What Happened to Sword Art Online Abridged Episode 13
Synopsis
In the year 2022, virtual reality has progressed by leaps and bounds, and a massive online role-playing game called Sword Art Online (SAO) is launched. With the aid of "NerveGear" engineering science, players can control their avatars within the game using nothing simply their own thoughts.
Kazuto Kirigaya, nicknamed "Kirito," is amid the lucky few enthusiasts who get their easily on the first shipment of the game. He logs in to discover himself, with 10-g others, in the breathtaking and elaborate world of Aincrad, ane full of fantastic medieval weapons and gruesome monsters. Nonetheless, in a cruel turn of events, the players soon realize they cannot log out; the game'southward creator has trapped them in his new world until they complete all 1 hundred levels of the game.
In club to escape Aincrad, Kirito will now have to interact and cooperate with his fellow players. Some are allies, while others are foes, like Asuna Yuuki, who commands the leading grouping attempting to escape from the ruthless game. To make matters worse, Sword Fine art Online is non all fun and games: if they die in Aincrad, they die in real life. Kirito must adapt to his new reality, fight for his survival, and hopefully break costless from his virtual hell.
[Written past MAL Rewrite]
Background
Related Anime
Characters & Voice Actors
Staff
Reviews
Apr half dozen, 2014
25 of 25 episodes seen
| Overall | 4 |
| Story | 4 |
| Animation | 8 |
| Sound | 8 |
| Character | 1 |
| Enjoyment | three |
--The review contains small-scale spoilers--
Since I've seen a plethora of scores of 10 for this prove, I thought I'd write what I feel is a more realistic review for this show. Sword Art Online is more than or less the equivalent of a fanfiction in it'southward writing and quality. Whether people want to overlook information technology or non is up to the individual, but I believe it fails at the fundamentals for writing a adept story. This review will go into details every bit to my opinions on why I experience this way.
ane) Story - This is start major problem is the show. Let'southward kickoff from the starting time shall we. The commencement arc consists of 14 episodes. The kickoff 2 episodes are honestly pretty adept and set upwards the plot of the bear witness that should follow. You're introduced to the main characters and it shows mmo style of play. I mean with 2 episodes that are amazing, surely what follows will be more than of the adventures of the primary characters and these mmo dominate fights...correct? Wrong. What follows are 5 completely irrelevant side grapheme episodes and unnecessary terrible fourth dimension skips that ruin any sense of a story the first ii episodes set up. And so due to some illogical reason, we're at present down to 7 episodes to tell the rest of this story. Still doable correct? RIGHT? Wrong again. The serial wastes some other ii 1/2 episodes on pointless filler garbage. So at that place y'all have it over half of first part of the story has zilch 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 flavor makes absolutely no sense. This isn't a fantasy world, it's a freaking video game, you can't have miracles here. So that concludes my issues with flavor 1, which the majority of SAO fans consider to be the all-time part....Yeh yous heard me, the second part is even worse. 2) Art - The art is fantastic. Colorful characters, bosses (the few we see), and settings are all here. It's easily worth an 8. three) Sound - Over again fantastic. Nothing incorrect with it at all. 8. 4)Characters - Here we go...This is hands the worst part of the series. I'll separate the primary characters and lump together the not so main characters. Kirito/Kazuto - The principal graphic symbol of this show is the epitome of the current definition of a "Gary Stu". He has no personality whatsoever. He is expert at everything he tries for no reason. He's an amazing role player, an super sleuth, a ladies man, and a master hacker. You proper noun it, he can do it. There's no reason given for this other than he'southward simply that proficient. Girls all dearest him, guys desire to exist him, and villains are jealous of him. He also solos MMO dominate fights...yeh wrap your caput around that one. Side annotation - I often run into people claim they beloved this bear witness considering they're hardcore gamers. I have to say equally an avid gamer myself I find this testify to be insulting. Unless y'all've hacked or cheated , I don't sympathise why yous're content with a character who does. Side note over. Asuna - The main female lead/almost blatant waifu character e'er. Asuna is introduced equally a strong role player who can stand up on her own with Kirito, that is for the get-go couple episodes. Once she reappears she barely does anything other than cook for Kirito. That's correct, her ass stays in the kitchen, while Kirito does all the important stuff. In part 2 she does admittedly nada...seriously. She again has no original personality...textbook Tsundere. Yui - This character is terrible in all senses of the discussion. She's walking deus ex machina, nothing more than. This graphic symbol should be hated by whatever gamer, since she's a cheat device, who adds goose egg to the story. Villains (pocket-size spoilers) - There are 2 major villains in this series and they're both terrible. The first one forgets his motives for doing everything in function 1 and the part 2 i is so comically evil he tin can't fifty-fifty be taken seriously. Other Characters/ Who the hell cares - The female person characters all want to accept sex with Kirito and have no personality past this. The male person characters don't get to practice anything because Kirito hogs the show from anybody. That'south really all there is to say about that. Suguha - This is Kirito's sis. She honestly has layers and was a plus to the show in my opinion. I don't know why she'due south in this show, she doesn't vest in it... And then yeh, Gary Stu and Waifu - these characters are pathetic (ane). 5) Enjoyment - Needless to say I didn't enjoy it. Poor evidence (three) 6) Overall - This prove has so many fans, and I really don't know why. Its plot is rushed and terrible. Its characters so flat, information technology's about funny...about. Its romance is highly misogynistic and terribly adult. I felt insulted watching this, and don't understand how any could similar this prove. Even Gamers.
Without going into spoilers, the 2nd part of the series takes place in a different setting, with a mostly new cast aside from our primary hero. This part of the series probably deserves the honor for virtually 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 virtually it. Oh yeh deus ex machina finale here likewise...oh and at that place's an incest subplot...for some reason. This concludes the plot section. I retrieve I'm being pretty generous with a 4 here.
Feb 26, 2013
25 of 25 episodes seen
| Overall | 7 |
| Story | 6 |
| Animation | 8 |
| Audio | 9 |
| Character | six |
| Enjoyment | 8 |
I don't really want to become into too much depth, just I'd similar to requite an overview of the serial and give my opinions information technology. If you lot oasis't noticed yet there are many negative reviews out in that location for this anime, and while many of them bring up some pretty off-white points, I remember some people are existence a bit too harsh on it. Allow me explain.
Aye it'due south a popular anime, yes it has flaws, no information technology'southward not perfect, but at the very to the lowest degree in my opinion it is enjoyable. The pacing is off, the starting time particularly feels rushed, there were moments where I thought I skipped an episode because of the fourth dimension skips which fabricated it difficult to really connect with whatsoever of the characters in the beginning, and in that location were some less than stellar instances where information technology felt like the anime was trying to brand me intendance but failing hard. Some characters felt to exist completely forgotten throughout about of this series too. For instance in the beginning we are introduced to a grapheme named Klein who is chop-chop pushed aside after the first episode and barely seen again and doesn't actually make much of an impact 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 grapheme dies, or something dramatic happens but there is really no emotional impact from information technology, and the principal character seems to not actually intendance that much about it or information technology doesn't really effect anything significantly. I really felt this serial shined from around episodes four-13 and I wish they would accept kept with that footstep instead of rushing an ending midway and throwing something new at u.s.a.. The second half just felt completely unnecessary and forced. Pushing the negative aside, I found the overall theme and temper of the serial to be bully, and being an avid lover the MMORPG genre obviously a lot of things in this serial appealed to me. I really enjoyed the idea of beingness stuck in a game that was impossible to escape from without winning and having real consequences, it really made everything much more dramatic and meaningful in the story. Sadly this quickly goes away midway through the plot. If I had to choice 2 of the best things this anime did well for me information technology would probably be the animation and soundtrack. They both were really well washed, and honestly without them being as good as they were this series would have gotten a much lower score from me, and when I say I actually enjoyed the soundtrack I mean that I loved it, it was superb. I recall what it really comes down was just the fact that I enjoyed watching it. I can look at the flaws and pick the anime apart pretty easily, but those flaws never really stopped me from enjoying this anime.I really practise feel though that information technology had a lot of potential to exist a top tier series, it merely made far too many mistakes. Looking at information technology considerately I merely cannot give this anime higher than a 7. Information technology was proficient because I found information technology to be enjoyable, merely it wasn't great or amazing. At the end of the day I spotter anime because I desire something that will entertain me and go along me interested, and I experience that Sword Fine art Online did a proficient job at accomplishing that.
Oct 12, 2014
25 of 25 episodes seen
| Overall | 2 |
| Story | 2 |
| Animation | 7 |
| Audio | seven |
| Character | 2 |
| Enjoyment | 5 |
In one case upon a time, in a land far away, in that location lived a brave young boy. He was the best 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.
Yeah, it'south time for Sword Art Online, the origin of many angry rants.
The premise doesn't sound likewise bad. Ten chiliad players of a virtual MMO are trapped in the game and forced to consummate it to escape, except that death in the game leads to death in real life. Merely call up 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 forepart of impossible conditions. ...Simply why take any of that when you can have romance and harem? That'due south correct; the survival game is only for testify. Don't expect deep interpersonal or political conflict. Don't wait psychology or moral dilemmas. Don't look tactics or mind games. Really, don't expect witty dialogue of whatever kind. And that is the biggest trouble with this bear witness. It is bankrupt in substance. Information technology's mostly just uninspired romance and harem, with a bit of action here and in that location. At that place isn't much thinking involved. A few plot holes I could forgive, simply if the show 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 information technology delivers. The show has thrown its easily up in the air and said, "We don't care." So why should the viewer? It doesn't assist that the show has grown infamous for glorifying its protagonist, who in the eyes of many has become the epitome of a Gary Stu. He tin defeat anything, he can solve any problem, and he gets all the girls. It'south almost similar this bear witness was meant to exist a propaganda piece in his favor. Story: 3 The start two episodes are decent, building up the premise. Nosotros are introduced to the protagonist Kirito and the concept of the expiry game. Presently enough, we are told that a calendar month has passed and two chiliad players accept died offscreen. ...Expect, not even a brusk montage or anything? Apparently not. Anyway, these two episodes are pretty much the only decent ones, so savor them while you lot can. The third episode begins to evidence more than serious problems. We are supposed to form an emotional bond to new characters in a few minutes, and we have to get through over-the-superlative angst over irrational actions. 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 spring to harem and romance antics. The next few episodes are nearly various girls all of a sudden falling for Kirito, often the same 24-hour interval they met him. This typically involves uncontrollable blushing, fanservice, and people acting Tsundere. You probably get the picture. It doesn't help that many of these episodes have a very filler-esque feel to them. The primary plot ‒ if you tin call information technology such at this point ‒ 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, just in that location is still very little buildup to their relationship. Unless it took place offscreen. You run across, another thing 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 tiresome events out of all the possibilities. Why is information technology that thousands of people dying is covered in a few lines, while we have to sit through hours and hours of romance and harem? I hate to be beating a dead horse hither, simply it'southward unavoidable because it comes up again in but about every episode. Past now, it has too become obvious to the viewer that Kirito is invincible to the indicate of tedium. He has a level higher than anyone, the all-time equipment, and a seemingly endless pool of abilities, just most importantly he always wins. There is sometimes simulated tension, sure, but you know he will survive anyway. You can only tummy so many clutch survivals earlier you starting time rolling your eyes. The residue of the story arc involves Kirito and Asuna hanging out in the countryside to spend their honeymoon. They even adopt a daughter to portray a typical happy family unit. The trouble is that their relationship is really non that interesting. Just "dem feels"! Nah, sorry. I have a heart of stone. This is followed past a sudden confrontation with the chief villain, which Kirito wins considering the power of love conquers all. And past that I hateful the power of beloved conquers the programming of the game. Well, okay, maybe at that place was some "power of dearest" clause in the lawmaking somewhere. It wouldn't surprise me at this point. Predictably enough, melodrama ensues. Tears, promises of dear, etc. You can probably imagine. At to the lowest degree now we're done with this bear witness, right? No, think again, that was only the proficient part. 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 death aspect. Before we get to the plot itself, even at a glance this idea brings upward a few issues. The harsh reality hits y'all faster than you tin can say "cashcow." This second arc feels completely unnecessary. It has been tied into the original story with an overly convenient plot device for no credible purpose other than stretching it farther. At least know to quit while you're ahead. Only no, they merely had to drag this show through the mud to rip apart whatsoever shred of dignity it had left. It doesn't help that there is no death anymore. While this makes the slice-of-life content more than plumbing fixtures, information technology too removes the established selling betoken of the show. The alter is likewise precipitous, and the difference in tone is besides jarring. If you desire to make a slice-of-life of ordinary MMO players, exercise it from the start. Now, for the plot itself, and it isn't pretty. We go straight to a Mario game, by 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 you lot have a winning combination. The incest aspect is provided past Kirito's sister Suguha, who also provides additional fanservice. At least now the pacing is less erratic and at that place is seemingly less evolution taking place offscreen. It's just too bad that there is also very little meaningful taking place onscreen. There are some new characters and even an ingame war going on, just it's all so irrelevant to the main story that it's hard to maintain interest. Long story brusque, Kirito beats the second villain with the help of more deus ex machinas. There are also more tears, promises of love, etc. And so at present we're done, right? For now, yep, but there'due south notwithstanding flavour 2 to expect forward to. Setting: This is technically part of the story category, but I actually think it deserves its own section here. You see, the very foundations of the setting make no sense. People in Sword Art Online are also oft acting like they are in a normal game, not in a life-and-death scenario. For instance, why is in that location so much resentment towards beta testers who have greater cognition of the game? This isn't a competition; the faster someone beats the game, the faster anybody gets out. And, similarly, why are beta testers reluctant to share information? Are they so worried near other people using their newfound abilities to kill them for no reason? Expect, you tin can't take both a casual slice-of-life of MMO players and a grim decease game at the same time. Option i. This casual attitude becomes more pronounced later on on when it becomes obvious people are wasting tons of time with unproductive quests, romance, and just hanging around. Kirito himself spends fourth dimension on seemingly useless sidequests, and Asuna spends fourth dimension 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 even trying? And why are so many players dying when towns are safe zones? Are they stupidly rushing into high-level dungeons? I suppose so. You lot see, for a grim death game it sure is hard to dice in SAO. Bosses won't respawn, and then everyone can advance forward, even weak players. Going from town to town is too easy enough with teleport crystals. Well, okay, there is that problem of challenging people to a duel while asleep, but that can't accept out then many. In that location is no lack of disquisitional resources because you can hang out in the prophylactic of towns indefinitely. Certain, exp and coin are limited because the regeneration of monsters is limited, which is strange game design itself, but they aren't necessary if y'all stay in town. At least, the show never implies that they are necessary. Oh, and for the record, I'm treating the testify as cocky-independent and ignoring the source cloth. Then why practise they die? I'd put my money on rushing stupidly into dungeons because we get to see one notable example. Allow's imagine y'all institute yourself in the following situation. Before you and your guild are nearly to enter a high-level dungeon, y'all acquire that one of them lied about his level. Knowing this, you realize you are underleveled and likely to terminate up dead, while avoiding death and warning the others would exist as unproblematic as staying in town. What would you do? Would y'all A tricky one, I admit. Nosotros are also introduced to groups of player killers. Sounds adept until you realize this isn't a normal game. At to the lowest degree, I thought information technology wasn't, only it looks like some people didn't get the memo. In a situation like SAO, there should be no reason for these killings. This isn't Danganronpa, where the main signal of the premise is that y'all can only escape by killing someone. This is a game where it makes the most sense to team up and beat the game. At that place is no prisoner's dilemma; cooperation is the best plan and whatever sensible person would get for information technology. If yous kill someone hither, you merely get some money and equipment. While it may assist you trounce the game a lilliputian faster, odds are that it will only hurt your chances of survival overall. Just off the meridian of my caput, a few reasons: Really, does the equipment fifty-fifty assistance that much? Kirito seemingly uses the same equipment for long periods of fourth dimension, still he is practically invincible. On the other manus, he does say that equipment can exist worth many levels, so did he go the best stuff for himself so fast? Is it foreign game pattern or cheat codes? It's anyone's guess. Of course, if you have petty interest in chirapsia the game, killing other players makes more sense, if just a little. I suppose getting more money can help you obtain some luxury items, but is it worth the take a chance? 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 day? Is this some kind of stab at gamers, saying that they are unable to distinguish between real violence and faux violence? Maybe, or the author forgot that this isn't a normal MMO. Again. Then is information technology a legit plan to stay in the virtual world for the residual of your life and give up on getting back to the real world? If so, it would explain a lot. While the range of pastimes in there is smaller than in the real world, maybe there is enough for some people. The choice betwixt staying in relative happiness in a virtual world and risking your life returning to the existent globe could take been an interesting 1. Unfortunately, their bodies are deteriorating in existent life, which makes the choice very 1-sided. For some reason, Asuna has to indicate this out to Kirito considering apparently the country of his real-world torso had never occurred to him over the course of two years. Aye, good task, Kirito, y'all 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 yet legal subsequently the SAO incident? Certain, the new hardware is supposedly safer, merely the previous death trap must have as passed through "strict" government examination, then who in their right heed would trust them? And even if we presume information technology is safe, since when has people's hysteria hinged on facts? People fear new applied science even when it'south harmless, let alone when a massive incident like this happens. There would exist mass protests in the streets in favor of banning them. Characters: ii Y'all may have noticed that I have but mentioned three characters by name then far. For some other show, this might be because the cast is and so vast that there is no fourth dimension to become through them all, but here it's rather that there are very few characters worth mentioning. Kirito, and by extension Asuna and Suguha who are divers by Kirito'south character, pig practically all of the screentime. Everyone else gets thrown nether the bus. Girls but be to fall in honey with Kirito, and males only exist to be junior to him. The villains in particular only exist as fodder to the guy. Kirito: I have barely touched on Kirito's personality. Well, blame the show, not me; it should at least be willing to meet me halfway. We 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'south pretty much all he is. Even his dialogue ends upwards pretty banal. At that place are no witty insights, no clever jokes, no proficient word games. Much of his dialogue consists of saying that the globe is a virtual 1, explaining game mechanics, wishing to relieve 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 nothing, oft the same 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 can give y'all points in their optics, but come on now. I tin only assume there is a subconscious manliness stat and his blackness jacket comes with a +999 boost. As far every bit his invincibility goes, the win streak by itself isn't the biggest trouble. The problem is that he e'er wins through brute forcefulness. That is to say, his graphic symbol skills and stats. At that place are no tactics worth mentioning, no psychology, no politics, no thinking whatsoever. He will just go out there 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. Nosotros come across no hints of it. It all happened offscreen and offscreen doesn't count. I'm pitiful, it just doesn't. To add insult to injury, some of Kirito's abilities are completely forgotten subsequently. I'g sure that health recovery thing would have come up in handy whatsoever number of times. And when even his skills and stats aren't enough, he is saved past plot armor at the last second. It's also a mockery of MMOs in the sense that Kirito is able to solo raid bosses. And he is able to attain a level higher than anyone despite playing solo, supposedly considering he doesn't have to carve up the exp. His almost unique ability 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 actor with god-mode cheats on? I'm seriously thinking that the prove would have been a lot more tolerable if Kirito alone had been replaced by one of the side characters. It still wouldn't have been a masterpiece or anything, but at least the Gary Stu accusations could have been avoided. Asuna: She is well-nigh as bland in personality as Kirito. She is also portrayed every bit fairly powerful for no substantial reason but of course cipher compared to him. As time passes, her virtually notable trait becomes existence a textbook Tsundere. ...Well, that was fast. Moving on. Suguha: As mentioned earlier, her master role is providing fanservice and a tacked-on incest subplot. It's just some other element thrown into the plot for cheap stupor value, if anyone is still shocked by incest in anime nowadays. Villain #i: The kickoff 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 earth where death has meaning like in the real one, merely as for why he was interested in the idea, he forgot. Err, alright and then. Moving on. Villain #ii: The second villain is pathetic and a disgrace to antagonists everywhere, coming across equally a drawing villain who does evil things for the sake of beingness evil. The conflict hither is portrayed equally completely black-and-white, only in case someone had sympathy for the guy, as unlikely as that is. His principal focus is essentially raping a comatose girl. And that is over obtaining tons of greenbacks, presumably in the millions. If he had left the girl lone, he probably would take got abroad with it, so for all intents and purposes, he chose raping a daughter over millions in cash. Talk about priorities. Come to recollect of information technology, it'due south already ridiculous that the family of the comatose girl is planning to have her ally the guy. I mean, she is in a coma. As in unconscious, unable to state her own intentions, etc. Where are child protective services when you demand them? Thankfully, the police disagrees, so they can't apply for an official marriage. Instead, he'll be adopted by her family unit 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 hole-and-corner keycode in plain sight so that the prisoner tin see. Thankfully the government and his company are equally incompetent and are not monitoring his research group closely despite its reliance on infamous technology used in SAO. Are these the aforementioned people who deemed the new tech safe? If so, I'd like a second opinion. I wouldn't trust these people to operate Angry Birds, let lonely a virtual MMO with potential health risks. Art: 7 So this is where the coin went. The backgrounds look prissy but inexpensive fanservice scenes non and then much. Sound: 7 Not also bad either. The soundtrack and opening and catastrophe songs work pretty decently, and the voices are also alright. Enjoyment: 5 Funnier than I was expecting but for the wrong reasons. In that location is something hostage about how the show is trying to portray escapism and homo relationships, simply it falls just short enough to create a dissonance. Overall: three Watch it to witness the writing yourself. But more importantly, past watching the show you tin can better understand the reviews or, better even so, write one yourself.
a) Tape a message in advance, knowing that you lot wouldn't concluding long, or
b) Stay in town and then that you wouldn't get killed in the first place?
1) If people start killing each other, it apparently increases the risk of dying yourself, both in retaliation and spontaneously.
2) Killing people reduces manpower needed for beating the game, and the distrust that follows will make it even slower. You could only impale useless low-level players, merely they probably don't take much money or good equipment to begin with.
3) In that location is the chance that you will country murder charges if you escape from the game and officials find out.
Dec 31, 2012
25 of 25 episodes seen
| Overall | three |
| Story | 3 |
| Animation | 8 |
| Sound | six |
| Character | 3 |
| Enjoyment | 6 |
Once in a while, in that location 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 aftertaste in their rima oris and making a few pass the piece of work off as 'average' or 'mediocre'. Online communities, forums, chat rooms and every other nook and corner of the net known to man plough into arenas of debates, discussions, fanboyism/fangirlism and flaming. Information technology's apparent that when something is pop, it doesn't e'er get to bath in praises. With the acclamation, comes a sheer corporeality of criticisms. Also, information technology goes without saying that popularity doesn't necessarily equate to quality. Sword Art Online, abbreviated as SAO from this indicate on, is no exception. SAO, the anime adaptation of a serial of light novels of the same name past Kawahara Reki, has been the much talked nigh evidence of the Summer and Autumn 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 fourth dimension. 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 expiry in real life and the just fashion 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 starting time episode, all seemed well and information technology gave the vibes of something truly worth spending your time on but so information technology does a flip and from this point, things go awry. And here we have information technology— one of the most controversial anime of the recent years. Before proceeding with the review, let's get 1 thing straight. I have not read the original source material— the low-cal novels, that is. Hence, I'grand non going to draw any comparison between that and the anime. With that out of the way, let's keep the ball rolling. SAO on the surface has a adequately interesting premise, no doubt, and information technology's executed well to some extent or so did it 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 but only 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 first episode. It'southward pretty much what I'd telephone call an excellent outset. Still, SAO effortlessly manages to transport all my expectations and enthusiasm downwards the drain for information technology takes the show but an episode or ii to reveal its truthful colours followed past the disappointment information technology has in shop. And so, what goes wrong? Well, many things. Following the Great Commencement, the starting time 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 upwardly 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's dear interest Asuna is assumed to be abiding and the other girls are variables. Now this isn't necessarily a bad thing. However, these side stories have very footling to nil to contribute to the series every bit a whole. Absolutely, they equip the viewers with some clever, fiddling details hither and there regarding how the game world works only they hardly have whatsoever begetting 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 exist the coolest dude in this world made up of zillions of pixels. To kicking, the characters (read: cute chicks) that appear in these episodes have absolutely no substantial role to play in the story afterwards on. 'Side' characters indeed. And SAO knows how to finer sideline them. When the arc finally gets itself back on track, information technology'due south only natural to hope that the evidence will now take something worthwhile to deliver. However, that isn't the case. If anything, some astringent cracks begin to appear as very soon the focus of SAO is the romance between the ii leads which is, in one word, cheesy. At this signal, opinions are divided. The romance aspect, for some, can exist appealing while for others, information technology can be a major turn off specially if they don't like the characters involved. Information technology all comes down to personal preference. However, personal preferences aren't a convincing excuse past any means to overlook the fact that the story, earth building and everything else take a backseat for the sake of allowing 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 skilful for a while merely with a rather unimpressive ending, the first arc concludes on a pretty bad note in my book. And then begins the second arc which, to be blunt, is a letdown once more. 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 have come across so far. This arc showcases some really center candy visuals simply that's pretty much its only redeeming point. It doesn't have anything much going on except for a few climactic action sequences now and so with intense battle music playing in the background that last simply for a while. Not to mention, in that location's another girl added to Kirito's harem. And then the hilarity ensues. The way in which ALO is brought to a shut is bloodcurdling to say the least and at the same laughable because it doesn't hesitate to use the much notorious plot device dues ex machina, ruining whatsoever hopes there were for the final confrontation with the villain. The poor conclusion could be excused if information technology was handled more cleverly and convincingly but a blatant ass pull is by no means satisfactory. If anything, it merely proves that the writer faced a dead finish and was unable to think of annihilation better and creative, and expected the audience to eat downwardly any he could come with, no matter how downright stupid information technology is. Among all the other things, the near easily noticeable flaw without a uncertainty is the execution of the plot itself which is all over the place. It doesn't have a genius to figure out after a couple of episodes that SAO suffers from poor pacing and inconsistency. It appears to be highly indecisive equally to what exactly it wants to practise and how to get it done. This is mostly axiomatic in the first arc which is incredibly rushed at many parts. There're timeskips and the next affair y'all realize is that the characters have already cleared quite a lot of floors while keeping us, the viewers, in the nighttime. This makes the plot disjointed, prevents any sort of correlation to the win-or-die situation that the characters have been put into and gives everything the feel of information technology being null more than than a piece of cake. 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 afterwards catastrophe up edifice a virtual family can further make ane wonder: Why are they and then 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 trend to go off track. It lays down for itself one thing but ends up doing something else altogether. It'due south uncertain every bit to whether to make itself come up across every bit a story of survival gear up within a VRMMORPG or as a fluffy dearest story. In due grade, information technology decides to juggle with both but doesn't get either of them rightly done. Non to mention, when the situation demands it and the author goes out of any artistic ideas to move the story forward, the characters' deportment are made to contradict the established game mechanics and the merely reasoning that'due south provided for such miracles is 'where there's a will, in that location's a style, and there're times when true love and determination can overcome any obstacle in the game'. Now, for those who look for substance in any given story, it's almost a fact that no corporeality of fanservice, eye candies, self-insertion or guilty pleasance factors can possibly recoup for a substandard storytelling. Yet that's what SAO tries to practise. It brings in all the aforementioned 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 primal gene, the other aspect that contributes considerably to the mediocrity of the show is the characterization. Simply put, SAO'due south characters are bland. Essentially, the evidence has its focus on simply two characters: Kirito and Asuna. The others are merely at that place; mere devices to move the story forward. And a few have zilch to contribute to the plot at all. For instance, the ones featuring in the side stories. Permit'south talk almost the protagonist Kirito first. An unsocial, reserved withal headstrong player who knows how to get things done his way and is determined to beat the game. That's basically how Kirito is portrayed in the outset. At this bespeak, he seems like a good riddance from the generic wimpy male person leads that have become so 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 last for long. In desperate attempts to make his graphic symbol more 'appealing', Kirito is depicted equally a 'perfect' being which leaves his graphic symbol with niggling plausibility and much insipidity. Thus, he serves as a mere self-insert grapheme for wish-fulfilment and at the end of the day, there'due south nothing 'individualistic' most him. Gary stu is probably what describes his character the best, and if paired with the Mary sue of the testify, we get a lead couple that seems to accept been cutting out direct from a tacky romance fanfiction. Yes, when I mentioned 'Mary sue', I was referring to Asuna. Asuna every bit the female pb is every bit stereotyped every bit they come. Much like Kirito, her character is heavily arcadian. She'due south pretty, popular, kind, caring and every other human being wants to have a piece of her. Oh, and did I mention her cooking skills that level upwardly with each passing day? After all, her foremost duty is to cook for Kirito and bear witness how much she cares for him. While initially she'due south portrayed as a strong, contained female player with a tsundere-ish attitude, information technology doesn't have her long to make a transition from that to a deplorable damsel in distress, requiring her knight in blackness robe to come to her rescue whenever she'southward in a bind. Kirito fighting her social club leader to earn her some time for honeymooning is laughable to say the least. It before long becomes credible 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 so which might be successful in pleasing the male audition somehow but that lone can't make upward for her badly written character. In fact, the other female person character the bear witness cares to put the spotlight on as well ends upwards condign the target of fanservice only doesn't have anything else going on for herself. If yous haven't guessed information technology already, I'm talking nearly Kirito'south beloved imouto. Throughout the first arc, the writer must have had been itching to include a love triangle in the story but couldn't find a potential candidate to get the job done. Every bit the first arc comes to a closure and the 2nd arc begins, he grabs the opportunity, puts Asuna behind the bars (so that she'southward non an interference in what he's attempting to do) and introduces Suguha, Kirito'south cousin sister. The sole purpose of creating her graphic symbol, it appears, is to make style for a generic love triangle and melodrama. Suguha loves her cousin only tin't do anything nigh it considering he loves Asuna. That's the bitter truth. Hence, she looks up to a sure someone she happens to befriend within ALO and hopes that he'd be able to sooth her agonized center. Withal, she gets trolled… desperately. This, in turn, leads to more than drama that's somehow supposed to exist eye wrenching simply it isn't. The remaining cast consists of two antagonists, both declining to brand any sort of impression though the i making his debut in the second arc can be a skillful comic relief at times, and a bunch of side characters that wouldn't take had fabricated any difference even if they hadn't existed. The bottom line is, the characters of SAO are a half-baked lot devoid of any depth or development. They could've perhaps turned out to be interesting if they were more fleshed out merely who cares virtually that as long equally they entreatment to the intended target audition? Onto the technical aspects now. In the department of visuals, A-ane Pictures does a pretty good task. Inside the game, the vast tracts of greenery, the beautiful cities during the night, the castles… they're all a pleasure to behold. The animation is also well-handled for the near function. Initially I wasn't much pleased with the character designs merely they gradually grew on me, and I personally observe a few characters like Asuna, Heathcliff and Lisbeth to exist very well designed. The music is composed by one of the nearly renowned composers in the anime industry, Yuki Kajiura. While the soundtracks aren't bad past whatever ways, none of them stand up out much except the ane that plays during combat/intense scenes. In fact, that'south the only track that can be heard playing nigh of the fourth dimension in the entire prove. 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. Nil groundbreaking in that location. I'm a fan of almost all of Kajiura's works and if compared to her previous works, SAO'southward music is lacklustre to say the least so much and so that information technology'due south hard to believe Kajiura is the composer to begin with. To wrap up the review, SAO had the potential to be something adept simply that potential goes down the drain due to poorly executed plot and bland characterization. It starts off in a satisfactory manner only goes downhill thereafter. Nevertheless, it can be an entertaining ride if ane keeps their expectations low and swallows down whatever information technology has to offer without questioning anything. 1 of the reasons why SAO has been a letdown is the anticipation the majority had for it prior to its airing only that'due south justified since the light novel serial from which the anime is adapted is one of the most popular ones out there. [Edited on March 20, 2017]
He's a guy with a heart of gilded.
He has an 'platonic' girlfriend/wife.
He'southward admired by those around him.
He tin '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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