going on for herself.

If you haven't guessed it already, I'm talking about Kirito's beloved imouto.

Throughout the first arc, the writer must take had been itching to include a beloved triangle in the story but couldn't find a potential candidate to go the job washed. As the first arc comes to a closure and the second arc begins, he grabs the opportunity, puts Asuna behind the confined (so that she's not an interference in what he'south attempting to practice) and introduces Suguha, Kirito's cousin sister. The sole purpose of creating her character, it appears, is to make way for a generic love triangle and melodrama. Suguha loves her cousin but tin't do anything about information technology considering he loves Asuna. That'due south the bitter truth. Hence, she looks up to a certain someone she happens to befriend within ALO and hopes that he'd be able to sooth her aching heart. However, she gets trolled… badly. This, in turn, leads to more drama that'south somehow supposed to be heart wrenching but it isn't.

The remaining cast consists of 2 antagonists, both declining to make whatsoever sort of impression though the i making his debut in the second arc tin be a practiced comic relief at times, and a bunch of side characters that wouldn't have had made whatsoever difference even if they hadn't existed. The lesser line is, the characters of SAO are a half-baked lot devoid of any depth or development. They could've mayhap turned out to exist interesting if they were more fleshed out but who cares about that as long as they entreatment to the intended target audition?

Onto the technical aspects now.

In the section of visuals, A-i Pictures does a pretty good job. Inside the game, the vast tracts of greenery, the beautiful cities during the dark, the castles… they're all a pleasure to behold. The blitheness is likewise well-handled for the nearly part. Initially I wasn't much pleased with the graphic symbol designs but they gradually grew on me, and I personally observe a few characters similar Asuna, Heathcliff and Lisbeth to be very well designed.

The music is composed by one of the most renowned composers in the anime industry, Yuki Kajiura. While the soundtracks aren't bad by whatever means, none of them stand out much except the one that plays during combat/intense scenes. In fact, that's the only track that can exist heard playing most of the time in the entire show. A few other tracks, though they aptly fit the scenes they're played in, are easily forgettable. The aforementioned applies to the opening and ending themes. Naught groundbreaking there. I'thousand a fan of nearly all of Kajiura's works and if compared to her previous works, SAO's music is lacklustre to say the least and and so much and so that information technology's hard to believe Kajiura is the composer to begin with.

To wrap upwards the review, SAO had the potential to be something good just that potential goes down the bleed due to poorly executed plot and banal label. Information technology starts off in a satisfactory manner simply goes downhill thereafter. Notwithstanding, it tin exist an entertaining ride if one keeps their expectations low and swallows down any it has to offering without questioning annihilation. One of the reasons why SAO has been a letdown is the anticipation the majority had for it prior to its ambulation just that's justified since the calorie-free novel series from which the anime is adapted is 1 of the virtually popular ones out there.

[Edited on March 20, 2017]

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