Sword Art Online Leafa Figure Sword Art Online Asuna Alo Figure Sword Above Head
Synopsis
In the twelvemonth 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 help of "NerveGear" engineering, players can command their avatars within the game using nix merely their own thoughts.
Kazuto Kirigaya, nicknamed "Kirito," is amid the lucky few enthusiasts who become their hands on the showtime shipment of the game. He logs in to observe himself, with ten-1000 others, in the scenic and elaborate world of Aincrad, one total of fantastic medieval weapons and gruesome monsters. However, in a barbarous turn of events, the players before long realize they cannot log out; the game'south creator has trapped them in his new world until they complete all ane hundred levels of the game.
In lodge to escape Aincrad, Kirito will now have to interact and cooperate with his fellow players. Some are allies, while others are foes, similar Asuna Yuuki, who commands the leading group attempting to escape from the ruthless game. To brand matters worse, Sword Art Online is not all fun and games: if they dice in Aincrad, they die in existent life. Kirito must adapt to his new reality, fight for his survival, and hopefully suspension free from his virtual hell.
[Written by MAL Rewrite]
Background
Related Anime
Characters & Vocalism Actors
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Reviews
Apr 6, 2014
25 of 25 episodes seen
| Overall | iv |
| Story | iv |
| Animation | 8 |
| Sound | 8 |
| Character | 1 |
| Enjoyment | 3 |
--The review contains modest spoilers--
Since I've seen a plethora of scores of 10 for this show, I thought I'd write what I experience is a more realistic review for this show. Sword Fine art Online is more than or less the equivalent of a fanfiction in it'south writing and quality. Whether people desire to overlook information technology or not is up to the individual, but I believe information technology fails at the fundamentals for writing a good story. This review volition go into details every bit to my opinions on why I experience this way.
one) Story - This is kickoff major trouble is the prove. Let's outset from the beginning shall we. The first arc consists of fourteen episodes. The beginning 2 episodes are honestly pretty good and prepare the plot of the show that should follow. Y'all're introduced to the master characters and it shows mmo style of play. I mean with two 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 five completely irrelevant side character episodes and unnecessary terrible fourth dimension skips that ruin whatever sense of a story the first 2 episodes set. So due to some illogical reason, we're now downwards to 7 episodes to tell the rest of this story. Even so doable right? RIGHT? Wrong over again. The series wastes another ii i/ii episodes on pointless filler garbage. So there you have it over half of first function of the story has nothing to do with the overall plot. Well what about 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 season makes absolutely no sense. This isn't a fantasy world, it'south a freaking video game, you can't have miracles here. So that concludes my bug with season 1, which the bulk of SAO fans consider to be the best office....Yeh you heard me, the 2nd part is even worse. 2) Art - The art is fantastic. Colorful characters, bosses (the few we come across), and settings are all hither. It's easily worth an 8. iii) Sound - Again fantastic. Nothing wrong with it at all. 8. 4)Characters - Hither nosotros go...This is easily the worst part of the series. I'll split up the primary characters and lump together the non so primary characters. Kirito/Kazuto - The master grapheme of this show is the prototype of the current definition of a "Gary Stu". He has no personality whatsoever. He is good at everything he tries for no reason. He's an amazing player, an super sleuth, a ladies man, and a master hacker. You proper noun information technology, he can do information technology. There'southward no reason given for this other than he'due south just that good. Girls all honey him, guys want to exist him, and villains are jealous of him. He also solos MMO dominate fights...yeh wrap your caput around that one. Side note - I often run across people claim they love this testify considering they're hardcore gamers. I accept to say as an avid gamer myself I find this show to be insulting. Unless you've hacked or cheated , I don't empathize why you're content with a character who does. Side note over. Asuna - The chief female lead/most breathy waifu graphic symbol always. Asuna is introduced as a strong player who can stand on her own with Kirito, that is for the first couple episodes. Once she reappears she barely does annihilation other than cook for Kirito. That'southward right, her ass stays in the kitchen, while Kirito does all the important stuff. In function ii she does absolutely nix...seriously. She again has no original personality...textbook Tsundere. Yui - This character is terrible in all senses of the word. She's walking deus ex machina, nothing more. This character should exist hated by whatever gamer, since she'southward a cheat device, who adds cypher to the story. Villains (minor spoilers) - At that place are 2 major villains in this serial and they're both terrible. The starting time one forgets his motives for doing everything in part 1 and the function ii one is so comically evil he can't even be taken seriously. Other Characters/ Who the hell cares - The female characters all want to have sexual activity with Kirito and have no personality past this. The male person characters don't get to do annihilation because Kirito hogs the show from everyone. That's actually all there is to say about that. Suguha - This is Kirito'south sis. She honestly has layers and was a plus to the show in my opinion. I don't know why she's in this prove, she doesn't belong in it... So yeh, Gary Stu and Waifu - these characters are pathetic (1). 5) Enjoyment - Needless to say I didn't savour it. Poor show (3) vi) Overall - This show has so many fans, and I really don't know why. Its plot is rushed and terrible. Its characters so apartment, information technology's almost funny...most. Its romance is highly misogynistic and terribly adult. I felt insulted watching this, and don't understand how any could like this evidence. Even Gamers.
Without going into spoilers, the 2nd part of the serial takes place in a different setting, with a generally new cast aside from our chief hero. This part of the series probably deserves the award for near 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 too...oh and at that place's an incest subplot...for some reason. This concludes the plot department. I think I'k beingness pretty generous with a 4 here.
Feb 26, 2013
25 of 25 episodes seen
| Overall | seven |
| Story | half-dozen |
| Blitheness | eight |
| Sound | 9 |
| Graphic symbol | vi |
| Enjoyment | viii |
I don't really want to become into too much depth, merely I'd like to requite an overview of the serial and requite my opinions it. If yous haven't noticed yet there are many negative reviews out in that location for this anime, and while many of them bring upward some pretty fair points, I remember some people are being a bit besides harsh on it. Let me explain.
Yes it's a popular anime, aye it has flaws, no it's not perfect, only at the very least in my opinion information technology is enjoyable. The pacing is off, the kickoff particularly feels rushed, at that place were moments where I thought I skipped an episode because of the time skips which made it difficult to really connect with any of the characters in the kickoff, and there were some less than stellar instances where it felt similar the anime was trying to make me care but failing difficult. Some characters felt to be completely forgotten throughout most of this series too. For instance in the beginning nosotros are introduced to a character named Klein who is speedily pushed aside subsequently the first episode and barely seen once again and doesn't actually brand much of an touch on at all on the story later on. This seems to happen a lot throughout this series where there might be some emotional moments where a graphic symbol dies, or something dramatic happens simply there is really no emotional bear upon from it, and the main graphic symbol seems to not really care that much nigh it or it doesn't actually effect anything significantly. I actually felt this series shined from around episodes 4-thirteen and I wish they would accept kept with that pace instead of rushing an ending midway and throwing something new at u.s.. The 2d half just felt completely unnecessary and forced. Pushing the negative aside, I found the overall theme and atmosphere of the series to be keen, and beingness an gorging lover the MMORPG genre obviously a lot of things in this series appealed to me. I really enjoyed the idea of being stuck in a game that was impossible to escape from without winning and having existent consequences, it actually made everything much more dramatic and meaningful in the story. Sadly this quickly goes abroad midway through the plot. If I had to pick two of the best things this anime did well for me information technology would probably exist the animation and soundtrack. They both were actually well washed, and honestly without them being every bit good every bit they were this series would accept gotten a much lower score from me, and when I say I really enjoyed the soundtrack I mean that I loved it, it was superb. I think what it really comes downwards was just the fact that I enjoyed watching it. I tin look at the flaws and pick the anime apart pretty hands, but those flaws never really stopped me from enjoying this anime.I really do feel though that it had a lot of potential to be a top tier series, it merely made far too many mistakes. Looking at it objectively I simply cannot give this anime college than a 7. Information technology was good because I constitute it to exist enjoyable, but it wasn't neat or amazing. At the stop of the day I watch anime because I want something that will entertain me and keep me interested, and I experience that Sword Fine art Online did a expert task at accomplishing that.
Oct 12, 2014
25 of 25 episodes seen
| Overall | 2 |
| Story | 2 |
| Animation | 7 |
| Sound | vii |
| Character | 2 |
| Enjoyment | five |
One time upon a time, in a land far away, there lived a dauntless young boy. He was the all-time swordsman in the state and the manliest human being of all. He overcame countless trials with little effort and won the hearts of many fair maidens.
Yes, it'southward time for Sword Art Online, the origin of many angry rants.
The premise doesn't sound too bad. 10 one 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 virtually it: this could exist a tragic story of struggle where death is behind every corner. A story of sacrifice and despair. A story of alliances and expose. A story of the struggle to retain humanity in front of impossible conditions. ...But why take any of that when you can have romance and harem? That's correct; the survival game is just for bear witness. Don't expect deep interpersonal or political disharmonize. Don't expect psychology or moral dilemmas. Don't look tactics or mind games. Actually, don't look witty dialogue of any kind. And that is the biggest problem with this evidence. It is bankrupt in substance. It's mostly just uninspired romance and harem, with a bit of activeness here and at that place. At that place isn't much thinking involved. A few plot holes I could forgive, only if the prove isn't about anything worthwhile, there isn't much to do. What makes this problem all the more apparent is that the premise promises something entirely different than what it delivers. The testify has thrown its hands up in the air and said, "We don't care." So why should the viewer? It doesn't aid that the bear witness has grown infamous for glorifying its protagonist, who in the eyes of many has become the epitome of a Gary Stu. He can defeat anything, he tin solve any problem, and he gets all the girls. It's almost similar this testify was meant to be a propaganda slice in his favor. Story: 3 The first two episodes are decent, building upward the premise. Nosotros are introduced to the protagonist Kirito and the concept of the death game. Soon plenty, nosotros are told that a month has passed and two thousand players have died offscreen. ...Wait, not even a short montage or anything? Apparently not. Anyway, these two episodes are pretty much the merely decent ones, so savor them while you can. The third episode begins to show more than serious problems. We are supposed to grade an emotional bail to new characters in a few minutes, and we have to get through over-the-top angst over irrational actions. But in that location is too optimism in the air; of course we can revive someone whose brain has been fried, correct? What follows is an abrupt leap to harem and romance antics. The next few episodes are about various girls of a sudden falling for Kirito, often the aforementioned day they met him. This typically involves uncontrollable blushing, fanservice, and people interim Tsundere. You probably go the picture. It doesn't help that many of these episodes have a very filler-esque feel to them. The principal plot ‒ if you tin can telephone call it such at this point ‒ takes a backseat in favor of these random new girls. The girl called Asuna, who apace becomes the token love interest for Kirito, has at least met him earlier, but in that location is still very trivial buildup to their relationship. Unless it took place offscreen. Yous see, some other affair that becomes very noticeable is the pacing. There have been timeskips of months between episodes. This wouldn't exist a problem if these snapshots contained all the events that were critical to the story, but it's obvious that the writer has picked rather slow events out of all the possibilities. Why is it that thousands of people dying is covered in a few lines, while nosotros have to sit down through hours and hours of romance and harem? I hate to exist beating a expressionless horse here, simply it'southward unavoidable because it comes up again in only almost every episode. By now, it has as well go 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 endless puddle of abilities, simply well-nigh importantly he always wins. At that place is sometimes false tension, sure, only you know he will survive anyway. Yous can simply stomach and then many clutch survivals before yous start 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 girl to portray a typical happy family unit. The problem is that their human relationship is really non that interesting. But "dem feels"! Nah, sad. I have a heart of rock. This is followed past a sudden confrontation with the main villain, which Kirito wins because the power of love conquers all. And by that I mean the power of love conquers the programming of the game. Well, okay, mayhap there was some "ability of love" clause in the code somewhere. It wouldn't surprise me at this bespeak. Predictably enough, melodrama ensues. Tears, promises of love, etc. You lot tin probably imagine. At to the lowest degree now nosotros're done with this show, right? No, think once again, that was only the good role. There are really 11 more than episodes left, and the journey takes us further downhill. We enter some other game, this fourth dimension without the death aspect. Earlier we get to the plot itself, fifty-fifty at a glance this idea brings up a few problems. The harsh reality hits you lot faster than you tin say "cashcow." This second 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 information technology further. At least know to quit while you lot're ahead. Only no, they merely had to drag this bear witness through the mud to rip apart any shred of nobility it had left. It doesn't help that there is no death anymore. While this makes the slice-of-life content more than plumbing equipment, information technology also removes the established selling point of the evidence. The change is too abrupt, and the deviation in tone is too jarring. If you want to brand a slice-of-life of ordinary MMO players, do information technology from the start. Now, for the plot itself, and information technology isn't pretty. Nosotros go directly to a Mario game, past which I mean saving a dryad in distress trapped in a cage. 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's sister Suguha, who also provides additional fanservice. At to the lowest degree now the pacing is less erratic and at that place is seemingly less development taking place offscreen. It's simply as well bad that there is also very fiddling meaningful taking place onscreen. In that location are some new characters and fifty-fifty an ingame war going on, but it's all so irrelevant to the main story that it's hard to maintain interest. Long story brusk, Kirito beats the 2nd villain with the assistance of more deus ex machinas. There are also more tears, promises of beloved, etc. And then at present we're done, right? For now, yes, but in that location'south nonetheless season 2 to expect frontward to. Setting: This is technically role of the story category, but I really think it deserves its own section here. You run across, the very foundations of the setting make no sense. People in Sword Art Online are too often acting similar they are in a normal game, not in a life-and-death scenario. For instance, why is there so much resentment towards beta testers who accept greater knowledge of the game? This isn't a competition; the faster someone beats the game, the faster everyone gets out. And, similarly, why are beta testers reluctant to share data? Are they and so worried virtually other people using their newfound abilities to kill them for no reason? Expect, you can't have both a casual slice-of-life of MMO players and a grim death game at the same time. Pick one. This casual attitude becomes more pronounced later on when information technology becomes obvious people are wasting tons of time with unproductive quests, romance, and only hanging around. Kirito himself spends time on seemingly useless sidequests, and Asuna spends time cooking for him. Come to think of it, why has Asuna wasted points on a useless skill like cooking in the first place? Are these people fifty-fifty trying? And why are so many players dying when towns are safe zones? Are they stupidly rushing into loftier-level dungeons? I suppose so. You see, for a grim death game it certain is hard to die in SAO. Bosses won't respawn, so everyone can accelerate forward, fifty-fifty weak players. Going from town to town is also like shooting fish in a barrel enough with teleport crystals. Well, okay, there is that problem of challenging people to a duel while asleep, but that tin can't have out and then many. At that place is no lack of critical resources because you tin can hang out in the safety of towns indefinitely. Sure, exp and money are limited considering the regeneration of monsters is express, which is foreign game design itself, simply they aren't necessary if y'all stay in town. At least, the show never implies that they are necessary. Oh, and for the tape, I'm treating the prove as self-independent and ignoring the source cloth. And then why do they die? I'd put my money on rushing stupidly into dungeons because we get to see one notable example. Allow's imagine you found yourself in the following state of affairs. Before you and your guild are most to enter a high-level dungeon, you larn that i of them lied about his level. Knowing this, you lot realize yous are underleveled and likely to cease up dead, while avoiding death and alarm the others would exist equally simple as staying in town. What would y'all do? Would you A catchy one, I acknowledge. We are also introduced to groups of thespian killers. Sounds skillful until y'all realize this isn't a normal game. At to the lowest degree, I thought it wasn't, but it looks like some people didn't get the memo. In a situation similar SAO, there should be no reason for these killings. This isn't Danganronpa, where the principal point of the premise is that yous can only escape by killing someone. This is a game where it makes the nigh sense to team upwards and beat the game. At that place is no prisoner's dilemma; cooperation is the all-time programme and whatever sensible person would go for it. If yous kill someone here, you just get some money and equipment. While it may assist yous beat the game a little faster, odds are that it will only hurt your chances of survival overall. Just off the top of my head, a few reasons: Actually, does the equipment even help that much? Kirito seemingly uses the same equipment for long periods of fourth dimension, yet he is practically invincible. On the other hand, he does say that equipment can be worth many levels, so did he get the all-time stuff for himself so fast? Is information technology strange game pattern or cheat codes? Information technology'due south anyone's judge. Of course, if you lot have little involvement in beating the game, killing other players makes more sense, if merely a lilliputian. I suppose getting more than coin tin help you obtain some luxury items, only is information technology worth the risk? The implied reason is that they are killing people for laughs, simply why did then many murderous psychopaths decide to log into this MMO on its opening day? Is this some kind of stab at gamers, proverb that they are unable to distinguish between existent violence and fake violence? Possibly, or the writer forgot that this isn't a normal MMO. Again. Then is it a legit programme to stay in the virtual globe for the rest of your life and give upwards on getting dorsum to the existent world? If so, it would explain a lot. While the range of pastimes in there is smaller than in the real world, maybe at that place is enough for some people. The selection between staying in relative happiness in a virtual earth and risking your life returning to the real world could take been an interesting 1. Unfortunately, their bodies are deteriorating in real life, which makes the option very one-sided. For some reason, Asuna has to point this out to Kirito because evidently the state of his real-world body had never occurred to him over the course of ii years. Yep, good chore, 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 still legal later on the SAO incident? Certain, the new hardware is supposedly safer, but the previous death trap must have equally passed through "strict" regime examination, so who in their right mind would trust them? And fifty-fifty if we presume it is safe, since when has people's hysteria hinged on facts? People fearfulness new applied science fifty-fifty when it's harmless, let alone when a massive incident like this happens. There would be mass protests in the streets in favor of banning them. Characters: 2 You may have noticed that I accept just mentioned three characters past proper noun so far. For some other show, this might be because the bandage is so vast that there is no time to get through them all, just hither information technology'south rather that there are very few characters worth mentioning. Kirito, and by extension Asuna and Suguha who are defined by Kirito's graphic symbol, hog practically all of the screentime. Everyone else gets thrown under the bus. Girls only exist to fall in love with Kirito, and males only exist to exist inferior to him. The villains in particular only exist as provender to the guy. Kirito: I have barely touched on Kirito's personality. Well, blame the show, not me; it should at least exist willing to come across me halfway. Nosotros know very little about him, other than being invincible and inexplicably good with the ladies. Essentially, he is the manliest man on the planet. That'southward pretty much all he is. Fifty-fifty his dialogue ends upwards pretty banal. There are no witty insights, no clever jokes, no skillful word games. Much of his dialogue consists of saying that the earth is a virtual one, explaining game mechanics, wishing to save everyone, or loving someone forever. The sort of stuff you'd look from a cardboard cutout hero in a situation like this. It can exist a facepalm-worthy experience to witness girl after girl falling for Kirito like nothing, oft the same day they met him. The show endlessly drills into the viewer that he is the sexiest human live... for some reason. I get that rescuing people can requite you points in their eyes, but come on now. I can only assume there is a subconscious manliness stat and his blackness jacket comes with a +999 boost. Every bit far as his invincibility goes, the win streak by itself isn't the biggest problem. The problem is that he always wins through brute forcefulness. That is to say, his graphic symbol skills and stats. There are no tactics worth mentioning, no psychology, no politics, no thinking whatsoever. He will but become out in that location and pull off his generic action hero stunts. Sure, developing those skills and stats may have required some tactical thinking. Peradventure he has optimized his skill tree or has amazing grinding strats. In theory. We see no hints of it. It all happened offscreen and offscreen doesn't count. I'm sorry, it just doesn't. To add together insult to injury, some of Kirito'due south abilities are completely forgotten later on. I'chiliad sure that health recovery affair would have come up in handy whatever number of times. And when even his skills and stats aren't enough, he is saved by plot armor at the concluding 2d. Information technology'due south also a mockery of MMOs in the sense that Kirito is able to solo raid bosses. And he is able to reach a level higher than anyone despite playing solo, supposedly considering he doesn't have to split the exp. His most unique ability is revealed to be... *drumroll* dual-wielding, which nobody else is allowed to practise 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'm seriously thinking that the evidence would have been a lot more tolerable if Kirito alone had been replaced past i of the side characters. It yet wouldn't have been a masterpiece or annihilation, but at to the lowest degree the Gary Stu accusations could have been avoided. Asuna: She is nearly as banal in personality as Kirito. She is also portrayed as fairly powerful for no substantial reason but of course naught compared to him. As time passes, her most notable trait becomes being a textbook Tsundere. ...Well, that was fast. Moving on. Suguha: As mentioned before, her main role is providing fanservice and a tacked-on incest subplot. It'south simply some other element thrown into the plot for cheap shock value, if anyone is nevertheless shocked by incest in anime nowadays. Villain #i: The first villain barely appears, and his motivation for trapping the players is vague, to say the least. He basically did it out of personal interest. He wanted to create a virtual world where death has meaning like in the real one, just as for why he was interested in the idea, he forgot. Err, alright then. Moving on. Villain #2: The second villain is pathetic and a disgrace to antagonists everywhere, coming across every bit a drawing villain who does evil things for the sake of existence evil. The conflict here is portrayed as completely blackness-and-white, just in case someone had sympathy for the guy, as unlikely as that is. His main focus is substantially raping a asleep daughter. And that is over obtaining tons of cash, presumably in the millions. If he had left the daughter alone, he probably would accept got away with it, so for all intents and purposes, he chose raping a girl over millions in cash. Talk about priorities. Come to call up of information technology, it'south already ridiculous that the family of the comatose girl is planning to have her marry the guy. I mean, she is in a coma. Equally in unconscious, unable to state her own intentions, etc. Where are child protective services when yous need them? Thankfully, the law disagrees, and then they tin can't apply for an official marriage. Instead, he'll exist adopted by her family as their son in spirit... Look, what? Furthermore, his sheer incompetence is mindboggling. He openly explains his evil plans and his security is practically at Dr. Evil level, upward to entering a secret keycode in apparently sight so that the prisoner can see. Thankfully the regime and his company are equally incompetent and are non monitoring his research grouping closely despite its reliance on infamous technology used in SAO. Are these the same people who deemed the new tech condom? If so, I'd like a second opinion. I wouldn't trust these people to operate Angry Birds, permit alone a virtual MMO with potential health risks. Art: 7 And then this is where the money went. The backgrounds look nice but inexpensive fanservice scenes non so much. Sound: 7 Not too bad either. The soundtrack and opening and catastrophe songs work pretty decently, and the voices are too alright. Enjoyment: v Funnier than I was expecting but for the incorrect reasons. There is something earnest about how the show is trying to portray escapism and human relationships, but information technology falls just short enough to create a dissonance. Overall: 3 Watch information technology to witness the writing yourself. Merely more importantly, by watching the bear witness y'all can better understand the reviews or, better all the same, write 1 yourself.
a) Record a message in accelerate, knowing that you wouldn't last long, or
b) Stay in town then that you lot wouldn't get killed in the first place?
1) If people start killing each other, it manifestly increases the take chances of dying yourself, both in retaliation and spontaneously.
2) Killing people reduces manpower needed for chirapsia the game, and the distrust that follows volition brand information technology fifty-fifty slower. You could but kill useless depression-level players, but they probably don't take much money or good equipment to begin with.
3) There is the gamble that you volition land murder charges if you escape from the game and officials find out.
Dec 31, 2012
25 of 25 episodes seen
| Overall | 3 |
| Story | 3 |
| Animation | 8 |
| Audio | 6 |
| Grapheme | 3 |
| Enjoyment | 6 |
Once in a while, there comes along a title (exist it movie, book or anime) that takes the audience past storm, sweeping numerous off their feat, leaving several with a bad palatableness in their oral cavity and making a few pass the work off equally 'average' or 'mediocre'. Online communities, forums, chat rooms and every other nook and corner of the internet known to man turn into arenas of debates, discussions, fanboyism/fangirlism and flaming. It'due south credible that when something is pop, it doesn't always get to bath in praises. With the acclamation, 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 point on, is no exception. SAO, the anime adaptation of a serial of light novels of the same name by Kawahara Reki, has been the much talked about show of the Summer and Fall 2012 seasons, and taking into consideration the incredible hype surrounding it with reviews of mixed sorts, it'south probable to stay that manner for quite some time. Keeping in mind the vogue 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 decease in existent life and the simply fashion out is to clear the game'. Unfortunately, SAO fails at many levels which is a shame considering when the anime kicked off with the highly anticipated first episode, all seemed well and it gave the vibes of something truly worth spending your fourth dimension on merely then it does a flip and from this point, things become awry. And here we take it— one of the most controversial anime of the recent years. Earlier proceeding with the review, let's get one thing straight. I have non read the original source fabric— the low-cal novels, that is. Hence, I'm not going to draw whatever comparison between that and the anime. With that out of the manner, allow'due south keep the ball rolling. SAO on the surface has a adequately interesting premise, no doubt, and information technology'south executed well to some extent or so did information technology initially seem. The very idea of a large number of people logged into a VRMMORPG with the intention of embarking on a virtual reality adventure simply just to exist struck with utter horror as they're faced with the shocking truth of the game has been put into effect quite satisfactorily in the outset episode. Information technology's pretty much what I'd call an fantabulous start. However, SAO effortlessly manages to transport all my expectations and enthusiasm down the bleed for information technology takes the evidence only an episode or ii to reveal its true colours followed by the disappointment it has in store. Then, what goes wrong? Well, many things. Following the Peachy Beginning, the first arc decides to have a detour and invests on a few episodes dealing with side stories in which our protagonist Kirito gets acquainted with 1 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 primary heroine of the story and Kirito'south dearest interest Asuna is assumed to be constant and the other girls are variables. Now this isn't necessarily a bad matter. Still, these side stories have very niggling to aught to contribute to the series as a whole. Admittedly, they equip the viewers with some clever, piddling details here and there regarding how the game world works but they hardly have whatever bearing to the overall plot. The primary goal of these filler-similar 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 exist the coolest dude in this world fabricated upwards of zillions of pixels. To boot, the characters (read: beautiful chicks) that appear in these episodes have absolutely no substantial role to play in the story afterward on. 'Side' characters indeed. And SAO knows how to effectively sideline them. When the arc finally gets itself dorsum on runway, it'due south only natural to hope that the evidence volition now have something worthwhile to deliver. However, that isn't the instance. If anything, some severe cracks begin to appear every bit very soon the focus of SAO is the romance between the two leads which is, in 1 word, cheesy. At this bespeak, opinions are divided. The romance aspect, for some, tin can be appealing while for others, it can exist a major turn off especially if they don't like the characters involved. It all comes down to personal preference. Yet, personal preferences aren't a convincing excuse past any means to overlook the fact that the story, world building and everything else take a backseat for the sake of assuasive the two leads to be lovey-dovey in the backdrop of gorgeous sceneries. When the arc does manage to divert its focus on to some 'serious business', things look good for a while but with a rather unimpressive ending, the offset arc concludes on a pretty bad note in my book. And so begins the 2d arc which, to be 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 adversary who is a disgrace to all the villains in fiction nosotros take come up across so far. This arc showcases some really center candy visuals but that'due south pretty much its simply redeeming point. It doesn't take anything much going on except for a few climactic action sequences now and so with intense boxing music playing in the background that last merely for a while. Not to mention, in that location's some other daughter added to Kirito'south harem. And then the hilarity ensues. The manner in which ALO is brought to a shut is bloodcurdling to say the to the lowest degree and at the same laughable because it doesn't hesitate to apply the much notorious plot device dues ex machina, ruining any hopes there were for the concluding confrontation with the villain. The poor determination could be excused if it was handled more cleverly and convincingly but a blatant ass pull is past no means satisfactory. If anything, information technology only proves that the writer faced a dead terminate and was unable to think of annihilation better and artistic, and expected the audition to eat down whatever he could come up with, no matter how downright stupid it is. Among all the other things, the virtually easily noticeable flaw without a dubiety is the execution of the plot itself which is all over the place. Information technology doesn't have a genius to figure out afterwards a couple of episodes that SAO suffers from poor pacing and inconsistency. Information technology appears to be highly indecisive as to what exactly information technology wants to do and how to go it done. This is by and large axiomatic in the first arc which is incredibly rushed at many parts. In that location're timeskips and the next matter you 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 any sort of correlation to the win-or-die situation that the characters take been put into and gives everything the feel of information technology existence nothing more than a piece of block. The struggle for survival and a sense of urgency are hardly felt even though the lives of the characters have been said to exist literally at stake. The episodes dealing exclusively with the lead couple taking some time off for a 'vacation' and after ending up building a virtual family tin farther brand 1 wonder: Why are they so carefree when they're supposed to chalk out plans to beat the game and make a quick escape? To put it in other words, the arc has a tendency to go off track. It lays downward for itself one thing but ends upwards doing something else altogether. Information technology'south uncertain equally to whether to make itself encounter as a story of survival gear up inside a VRMMORPG or as a fluffy dear story. In due course, it decides to juggle with both but doesn't get either of them rightly done. Not to mention, when the state of affairs demands information technology and the writer goes out of any creative ideas to move the story frontwards, the characters' actions are made to contradict the established game mechanics and the just reasoning that's provided for such miracles is 'where at that place'south a will, there'south a way, and there're times when true dearest and determination can overcome whatsoever obstacle in the game'. At present, for those who expect for substance in whatever given story, it's well-nigh a fact that no corporeality of fanservice, center candies, self-insertion or guilty pleasure factors can peradventure compensate for a substandard storytelling. Withal that'due south what SAO tries to do. Information technology brings in all the aforementioned elements to sugarcoat its sloppy writing. On the whole, there're no sincere efforts made to incorporate details that would contribute in some way or the other to world building or characterization whatsoever. While the poor quality of the writing is the central factor, the other aspect that contributes considerably to the mediocrity of the bear witness is the characterization. Simply put, SAO's characters are bland. Substantially, the show has its focus on but two characters: Kirito and Asuna. The others are just there; mere devices to move the story forward. And a few accept nothing to contribute to the plot at all. For instance, the ones featuring in the side stories. Let's talk nigh the protagonist Kirito first. An unsocial, reserved yet headstrong player who knows how to get things done his way and is determined to trounce the game. That's basically how Kirito is portrayed in the get-go. At this point, he seems like a practiced riddance from the generic wimpy male leads that have become then much of a commonplace in anime. A proficient main graphic symbol who knows how to deal with things is something refreshing to witness once in a while. Unfortunately, the impressions didn't terminal for long. In desperate attempts to make his character more 'appealing', Kirito is depicted as a 'perfect' being which leaves his character with niggling plausibility and much insipidity. Thus, he serves as a mere self-insert character for wish-fulfilment and at the cease of the 24-hour interval, there'southward goose egg 'individualistic' about him. Gary stu is probably what describes his character the all-time, and if paired with the Mary sue of the show, we get a lead couple that seems to have been cut out straight from a tacky romance fanfiction. Aye, when I mentioned 'Mary sue', I was referring to Asuna. Asuna as the female pb is as stereotyped as they come. Much like Kirito, her character is heavily arcadian. She'due south pretty, popular, kind, caring and every other man wants to have a slice of her. Oh, and did I mention her cooking skills that level upwardly with each passing twenty-four hours? Afterwards all, her foremost duty is to cook for Kirito and testify how much she cares for him. While initially she's portrayed as a strong, independent female person player with a tsundere-ish attitude, information technology doesn't take her long to brand a transition from that to a deplorable damsel in distress, requiring her knight in black robe to come to her rescue whenever she's in a demark. Kirito fighting her guild leader to earn her some time for honeymooning is laughable to say the least. Information technology soon becomes apparent that she doesn't have much of a part other than serving every bit the love involvement of the protagonist and beingness the object of fanservice now and then which might be successful in pleasing the male person audience somehow but that alone can't brand up for her badly written grapheme. In fact, the other female person character the prove cares to put the spotlight on too ends up becoming the target of fanservice but doesn't have annihilation else going on for herself. If you haven't guessed it already, I'yard talking about Kirito's beloved imouto. Throughout the first arc, the writer must take had been itching to include a love triangle in the story but couldn't notice a potential candidate to get the job done. Equally the first arc comes to a closure and the 2d arc begins, he grabs the opportunity, puts Asuna behind the confined (so that she's not an interference in what he'south attempting to exercise) and introduces Suguha, Kirito'southward cousin sister. The sole purpose of creating her character, information technology appears, is to brand mode for a generic love triangle and melodrama. Suguha loves her cousin but tin can't do anything about it considering he loves Asuna. That'south the biting truth. Hence, she looks up to a certain someone she happens to befriend within ALO and hopes that he'd exist able to sooth her aching centre. However, she gets trolled… badly. This, in turn, leads to more drama that'south somehow supposed to be heart wrenching merely it isn't. The remaining bandage consists of two antagonists, both failing to make any sort of impression though the one making his debut in the second arc can be a expert comic relief at times, and a bunch of side characters that wouldn't have had made any departure fifty-fifty if they hadn't existed. The bottom line is, the characters of SAO are a one-half-baked lot devoid of whatever depth or development. They could've perhaps turned out to be interesting if they were more fleshed out but who cares about that as long every bit they entreatment to the intended target audience? Onto the technical aspects now. In the department of visuals, A-1 Pictures does a pretty practiced chore. Inside the game, the vast tracts of greenery, the beautiful cities during the night, the castles… they're all a pleasure to behold. The blitheness is as well well-handled for the about part. Initially I wasn't much pleased with the character designs but they gradually grew on me, and I personally notice a few characters like Asuna, Heathcliff and Lisbeth to be very well designed. The music is composed by i of the most renowned composers in the anime industry, Yuki Kajiura. While the soundtracks aren't bad by any means, none of them stand out much except the one that plays during gainsay/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 same applies to the opening and ending themes. Aught groundbreaking in that location. I'yard a fan of almost all of Kajiura's works and if compared to her previous works, SAO'south music is lacklustre to say the to the lowest degree and and then much and so that it's difficult to believe Kajiura is the composer to begin with. To wrap up the review, SAO had the potential to be something good but that potential goes down the drain due to poorly executed plot and bland label. It starts off in a satisfactory manner but goes downhill thereafter. Even so, it tin can be an entertaining ride if one keeps their expectations low and swallows down whatever it has to offering without questioning anything. One of the reasons why SAO has been a letdown is the anticipation the majority had for information technology prior to its airing but that's justified since the calorie-free novel series from which the anime is adjusted is i of the virtually pop ones out there. [Edited on March 20, 2017]
He's a guy with a heart of gold.
He has an 'ideal' girlfriend/wife.
He's admired by those around him.
He can 'unintentionally' make every other woman adore him, romantically or otherwise.
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Source: https://myanimelist.net/anime/11757/Sword_Art_Online
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